1. Simple Spanish Chickpea Soup
This winter warmer is the ultimate comfort food for cosy nights. Simply fry some diced chorizo in a non-stick pan with finely chopped onions and garlic. Add some chickpeas, tinned chopped tomatoes, and enough vegetable stock to obtain your preferred consistency. Sprinkle in some dried herbs of your choice (e.g. oregano, rosemary, thyme), and chilli flakes for an optional kick. I like to shake up the more orthodox Spanish recipe with some leafy green vegetables (cabbage is an affordable and tasty option) and a dash of worcestershire sauce. Serve with warm or toasted bread drizzled with olive oil.
Thrifty hack: swap fresh onions and garlic for frozen and use dried chickpeas (soaked overnight) rather than the tinned variety.
2. Huevos Rotos (Broken Eggs)
This Spanish take on a fry-up used to be my favourite midnight snack or hangover brunch cure during my student days! In a large pan, fry some thinly sliced potatoes with the skins on with chopped onion, diced chorizo, peppers, and chopped tinned tomatoes. Once the vegetables are soft, crack some eggs on top and fry them for a couple of minutes until the yolk is oozing and golden. Add your preferred topping (jarred jalapeños, cheese, ham, olives, or dried herbs) and serve with bread to dip into the runny egg.
3. Fish Tacos
These zingy fish tacos are a perfect dish to share with friends on a Friday night in. Fry some chopped fish of your choice in a pan with some garlic, tabasco sauce, and fish sauce to taste. Meanwhile, mix together some natural yoghurt and some freshly squeezed lime in a bowl and chop up some fresh coriander, chillis, lettuce, and cucumber. You can even make some homemade guacamole with avocado, tomato, onion, and lemon juice. Warm up some tortillas and let everybody tuck in and build their own tacos.
Money-saving tip: swap fresh fish for frozen diced fish (check defrosting instructions). Trading more common fish such as salmon or cod for less known varieties such as basa is a more economical and sustainable option.
4. Calabaza Rellena
This stuffed butternut squash recipe is the perfect autumnal treat. Cut the squash in half (lengthways), scoop out the seeds, and roast it for around 40 minutes until the flesh is soft. Remove the majority of the flesh, leaving a layer around one centimetre thick so that the squash holds its shape while you refill it. Mash up the butternut squash flesh before sweating off the onion and garlic in a frying pan until the onion is soft. Add some minced meat (or Quorn) and salt, pepper, and dried herbs to taste. Once the ingredients are cooked, combine with the mashed squash and stuff the butternut squash with the mixture. Cover with grated cheese and place in the oven until the cheese is melted.
5. Milanesa (South American Schnitzel)
The milanesa is the South American version of a schnitzel and can be prepared with veal, chicken, pork, or aubergine covered in beaten egg and bread crumbs and fried or baked until crispy. Milanesas are a cheap meat dish since the cuts used are very thin. Serve with squeezed lemon and mashed potato.
Tip: Make your own bread crumbs out of stale bread, preferably a few days old.
6. Choripán (Southern Cone Hotdog)
Choripán is the ultimate street food in Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay or starter for an asado (or barbecue) in Argentina. It does what it says on the tin: the name ‘choripán’ comes from the amalgamation of ‘chorizo’ with ‘pan’ (bread). Serve your beef or pork sausage in a baguette and smother with chimichurri (a sauce made of parsley, garlic, chilli, salt, pepper red wine vinegar, and olive oil). These are guaranteed to be a crowd pleaser.
7. Choclo (Corn on the Cob)
Choclo, or corn on the cob, is another favourite street food in Central and South America that you can easily recreate at home. Golden, grilled corn on the cob is smothered in butter, mayonnaise, lemon juice, garlic, grated parmesan cheese, and parsley.
8. Quesadillas
Quesadillas are a tasty vegetarian dish which is quick, easy, and cheap to make. Finely chop some red onion, peppers, and veggies or beans of your choice (e.g. leeks, tinned sweetcorn, grated carrot, or black beans that are tinned or soaked overnight) and grate some cheese. Pour some oil into a pan on a low heat and add one tortilla. Spread the veggies and cheese over half the tortilla before folding in four once the cheese has melted. Serve with sour cream, guacamole, salsa, or natural yoghurt with freshly squeezed lime juice and coriander.
Cooking tip: avoid the temptation to overload your quesadilla and make sure that ingredients are finely chopped and that you cook the tortilla over a low heat.
9. Burritos
Burritos are an excellent way to use up leftover meat and vegetables. Fry off some minced meat, vegetables (e.g. carrots, peas, chopped tomatoes), and pulses (e.g. lentils or black beans) with garlic, paprika, and chilli flakes to taste. Once cooked, have some fun loading your own tortillas with the meat filling, sour cream or natural yoghurt, salsa, guacamole, and grated cheese.
Money-saving hack: swap the full or half quantity of minced meat with lentils or beans for a cheap and healthy alternative.
10. Pastel de papas (Southern Cone Shepherd’s Pie)
Pastel de papas is the Southern Cone version of a shepherd’s pie with a twist. The topping is made either completely with sweet potato or with a mix of half sweet and half normal potato and the meat filling is bulked out with hard boiled eggs and olives. In the Argentine province of Mendoza (near the Andes), where I lived, they also add a sprinkle of brown sugar and cinnamon on top.
Do you have a favourite Latin dish in your family or from your travels that won’t break the bank? Let us know in the comments.
