If you want to wow your family with a fancy-looking Christmas feast while secretly spending way less, you need this episode. We called in our favourite bougie-on-a-budget queen, Chelsea Goodwin, to show us how to pull off a Christmas table that looks rich, festive and fabulous, while your actual grocery bill stays unbothered. Chelsea is dropping 17 genuinely clever hacks that will shrink your Christmas food spend. We’re talking the ingredient tricks that do double duty, the meats that seem fancy but aren’t, the sides that look like you catered, and the planning secrets that stop the Christmas Eve trolley panic. And yes, she brought her full under-$100 Christmas menu. It’s generous, it’s gorgeous, it’s chaos-proof and you’re absolutely allowed to steal it.
In this ep:
🎄A Chelsea's best hacks to help you save at the checkout this Christmas
🎄Which meat options create the most “expensive” looking centrepiece for the least money.
🎄Where to buy seafood for dramatically less than supermarket prices.
🎄Side upgrades that make cheap ingredients look professionally catered.
🎄Prep shortcuts that save money, oven space, and your stress levels.
DOWNLOAD: Chelsea's Full Christmas Menu For $100
CHELSEA'S LINKS: Website, Books, Instagram, Facebook Group
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Acknowledgement of Country By Nartarsha Bamblett aka Queen Acknowledgements.
The advice shared on She's On The Money is general in nature and does not consider your individual circumstances. She's On The Money exists purely for educational purposes and should not be relied upon to make an investment or financial decision. If you do choose to buy a financial product, read the PDS, TMD and obtain appropriate financial advice tailored towards your needs. Victoria Devine and She's On The Money are authorised representatives of Money Sherpa PTY LTD ABN - 321649 27708, AFSL - 451289.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
My name is Tatasha Bamblet. I'm a proud First Nations
woman and I'm here to acknowledge country t glennyan Ganya, Niana,
Kaka yah Ya, bin Ahaka Nian our gay In Nibina,
yakarum jar Dominyama, Domaghawakaman, damon imlan Bumba, bang Gadabomba in
and now in wakah ghana on yak raum jar Watnadaa. Hello,
(00:22):
beautiful friends, we gather on the lands of the Aboriginal people.
We thank acknowledge and respect the Abiginal people's land that
we're gathering on today. Take pleasure in all the land
and respect all that you see. She's on the Money
podcast acknowledges culture, country, community and connections, bringing you the tools,
knowledge and resources for.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
You to thrive. She's on the Money. She's on the Money.
Speaker 3 (01:07):
Hello and welcome to She's on the Money, the podcast
that is here to help you have a very merry
Christmas without a very scary grocery bill. Last year, Australian
households spend about five hundred bucks on Christmas food and
drinks alone, and with grocery prices climbing higher than ever.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
This year, I thought, absolutely not.
Speaker 3 (01:28):
We are not doing another Christmas shop where the checkout
gives you heart palpitations. So today's episode is all about
building a gorgeous Christmas feast without the financial stress.
Speaker 2 (01:40):
I'm Victoria Devine and girls is not just me.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
With me is the woman who can turn ten bucks
into dinner and somehow make it taste really expensive. You
might remember her from our episode on feeding your family
for ten dollars, And she's back and I am thrilled.
She has come all the way from Tasmania and she's
in my studio in real life. Welcome back to the show,
Chelsea Goodwin.
Speaker 2 (02:04):
Oh my goodness, I am so happy to be here, Victoria.
Speaker 3 (02:07):
So I am just excited to meet you in person.
Like we had this really cool interview.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
It was all online. That's fine, but we vibed.
Speaker 3 (02:16):
I love watching your stuff, and to see you in person,
I'm like, oh, she is actually sunshine.
Speaker 2 (02:21):
I know you're sunshine in the form of a human,
and I love that you are so sweet.
Speaker 3 (02:27):
Let's get into Christmas because I also love Christmas, so
do I. I've got Christmas nails, You've got a red
jump up.
Speaker 2 (02:32):
We are ready for this.
Speaker 3 (02:34):
So I wanted to start first question first, cab off
the rank, not even about budget.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
What does Christmas look like for you? I love Christmas.
It's Christmas is such a joyful time. It's like where
I have a small family, so I never had this
sort of big, huge family Christmas. So now it's just
me and my three kids and it's us at home.
We do a Christmas Eve dinner. My dad's side of
the family are Africa American. They're all in America, so
(03:02):
they don't join us for Christmas, but we bring Christmas. Yes,
we bring the culture onto the dinner tables. So we
have like a soul food beast on Christmas Eve. It's
delicious and we invite friends over. And then on Christmas
Day it's usually something a bit more traditional, so we
have sort of like your traditional Euro Aussie Christmas. And
(03:26):
I try when I can to volunteer on Christmas Day.
So if we have time in the day, if there's
somewhere that needs help, yes we'll rock up and we'll
cook food, serve food, or do whatever we need to do.
Speaker 3 (03:38):
We did that growing up. That was really important for
my mom. My mom was like, you guys need.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
To learn what the world looks like and Christmas is
about giving, it is.
Speaker 3 (03:47):
So we would go down to I want to say,
ye soup kitchen, but it was like I can't remember
the establishment that we did it at, but I'm assuming
it was like a Vinie's or something. And we go
down and like serve Christmas lunch and then come back
and have our dinner together as a family, and same
as you family, but they're all inter state, so we
often just have like a little small Christmas all together.
(04:09):
And yeah, I feel like that really helps bring back
the sense of gratitude that you have on Christmas, and
like you're probably teaching your kids a lot through that
as well, I really hope.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
So I mean this Christmas, we are cooking for over
one hundred people, so that is really stretching the limits
of my ability. Hundred people, hundred people, So that's that's
I just want on that. Yeah, Luckily most of the
food is donated, so we don't have to worry bud judget.
Great budget, great budget, but it's going to be so
(04:39):
much fun. Oh, I love that. All right.
Speaker 3 (04:41):
Pivoting back to your family Christmas thought, what parts of
Christmas are you happy to spend on and what parts
are you like, absolutely not.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
Okay, I am a thrifty queen when it comes to presents.
So we do thrift shopping for our Christmas presents. And
that's something that I started doing. So we're not in
the same family, Kid's quite possible. Yeah, would basically look
like sisters. I know, can't you tell? Yes, So we
buy our presence at thrift shops. I used to do
(05:10):
that when my kids were really young and I couldn't
afford to buy presents to them and didn't want to
go into debt or lay by presents for them, so
I would buy things, often new, from thrift stores for
their Christmas presence and they never knew the difference. So
now we're a bit more open about it, and we
do it as a family. So we'll go with ten
dollars each to go and get a present for each person,
(05:31):
and it's like this really exciting sort of true chunt.
Yeah it is. It's fun and it's really like when
you open it up, it's always a surprise to see
what the rest of the families managed to put together.
Speaker 3 (05:42):
Yeah, one hundred percent. We do handmade, homemade or second hand.
It's like one of my family sides and it's literally
so fun, Like it's one of my favorite parts because
you just it's like a challenge in a way, because well,
I can't plan a gift, I can't do the research
for the gift. I actually have to get out there
and kind of get my hands dirty to find something.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
But when you find the perfect then you're like, this
is it exactly, and it's sort of feel good aspect,
and I feel like, you know, there is this like
massive amount of over consumption in our society and we
have all of these things that we receive as gifts
and don't use. So you know, if we get something
from the thrift store that we don't love, we just
(06:23):
donate it back exactly, and.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
We don't feel bad because the gift actually already served
its purpose.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
That's exactly right.
Speaker 3 (06:30):
So before you mentioned I'm slightly envious that you have
two styles of Christmas meals that you cook. You've got
your soul food and then on the flip side, you've
got something more traditional.
Speaker 2 (06:42):
What do you think or which style do you think
is cheaper to make? I'd say purely because of the
mac and cheese that I make for Christmas Eve dinner
and cheese being so expensive the traditional dinner is probably
cheaper because you said yes, because if I make a
proper mac and cheese, we're talking like like three. Yeah,
there's so much so that just blows the budget but
(07:04):
totally worth it, and we always have leftovers a traditional one.
I feel like I've got down to kind of a
fine art where you know, we never spend more than
one hundred dollars. You know, even if I'm cooking for
eight people, no matter how many people are there, it's
under one hundred and I just make it work.
Speaker 3 (07:18):
No, that actually doesn't make sense to me because the
charcuterie board I have in my head is already going
to cost like eighty dollars and I'm already like I've.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
Maybe we need canutary board, Victoria.
Speaker 3 (07:32):
But like, sorry, that might be in line with my values.
You mentioned you give yourself a one hundred dollar budget
for you like it doesn't go over Yeah, how far
out are we planning this menu?
Speaker 2 (07:44):
Like? Or how well in advance? Too far? So as
soon as i know who I'm cooking for, which is
usually kind of the first week or so of December, yeah,
I can then start planning. So if I know if
it's just my family. If it's just four of us,
go for it. If I might have, you know, two
or three extra coming along, I can figure that out.
And then I start planning what I'm going to make,
how much of everything I need, and then I cost
(08:07):
it all out.
Speaker 3 (08:07):
You're gonna have to give me examples because we can't
say to my community. Oh yeah, So Chelsea does hook
Christmas dinner for one hundred dollars, and then we move
on from that, like everybody is wondering, like how including me, it's.
Speaker 2 (08:19):
Not possible, including dessert, including out everything. Sorry, she's just upgreen.
We're including the meat, the sides, and the dessert.
Speaker 3 (08:27):
What meat are we cooking for under one hundred dollars?
Speaker 2 (08:29):
All right? So hit me out here. The humble roast
chicken perfect, yeah, which I think a lot of people
overlook because they think if I do a roast chicken
on Christmas Day, first, it's a little bit povo Like, No,
it's not. I don't think it is. But I think
people avoid it because it just seems like a regular dinner.
But we're gonna pimp your chicken. You are gonna pimp
(08:51):
your chicken up. You're going to serve the best roast chicken.
Anybody has ever had the best seasoned, stuffed, most beautiful looking,
crispy skinned roast chicken. And if you've got more than
you know, see more than five people, you just cook two.
Speaker 4 (09:05):
Yep.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
So I would do a roast chicken. I do stuffing.
Like with any of my meal plans in my books,
we're always making sure that we're using multiple ingredients in
multiple recipes.
Speaker 3 (09:15):
That has been literally life changing for me, Like the
way that you have made my meal prep and I
don't meal prep, Like I have openly said this, like
I'm not going to pretend that I follow your meal
plan to a t, but I adore that I can
pick up your meal plan.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
And get a lot out of it.
Speaker 3 (09:32):
And like sometimes I'm a little bit lazy, Chelsea, I'm
really sorry, like cost twelve because I've gone for Connection
twelve at the moment, because I've also been like I'm
not shopping around. I'm not going to multiple supermarkets to
get the specials. I just want the Chelsea Goodwin, like
the special give it to me because I know if
I make this, I'm going to have like a meatball
(09:52):
sub the next day and I'm going to have like
meatballs for something else, and it's been.
Speaker 2 (09:56):
Literally so helpful with a toddler. I'm sorry, genius. I
wish I had discovered this when I had toddlers. It
took me a little bit longer.
Speaker 3 (10:06):
It's insane. But like when you find a food that
they like, I mean, use it in a number of
different ways.
Speaker 2 (10:12):
Yeah, it's great. So yeah we do that at Christmas
as well, so things like, you know, I love nuts
in a salad, so I'll get walnuts or pecans. But
then you can also put that in the stuffing. Okay
that the chicken too, exactly, and you could do sort
of like a steamed greens or a sauteed greens and
then do them with some sprinkled or toasted nuts on
(10:32):
them as well. So you're using that tiny little packet
of nuts.
