Frugal Food - Delia Smith

...coping with another recession, Delia's Frugal Food has been re-issued is worth investing in.But perhaps only if you don't remember these recipes the first time round.

As a young student, I was brought up on lentil curries and spag bol suppers so much of this is achingly familiar. Not so for a younger generation brought up on ready meals and takeaways.

To the uninitiated, it will be a godsend because as we know Delia's ...
...is split up into sections on soup, ( including such delights as split pea, goulash, onion soup and potato soup with bacon)

Eggs get their own chapter too with almost every variation you could think of on pies, souffles, and gratins.

Cheaper fish like herring, mackerel and whiting are made interesting with hebs and spices and Delia's original fishcake recipe is there in all its cod and mashed potato glory. She never ... more

First written in 1976, and tweaked only slightly for a world coping with another recession, Delia's Frugal Food has been re-issued is worth investing in.But perhaps only if you don't remember these recipes the first time round.

As a young student, I was brought up on lentil curries and spag bol suppers so much of this is achingly familiar. Not so for a younger generation brought up on ready meals and takeaways.

To the uninitiated, it will be a godsend because as we know Delia's recipes Always Work.

Frugal Food is split up into sections on soup, ( including such delights as split pea, goulash, onion soup and potato soup with bacon)

Eggs get their own chapter too with almost every variation you could think of on pies, souffles, and gratins.

Cheaper fish like herring, mackerel and whiting are made interesting with hebs and spices and Delia's original fishcake recipe is there in all its cod and mashed potato glory. She never bettered it.

As it's the 1970s, much of the cooking revolves around basic casseroles with chicken , braised meat using the cheapest cuts, and more interesting options like belly pork with prunes, beef in Guinness and "fidget pie" combining bacon and apple.

My guess is not many people these days are likely to turn to offal dishes with glee and it's stretching it a bit to say, as she does, that kidney stroganoff is just as nice as the fillet steak variety! . But there are good recipes for lamb's liver ( the least "offaly" of offals ) plus interesting things to do with bangers, including a poor man's cassoulet.

Vegetarians will find standard stuff like chickpea salads, lentil curries, and lots of potato dishes like colcannon and bubble and squeak. If you're prone to spending a fortune on take-out pizza, you can learn how to make your own.And even have a go at making your own bread.

And there "pauper's puddings" including a blackberry cheesecake, seedcake and apple shortcake.

With over 160 recipes, I have no complaints about the content. But there is very little photography, which might have been OK back in 1976 but it makes the book a little joyless to browse.

Not many of the recipes are ones which you'd serve up to impress. It's more geared to family meals or useful tips for students surviving on very little.

Still, the absence of proesssed food, and inclusion of many forgotten recipes ( stuffed lamb's breast, spag bol) makes it a nostalgic treat. It costs £17.99 and is publsihed by Hodder and Stoughton.

If you are REALLY short of money, Delia Smith's "How To Cook" published around the same time, is widely available in charity shops. And probably a better bet.
 

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