This simple habit saves you money, time and effort – and makes cooking more fun

As a new mother, Nabula El Mourid felt overwhelmed. She decided to quieten the chaos by revamping her approach to cooking and grocery shopping.

Sharing her strategies for creating simple, healthy and affordable meals on social media connected her with a large community of home cooks, eventually leading to the creation of her grocery shopping app, Supermarket Swap.

El Mourid has now compiled her top supermarket secrets, time-saving tricks, and organisational hacks into a new book, The Weekly Grocery Shop.

Her number-one tip is to create a meal plan before you ever set foot in a supermarket. This simple habit saves money, time and effort, while also making cooking more enjoyable.

“The truth is, I don’t want to cook seven nights a week,” she writes in the book’s introduction. “Personally, I plan for five nights and the other two are ‘whatever nights’ (leftovers or an easy meal, such as eggs or a toasted cheese sandwich).”

Her book is packed with smart hacks such as cooking a single meal base that can be repurposed. Her bolognese recipe (below), for example, can be doubled and used for two or three entirely different dishes, saving you from a kitchen-prep rut while still getting a delicious, home-cooked meal on the table.

Vegie-loaded bolognese sauce

Batch-cooking a beautiful, rich bolognese sauce will set you up for many stress-free dinners. This quantity is more than enough to make the Mexi-spice tray bake and the sweet potato shepherd’s pies (see recipes below). But why not double it and freeze half for another week?

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 250g minced beef
• 250g minced veal
• 2 carrots, finely diced
• 2 celery stalks, finely diced
• 1 zucchini, grated
• 1 red capsicum, finely diced
• 200g mushrooms, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 400g canned crushed tomatoes
• 125ml (½ cup) beef stock
• 125ml (½ cup) red wine (optional)
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1 bay leaf
• 60ml (¼ cup) milk
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper

METHOD

1. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute for 2-3 minutes, until softened. Add the minced beef and veal and cook, breaking it up with a spoon, for 7-10 minutes, or until browned.
2. Stir in the carrot, celery, zucchini, capsicum and mushrooms and cook for 5-7 minutes, until the vegetables begin to soften.
3. Add the tomato paste, cook for 1-2 minutes, then stir in the tinned tomatoes, beef stock, red wine (if using), oregano, basil and bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Simmer the sauce on low heat for 45-60 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Remove the bay leaf, stir in the milk and cook for a further 10 minutes.
6. Allow the sauce to cool completely before storing in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Makes 1.5–2 kg

Hints

• For a vegetarian version, replace the minced beef and veal with a mixture of finely chopped porcini mushrooms (rehydrate the dried mushrooms before chopping) and canned brown lentils (drained). Cook as per the method, omitting the beef stock and the milk. Instead, use vegetable stock, plus the liquid from rehydrating the porcini mushrooms, and finish with a splash of balsamic vinegar.
• For extra richness, add a small piece of parmesan rind to the sauce during simmering (remove before serving).

Tortillas, spices and bubbling cheese turn vegie-loaded bolognese sauce into this Mexi-spice tray bake.Rob Palmer

Mexi-spice tray bake

Turn vegie-loaded bolognese sauce into a no-fuss Mexican-inspired meal by stirring in spices, lentils and passata, topping with tortillas and grated cheddar, and baking it until it’s golden and bubbling.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tbsp taco seasoning
• 200g canned lentils, drained
• 500g vegie-loaded bolognese sauce (see recipe)
• 250ml (1 cup) store-bought passata
• 8 large store-bought tortillas
• 250g cheddar, grated
• coriander leaves, chopped, to serve (optional)

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 200C fan-forced (220C conventional).
2. Mix the taco seasoning and lentils into the cooked bolognese sauce.
3. Spread half of the passata in the bottom of a casserole dish.
4. Fill the tortillas with the seasoned bolognese, roll them up and place them on top of the passata in the dish.
5. Top with the remaining passata and the grated cheese.
6. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until the cheese is melted and bubbling.
7. Top with the coriander (if using) to serve.

Serves 4

Hints

• Serve with sour cream and lime wedges on the side for an extra pop of flavour.
• Add chopped jalapenos for a spicy kick.
• For a healthier option, use wholemeal tortillas.

Top vegie-loaded bolognese sauce with sweet potato mash to make satisfying pies.Rob Palmer

Sweet potato shepherd’s pies

Transform leftover vegie-loaded bolognese sauce into a hearty individual mash-topped pie. To make a single large pie, use a casserole dish and increase the baking time to about 40 minutes to ensure the filling is heated through.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 large potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 100g salted butter
• 500g vegie-loaded bolognese sauce (see recipe)
• 125g cheddar, grated
• sea salt

METHOD

1. Boil the potato and sweet potato in a large saucepan for 15–20 minutes, or until tender. Drain and roughly mash the potato with the butter and season with salt.
2. Preheat the oven to 200C fan-forced (220C conventional).
3. Divide the bolognese sauce between four individual (250ml/1 cup) ramekins, sprinkle with the grated cheese, then spoon the mashed potato on top. (This method will give you pies with a lovely melted cheese layer between the bolognese and the potato. But if you prefer your cheese crispy, spoon the mashed potato on top of the bolognese, then top with the grated cheese.)
4. Bake for 30 minutes, until the tops are golden, the potato is crisp and the filling is bubbling.

Serves 4

Hints

• Mix some smoked paprika or chopped chives into the mash.
• Use a fork to rough up the mashed potato for a crispier top.

Photo:

This is an edited extract from The Weekly Grocery Shop by Nabula El Mourid, published by Hardie Grant Books. Available in stores nationally. Photography by Rob Palmer, illustrations by Evi O Studio.

The best recipes from Australia's leading chefs straight to your inbox.

Sign up