Speaker 3 (10:37):
Yeah exactly, not using half a packet of nuts, putting
the half in the cupboard and then being like what
were those?
Speaker 2 (10:41):
I think they're stale? Exactly, So I do you know
this gorgeous chicken, we make it look beautiful. It's a
cent a piece of the table, or have some rosemary
sticking out of its little but yeah, perfect, Yeah, we
love that stuff it then for our sides. I'll do
my salad. So I love a nutty salad. I love
fruits in salad as well. So would you pair or apple?
(11:01):
We're doing a little bit of cheese, you know, get
a bit of fetter from the deli, like just as
much as you need. Yeah, and then that where you're
not paying not too much exactly for the salad. A
beautiful vinegarette, which is using pantry staples. Usually most people
have that at home. A bit of olive oil, bit
of vinegar.
Speaker 1 (11:17):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (11:18):
I would do you know, some green beans or something
like that, and like a scalloped potatoes stop it. Yeah,
So I love a car Bi side because that fills
everybody up. And he does cheesy goodness, but it's like
not as expensive as mac and cheese. Who that's right.
And then the cream we're using that for the potatoes,
but we're also going to use that for dessert.
Speaker 3 (11:39):
I saw that coming. Yeah, that's the part that I
saw coming. The nuts though, I was like smart.
Speaker 2 (11:44):
And also I would also usually put cranberry in the
stuffing as well, and cranberry is in the salad that
is quite festive. You got color, You've got a bit
of everything. Happening there.
Speaker 3 (11:52):
I'm obsessed. I'm obsessed, like I think that that is geenus.
But what are we cooking for dessert? Okay, we're doing
it because like in my head, you're saying budget and
I'm saying chocolate ripple cake.
Speaker 2 (12:02):
I love chocolate and I'm so sorry that family I.
Speaker 3 (12:06):
Grew up in chocolate ripple cake at Christmas. Non negotiable.
Speaker 2 (12:11):
It's so ausy, isn't it. Oh my goodness, No, we're
not having chocolate ripple cake. It has to be something festive.
So I would usually do like mini meringues, which again
egg whites, where use the yolks make a lemon curd?
Oh fancy? And so I put a bit of lemon
curd whipped cream.
Speaker 3 (12:31):
And everyone's fruits so fancy. None of this sounds budget.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
It is so budget. Can I tell you I actually
costed this entire menu, out entire thing, and I think
it came to just over sixty dollars And this was
just like two weeks ago. So we've got the numbers fresh, yes,
and I will meet with full menu. I shared this
a couple of years ago in my Facebook group. Back
then it was I think feeda family are four for fifty.
(12:55):
Now we're looking out sixty something. But let's not do
let's still bring the mood down. I just want to
hear about the chicken. Yeah, so I'll do up the
whole menu and I'll can we have that so I
can share that with my community. I will put it
in the show notes.
Speaker 3 (13:09):
Guys, Chelsea's going to give us the menu and we
can do Christmas for under one hundred bucks. And then
we have to like send Chelsea lots of nice messages
on Christmas because and.
Speaker 2 (13:19):
I'll cheat at us as solid. Send me your questions,
but not on Christmas Day. You just have some level, Yes,
send me your free Christmas questions about the menu.
Speaker 3 (13:27):
So obviously, I would say, having had small family Christmases
for as long as I can remember, still over cater
so I see you one hundred dollars budget and I
go sligh, no worries. I then go, but we might
need some extras, and we might need like a cheese platter,
(13:49):
and like, I want to make sure that I don't
not have anything. Like the idea that the shops are
closed on Christmas gives me a little bit of anxiety
because I'm like, oh my God, like what if I
don't have like a little side dish, or what if
I haven't hated enough. So I would say that over
catering is not just a Victoria problem. It seems to
be a thing that we all do because we all
talk about maybe this is a real Aussie tradition, Christmas
(14:10):
leftovers on Boxing Day. How do you plan to minimize
waste while not being all consumed by the idea that
you won't have enough? Well, because like at Christmas, I
don't want to not have enough.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
I feel exactly the same, and I think anybody that
comes from like if you come from certain cultural backgrounds,
it's like a sin to not have enough, and almost
like a sin to not send people home with leftovers
as well. You're packaging up the containers staying this home.
So I'm all for that. I think if I don't
have food leftover after Christmas, I feel like I've done
(14:43):
something wrong, just because it means that maybe people haven't
had enough to eat. So I always try and make
a little bit more than I think I need, so
I don't look at that as food waste if it's
going to be eaten. I think the problem is when
those leftovers become food waste, yeah, because you don't have
a plan for them. So you know, things like your
Christmas ham. You know, we do this big giant Christmas
(15:05):
ham and we love ham, right, but then you have
all this leftover ham and by the twenty eighth you'd rather,
you know, eat sand than eat another piece of ham,
because it's you couldn't be.
Speaker 3 (15:16):
In my family, we basically are ham fiends all through January.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
But I know not everybody is. Not everybody does love
it that much. So it's just figuring out what you
can do with it and trying to figure that out
before Christmas. So you've got the ingredients, whether you want
to turn it into a kiche or use it for
fried rice, or if you don't have a plan, just
stick it in the freezer. Yeah, it's a good point.
So to make sure that you don't have waste. I
(15:41):
feel like waste comes into it with things like leafy
green salads. Youa salad, you dress it, and then you
really like nobody likes to eat that the next day.
So just being careful with those sort of foods to
make sure that you don't have excess.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
No, that's scat actually, because I would say salad waste house, Like,
maybe we dress the salad at the table and then
you can put the leafy greens back in the fridge
and they'll be okay for sandwiches and stuff for the
rest of the week. Yes, And also, guys, we're not
talking about Chelsea scolloped potatoes here. There's no such thing
as food waste with that item, I'll eat it out
(16:17):
of the fridge, no worries.
Speaker 2 (16:18):
I literally do that. Yep.
Speaker 3 (16:20):
Yeah, I just oh, I'm just getting the milk for
my tea, no worries, and a cheeky piece of sculpted
potato with my fingers.
Speaker 2 (16:27):
I threw it all of my children with a spoon
and lifting the lid or the foil of the lid,
and yeah, getting in there. They're good kids. I like it.
I love to do on Christmas.
Speaker 3 (16:40):
I feel like it's often it's a lot of pressure,
but it's always like about catering for a crowd. What
are your tips for creating a menu for a large
group of people, because I feel like it's twenty twenty five,
it's the end of twenty twenty five, and I'm not
willing to speak on that. But everyone has different dietares
and requirements these days, and then that adds a layer
(17:01):
of complexity, and then your stuffing's not gluten free, and
then like you know, all of those really fun things,
how are we dealing with that? Or you like, no, girlfriend,
I'm from a family where that doesn't exist.
Speaker 2 (17:15):
I mean, I'm latose intolerant and I still eat cream,
so'm I'm val. I know what we do, but I
do respect other people's intolerances and allergies. I always will
cater for that. I think there are enough products and
affordable products now where you can buy these latose free
gluten free alternatives. Like whether it's breadcrumbs for your stuffing
(17:37):
or whatever it is that you need, you can make
it work. And there are so many wonderful meals that
you can make. I mean, I do still find catering
for vegans hard sometimes, but best friends for vegan just
where as well, Like if you're having people over and
they have really specific dietary requirements, there's nothing wrong with
like asking them to bring a meal or liking them
(17:58):
to bring an ingredient that maybe you could substitute, because
they know better than anybody else what's going to work.
But yeah, I'd say, just don't stress, and I think
one of the things people do when they're catering for
big groups is they just they try and do too much.
So just simplify.
Speaker 3 (18:15):
Yeah, totally, totally, And I know that we talked about
it before. You volunteer on Christmas Day.
Speaker 4 (18:21):
You are.
Speaker 2 (18:22):
I knew you would, You're just a wholesome human being.
Speaker 4 (18:25):
Of course you do.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
I'm assuming that when you do that, it's obviously cooking
for a lot of people.
Speaker 3 (18:31):
You said one hundred people, which is just so many people,
and then you're on a tight budget. Yes, most of
the food is donated, but like there are going to
be things that you need to top up with and
like work out how we're going to you know, you've
got six million potatoes, but how are we going to
make a dish out of this?
Speaker 2 (18:47):
What has that taught you about making food? Stretch plan,
perm plan, plan plan, that's all that coming. Yeah, it's
really like it's a day's long process. And even if
I was cooking for say twelve people I or even
ten people in my house, you know, like a large
dinner party, I would still start prepping food the day
(19:08):
before or two days before, and I would be planning
at least a week before. We're not shopping Christmas Eve.
No wait, please don't do that. Don't do it to yourself,
don't do it to your saof I know exactly, but
I think it's like it's even little things like where
I've run into trouble, as things like not having enough
oven space for the things that I want to cook.
(19:29):
You know, you're like, oh, this tray and this tray
and this tray need to go in at the same
time and they're not going to fit or alternatively, like
they need to be at different temperatures and I've got
to cook them at the same time. But because if
you haven't.
Speaker 3 (19:42):
Planned what you don't have three ovens. That's so crazy.
My new house has the smallest oven. Like I'm not
complaining yet, like a sixty centimeter oven does not fit the.
Speaker 2 (19:54):
Bill for hosting.
Speaker 4 (19:55):
I know.
Speaker 2 (19:55):
It's so hard. So that's where you've got to think, like, Okay,
what can I pre make and maybe then instead of
having to cook it from scratch, which I just eat,
to reheat it smart or like can I use my
air fryer for certain yeah, like what can be done
on the stovetop? Or can I ask somebody to heat
this in their oven at home and bring it along
with them.
Speaker 3 (20:15):
I reckon a pre made scullot potato definitely, three heats
perfect there because you can do it all, add a
little sprinkling of cheese back.
Speaker 2 (20:25):
In, reheat it, and then just grill the chocke It
never had a fen. Yeah, what are you talking about?
Speaker 3 (20:30):
What do you think is the biggest mistake people make
when they're shopping for Christmas food?
Speaker 2 (20:35):
Like say, like you mentioned shopping on Christmas Eve, leaving
it till the last ning. Don't I've done that. I've
done that before. But the worst thing is that then
you know you'll go, especially if you live regional like
I do, you go to the one supermarket that everybody
is at and.
Speaker 3 (20:51):
It's right beside the Kmar because I know where you live,
and the coals and the cama is chaos at Christmas?
Speaker 2 (20:57):
Don't you do that to yourself? Completely chaotic? And they
may have run out of like that one thing that
you really need. Yeah, and it's so incredibly stressful. You
don't want to be having to drive like an hour
to try and find something or completely change your menu
because you've left everything to the last minute. The other
thing I would say is that I know. Sometimes people
will buy like gourmet ingredients to specific recipes and they'll
(21:22):
use a tiny bit and then it goes in the
fridge and it's forgotten about. And you spent all this
money on this thing that you didn't really need, or
you could have bought something else or made something else,
and you have the food waste you spent the money.
It's like a whole of thing. I actually have a
rule that I'm allowed to try more than one new
recipe when I'm cooking for a crowd. So it's fair. Yeah,
(21:44):
i have to stick with in my comfort zone, and
I'm allowed one new recipe, one new thing that I
can experiment on, and if that goes bad, it's okay
because everything else will turn out. So I think, yeah,
just make your life easier.
