EXTRA EASY SPAG BOL

[colettecronie]

Hi
I just joined SW and made the spag bol syn free meal tonight. it's so horrible and tasteless and i feel really disappointed. Very watery too. are they all like this? :cry:

 

[Cherry-Blossom]

I haven't really tried any SW meals however when I do Spag Bol. I use quorn mince (free), baked beans (free), variety of veg (free) and dolmio sauce light (some syns) and then shove it in my slow cooker. Always turned out very nummy.

 

[auntynet]

None of the recipes I've made are watery so no idea why yours was If anything I'd say that some recipes can seem a bit "dry" cos of the lack of fat content.

If your meals are bland then its worth investing in a variety of different herbs and spices. It can be a bit expensive when you first start on SW but if you buy 2 or 3 a week and stick to supermarket brands then its not too expensive. Also if it was watery then maybe you could simmer it for a while to reduce the sauce and this also gives all the flavours time to infuse.

Dont give up, there are some fab meal ideas in the recipe threads on the forum that are well tried and tested and everyone is very helpful with tips to make substitutes to suit your individual tastes.

I can thoroughly recommend the syn-free doner kebab meat if you fancy trying another mince recipe.

 

[auntynet]

BTW - My pre-SW spag bol was always synfree and totally delicious. Try my version.

Dry fry EL mince and finely chopped onions. When soft add finely chopped mushrooms. Throw in a couple of tins of chopped tomatoes or passata, some mixed dried herbs and some extra dried basil, 2 or 3 beef oxos (depending on the amount you're cooking), some garlic powder, black pepper and some tomato puree. Basically start with small amounts of the herbs and just add a bit more to suit your taste. Let it all simmer for about half an hour stirring regularly. Simmering reduces the tomato stock so it appear to thicken up. Its always been a favourite with my family even before my SW days.

My chilli is almost the same but with some chilli powder and some red beans. Again, season to taste. One pound of mince, 2 tins of tomatoes (and beans if making chilli) makes a big wok full which easily gives 4 man-sized portions and possibly a spare portion to freeze for another day.

 

[alwyn]

I agree with everyone else, your food shouldn't be tasteless. I find that Quorn mince goes really dry so I don't really like it.

I use EL beef mince, 2 peppers, 1 grated carrot, onion, pressed garlic (don't forget the garlic!), a can of tomatoes (good quality - the shop value brands tend to go really watery) and herbs such as basil or oregano. Make sure you reduce the sauce down, the flavours really start to intensify and you're left with a much thicker sauce.

 

[Dans_Wife]

My version is pretty much the same as auntynet and is sooo nice, if I could eat it everyday I would! I find sprinkling 2 beef oxo cubes really makes it and I also put in 4 tbsps of tomato puree, between 2 of us its only 1 syn x

 

[dawnwynne]

Another suggestion is getting a spice called Italian Spice and perhaps the new spag bol oxo cubes. That will definitely make a nice sauce.

 

[AmyS]

I add a splash of Worstershire sauce and Balsamic Vinegar for extra taste - both free!

xx

 

[Shirleen]

Don't forget seasoning and I grate a couple of carrots for sweetness to counteract any acidity in the tomatoes

 

[who_la_hoop]

I agree with auntynet's tip to invest in some jars of herbs and spices - my grocery bills were fairly high for the first few weeks I started SW because I bought so many seasonings and so on, but now I have them and my meals are so much more flavoursome.

Don't be put off by one duff SW meal - I've cooked loads of them so far and only had one or two bland ones. Most are very yummy.

I prefer my spag bol with extra-lean mince, but it can still be pretty nice with quorn - I use plenty of stock and the liquid from the tomatoes, then make sure I simmer it down so it's not watery - it makes the quorn nice and tender.

 

[Ali*]

I was a Ragu jar kinda girl so moving to home-made bolognaise felt a little bland at first. My first experiment was to try and jazz it up by blending all of the ingredients so I wasn't left with a watery tomatoey sauce - that went down quite well with the kids too. It deffo helps to add some herbs and garlic.

Now I buy the Oxo spaghetti bolognaise cubes - omg, they are good! Just stir them into your basics of onion, garlic, EL mince and tin tommies and voila! Delicious spag bol!!

 

[kdub24]

i always put about 4 artificial sweeteners omit aswe;; they melt init and makes such a dif!
good luck xxxx

 

[vickydink]

I dont understand how Spag bo can be free?? Is it because you would just have the 85g of mince and as much spaghetti as you want?

 

[Mrsbrogden22]

I dont understand how Spag bo can be free?? Is it because you would just have the 85g of mince and as much spaghetti as you want?

It's free on ee x

Sent from my iPhone using MiniMins

 

[vickydink]

I am doin slimming world myself and stickin to red and green so not doin extra easy

 

[peggypig]

To add flavour I add 1 beef stock cube to 100ml of boiling water and before you add tomatoes I put it in then and simmer till its disappeared