Beef Stroganoff, Fluffy Rice, Red Onion and Parsley Pickle

Meal 98 - November 17th - Beef Stroganoff, Fluffy Rice, Red Onion and Parsley Pickle

After all my Saturday exertions, Sunday was a predictably quiet day. I was hoping (and felt that I fully deserved) to spend the entire day in my pyjamas, but sadly Lolz foiled this plan by insisting that I go out and do the shopping. On my list was a couple of lovely sirloin steaks - normally a surefire way to ensure a good mark from Lolz (the crazy Korean fried rice and steak meal was the first 15 minute meal with sirloin steak that scored less than a 9).

Korean Fried Rice, Steak, Mushrooms and Pickles

Meal 91 - October 29th - Korean Fried Rice, Steak, Mushrooms and Pickles

Sirloin steak is one of those ingredients where you just don't want to faff about with it too much. There's a reason why most restaurants serve it - and most recipes tell you to cook it - as simply as possible: it is melt-in-the-mouth delicious. As long as you don't mess around too much, you can't really go too far wrong. Which boded (bade?) well because this dish looked mental.

Beef Chimichurri, New Potatoes and Crunch Salad

Meal 55 - June 27th - Beef Chimichurri, New Potatoes and Crunch Salad

With Lolz off on what she insists will not be a drunken weekend tomorrow, this will be my last 15 minute meal of the month, and therefore my last one before we hit the second half of the year. With 55 down and still 64 to go I'm a little behind schedule but nothing a few indulgent, 15 minute meal heavy weekends won't solve. In the six months I've been going so far, I've cooked 7 chicken dishes, 8 beef, 4 pork, 3 lamb, 9 fish, 6 pasta, 3 soups and sarnies, 5 veggie and 9 breakfasts. There have been hits (Asian Sea Bass) and misses (Prawn Linguine). I've experienced cooking with new ingredients, learned new cooking techniques and discovered whole new places to shop. Who knows what surprises the second half of the year will have in store?

Sizzling Beef Steak, Hoi Sin Prawn and Noodle Bowls

Meal 41 - May 4th - Sizzling Beef Steak, Hoi Sin Prawn and Noodle Bowls

Ahhh, bank holiday weekend!  After a long week of work I can't describe how excited I am about 3 days of lie ins, alcohol, football and of course 15 minute meals. With respect to the latter, we found ourselves watching an episode of the 15 minute meals TV show as we had lunch, featuring this particular recipe. Lolz gave me some nervous looks when she saw that the recipe needed 4 separate pans, but we both agreed it looked sufficiently appetizing to kick off a new month of 15 minute meals! Today is of course also Star Wars Day - time will tell as to whether this particular attempt was out of this world...

Grilled Steak, Ratatouille and Saffron Rice

Meal 23 - March 9th - Grilled Steak, Ratatouille and Saffron Rice

Being Mother's Day tomorrow I spotted an excellent opportunity to kill two birds with one stone and so, after packing up almost the entire kitchen bar the kitchen sink (and the food processor, which was not required for this dish) we set off towards the West Sussex countryside, with my parents being the latest benefactors of my 15 minute meal challenge.

Cajun Steak, Smoky Baked Beans and Collard Greens

Meal 16 - Feb 16th - Cajun Steak, Smoky Baked Beans and Collard Greens

I may be hungover today but that doesn't mean I can ease the pace in my 15 minute meal challenge. My readership now extends to nine countries (hello Ukraine!) and I don't want to let my fans down.

My delicate state of wellbeing today partly dictated my meal choice - anything salad based, vegetarian or containing mushrooms was immediately ruled out - today I needed good, solid meat and stodge to suck up all the excess booze in my system - it would have to be comfort food at it's finest. Steak was therefore an obvious choice, especially when accompanied by some beans which looked like they would blow your head off!

Steak is always a good option for the weekend as it means we can buy better quality stuff for less from the butchers (Dickenson's closes at 5pm weekdays - not ideal for a post-work shop). So I set off up North End Road and bought 2 steaks for a bargain £5.98 (compare that to Waitrose where one "essential" sirloin steak is around £5), whilst a stop off at a charity shop en-route also yielded a delightfully retro platter to add to our collection of tableware.

Once again, the cooking of the dish is very straightforward. Dare I say I might have actually been close to 15 minutes on this one? The real success of the dish however is in the eating - it is an absolute triumph! The steak and greens were always going to be good, but the beans were a surprise. Looking at the picture in the book I was a little dubious (I won't attempt to describe what they look like... ahem, vomit, ahem...), but the end product was great. Turbocharged baked beans if you will. And what's more, the ingredients are things you would typically have in your cupboard.

Lolz gave the dish 10/10 - her second maximum of the task so far! Clearly in a generous mood,  she also made some cupcakes! Difficulty rating 2/10.