Speaker 3 (22:00):
Totally agree, And I think it's all about Sometimes you're like, well,
it's Christmas, we should get the bougie version, but you
probably should just be getting the fetter from the deli,
not the Meredith Scots Cheese. Like, even though yes, that's
bougie and it's fair you love the Meredith, nobody is
going to notice it when it's on the top of
a salad they're really not. They're not going to notice,
(22:21):
I promise. And I also just love the idea that
you're going to give us this menu, right so that
we can have our one hundred dollars Christmas and do
our roast chickens. But sorry, she's giving us the whole menu.
You can just cut and paste that into your coal's delivery.
You don't even have to go to the shops. Literally, yeah,
and like everything will be delivered and if you do
it early enough, if there's something missing, you just pop
(22:42):
out for one thing. Oh it's a money win, all right.
I feel like that's a good strategy. And we've got
that sorted and nailed. Let's go to a really quick
break and then after the break, I think we're going
to get into the really fun part. We're going to
talk more about food, the meats, the sides, the specific desserts,
and all of the delicious bits that I would say
can get Meredith Scots cheese fetter expensive if you're not careful,
(23:06):
So guys, don't go anywhere.
Speaker 2 (23:12):
Welcome back, my friends.
Speaker 3 (23:13):
Now, I wanted to start with one of the most
expensive things on the Christmas menu, and that is always
the meat.
Speaker 2 (23:21):
Even if you're vegetarian.
Speaker 3 (23:23):
Even if you're vegan, the like options are still expensive,
Like the alternatives are cooked. You mentioned that you do
a roast chicken earlier, which I think is genius. But
what other if you're like, well, you're right you said before,
some people think that chicken on Christmas povo.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
They don't like that.
Speaker 3 (23:40):
Yeah, what other options do we have? What meat cuts
are we looking for? Because for me, I'm not gonna lie.
If I showed up to Christmas and told my dad
we're having chicken, he'd be like, we have lamb on Christmas,
and lamb that's that's not budget Eric Divine.
Speaker 2 (23:58):
Yeah, look, I think you've just got to with those things.
Sometimes you've really got a plan ahead. Yeah. So it's
a matter of like if you want I mean, if
you want really high quality, beautiful butcher's meat, anything you
get is going to be expensive. If you're happy to
go to the supermarket which is still great quality meat
and take advantage of the specials, you've got some options there.
(24:21):
So hams can be really budget friendly and you don't
have you can buy the half leg, you don't have
to get the full leg. Diet a full leg when
it's on special. Sometimes they mark them down. I mean,
this is where you're taking kind of a risk. Like
sometimes you might get them cheaper on Christmas Eve if
you get in there.
Speaker 3 (24:38):
But I'm not going to encourage you to do that
either because there's no discount.
Speaker 2 (24:43):
Had I would not be leaving your you know, the
main event the meat until Christmas Eve. Another thing that
people aren't too keen on.
Speaker 3 (24:53):
Here, but I love is turkey. So you can try
and sell me on turkey. Yeah, I feel like it's
very American.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
It is very American.
Speaker 3 (25:02):
It's giving Thanksgiving, it is giving Thanksgiving, but we're not
doing a whole turkey, right because that just seems terrifying.
But in your sixty centimeters exactly, it's you've got to
look at what you've got.
Speaker 2 (25:14):
So and they do come in different sizes also, so
you can get smaller turkeys and you can get like
the big bazooka turkey that you're going to need a
giant oven for. But you can also buy the frozen
portions as well. That's genius, which and they're often half price. Yeah,
Like I've picked them up half price. I actually buy
them and slice the cook them and slice them up
for sandwich meat genie because it's cheaper than buying turkey
(25:36):
at the deli, so they can be delicious. You know,
a bit of cranberry sauce. It's giving festive. It is
giving festive. I love turkey, not everybody does, but that's
a great option lamb as well. Like we just look
for the specials, and it really depends on what is
going on with Lamb prices as far as weather at
that particular time. It is affordable or not. So that's
(25:58):
something you just have to look at and see whether
that's in your budget. But usually, like Lamb legs are
going to be a lot cheaper than Lamb shoulders, but
Lamb legs are so beautiful slow roasted. Yeah, cook humble
hook shoulder one hundred percent. Yes, that's another really budget
friendly cut which is beautiful, crackling. You can slow cook that.
I think it's genius.
Speaker 3 (26:18):
Would you also say, because you said before and it
got me thinking, you said they have the frozen portions,
would you.
Speaker 2 (26:24):
Start looking right now to go okay cool?
Speaker 3 (26:28):
I could buy my meat and freeze it and then
defrost it a few days before Christmas or properly defrost.
But then we get a good deal and we prepared
and we know that it's not going to be sold
out on.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Christmas depending on the meat. So obviously, if it's something
that's already frozen, bang it in the freezer, you have
no problem. Poultry, I'm happy to freeze ham. No, not,
We're not going to freeze the ham. Just need to
say that because I'll be able to see the hams
in the freezer. But yeah, it really just depends on
the meat itself. But poultry definitely.
Speaker 3 (26:58):
What about seafood. I'm sorry, but I'm just thinking about
myself in this moment. Okay, my dad wants lamb on Christmas. Yeah,
my mum would probably start a riot if we didn't
have some form of seafood.
Speaker 2 (27:11):
Okay, I feel like it's a very Australian thing to have.
Speaker 3 (27:15):
Is what cost effective ways could people integrate this if
they were like, oh, I really.
Speaker 2 (27:19):
Want to seafood Christmas. I get it, but I don't
get it because I'm not a huge seafood lover. She
wants the turkey, I do. I want the turkey. I
want the lamb, I want the chicken.
Speaker 3 (27:30):
But if my fingers do not smell like prawn's by
the end of Christmas, day.
Speaker 2 (27:35):
I have not had a good Christmas Aussie Christmas that
I've ever been to. At other people's house, there is
always a huge prom platter, So I totally get that.
I actually love oysters. They're my Yeah see, you can't
sell me. See but I mean this little tidbit about
the sea. Oh stop it. I would do anything for
(27:56):
a dozen oysters. Keep that in my brain. A love them.
Here's the thing though, Oysters expensive, right if you're eating
them at a restaurant. I used to purchase them, and
you can do this with any seafood. But I sourced oysters.
This is when I was living in Brisbane, so up
until about a year ago, I source them from a
(28:17):
wholesaler that sells to restaurants but also sells to the public.
So I was getting my oysters for just over a
dollar each. Oh that's kind of deal. And that's that
is budget friendly. So if I sell people, oh I
had oysters, they think, oh, you know, you're a joke, Chelsea.
I thought you were, you know, the budget cooking you
know guru. But I had free and there was like
a platter of them, and you make a little mignonette
(28:37):
like you can do. You can pick them up on
Christmas Eve. Yeah, but the same places that do the oysters.
There's usually other seafood places that also sell to the
public and to restaurants that you can source your seafood
from and at great prices and pick it all up
the day before Christmas. On that note, as well as
far as food wholesalers, I think something that a lot
of people don't know is that a lot of these
(28:58):
wholesalers that sell to restaurants sell things like, you know,
like your big boxes of really nice frozen Aaron Cheeney
and things like that. Yeah, yeah, like you can buy that,
you can go. They will sell direct to public, a
lot of them. I used to have an account with one,
and I was just you know, that was just me.
I was in business or anything. But yeah, that's great
(29:19):
if you're wanting to cater for larger groups, but maybe
wanting some little shortcuts, you can pick up that really
high quality food that is just needs to be reheated
and at a really good price. I will make room
in my oven for that one. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (29:36):
Now, I feel like I'm very good at getting confused
around Christmas time as to how many grams of things
people need and I'm saying that because I don't think grams,
but I go, oh, okay, we were talking about the
pork before, we're going to go buy a pork shoulder.
And then I get analysis paralysis because I'm looking at
all the pork shoulder options and one's one killer, and
(29:57):
one's one point five and one's two, and I'm like, well,
which one do I need? Obviously they impact the price,
but like it's going to shrink a little bit. How
many grams per person are we allocating? When it comes
to a protein.
Speaker 2 (30:08):
It's really hard because then you've got you've got bone
less and bone in meat as well, so that comes
into it. What I would say is that if you
are buying from a soupermarket, often it will give you
a guide on the packet, so it will say, you know,
the lamb I've noticed in the pork often has that,
So that will say feeds six or something like that,
and that is a fairly good approximation. The problem is
(30:30):
that we all know our families.
Speaker 3 (30:33):
And when you met my husband, because a six person
thing is not that's not six maybe three?
Speaker 2 (30:38):
I have you know a six foot four seventeen year
old at home? Oh yeah, that's something we worse than
a husband. Actually, when it comes to food consumption, anybody
that has growing teenagers are very very hungry partners. Oh
look I eat a lot at Christmas. So if you're
buying from a butcher, I would always talk to them
and just say, look, i'm feeding five very hungry adult
(31:00):
is this going to be enough? And they will tell
you it's hard to give an exact you know, gram
per person approximate. Disappointing but also totally relatable.
Speaker 3 (31:10):
No, totally, but I like the idea that we can
check the packets and it will be a bit of
a guideline and we're so sorry. The idea of asking
the butcher as you're getting it genius. I'd be like,
this is now your problem. And then if on Christmas
I run out, I'd be like, butcher said, well, let's
move on from grams of meat and actually talk about sides.
(31:30):
Because you were selling me before scarlet potatoes, some greens
with some like little nuts on top ten out of ten?
Speaker 2 (31:38):
How can we keep the costs down there?
Speaker 3 (31:40):
And then how can we make ove is maybe a
little bit more fancy on Christmas?
Speaker 2 (31:44):
Okay, I think sides are something that people struggle with
as sides like creativity because you know it's easy to
choose your protein and do you know glazer ham and
make it look all pretty. But then it's like what
do we serve it with? I mean I always I
love cut Like carbs are great for Christmas because you
want people's bellies to be full. So potatoes are fantastic.
Anything you can do with potatoes, mash them, you know, potato,
(32:07):
bake potato salad, like roast potatoes, potato Christmas. You heard
it here first. Yeah, if potatoes aren't on your menu,
get them on your menu because they are so budget friendly.
You can do so much with them, and they're very filling,
which is fantastic, and they taste great. I would usually
do a green side, a potato side, and a salad
(32:28):
as a minimum.
Speaker 3 (32:29):
Do you feel a great carrots because like I don't
feel like it's Christmas without carrots in my house.
Speaker 2 (32:35):
But like we're not just boiling some carrots like they
have to be roasted. Yeah, I mean I love it
like a just a tray of mixed roast vegetables. Yeah. Yeah,
So if you've got some carrots, some pumpkins, some sweet potato,
I'm always thinking about color as well, So how is
it going to look when it's on the table. You know,
if you've got some white potatoes, you've got your kind
of your brown meat, you got your green side, and
(32:58):
then you know, bringing something it does make it feel
more festive. It does. We do eat with our eyes.
We want people to sort of when you put the
food on the table, so I think, and when it's
on your plate as well, thinking about what it's going
to look like when you've got all of the little
portions on your plate. So carrots are great for that.
And again like two dollars a bag can't go wrong.
Speaker 4 (33:20):
See.
Speaker 3 (33:20):
I love carrots and I feel like there's such a
budget friendly side. You can pin them out with some nuts,
honey carrots.
Speaker 2 (33:29):
Honey buttered carrots, like sorry, sorry, that's just my childhood
maybe coming out honey carrots only came out on special occasions. Yeah,
that's not a week night meal.
Speaker 3 (33:40):
You get boiled carrots with your meat and three veedge,
But on Christmas you get roasted carrots and wondrous them
with honey, and that is next level.
