Sausage Curry

When I was a student, me and my housemates would take it in turns to cook dinner. The budget was £5 for 4 people, and we'd stick to that limit religiously (admittedly food was a bit cheaper back then). But it was actually possible to cook a meal for around half that amount - therefore leaving enough budget for some cheap lager, or a Sarah Lee dessert.

So what could you make for £2.50 back in the 90s? Well, everybody likes curry, but the cost of chicken or lamb would have broke the budget instantly. But luckily Tesco sold a pack of 8 sausages for 50p. Throw in some onions, tinned tomatoes, and a load of spices and you have yourself a meal... and it actually tasted pretty good!

I must admit it's not something I've revisited often, especially since I can now afford the luxury of real meat (and more importantly, Indian takeaways). But my wife was out of the country (she'd never agree to eat this), so it felt like a good time to indulge in some nostalgia. I stuck on a Pearl Jam CD, cracked open a bottle of Diamond White, and got to work.

Fry the sausages. You won't need any extra oil.

Then in the sausage fat, fry onions. Add garlic, chillies, ginger, then other spices. Cumin, coriander, chilli powder, turmeric... you could just use curry powder, or a curry paste. The beauty of making curry is that it's different every time. Keep frying for a bit. Put the chopped sauages back in, and fry for a bit longer.

Add tinned tomatoes and a dash of water. You could optionally add some veg... green peppers work well. Simmer for a while. You can finish it by stirring in some yogurt and chopped coriander, if you have any lying around.

Eat with rice, or slices of bread.

In all honesty, I was expecting to say that it wasn't very nice, or not as good as I remember. But no - it tasted really good, and was very cheap. And make no mistake, this is dirty, nasty food - greasy, spicy, and just wrong in so many ways.

Taste

Certificate