[Lewjam]

On a budget I invented this when I was at Uni to spread out my meat ration then fancied it up a bit with things I have lying about!

Note- this works just as well with left over roast chicken!  If thats what you have dont bother wit the first few steps (You just dont end up with the soup at the end)

4 x chicken legs – take skin off
Couple of carrots in chunks
Onion peeled and quartered
Stick of celery or leek tops (if don’t have don’t buy especially)
Bay leaf
Mixed herbs- works fine with a teaspoon of dried (If you have fresh use them (Thyme, parsley, bay, maybe a sage leaf or two – all tied with string)
Couple of cloves of garlic, skinned then cracked (still whole more or less)

Chuck in a large pan all together with plenty of water (a good couple of litres) and boil for 2 hours orso.

Take out the chicken legs and take all the meat off – split it into half.

With half the chicken – Peanut curry!

Soften an onion in a pan till its pale, add the chicken and stir well
Add Chili power (As much as you like – I use allot as I like it hotish (Fresh chillies work if you have them)
Add ½ teaspoon of cumin, coriander and tumeric powder.
1 teaspoon of paprika (Ideally smoked)
Stir in well and cook off for a min or 2
Add a tin of chopped tomatoes
Cook down for 10 –15mins stirring now and then.
Stir in 1 teaspoon of garamasala (If you don’t have its not really an issue)
Cook for a min then add 2 – 3 tablespoons of crunchy peanut butter and stir in well
It will thicken and become a tangled matt or sauce and chicken meat.

Serve with plain boiled white or brown rice!

Note: This isn’t a chunky curry with big lumps of chicken, its more of a thick matted sauce of a curry- Nigerian style!  Me and my lot love it

Will serve 4 easy!

Other half of the chicken!

Cook some onions and mushrooms till soft, add most of the chicken leaving a little behind
Add some smoked paprika then add a glass a white wine and cook till reduced a bit
Add some double crème and cook down a little more
Mix a table spoon of cornflour with water and add to thicken
(Or heat a nob of butter in a pan and stir in some four till it makes a paste then add the liquid from the mushroom pan and stir till it thickens then add back to the other pan)
Make a pie or pasties out of the mixture using whatever system you like to do!  (I often just full a pie dish then cover with short crust pastry with half, and make pasties for work out of the remainder with some frozen puff pastry!)


Strain the cooking juices into a pan, add the last of the chicken back into the stock, cook down with some more crème and add a tin of sweetcorn, or some mushrooms to make a lovely soup.  Adding a few handfuls of cooked pearl barley extends the soup even further!.


Its not very well written I realise, I have just jotted down my thoughts at work – and also I tend to make it up as I go along any way but the principle still holds true!

4x chicken legs makes:

4x portion of peanut curry
+
2x portion of pie + 2 pasties
+
4x portion of soup!

[joyfull]

wow such a lot from so little 

[arugula]

On a budget I invented this when I was at Uni to spread out my meat ration then fancied it up a bit with things I have lying about!
........
4x chicken legs makes:

4x portion of peanut curry
+
2x portion of pie + 2 pasties
+
4x portion of soup!

And that can't be bad, thanks Lewjam!

[Poolfield2]

Incidentally, where did you find a chicken with 4 legs

I think we have to give you an award for frugal cook of the year, that is an amazing amount from so little. I seriously wonder whether we should put a clever linky in to frugal living!