Speaker 1 (33:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (33:50):
No, I think there are so many ways you can
jazz them up. I love even just a simple herb butter,
even if you're just going to stem them and do
them with a herb butter. I mean that's something I
would have for a regular dinner, but I would happily
eat that as well on Christmas. Or you can sort
of put some warm spices, you know, some cinnamon and cuman,
depending on what you're serving it with. That works fabulously
(34:12):
on pumpkin as well. So many things we can do
with these very very cheap vegetables. Genius.
Speaker 3 (34:19):
And you pooh poohed my charcuterie board before you said, Victoria,
are you sure you need that?
Speaker 2 (34:24):
And I mean, I maybe love sharkuterie so much, but
it is really hard to do it on a budget,
especially you know, if you're doing it for a large group.
So what nibbles or like a little entreys are we
adding in?
Speaker 3 (34:39):
Because like, find the type of host if you came
to my house for dinner, I feel naked if I've
not got something on the table for you to like
snack on while I finish cooking dinner, I feel, I
know what snacks or little entrees or nibbles.
Speaker 2 (34:54):
Are we offering?
Speaker 3 (34:55):
Okay, because I think so many of us default to
going I'll describe a car full of cheeses and some
biscuits and then all of a sudden that was your
home deposit.
Speaker 2 (35:03):
Yeah, and look they shark utero boards or grazing platters
are fantastic because there's very little effort involved apart from
making it look beautiful. I like that, you know, and
that is fun, right, we love that. I love crostini,
oh yum.
Speaker 4 (35:22):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (35:22):
So you know you buy like the ononderull and ninety baguette, Yeah,
from the supermarket. You slice it up, you top it with.
You can do some whipped fetter, you could do some
goats cheese doesn't have to be expensive, and then you
can do anything on top. So I like, you know,
it depends what your menu is. But I love seasonal fruits. Yeah,
so even something like strawberries, like sliced strawberries with some
(35:44):
boss stomach Oh stop vinegar on them, get friendly, yes,
exactly when they're in season, which they are in summer.
Like you can do berries. You could do like relled peach.
I was about to say, yeah, you pea, you know it,
or even just shut up because tomatoes will also be affordable.
So just thinking of, you know, working around whatever ingredients.
(36:08):
You know, maybe a bit early for figs, but if
you happen to expensive, yeah, I mean I have fig farms,
so if it must be nice, yeah, I know. Do
you know my nana? So my nana also lives in Tasmania.
Speaker 3 (36:23):
Yeah, she has the biggest and best looking fig tree
I've seen in my life, and she hates figs.
Speaker 2 (36:29):
I would die for a fig tree that was later
with fruit. I will send you to her house. She Oh,
the figs are falling again and I have to clean
them up because she throws them all out. People would
pay her that coligious it is, so yeah, whatever you
can get your hands on. And on that note though,
I mean, there will be people in your neighborhood that
(36:53):
have excess of certain things. So whether it's you're nana
with the figs. Where I used to live in Brisbane
and our neighbor would put out bundles of rosemary and
put it on the community page and ask if people
wanted it. We had people with lemon trees who could
not use all the lemons. So there's nothing wrong with
getting on your Space community page and saying, hey, does
(37:17):
anybody have this? You know, if you might want rosemary
to decorate the table, but you're not going to go
out and buy you know exactly from decoration. I would
never recommend that there will be somebody with a rosemary bush.
It would be happy for you to trim it. You
can come. I've got one in my front yard. There
you go, you can have a turn. That's fine. In fact,
it's benefiting me. Yes, I love that. All right.
Speaker 3 (37:40):
So now we've covered manes, we've covered out entrees. I'm
actually really excited. I feel like a festive brusheedder that
would look festive on the table as well. We've got
the reds, we've got the greens.
Speaker 2 (37:51):
It's perfect. It looks strategic, and no one's going to
think budget when it looks strategic and it's delicious. Hundred
about it. Restaurants exactly. It's one of my favorite things. Also,
why is it so expensive when we order it restaurants? Yeah,
it's so basic. Another story for another day. Let's move
on to desserts.
Speaker 3 (38:10):
You did mention the merangue, obviously fantastic, but what other
dessert recipes do you think?
Speaker 2 (38:15):
Whole were on a budget, So I would be looking
for anything that you can make with pantry staples. It
depends obviously how confident and comfortable you feel with cooking,
but things like, you know, I love a trifle.
Speaker 4 (38:30):
I know.
Speaker 2 (38:31):
Not everybody's canceled. Nope, nobody wants. I'm so sorry.
Speaker 3 (38:38):
It's like the time I told people online that I
thought that matcha Lates tasted like agriculture, and I thought
I had.
Speaker 2 (38:45):
Okay, now you're canceled. Started a revolt.
Speaker 3 (38:48):
Yeah, but like trifle, is that not just soggy cake
and jelly?
Speaker 2 (38:52):
No, And here's the thing, like I like to take
something like that and then think, you know, whether it's
a pavlova or a trifle, and just okay, what can
I do to step this upper notch? So instead of
you know, using raspberry jelly from the supermarket, do we
(39:12):
get like plain gelatin and we flavor it ourselves? Do
we go for like do we go for a tropical
sort of trifle or do we go One year I
made what I called a Persian trifle. Okay, yeah, totally.
It was like the most expensive thing on my menu
that year. I still made it work budget wise, but
I had like pistachies on the top. Maybe I would try, yes,
(39:35):
pome I bought a pomegranate, right, yeah, I know, but
if everything else is cheap, you can you can blow
out on these little things that make it really special.
Pomegranates also very festive, So yeah, just looking at those
boring desserts and how do we elevate this, How do
(39:56):
we bring in different flavors, using the seasonal fruits and
making it special. Yeah, I feel like that's a good idea.
Speaker 3 (40:02):
And I feel like at Christmas time as well, like
coals and woolies, they drop like usually like a pavlover
wreath or something, so if you're not a chef, but
I like them very budget friendly because by the time
you make a pavlover from scratch as well, eggs are
not cheap anymore, Like eggs aren't quote the pantry staple
they want and sorry, five dollars Christmas wreath that you
(40:26):
can pimp out with all of those things.
Speaker 2 (40:29):
You look like you've tried, but you've also stuck to budget,
So like that can be smart too. Yeah, there's nothing
wrong with a storeboard merangue. Oh no, whether you're buying
the many merangues, and there are so many different ones
now take it, whether it's the wreath or just the
regular pavlover and again they will be on sale at
some point in this sort of December, and.
Speaker 3 (40:48):
They keep it like you can pop them in the pantry.
Like if you look at those fine those due dates,
it's usually like a month or even two exactly.
Speaker 2 (40:56):
Now.
Speaker 3 (40:56):
I know that you make a lot of things from
a scratch, So I can't see in Goodwin's kitchen a
Coles wreath. That's fine, it's still a good option. I
know if you came to my house and I had it,
you would happily devour it. But I know you would
make it from scratch, because that's you. But what are
you making from scratch that maybe other people aren't making
from scratch that could help our budgets this year? I think,
(41:17):
please say gravy. Of course, of course, gravy. That is
one of those things.
Speaker 2 (41:22):
I will only make things from scratch generally if it's
either going to save me a lot of money or
the end result is going to be fast superior to
the absolutely supermarket product. And sometimes it's not, so it's
not worth it. Gravy, it is always worth it, or
even if you use some of the supermarket product in
(41:43):
your own homemade gravy, if you need a bit extra,
that's fine, but using the pan juices from a delicious roast,
it's always going to be better. I think also, like
other condiments like saurces, dips, dressings, that sort of thing
are always fantastic, made from scratch and generally pretty easy.
Speaker 3 (41:59):
It has been drummed into me from a very young
age that I should never buy solad dressing. My mom
is literally like, absolutely not. You can make that at home.
And I remember one time I came home with I
don't know, gone through a phase as a teenager, like
Italian dressing, and my mother was like, you did not
pay for that, did you? And I was like, of
(42:19):
course I did, but she was like deeply offended. She
was like, you already have all of those ingredients in
the pantry and they would have been free, and you can.
Speaker 2 (42:28):
What I do is like have a little salad dressing
jar in my fridge, so it's so handy just to
have like a just a plain vinaigrette that you can
put over anything during the week. And yeah, look, I'm
okay with people buying convenience foods if it's going to
make their life easier, But if you have that just
(42:49):
a little bit of time. If sushi too, it does,
it's nicer.
Speaker 3 (42:53):
Do you know what One of my favorite gifts was
a complete side note if anyone's thinking of like, oh
my goodness, I don't know what to get my friend
for Chris, I got given this jar.
Speaker 2 (43:02):
It was like a tall jar and it has a really.
Speaker 3 (43:05):
Nice lid and spout on it, and it's literally for
salad dressing. And it has little markings on it and
little recipes all the way around, like just in black prints,
so it's kind of like standard vinigarette or whatever, and
it'll say like up to here with olive oil, up
to here with red wine vinegar and a like dollop
of like.
Speaker 2 (43:23):
Garlic or whatever, and the ratios yes, and now that
I just read my salad dressing jar. It's so silly.
Speaker 3 (43:31):
But even if you get something and it's like, oh thanks,
but I use it, it lives in my fridge even
if it's empty, because then all the reminder.
Speaker 2 (43:39):
Yeah, like otherwise I won't use it. Do not buy
the Italian salad dressing.
Speaker 3 (43:44):
But it has like a little French style and it's
like basically like a vinegar like they usually use white
wine vinegar, olive oil and then they say put some
Dijil mustard in it, and I'm like, okay, that's perfect,
Like it's just right.
Speaker 2 (43:56):
There on the jar. I love a practical gift and yes, no,
that's amazing.
Speaker 3 (44:01):
I know I'm running out of time, so I'll stop
talking about gift giving because we meant to be here
for food. But the other thing, and the last thing
that stresses me out about food at Christmas is when
someone says, let's have drinks.
Speaker 2 (44:13):
Can you bring a p late? What's on?
Speaker 3 (44:15):
Like, Chelsea, what are you making? What am I taking
to the Christmas drinks? On to the dinner?
Speaker 2 (44:21):
You're going to keep things simple, like if I was
bringing something along to like a lunch or a dinner
and I knew there would be you know, they were
taking care of the meat and they just wanted sides.
My go to would be a potato salad. And that
sounds so boring and you're fully thinking salad, Chelsea, but like, sorry,
everybody eats that drinks me exactly. The thing is, people
(44:42):
love a great potato salad. So if you can knock
your potato salad out of the park, like I love
a really herbaceous potato salad, with all the mustards, and
you know, like the way the seasoning is perfect and
nice and creamy and all the art ins, and so
it's not Cole's Deli, not clus delli potato salad. It's
(45:02):
also really cheap to make generally, like if you've got
the herbs in your garden or somebody else's garden, yep, And.
Speaker 3 (45:08):
We're not boiled eggs and bacon and all of those
other things that are expensive.
Speaker 2 (45:14):
If you've got them, add them in. But you don't
have to, yeah, Like it can just be the potatoes,
the herbs, the dressing. Also, like I don't want to
have to be heating things up at somebody else's house,
So I'm always thinking, like, what can I just stick
in the fridge when I get there, and then I
can pull it out, pop it on the table and
it's done. I think there are two things in life
that are true.
Speaker 3 (45:33):
You cannot trust people who don't like dogs, and you
cannot trust people who don't have potato salad. So I
feel like that's the crowd pleasing winner of your suggestion
from you. I love it, Chelsea. I have sadly run
out of time with you. My timer is flashing and
it's saying Victoria any longer, and the community is going
to riot. Thank you for hanging out with us today,
(45:53):
Thank you for hanging out in person with me today.
