Arrogant British Bastage - competitionFollow

Yep. That's me. I probably do arrogance better than anyone I've ever met.

I'm currently inspired by an astonsihingly talented (but annoying) British Chef (Jamie Oliver) who left school with no qualifications and now has a chain of Michelin-starred restaurants and a multi-million pound empire. He is on a mission to show people that even on a low income or with limited cooking facilities, cooking healthy, cheap meals is easy to learn, much healthier than 'fast food' and doesn't take much more time.

So I have an idea.

1. You suggest the basis for a meal (e.g. eggs, Pizza, Beef, pasta etc.) I'm aiming for less than $10 for a meal for 4 (so you might skip the Beluga Caviar or Kobi Steak) but one that you'd happily pay good money for in a restaurant.

2. I'll devise (and test) a recipe based on ingredients that are cheap, readily available and don't require a sophisticated set of kitchen equipment.

3. Assylumites have a go at cooking the dish and post photos of their cullinary masterpiece.

4. Winner gets an arbitrary prize at my discretion (maybe restaurant voucher or a CD or DVD or sumfing.)

The last time I tried this with friends at work we produced a dish that cost £2.35 (less than $5) for a family of 5 and was rated very highly (including a bunch of 'foodies' who regularly pay big money in poncy restaurants).

I've heard that minced/ground lamb is hard to find in the USA of Americaland? Are we talking joints, chops or ground/minced lamb? (What's most widely available?)

Yeah I think minced lamb would be hard to find. Easiest to find around here would be chops. Really though, anything with red meat and I'd be happy. But if you can figure out a recipe with lamb thats easy to do and fairly inexpensive, you'll make a happy DSD. I luv me my lamb.

one restriction though, which may make you want to kill me. I am not fond of mint jelly or mint anything with lamb.


I am going to make you work for this!

Potatoes, carrots, broccoli, peas and sweetcorn in vegetable stock.

Technically speaking, there should be garlic and olive oil in there too, but I doubt it'd fit the budget then.

I wouldn't get them myself.

So far red meat seems to be order of the day, but on health, cost and accessibility grounds, I'm tending towards white meat or even (dare I say it) meat free options.

Alas, Elne, chopping & peeling are the shortcuts to good food so I may overstep you there.

If I were going to participate I'd suggest fish, personally. I tend to broil it with pepper and butter, but that's a little dull.

I'll judge you and damn you too, if you pick a dish sans meat. Now, I'll be fine if you decide to do two meals, one with meat and one without. But you said to make suggestions, and noted that the majority thus far wants red meat, yet you throw out the possibility of sans meat?..... I think you can't do it. That's right. I think you just realized you are in over your head.


the gauntlet is thrown, sir!

Pork tenderloin?

I second this suggestion.

Eel pie.

Possible hovercrafts.

Pommegranites.

I do. I imagine most people have a wok or a wok-like pan.