I just read today that 1 in 9 Americans are using Federal Food Stamps to buy groceries. It’s no secret that times are tough for everyone right now. We’re all looking for ways to save money and sometimes the only place we have any control is on the grocery bill.
If you are a frequent reader of Jersey Bites you know that I give myself goosebumps when I can stretch a meal and make something new out of it the second night. (Hey, it’s the little things folks.) And if there’s enough to make a third night’s meal out of it? Well, then there’s just no living with me.
So, this week I decided to make three meals centering around a 10 oz bag of Vigo Yellow Rice. I love this saffron flavored rice, and my kids do too, so that’s a major plus.
On the first night, we didn’t do anything crazy. I cooked the whole bag of rice as per instructions. After it was done, I threw in some canned black beans and served it with grilled chicken and a salad.
Last night, with a lot of rice and beans left over, I decided to make a one pot “mock paella.” Similar to the picture you see at the top of this post which I made several weeks ago. This time around I added Tomato, corn and a tsp. of cumin and omitted the peas.
INGREDIENTS
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 Yellow Onion diced
1 Green Bell Pepper chopped
1 Large tomato chopped
1/2 Cup Frozen Corn
1 tsp. cumin
2 scallions, greens only sliced thin
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro for garnish (optional)
10 sausage links. I used 5 Andouille Sausage and 5 Chirizo sausage. You could easily use Hot Italian Sausage or Reduce sausage by half and add shrimp.
Saute onion and pepper in large skillet until tender. Add tomato and saute for a few minutes until tender. Add cumin and stir for one minute. Add leftover rice and beans and toss to warm and mix with ingredients. Toss in 1/2 cup frozen corn (no need to defrost) and cover with lid and keep on warm.
Meanwhile, fry sausage in a tiny bit of oil until browned on all sides. Slice sausage on an angle and add to rice mixture. Any fat rendered from the sausage makes a nice addition to the rice unless you’re watching your weight. If that’s the case, you should be using chicken sausage. 😉
Toss everything well and plate. Garnish with chopped cilantro and enjoy.
Today’s Lunch:
Well, would you believe this family of four still had leftover rice the third day. Today I decided to slice the leftover chicken from Tuesday night, add 1/2 sliced avocado over the rice. A delicious lunch and I could have served at least 2 more people.
The beauty of this type of dish is its versatility and the way it stretches the more expensive ingredients. You can use frozen shrimp, frozen fish, chicken even steak. As long as you have the basic onion, pepper, tomato (if you want) as your foundation, you can throw in just about anything and have a very healthy and Delicious meal.
As I said, I love making two meals out of one. For more leftover makeovers click here.