I just know that my community is not just taking notes,
They're running to the section to make sure that they
can get your recipes now, guys, don't forget. I am
absolutely going to link Chelsea's links in the show notes
because I know that everyone is going to want to
follow you if they're not already, and they should already
be following you because you've already been on the show before, guys,
(46:14):
get to it. And a tiny little Christmas tip from
me that Chelsea doesn't know about if you are stuck
on what to buy someone for Christmas and you don't
want to buy them at jar with some writing on it, Honestly,
Chelsea's new book is the best option. It's called Money
Saving Meal Plans with Chelsea. And will put all of
the details in the show notes for you for that
(46:36):
as well. Plus I'm going to add the menu that
you generously have offered to give our community, of course,
and if you loved this episode, my friends, make sure
that you are subscribed so that you never miss what's
coming next, and the She's on the Money team and
I will see you on Friday.
Speaker 2 (46:52):
Bye. Did buy?
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we're gathering on today. Take pleasure in all the land
and respect all that you see. She's on the Money
podcast acknowledges culture, country, community and connections, bringing you the tools,
knowledge and resources for.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
You to thrive. She's on the Money. She's on the Money.
Speaker 3 (01:07):
Hello and welcome to She's on the Money, the podcast
that is here to help you have a very merry
Christmas without a very scary grocery bill. Last year, Australian
households spend about five hundred bucks on Christmas food and
drinks alone, and with grocery prices climbing higher than ever.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
This year, I thought, absolutely not.
Speaker 3 (01:28):
We are not doing another Christmas shop where the checkout
gives you heart palpitations. So today's episode is all about
building a gorgeous Christmas feast without the financial stress.
Speaker 2 (01:40):
I'm Victoria Devine and girls is not just me.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
With me is the woman who can turn ten bucks
into dinner and somehow make it taste really expensive. You
might remember her from our episode on feeding your family
for ten dollars, And she's back and I am thrilled.
She has come all the way from Tasmania and she's
in my studio in real life. Welcome back to the show,
Chelsea Goodwin.
Speaker 2 (02:04):
Oh my goodness, I am so happy to be here, Victoria.
Speaker 3 (02:07):
So I am just excited to meet you in person.
Like we had this really cool interview.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
It was all online. That's fine, but we vibed.
Speaker 3 (02:16):
I love watching your stuff, and to see you in person,
I'm like, oh, she is actually sunshine.
Speaker 2 (02:21):
I know you're sunshine in the form of a human,
and I love that you are so sweet.
Speaker 3 (02:27):
Let's get into Christmas because I also love Christmas, so
do I. I've got Christmas nails, You've got a red
jump up.
Speaker 2 (02:32):
We are ready for this.
Speaker 3 (02:34):
So I wanted to start first question first, cab off
the rank, not even about budget.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
What does Christmas look like for you? I love Christmas.
It's Christmas is such a joyful time. It's like where
I have a small family, so I never had this
sort of big, huge family Christmas. So now it's just
me and my three kids and it's us at home.
We do a Christmas Eve dinner. My dad's side of
the family are Africa American. They're all in America, so
(03:02):
they don't join us for Christmas, but we bring Christmas. Yes,
we bring the culture onto the dinner tables. So we
have like a soul food beast on Christmas Eve. It's
delicious and we invite friends over. And then on Christmas
Day it's usually something a bit more traditional, so we
have sort of like your traditional Euro Aussie Christmas. And
(03:26):
I try when I can to volunteer on Christmas Day.
So if we have time in the day, if there's
somewhere that needs help, yes we'll rock up and we'll
cook food, serve food, or do whatever we need to do.
Speaker 3 (03:38):
We did that growing up. That was really important for
my mom. My mom was like, you guys need.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
To learn what the world looks like and Christmas is
about giving, it is.
Speaker 3 (03:47):
So we would go down to I want to say,
ye soup kitchen, but it was like I can't remember
the establishment that we did it at, but I'm assuming
it was like a Vinie's or something. And we go
down and like serve Christmas lunch and then come back
and have our dinner together as a family, and same
as you family, but they're all inter state, so we
often just have like a little small Christmas all together.
(04:09):
And yeah, I feel like that really helps bring back
the sense of gratitude that you have on Christmas, and
like you're probably teaching your kids a lot through that
as well, I really hope.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
So I mean this Christmas, we are cooking for over
one hundred people, so that is really stretching the limits
of my ability. Hundred people, hundred people, So that's that's
I just want on that. Yeah, Luckily most of the
food is donated, so we don't have to worry bud judget.
Great budget, great budget, but it's going to be so
(04:39):
much fun. Oh, I love that. All right.
Speaker 3 (04:41):
Pivoting back to your family Christmas thought, what parts of
Christmas are you happy to spend on and what parts
are you like, absolutely not.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
Okay, I am a thrifty queen when it comes to presents.
So we do thrift shopping for our Christmas presents. And
that's something that I started doing. So we're not in
the same family, Kid's quite possible. Yeah, would basically look
like sisters. I know, can't you tell? Yes, So we
buy our presence at thrift shops. I used to do
(05:10):
that when my kids were really young and I couldn't
afford to buy presents to them and didn't want to
go into debt or lay by presents for them, so
I would buy things, often new, from thrift stores for
their Christmas presence and they never knew the difference. So
now we're a bit more open about it, and we
do it as a family. So we'll go with ten
dollars each to go and get a present for each person,
(05:31):
and it's like this really exciting sort of true chunt.
Yeah it is. It's fun and it's really like when
you open it up, it's always a surprise to see
what the rest of the families managed to put together.
Speaker 3 (05:42):
Yeah, one hundred percent. We do handmade, homemade or second hand.
It's like one of my family sides and it's literally
so fun, Like it's one of my favorite parts because
you just it's like a challenge in a way, because well,
I can't plan a gift, I can't do the research
for the gift. I actually have to get out there
and kind of get my hands dirty to find something.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
But when you find the perfect then you're like, this
is it exactly, and it's sort of feel good aspect,
and I feel like, you know, there is this like
massive amount of over consumption in our society and we
have all of these things that we receive as gifts
and don't use. So you know, if we get something
from the thrift store that we don't love, we just
(06:23):
donate it back exactly, and.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
We don't feel bad because the gift actually already served
its purpose.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
That's exactly right.
Speaker 3 (06:30):
So before you mentioned I'm slightly envious that you have
two styles of Christmas meals that you cook. You've got
your soul food and then on the flip side, you've
got something more traditional.
Speaker 2 (06:42):
What do you think or which style do you think
is cheaper to make? I'd say purely because of the
mac and cheese that I make for Christmas Eve dinner
and cheese being so expensive the traditional dinner is probably
cheaper because you said yes, because if I make a
proper mac and cheese, we're talking like like three. Yeah,
there's so much so that just blows the budget but
(07:04):
totally worth it, and we always have leftovers a traditional one.
I feel like I've got down to kind of a
fine art where you know, we never spend more than
one hundred dollars. You know, even if I'm cooking for
eight people, no matter how many people are there, it's
under one hundred and I just make it work.
Speaker 3 (07:18):
No, that actually doesn't make sense to me because the
charcuterie board I have in my head is already going
to cost like eighty dollars and I'm already like I've.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
Maybe we need canutary board, Victoria.
Speaker 3 (07:32):
But like, sorry, that might be in line with my values.
You mentioned you give yourself a one hundred dollar budget
for you like it doesn't go over Yeah, how far
out are we planning this menu?
Speaker 2 (07:44):
Like? Or how well in advance? Too far? So as
soon as i know who I'm cooking for, which is
usually kind of the first week or so of December, yeah,
I can then start planning. So if I know if
it's just my family. If it's just four of us,
go for it. If I might have, you know, two
or three extra coming along, I can figure that out.
And then I start planning what I'm going to make,
how much of everything I need, and then I cost
(08:07):
it all out.
Speaker 3 (08:07):
You're gonna have to give me examples because we can't
say to my community. Oh yeah, So Chelsea does hook
Christmas dinner for one hundred dollars, and then we move
on from that, like everybody is wondering, like how including me, it's.
Speaker 2 (08:19):
Not possible, including dessert, including out everything. Sorry, she's just upgreen.
We're including the meat, the sides, and the dessert.
Speaker 3 (08:27):
What meat are we cooking for under one hundred dollars?
Speaker 2 (08:29):
All right? So hit me out here. The humble roast
chicken perfect, yeah, which I think a lot of people
overlook because they think if I do a roast chicken
on Christmas Day, first, it's a little bit povo Like, No,
it's not. I don't think it is. But I think
people avoid it because it just seems like a regular dinner.
But we're gonna pimp your chicken. You are gonna pimp
(08:51):
your chicken up. You're going to serve the best roast chicken.
Anybody has ever had the best seasoned, stuffed, most beautiful looking,
crispy skinned roast chicken. And if you've got more than
you know, see more than five people, you just cook two.
Speaker 4 (09:05):
Yep.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
So I would do a roast chicken. I do stuffing.
Like with any of my meal plans in my books,
we're always making sure that we're using multiple ingredients in
multiple recipes.
Speaker 3 (09:15):
That has been literally life changing for me, Like the
way that you have made my meal prep and I
don't meal prep, Like I have openly said this, like
I'm not going to pretend that I follow your meal
plan to a t, but I adore that I can
pick up your meal plan.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
And get a lot out of it.
Speaker 3 (09:32):
And like sometimes I'm a little bit lazy, Chelsea, I'm
really sorry, like cost twelve because I've gone for Connection
twelve at the moment, because I've also been like I'm
not shopping around. I'm not going to multiple supermarkets to
get the specials. I just want the Chelsea Goodwin, like
the special give it to me because I know if
I make this, I'm going to have like a meatball
(09:52):
sub the next day and I'm going to have like
meatballs for something else, and it's been.
Speaker 2 (09:56):
Literally so helpful with a toddler. I'm sorry, genius. I
wish I had discovered this when I had toddlers. It
took me a little bit longer.
Speaker 3 (10:06):
It's insane. But like when you find a food that
they like, I mean, use it in a number of
different ways.
Speaker 2 (10:12):
Yeah, it's great. So yeah we do that at Christmas
as well, so things like, you know, I love nuts
in a salad, so I'll get walnuts or pecans. But
then you can also put that in the stuffing. Okay
that the chicken too, exactly, and you could do sort
of like a steamed greens or a sauteed greens and
then do them with some sprinkled or toasted nuts on
(10:32):
them as well. So you're using that tiny little packet
of nuts.
Speaker 3 (10:37):
Yeah exactly, not using half a packet of nuts, putting
the half in the cupboard and then being like what
were those?
Speaker 2 (10:41):
I think they're stale? Exactly, So I do you know
this gorgeous chicken, we make it look beautiful. It's a
cent a piece of the table, or have some rosemary
sticking out of its little but yeah, perfect, Yeah, we
love that stuff it then for our sides. I'll do
my salad. So I love a nutty salad. I love
fruits in salad as well. So would you pair or apple?
(11:01):
We're doing a little bit of cheese, you know, get
a bit of fetter from the deli, like just as
much as you need. Yeah, and then that where you're
not paying not too much exactly for the salad. A
beautiful vinegarette, which is using pantry staples. Usually most people
have that at home. A bit of olive oil, bit
of vinegar.
Speaker 1 (11:17):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (11:18):
I would do you know, some green beans or something
like that, and like a scalloped potatoes stop it. Yeah,
So I love a car Bi side because that fills
everybody up. And he does cheesy goodness, but it's like
not as expensive as mac and cheese. Who that's right.
And then the cream we're using that for the potatoes,
but we're also going to use that for dessert.
Speaker 3 (11:39):
I saw that coming. Yeah, that's the part that I
saw coming. The nuts though, I was like smart.
