Feed five for under a fiver!

Check out this original recipe for sausage and rosemary hotpot with an easy pickled red cabbage - and feed five people for less than a fiver!

Recipe #4: Sausage and rosemary hotpot with pickled red cabbage

Ingredients

Pack of 4 baking potatoes (75p)

2 medium onions (40p)

1 red cabbage (50p)

1 pack (25g) of fresh rosemary (79p)

2 packs (8) of Cumberland pork sausages (£1.24)

3 cloves of garlic (from the bulb of the last recipe for chorizo and pea risotto)

The cupboard staples...

Black pepper, salt, olive oil, sugar, vinegar, flour and 1 pint of chicken stock (made with stock cubes)

Total cost

If you already have the cupboard staples, then according to mysupermarket.co.uk, this trolley was cheapest at Tesco* where it came to just £4.92.

Instructions

Firstly, fry off the sausages in a little olive oil until browned all over. They don't have to be cooked through, you just want to seal the sausages to keep the juices in them and create a better flavour for the hotpot.
Finely slice the onions and potatoes (and mix in one tablespoon of flour) - not too thin or they'll break up when cooking. Also finely chop the rosemary and garlic together.
Place a few of the browned sausages in the bottom of a hotpot dish (or a casserole dish if you prefer), add a few sliced onions and then a sprinkle of the rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper. Then add a layer of the sliced potatoes. Keep repeating this process until all the ingredients have been used and you finish with a layer of potatoes.
Now make up the chicken stock and pour into the hotpot dish ensuring the stock just touches the top of the potatoes (add more stock if needed). Brush the top of the potatoes with olive oil and season generously with black pepper only. Place in the oven for 1 ½ to 2 hours on 150C/320F. You will know it's ready when the potatoes are nice and browned on top. You can turn the oven up to a high heat for the last 10 minutes to create a really crispy top.
Now for the easy (or cheats!) pickled red cabbage to serve on the side. Cut the cabbage into quarters, remove the stalks and finely slice. Add the cabbage to a saucepan with 100ml of vinegar, 200ml of water, 2 teaspoons of sugar and salt and pepper. Bring up to the boil then bring the heat down and simmer for no longer than 2 minutes or until the cabbage has softened very slightly (you want to retain some bite).
Enjoy!

A bit about our Chef, Paul Warburton

Paul Warburton, a lovemoney.com staff member, had a hectic career in the world of hot kitchens and screaming chefs before joining the lovemoney.com products development team.

During these years, under the tutorage of some great chefs, he honed his skills in cooking for numbers within a tight cost and portion-controlled environment.

Now he's planning to regularly offer his help to all budding chefs in the lovemoney.com community, so you can enjoy his original, low-cost recipes with your family and friends every Saturday for free!

What lovemoney.com readers have said about Paul's other recipes

"I made this recipe and it was absolutely delicious! Seriously good! Five of us feasted on it, and feasted well..." Ibeshy

"I made this recipe on Saturday night, and my 13 year-old son promptly requested it again for the following night!" MDW1954

"This is a cracking risotto recipe. Just had it for lunch & it's a winner. More recipes please. Thanks." SavvyLass

Please add your own comments using the comments box below!

If you like this recipe, why not also try Paul's other 'Feed five for under a fiver' recipes: Spicy tuna, bean and coriander lasagne | Beef koftas with a feta, spinach and fresh mint salad | Chorizo and pea risotto