Recipes On A Budget & Home Maintenance Tips

2 lamb shanks, look for shanks that have a good amount of meat but also have a nice tendon.

2 carrots

3 potatoes preferably waxy

1 onion

Half head of garlic

1 litre of chicken stock unsalted or reduced salt. If you can afford real chicken stock please do so.

“Half a tube” of tomato paste (aprox 2 tablespoons)

1 can of cannellini beans (use whichever suitable bean or barley you wish)

Thyme

Hot sauce to taste

Soak your shanks in cold water for at least half an hour to draw excess blood out and pat dry.

When it comes to the garlic I place a knife flat over the clove and punch down to crack the shell and splat the clove. Whether you cut or punch the clove garlics flavour is activated through damage. Don’t cut yourself look at a video if you’re confused.

Scrub salt and pepper into the shanks and place them in your pot, browning thoroughly on low heat. You can also roast the shanks but please use a deeper roasting pan to catch the drippings.

While browning your shanks half your onion and place them into the pot. The more brown they get at this stage the richer the flavour of the soup.

Remove the shanks from the pot and add your garlic diced potato and carrot, sautéing lightly.

Scoot your vegetables to the edge of the pot and put the tomato paste in the middle of the pot, try spreading the paste thinly to cook the paste quicker. Once your paste has cooked and expressed aroma combine with the vegetables and add your stock and shanks.

Add water just enough to cover your ingredients.

Bring to a boil and reduce to a low simmer and cook for one hour.

Prod the shanks after an hour to see if the meat has separated from the bone. If so remove from the pot and dice the meat and return it to the pot. Don’t burn your hands please.

Cook for another 10-15 minutes or for however long it takes to gnaw the last remaining bits of meat from the shanks and defend them from your cat/dog/family members in general.

Right as you turn off the stove add a dash or two of hot sauce. It brightens the soup and balances the richness nicely.

Serve with crusty bread or rusks.

Ideally look up the model of range hood you have and follow their instructions but as a general guide.

Remove the filter and wipe away the grease then put them in a garbage bag filled with hot soapy water OR spray them thoroughly with degreaser. Leave them in the garbage bag for an hour and wipe away remaining grease and rinse. While they’re soaking look into the exhaust and see if grease has gotten into the range hood. Turn off the range hood at the breaker if possible and delicately soak up any grease. If grease has solidified soak a paper towel in degreaser and plop it over the grease. Also cover your stove top while working and wear clothes you don’t care about. I’ve had streams of sticky black tar running up my arms while unclogging years of grease from previous residents and it sucked. I found limited success using those skincare wrist bands but it comes with the territory. Avoid touching the blades unless they’re gunked up.

I am so deadly serious about cleaning your exhaust fan, grease will get on your walls and everywhere else from not being able to properly evacuate as well as a dirty exhaust fan is a giant wick sitting in your home. So many minor kitchen fires have turned into destructive nightmares because the giant candle over your stove has ignited.

I’ve got nearly a decade of professional kitchen experience and I’ll tell you this now, don’t bother with a “fancy” knife for every occasion. Get yourself one decent knife appropriately sized for your comfort and a paring knife that’s all you need trust me. If for whatever reason you really need a specialty knife get a kiwi brand one, cheap as cheap can be but the factory edge on them are great.

If I go to your house and see you brought one of those knife blocks with the set with like 10 different knives I’m going to shake you by the shoulders there are zero on the market that you need. I use a chefs club mini I got back in culinary school and a vic ox paring knife I accidentally yoinked from a cafe I used to work at. All the other knives I’ve brought I only ever use when I’m too lazy to wash dishes.

Using the unglazed rim of a mug is fine you don’t need to buy a steeldick and launch the “three in one” knife sharpener out of your nearest window it’s a scam and will chew your blade up severely.

If you have small hands look for chefs knives that are less than 20cm, if you have hot sweaty hands look for a rubber grip. And unless you can commit to it don’t go for a wooden handle. About once every 1-3 months depending on frequency look at the wear and tear of all your utensils and learn how to maintain them. A good pair of kitchen shears will have a nut that is easy to remove when washing and a short point blade.

Some people dismiss it as an old wives tale but I swear by it, do NOT let your knives come into contact with metal especially other knives. It’ll dull the blade even in storage.

If you can learn how to peel with a knife, vegetable peelers are great for reducing waste but learning to peel with a knife will increase your bond and confidence handling a knife reducing risks and mess ups in the kitchen. And long peel ribbons are much easier to dispose of.

If I come to your house and see a glass cutting board I’m going to fnaf jump at you they are a total waste of money. Wood is the best hands down, if you’re nervous about bacteria hot soapy water and oiling your board when it starts to feel dry is more than enough. Bacteria is alive so if you dry your cutting board against a window sill it’ll have nothing to feed on and die.

If you soak dishes don’t soak knives because (a) it’s a hazard and (b) it will dull the blade. Also don’t soak anything porous or made of wood.

The two types of plate you are looking for are Oxford rim or coupe. I prefer going with a neutral or warm white high gloss at home. Feels elevated but still homely, also love a plate that is also a bowl. I prefer non textured plates with no designs on them as they are easier to clean and look less busy drawing the focus to what’s actually made. They’re also super cheap. What size dinner service ware should you get? Unless you’re planning on hosting regularly get your household size plus two.

I’ve been a sucker for a one task utensil and I’ve appreciated a one task utensil, if you see it frequently at second hand stores it’s for a reason. Consider the difficulty of cleaning, bulkiness and whether it’s actually worth having compared to using what you’ve already got. That being said ginger graters are worth it.

Pets keep jumping on the counter? Get motion sensor lights for your back splashes, it’ll startle them and make them think that you know they’re doing something naughty, also super helpful when you need to crawl to the fridge for a late night snack but don’t want the looming judgemental glare of overhead lighting.

Easy chickpea curry

2 cups dried chickpeas (soaked)

1 chilli sliced

1/2 a knob of ginger thinly sliced

1 can of coconut cream

3 large table spoons of chana masala

Coconut sugar to taste

Step 1: Partially boil your chickpeas until you can crumble one between your fingers (if using canned chickpeas skip this step) drain and set aside.

Step 2: In a dry pot add your oil of choice (I use half and half olive and butter) just enough to cover the bottom. Add your chilli and ginger cold and bring up to a low medium temperature.

Step 3: once at temperature add your chana masala powder and stir rapidly as it foams

Step 4: when the spices just begin to darken add your chickpeas stirring rapidly to cover quickly

Step 5: add the coconut cream + 1 can of water stir through making sure the spice paste hasn’t stuck to the bottom.

Tips: goes great with seafood, udon noodles, rice

I used Tyson dried chickpeas entirely forgetting they are quite tricky to cook through evenly. Look for pale plump dried chickpeas in the store as Tyson’s shells although a great source of fibre can change the texture and cooking time significantly.

Try mixing in some keens curry powder to your spice mix.

Rinsing the chickpeas after the par boil can slow down how quickly the curry thickens.

Be mindful of saltiness, the brand of chana masala powder i brought is very strong I added some lime juice to cut through it which tastes great.