Speaker 2 (11:44):
And also I would also usually put cranberry in the
stuffing as well, and cranberry is in the salad that
is quite festive. You got color, You've got a bit
of everything. Happening there.
Speaker 3 (11:52):
I'm obsessed. I'm obsessed, like I think that that is geenus.
But what are we cooking for dessert? Okay, we're doing
it because like in my head, you're saying budget and
I'm saying chocolate ripple cake.
Speaker 2 (12:02):
I love chocolate and I'm so sorry that family I.
Speaker 3 (12:06):
Grew up in chocolate ripple cake at Christmas. Non negotiable.
Speaker 2 (12:11):
It's so ausy, isn't it. Oh my goodness, No, we're
not having chocolate ripple cake. It has to be something festive.
So I would usually do like mini meringues, which again
egg whites, where use the yolks make a lemon curd?
Oh fancy? And so I put a bit of lemon
curd whipped cream.
Speaker 3 (12:31):
And everyone's fruits so fancy. None of this sounds budget.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
It is so budget. Can I tell you I actually
costed this entire menu, out entire thing, and I think
it came to just over sixty dollars And this was
just like two weeks ago. So we've got the numbers fresh, yes,
and I will meet with full menu. I shared this
a couple of years ago in my Facebook group. Back
then it was I think feeda family are four for fifty.
(12:55):
Now we're looking out sixty something. But let's not do
let's still bring the mood down. I just want to
hear about the chicken. Yeah, so I'll do up the
whole menu and I'll can we have that so I
can share that with my community. I will put it
in the show notes.
Speaker 3 (13:09):
Guys, Chelsea's going to give us the menu and we
can do Christmas for under one hundred bucks. And then
we have to like send Chelsea lots of nice messages
on Christmas because and.
Speaker 2 (13:19):
I'll cheat at us as solid. Send me your questions,
but not on Christmas Day. You just have some level, Yes,
send me your free Christmas questions about the menu.
Speaker 3 (13:27):
So obviously, I would say, having had small family Christmases
for as long as I can remember, still over cater
so I see you one hundred dollars budget and I
go sligh, no worries. I then go, but we might
need some extras, and we might need like a cheese platter,
(13:49):
and like, I want to make sure that I don't
not have anything. Like the idea that the shops are
closed on Christmas gives me a little bit of anxiety
because I'm like, oh my God, like what if I
don't have like a little side dish, or what if
I haven't hated enough. So I would say that over
catering is not just a Victoria problem. It seems to
be a thing that we all do because we all
talk about maybe this is a real Aussie tradition, Christmas
(14:10):
leftovers on Boxing Day. How do you plan to minimize
waste while not being all consumed by the idea that
you won't have enough? Well, because like at Christmas, I
don't want to not have enough.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
I feel exactly the same, and I think anybody that
comes from like if you come from certain cultural backgrounds,
it's like a sin to not have enough, and almost
like a sin to not send people home with leftovers
as well. You're packaging up the containers staying this home.
So I'm all for that. I think if I don't
have food leftover after Christmas, I feel like I've done
(14:43):
something wrong, just because it means that maybe people haven't
had enough to eat. So I always try and make
a little bit more than I think I need, so
I don't look at that as food waste if it's
going to be eaten. I think the problem is when
those leftovers become food waste, yeah, because you don't have
a plan for them. So you know, things like your
Christmas ham. You know, we do this big giant Christmas
(15:05):
ham and we love ham, right, but then you have
all this leftover ham and by the twenty eighth you'd rather,
you know, eat sand than eat another piece of ham,
because it's you couldn't be.
Speaker 3 (15:16):
In my family, we basically are ham fiends all through January.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
But I know not everybody is. Not everybody does love
it that much. So it's just figuring out what you
can do with it and trying to figure that out
before Christmas. So you've got the ingredients, whether you want
to turn it into a kiche or use it for
fried rice, or if you don't have a plan, just
stick it in the freezer. Yeah, it's a good point.
So to make sure that you don't have waste. I
(15:41):
feel like waste comes into it with things like leafy
green salads. Youa salad, you dress it, and then you
really like nobody likes to eat that the next day.
So just being careful with those sort of foods to
make sure that you don't have excess.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
No, that's scat actually, because I would say salad waste house, Like,
maybe we dress the salad at the table and then
you can put the leafy greens back in the fridge
and they'll be okay for sandwiches and stuff for the
rest of the week. Yes, And also, guys, we're not
talking about Chelsea scolloped potatoes here. There's no such thing
as food waste with that item, I'll eat it out
(16:17):
of the fridge, no worries.
Speaker 2 (16:18):
I literally do that. Yep.
Speaker 3 (16:20):
Yeah, I just oh, I'm just getting the milk for
my tea, no worries, and a cheeky piece of sculpted
potato with my fingers.
Speaker 2 (16:27):
I threw it all of my children with a spoon
and lifting the lid or the foil of the lid,
and yeah, getting in there. They're good kids. I like it.
I love to do on Christmas.
Speaker 3 (16:40):
I feel like it's often it's a lot of pressure,
but it's always like about catering for a crowd. What
are your tips for creating a menu for a large
group of people, because I feel like it's twenty twenty five,
it's the end of twenty twenty five, and I'm not
willing to speak on that. But everyone has different dietares
and requirements these days, and then that adds a layer
(17:01):
of complexity, and then your stuffing's not gluten free, and
then like you know, all of those really fun things,
how are we dealing with that? Or you like, no, girlfriend,
I'm from a family where that doesn't exist.
Speaker 2 (17:15):
I mean, I'm latose intolerant and I still eat cream,
so'm I'm val. I know what we do, but I
do respect other people's intolerances and allergies. I always will
cater for that. I think there are enough products and
affordable products now where you can buy these latose free
gluten free alternatives. Like whether it's breadcrumbs for your stuffing
(17:37):
or whatever it is that you need, you can make
it work. And there are so many wonderful meals that
you can make. I mean, I do still find catering
for vegans hard sometimes, but best friends for vegan just
where as well, Like if you're having people over and
they have really specific dietary requirements, there's nothing wrong with
like asking them to bring a meal or liking them
(17:58):
to bring an ingredient that maybe you could substitute, because
they know better than anybody else what's going to work.
But yeah, I'd say, just don't stress, and I think
one of the things people do when they're catering for
big groups is they just they try and do too much.
So just simplify.
Speaker 3 (18:15):
Yeah, totally, totally, And I know that we talked about
it before. You volunteer on Christmas Day.
Speaker 4 (18:21):
You are.
Speaker 2 (18:22):
I knew you would, You're just a wholesome human being.
Speaker 4 (18:25):
Of course you do.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
I'm assuming that when you do that, it's obviously cooking
for a lot of people.
Speaker 3 (18:31):
You said one hundred people, which is just so many people,
and then you're on a tight budget. Yes, most of
the food is donated, but like there are going to
be things that you need to top up with and
like work out how we're going to you know, you've
got six million potatoes, but how are we going to
make a dish out of this?
Speaker 2 (18:47):
What has that taught you about making food? Stretch plan,
perm plan, plan plan, that's all that coming. Yeah, it's
really like it's a day's long process. And even if
I was cooking for say twelve people I or even
ten people in my house, you know, like a large
dinner party, I would still start prepping food the day
(19:08):
before or two days before, and I would be planning
at least a week before. We're not shopping Christmas Eve.
No wait, please don't do that. Don't do it to yourself,
don't do it to your saof I know exactly, but
I think it's like it's even little things like where
I've run into trouble, as things like not having enough
oven space for the things that I want to cook.
(19:29):
You know, you're like, oh, this tray and this tray
and this tray need to go in at the same
time and they're not going to fit or alternatively, like
they need to be at different temperatures and I've got
to cook them at the same time. But because if
you haven't.
Speaker 3 (19:42):
Planned what you don't have three ovens. That's so crazy.
My new house has the smallest oven. Like I'm not
complaining yet, like a sixty centimeter oven does not fit the.
Speaker 2 (19:54):
Bill for hosting.
Speaker 4 (19:55):
I know.
Speaker 2 (19:55):
It's so hard. So that's where you've got to think, like, Okay,
what can I pre make and maybe then instead of
having to cook it from scratch, which I just eat,
to reheat it smart or like can I use my
air fryer for certain yeah, like what can be done
on the stovetop? Or can I ask somebody to heat
this in their oven at home and bring it along
with them.
Speaker 3 (20:15):
I reckon a pre made scullot potato definitely, three heats
perfect there because you can do it all, add a
little sprinkling of cheese back.
Speaker 2 (20:25):
In, reheat it, and then just grill the chocke It
never had a fen. Yeah, what are you talking about?
Speaker 3 (20:30):
What do you think is the biggest mistake people make
when they're shopping for Christmas food?
Speaker 2 (20:35):
Like say, like you mentioned shopping on Christmas Eve, leaving
it till the last ning. Don't I've done that. I've
done that before. But the worst thing is that then
you know you'll go, especially if you live regional like
I do, you go to the one supermarket that everybody
is at and.
Speaker 3 (20:51):
It's right beside the Kmar because I know where you live,
and the coals and the cama is chaos at Christmas?
Speaker 2 (20:57):
Don't you do that to yourself? Completely chaotic? And they
may have run out of like that one thing that
you really need. Yeah, and it's so incredibly stressful. You
don't want to be having to drive like an hour
to try and find something or completely change your menu
because you've left everything to the last minute. The other
thing I would say is that I know. Sometimes people
will buy like gourmet ingredients to specific recipes and they'll
(21:22):
use a tiny bit and then it goes in the
fridge and it's forgotten about. And you spent all this
money on this thing that you didn't really need, or
you could have bought something else or made something else,
and you have the food waste you spent the money.
It's like a whole of thing. I actually have a
rule that I'm allowed to try more than one new
recipe when I'm cooking for a crowd. So it's fair. Yeah,
(21:44):
i have to stick with in my comfort zone, and
I'm allowed one new recipe, one new thing that I
can experiment on, and if that goes bad, it's okay
because everything else will turn out. So I think, yeah,
just make your life easier.
Speaker 3 (22:00):
Totally agree, And I think it's all about Sometimes you're like, well,
it's Christmas, we should get the bougie version, but you
probably should just be getting the fetter from the deli,
not the Meredith Scots Cheese. Like, even though yes, that's
bougie and it's fair you love the Meredith, nobody is
going to notice it when it's on the top of
a salad they're really not. They're not going to notice,
(22:21):
I promise. And I also just love the idea that
you're going to give us this menu, right so that
we can have our one hundred dollars Christmas and do
our roast chickens. But sorry, she's giving us the whole menu.
You can just cut and paste that into your coal's delivery.
You don't even have to go to the shops. Literally, yeah,
and like everything will be delivered and if you do
it early enough, if there's something missing, you just pop
(22:42):
out for one thing. Oh it's a money win, all right.
I feel like that's a good strategy. And we've got
that sorted and nailed. Let's go to a really quick
break and then after the break, I think we're going
to get into the really fun part. We're going to
talk more about food, the meats, the sides, the specific desserts,
and all of the delicious bits that I would say
can get Meredith Scots cheese fetter expensive if you're not careful,
(23:06):
So guys, don't go anywhere.
Speaker 2 (23:12):
Welcome back, my friends.
Speaker 3 (23:13):
Now, I wanted to start with one of the most
expensive things on the Christmas menu, and that is always
the meat.
Speaker 2 (23:21):
Even if you're vegetarian.
Speaker 3 (23:23):
Even if you're vegan, the like options are still expensive,
Like the alternatives are cooked. You mentioned that you do
a roast chicken earlier, which I think is genius. But
what other if you're like, well, you're right you said before,
some people think that chicken on Christmas povo.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
They don't like that.
Speaker 3 (23:40):
Yeah, what other options do we have? What meat cuts
are we looking for? Because for me, I'm not gonna lie.
If I showed up to Christmas and told my dad
we're having chicken, he'd be like, we have lamb on Christmas,
and lamb that's that's not budget Eric Divine.
Speaker 2 (23:58):
Yeah, look, I think you've just got to with those things.
Sometimes you've really got a plan ahead. Yeah. So it's
a matter of like if you want I mean, if
you want really high quality, beautiful butcher's meat, anything you
get is going to be expensive. If you're happy to
go to the supermarket which is still great quality meat
and take advantage of the specials, you've got some options there.
(24:21):
So hams can be really budget friendly and you don't
have you can buy the half leg, you don't have
to get the full leg. Diet a full leg when
it's on special. Sometimes they mark them down. I mean,
this is where you're taking kind of a risk. Like
sometimes you might get them cheaper on Christmas Eve if
you get in there.
Speaker 3 (24:38):
But I'm not going to encourage you to do that
either because there's no discount.
Speaker 2 (24:43):
Had I would not be leaving your you know, the
main event the meat until Christmas Eve. Another thing that
people aren't too keen on.
Speaker 3 (24:53):
Here, but I love is turkey. So you can try
and sell me on turkey. Yeah, I feel like it's
very American.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
It is very American.
Speaker 3 (25:02):
It's giving Thanksgiving, it is giving Thanksgiving, but we're not
doing a whole turkey, right because that just seems terrifying.
But in your sixty centimeters exactly, it's you've got to
look at what you've got.
Speaker 2 (25:14):
So and they do come in different sizes also, so
you can get smaller turkeys and you can get like
the big bazooka turkey that you're going to need a
giant oven for. But you can also buy the frozen
portions as well. That's genius, which and they're often half price. Yeah,
Like I've picked them up half price. I actually buy
them and slice the cook them and slice them up
for sandwich meat genie because it's cheaper than buying turkey
(25:36):
at the deli, so they can be delicious. You know,
a bit of cranberry sauce. It's giving festive. It is
giving festive. I love turkey, not everybody does, but that's
a great option lamb as well. Like we just look
for the specials, and it really depends on what is
going on with Lamb prices as far as weather at
that particular time. It is affordable or not. So that's
(25:58):
something you just have to look at and see whether
that's in your budget. But usually, like Lamb legs are
going to be a lot cheaper than Lamb shoulders, but
Lamb legs are so beautiful slow roasted. Yeah, cook humble
hook shoulder one hundred percent. Yes, that's another really budget
friendly cut which is beautiful, crackling. You can slow cook that.
I think it's genius.
Speaker 3 (26:18):
Would you also say, because you said before and it
got me thinking, you said they have the frozen portions,
would you.
Speaker 2 (26:24):
Start looking right now to go okay cool?
Speaker 3 (26:28):
I could buy my meat and freeze it and then
defrost it a few days before Christmas or properly defrost.
But then we get a good deal and we prepared
and we know that it's not going to be sold
out on.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Christmas depending on the meat. So obviously, if it's something
that's already frozen, bang it in the freezer, you have
no problem. Poultry, I'm happy to freeze ham. No, not,
We're not going to freeze the ham. Just need to
say that because I'll be able to see the hams
in the freezer. But yeah, it really just depends on
the meat itself. But poultry definitely.
Speaker 3 (26:58):
What about seafood. I'm sorry, but I'm just thinking about
myself in this moment. Okay, my dad wants lamb on Christmas. Yeah,
my mum would probably start a riot if we didn't
have some form of seafood.
Speaker 2 (27:11):
Okay, I feel like it's a very Australian thing to have.
Speaker 3 (27:15):
Is what cost effective ways could people integrate this if
they were like, oh, I really.
Speaker 2 (27:19):
Want to seafood Christmas. I get it, but I don't
get it because I'm not a huge seafood lover. She
wants the turkey, I do. I want the turkey. I
want the lamb, I want the chicken.
Speaker 3 (27:30):
But if my fingers do not smell like prawn's by
the end of Christmas, day.
Speaker 2 (27:35):
I have not had a good Christmas Aussie Christmas that
I've ever been to. At other people's house, there is
always a huge prom platter, So I totally get that.
I actually love oysters. They're my Yeah see, you can't
sell me. See but I mean this little tidbit about
the sea. Oh stop it. I would do anything for
(27:56):
a dozen oysters. Keep that in my brain. A love them.
Here's the thing though, Oysters expensive, right if you're eating
them at a restaurant. I used to purchase them, and
you can do this with any seafood. But I sourced oysters.
This is when I was living in Brisbane, so up
until about a year ago, I source them from a
(28:17):
wholesaler that sells to restaurants but also sells to the public.
So I was getting my oysters for just over a
dollar each. Oh that's kind of deal. And that's that
is budget friendly. So if I sell people, oh I
had oysters, they think, oh, you know, you're a joke, Chelsea.
I thought you were, you know, the budget cooking you
know guru. But I had free and there was like
a platter of them, and you make a little mignonette
(28:37):
like you can do. You can pick them up on
Christmas Eve. Yeah, but the same places that do the oysters.
There's usually other seafood places that also sell to the
public and to restaurants that you can source your seafood
from and at great prices and pick it all up
the day before Christmas. On that note, as well as
far as food wholesalers, I think something that a lot
of people don't know is that a lot of these
(28:58):
wholesalers that sell to restaurants sell things like, you know,
like your big boxes of really nice frozen Aaron Cheeney
and things like that. Yeah, yeah, like you can buy that,
you can go. They will sell direct to public, a
lot of them. I used to have an account with one,
and I was just you know, that was just me.
I was in business or anything. But yeah, that's great
(29:19):
if you're wanting to cater for larger groups, but maybe
wanting some little shortcuts, you can pick up that really
high quality food that is just needs to be reheated
and at a really good price. I will make room
in my oven for that one. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (29:36):
Now, I feel like I'm very good at getting confused
around Christmas time as to how many grams of things
people need and I'm saying that because I don't think grams,
but I go, oh, okay, we were talking about the
pork before, we're going to go buy a pork shoulder.
And then I get analysis paralysis because I'm looking at
all the pork shoulder options and one's one killer, and
(29:57):
one's one point five and one's two, and I'm like, well,
which one do I need? Obviously they impact the price,
but like it's going to shrink a little bit. How
many grams per person are we allocating? When it comes
to a protein.
Speaker 2 (30:08):
It's really hard because then you've got you've got bone
less and bone in meat as well, so that comes
into it. What I would say is that if you
are buying from a soupermarket, often it will give you
a guide on the packet, so it will say, you know,
the lamb I've noticed in the pork often has that,
So that will say feeds six or something like that,
and that is a fairly good approximation. The problem is
(30:30):
that we all know our families.
Speaker 3 (30:33):
And when you met my husband, because a six person
thing is not that's not six maybe three?
Speaker 2 (30:38):
I have you know a six foot four seventeen year
old at home? Oh yeah, that's something we worse than
a husband. Actually, when it comes to food consumption, anybody
that has growing teenagers are very very hungry partners. Oh
look I eat a lot at Christmas. So if you're
buying from a butcher, I would always talk to them
and just say, look, i'm feeding five very hungry adult
(31:00):
is this going to be enough? And they will tell
you it's hard to give an exact you know, gram
per person approximate. Disappointing but also totally relatable.
Speaker 3 (31:10):
No, totally, but I like the idea that we can
check the packets and it will be a bit of
a guideline and we're so sorry. The idea of asking
the butcher as you're getting it genius. I'd be like,
this is now your problem. And then if on Christmas
I run out, I'd be like, butcher said, well, let's
move on from grams of meat and actually talk about sides.
(31:30):
Because you were selling me before scarlet potatoes, some greens
with some like little nuts on top ten out of ten?
Speaker 2 (31:38):
How can we keep the costs down there?
Speaker 3 (31:40):
And then how can we make ove is maybe a
little bit more fancy on Christmas?
Speaker 2 (31:44):
Okay, I think sides are something that people struggle with
as sides like creativity because you know it's easy to
choose your protein and do you know glazer ham and
make it look all pretty. But then it's like what
do we serve it with? I mean I always I
love cut Like carbs are great for Christmas because you
want people's bellies to be full. So potatoes are fantastic.
Anything you can do with potatoes, mash them, you know, potato,
(32:07):
bake potato salad, like roast potatoes, potato Christmas. You heard
it here first. Yeah, if potatoes aren't on your menu,
get them on your menu because they are so budget friendly.
You can do so much with them, and they're very filling,
which is fantastic, and they taste great. I would usually
do a green side, a potato side, and a salad
(32:28):
as a minimum.
Speaker 3 (32:29):
Do you feel a great carrots because like I don't
feel like it's Christmas without carrots in my house.
Speaker 2 (32:35):
But like we're not just boiling some carrots like they
have to be roasted. Yeah, I mean I love it
like a just a tray of mixed roast vegetables. Yeah. Yeah,
So if you've got some carrots, some pumpkins, some sweet potato,
I'm always thinking about color as well, So how is
it going to look when it's on the table. You know,
if you've got some white potatoes, you've got your kind
of your brown meat, you got your green side, and
(32:58):
then you know, bringing something it does make it feel
more festive. It does. We do eat with our eyes.
We want people to sort of when you put the
food on the table, so I think, and when it's
on your plate as well, thinking about what it's going
to look like when you've got all of the little
portions on your plate. So carrots are great for that.
And again like two dollars a bag can't go wrong.
Speaker 4 (33:20):
See.
Speaker 3 (33:20):
I love carrots and I feel like there's such a
budget friendly side. You can pin them out with some nuts,
honey carrots.
Speaker 2 (33:29):
Honey buttered carrots, like sorry, sorry, that's just my childhood
maybe coming out honey carrots only came out on special occasions. Yeah,
that's not a week night meal.
Speaker 3 (33:40):
You get boiled carrots with your meat and three veedge,
But on Christmas you get roasted carrots and wondrous them
with honey, and that is next level.
Speaker 1 (33:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (33:50):
No, I think there are so many ways you can
jazz them up. I love even just a simple herb butter,
even if you're just going to stem them and do
them with a herb butter. I mean that's something I
would have for a regular dinner, but I would happily
eat that as well on Christmas. Or you can sort
of put some warm spices, you know, some cinnamon and cuman,
depending on what you're serving it with. That works fabulously
(34:12):
on pumpkin as well. So many things we can do
with these very very cheap vegetables. Genius.
Speaker 3 (34:19):
And you pooh poohed my charcuterie board before you said, Victoria,
are you sure you need that?
Speaker 2 (34:24):
And I mean, I maybe love sharkuterie so much, but
it is really hard to do it on a budget,
especially you know, if you're doing it for a large group.
So what nibbles or like a little entreys are we
adding in?
Speaker 3 (34:39):
Because like, find the type of host if you came
to my house for dinner, I feel naked if I've
not got something on the table for you to like
snack on while I finish cooking dinner, I feel, I
know what snacks or little entrees or nibbles.
Speaker 2 (34:54):
Are we offering?
Speaker 3 (34:55):
Okay, because I think so many of us default to
going I'll describe a car full of cheeses and some
biscuits and then all of a sudden that was your
home deposit.
Speaker 2 (35:03):
Yeah, and look they shark utero boards or grazing platters
are fantastic because there's very little effort involved apart from
making it look beautiful. I like that, you know, and
that is fun, right, we love that. I love crostini,
oh yum.
Speaker 4 (35:22):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (35:22):
So you know you buy like the ononderull and ninety baguette, Yeah,
from the supermarket. You slice it up, you top it with.
You can do some whipped fetter, you could do some
goats cheese doesn't have to be expensive, and then you
can do anything on top. So I like, you know,
it depends what your menu is. But I love seasonal fruits. Yeah,
so even something like strawberries, like sliced strawberries with some
(35:44):
boss stomach Oh stop vinegar on them, get friendly, yes,
exactly when they're in season, which they are in summer.
Like you can do berries. You could do like relled peach.
I was about to say, yeah, you pea, you know it,
or even just shut up because tomatoes will also be affordable.
So just thinking of, you know, working around whatever ingredients.
(36:08):
You know, maybe a bit early for figs, but if
you happen to expensive, yeah, I mean I have fig farms,
so if it must be nice, yeah, I know. Do
you know my nana? So my nana also lives in Tasmania.
Speaker 3 (36:23):
Yeah, she has the biggest and best looking fig tree
I've seen in my life, and she hates figs.
Speaker 2 (36:29):
I would die for a fig tree that was later
with fruit. I will send you to her house. She Oh,
the figs are falling again and I have to clean
them up because she throws them all out. People would
pay her that coligious it is, so yeah, whatever you
can get your hands on. And on that note though,
I mean, there will be people in your neighborhood that
(36:53):
have excess of certain things. So whether it's you're nana
with the figs. Where I used to live in Brisbane
and our neighbor would put out bundles of rosemary and
put it on the community page and ask if people
wanted it. We had people with lemon trees who could
not use all the lemons. So there's nothing wrong with
getting on your Space community page and saying, hey, does
(37:17):
anybody have this? You know, if you might want rosemary
to decorate the table, but you're not going to go
out and buy you know exactly from decoration. I would
never recommend that there will be somebody with a rosemary bush.
It would be happy for you to trim it. You
can come. I've got one in my front yard. There
you go, you can have a turn. That's fine. In fact,
it's benefiting me. Yes, I love that. All right.
Speaker 3 (37:40):
So now we've covered manes, we've covered out entrees. I'm
actually really excited. I feel like a festive brusheedder that
would look festive on the table as well. We've got
the reds, we've got the greens.
Speaker 2 (37:51):
It's perfect. It looks strategic, and no one's going to
think budget when it looks strategic and it's delicious. Hundred
about it. Restaurants exactly. It's one of my favorite things. Also,
why is it so expensive when we order it restaurants? Yeah,
it's so basic. Another story for another day. Let's move
on to desserts.
Speaker 3 (38:10):
You did mention the merangue, obviously fantastic, but what other
dessert recipes do you think?
Speaker 2 (38:15):
Whole were on a budget, So I would be looking
for anything that you can make with pantry staples. It
depends obviously how confident and comfortable you feel with cooking,
but things like, you know, I love a trifle.
Speaker 4 (38:30):
I know.
Speaker 2 (38:31):
Not everybody's canceled. Nope, nobody wants. I'm so sorry.
Speaker 3 (38:38):
It's like the time I told people online that I
thought that matcha Lates tasted like agriculture, and I thought
I had.
Speaker 2 (38:45):
Okay, now you're canceled. Started a revolt.
Speaker 3 (38:48):
Yeah, but like trifle, is that not just soggy cake
and jelly?
Speaker 2 (38:52):
No, And here's the thing, like I like to take
something like that and then think, you know, whether it's
a pavlova or a trifle, and just okay, what can
I do to step this upper notch? So instead of
you know, using raspberry jelly from the supermarket, do we
(39:12):
get like plain gelatin and we flavor it ourselves? Do
we go for like do we go for a tropical
sort of trifle or do we go One year I
made what I called a Persian trifle. Okay, yeah, totally.
It was like the most expensive thing on my menu
that year. I still made it work budget wise, but
I had like pistachies on the top. Maybe I would try, yes,
(39:35):
pome I bought a pomegranate, right, yeah, I know, but
if everything else is cheap, you can you can blow
out on these little things that make it really special.
Pomegranates also very festive, So yeah, just looking at those
boring desserts and how do we elevate this, How do
(39:56):
we bring in different flavors, using the seasonal fruits and
making it special. Yeah, I feel like that's a good idea.
Speaker 3 (40:02):
And I feel like at Christmas time as well, like
coals and woolies, they drop like usually like a pavlover
wreath or something, so if you're not a chef, but
I like them very budget friendly because by the time
you make a pavlover from scratch as well, eggs are
not cheap anymore, Like eggs aren't quote the pantry staple
they want and sorry, five dollars Christmas wreath that you
(40:26):
can pimp out with all of those things.
Speaker 2 (40:29):
You look like you've tried, but you've also stuck to budget,
So like that can be smart too. Yeah, there's nothing
wrong with a storeboard merangue. Oh no, whether you're buying
the many merangues, and there are so many different ones
now take it, whether it's the wreath or just the
regular pavlover and again they will be on sale at
some point in this sort of December, and.
Speaker 3 (40:48):
They keep it like you can pop them in the pantry.
Like if you look at those fine those due dates,
it's usually like a month or even two exactly.
Speaker 2 (40:56):
Now.
Speaker 3 (40:56):
I know that you make a lot of things from
a scratch, So I can't see in Goodwin's kitchen a
Coles wreath. That's fine, it's still a good option. I
know if you came to my house and I had it,
you would happily devour it. But I know you would
make it from scratch, because that's you. But what are
you making from scratch that maybe other people aren't making
from scratch that could help our budgets this year? I think,
(41:17):
please say gravy. Of course, of course, gravy. That is
one of those things.
Speaker 2 (41:22):
I will only make things from scratch generally if it's
either going to save me a lot of money or
the end result is going to be fast superior to
the absolutely supermarket product. And sometimes it's not, so it's
not worth it. Gravy, it is always worth it, or
even if you use some of the supermarket product in
(41:43):
your own homemade gravy, if you need a bit extra,
that's fine, but using the pan juices from a delicious roast,
it's always going to be better. I think also, like
other condiments like saurces, dips, dressings, that sort of thing
are always fantastic, made from scratch and generally pretty easy.
Speaker 3 (41:59):
It has been drummed into me from a very young
age that I should never buy solad dressing. My mom
is literally like, absolutely not. You can make that at home.
And I remember one time I came home with I
don't know, gone through a phase as a teenager, like
Italian dressing, and my mother was like, you did not
pay for that, did you? And I was like, of
(42:19):
course I did, but she was like deeply offended. She
was like, you already have all of those ingredients in
the pantry and they would have been free, and you can.
Speaker 2 (42:28):
What I do is like have a little salad dressing
jar in my fridge, so it's so handy just to
have like a just a plain vinaigrette that you can
put over anything during the week. And yeah, look, I'm
okay with people buying convenience foods if it's going to
make their life easier, But if you have that just
(42:49):
a little bit of time. If sushi too, it does,
it's nicer.
Speaker 3 (42:53):
Do you know what One of my favorite gifts was
a complete side note if anyone's thinking of like, oh
my goodness, I don't know what to get my friend
for Chris, I got given this jar.
Speaker 2 (43:02):
It was like a tall jar and it has a really.
Speaker 3 (43:05):
Nice lid and spout on it, and it's literally for
salad dressing. And it has little markings on it and
little recipes all the way around, like just in black prints,
so it's kind of like standard vinigarette or whatever, and
it'll say like up to here with olive oil, up
to here with red wine vinegar and a like dollop
of like.
Speaker 2 (43:23):
Garlic or whatever, and the ratios yes, and now that
I just read my salad dressing jar. It's so silly.
Speaker 3 (43:31):
But even if you get something and it's like, oh thanks,
but I use it, it lives in my fridge even
if it's empty, because then all the reminder.
Speaker 2 (43:39):
Yeah, like otherwise I won't use it. Do not buy
the Italian salad dressing.
Speaker 3 (43:44):
But it has like a little French style and it's
like basically like a vinegar like they usually use white
wine vinegar, olive oil and then they say put some
Dijil mustard in it, and I'm like, okay, that's perfect,
Like it's just right.
Speaker 2 (43:56):
There on the jar. I love a practical gift and yes, no,
that's amazing.
Speaker 3 (44:01):
I know I'm running out of time, so I'll stop
talking about gift giving because we meant to be here
for food. But the other thing, and the last thing
that stresses me out about food at Christmas is when
someone says, let's have drinks.
Speaker 2 (44:13):
Can you bring a p late? What's on?
Speaker 3 (44:15):
Like, Chelsea, what are you making? What am I taking
to the Christmas drinks? On to the dinner?
Speaker 2 (44:21):
You're going to keep things simple, like if I was
bringing something along to like a lunch or a dinner
and I knew there would be you know, they were
taking care of the meat and they just wanted sides.
My go to would be a potato salad. And that
sounds so boring and you're fully thinking salad, Chelsea, but like, sorry,
everybody eats that drinks me exactly. The thing is, people
(44:42):
love a great potato salad. So if you can knock
your potato salad out of the park, like I love
a really herbaceous potato salad, with all the mustards, and
you know, like the way the seasoning is perfect and
nice and creamy and all the art ins, and so
it's not Cole's Deli, not clus delli potato salad. It's
(45:02):
also really cheap to make generally, like if you've got
the herbs in your garden or somebody else's garden, yep, And.
Speaker 3 (45:08):
We're not boiled eggs and bacon and all of those
other things that are expensive.
Speaker 2 (45:14):
If you've got them, add them in. But you don't
have to, yeah, Like it can just be the potatoes,
the herbs, the dressing. Also, like I don't want to
have to be heating things up at somebody else's house,
So I'm always thinking, like, what can I just stick
in the fridge when I get there, and then I
can pull it out, pop it on the table and
it's done. I think there are two things in life
that are true.
Speaker 3 (45:33):
You cannot trust people who don't like dogs, and you
cannot trust people who don't have potato salad. So I
feel like that's the crowd pleasing winner of your suggestion
from you. I love it, Chelsea. I have sadly run
out of time with you. My timer is flashing and
it's saying Victoria any longer, and the community is going
to riot. Thank you for hanging out with us today,
(45:53):
Thank you for hanging out in person with me today.
I just know that my community is not just taking notes,
They're running to the section to make sure that they
can get your recipes now, guys, don't forget. I am
absolutely going to link Chelsea's links in the show notes
because I know that everyone is going to want to
follow you if they're not already, and they should already
be following you because you've already been on the show before, guys,
(46:14):
get to it. And a tiny little Christmas tip from
me that Chelsea doesn't know about if you are stuck
on what to buy someone for Christmas and you don't
want to buy them at jar with some writing on it, Honestly,
Chelsea's new book is the best option. It's called Money
Saving Meal Plans with Chelsea. And will put all of
the details in the show notes for you for that
(46:36):
as well. Plus I'm going to add the menu that
you generously have offered to give our community, of course,
and if you loved this episode, my friends, make sure
that you are subscribed so that you never miss what's
coming next, and the She's on the Money team and
I will see you on Friday.
Speaker 2 (46:52):
Bye. Did buy?
Speaker 4 (46:59):
Shared on if She's on the Money is general in
nature and does not consider your individual circumstances. She's on
the Money exists purely for educational purposes and should not
be relied upon to make an investment or financial decision.
If you do choose to buy a financial product, read
the PDS TMD and obtain appropriate financial advice.
Speaker 2 (47:18):
Tailored towards your needs.
Speaker 4 (47:20):
Victoria Divine and She's on the Money are authorized representatives
of Money sherper Pty Ltd ABN three two one IS
six four nine two seven seven zero eight AFSL four
five one two eight nine
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