Stir-Fried Vegetables and Cocktail Sausages: My Broke Budget Meal as a Domestic Abuse Survivor

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Trigger Warning: Domestic Abuse

A few months ago, I was watching @letsKWOOWK ‘s YouTube shorts with awe. His target audience is broke college students living by their cheques. He makes some scrumptious cheap meals with so much finesse! 

And then it hit me. Hey, that is my regular way of living! Broke and with a tight budget. And one of my favorite meals is stir-fried veggies with cocktail sausage.

Now, two conditions are in play when I say that I am a broke millennial always looking for cheap and healthy meal ideas:

• T.W. I am a domestic abuse survivor
• 20 years of that experience has stunted my academic and career growth. And not many trust freelancers in my country.

On the brighter side, these have helped me learn how to never spend money I do not have. For example, I want a burger worth $15 and have $80 in my account. That burger can wait a few weeks. 

Better, I can make a burger at home! Two slices of bread, some cheese, and one salami. Who is looking? 

But given my mental and physical health issues, I strive to ensure I eat healthily. And as we all know, healthy ain’t cheap. So what is the solution? Tasty, affordable, and nutritious meals make my day!

Stir-Fried Veggies with Cocktail Sausages

Sauteed veggies and meat are my comfort food. I love the spicy, smoky, and tangy flavors, so stir fried veggies tossed with sauteed cocktail sausages turns my frown upside down.

• non-stick frying pan
• Spatula

• 0.6 lbs carrots
• 0.24 lbs beans
• 1 whole garlic
• 10 pieces cocktail sausages
• 0.88 lbs bell pepper (a medium to small sized one)
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp honey

1. Chop your vegetables into chunks. You can opt to dice or julienne your vegetables.

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2. Add one to two tablespoons of hot oil to a pan and wait for your oil to heat up. In the meantime, mince your garlic then sautee it in the oil.

3. Cut your sausages into halves. Wait for garlic to brown before adding your sausages.

4. Bring your stove down to low heat and add your vegetables. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

5. Add something sweet. Either a teaspoon or two of honey or sugar will go a long way towards bringing out the savory flavors of this dish.

6. Wait for the water to dry out. Ingredients will leak out the moisture inside them during the cooking process so wait for these to evaporate a little before turning off your stove.

 

This dish can be easily modified to use any ingredients you already have at home. Feel free to substitute sausages for minced meat and add other vegetables you like.

meal prep, sausages, stir fry, vegetables

Cooking your stir-fried vegetables

Step 1: Chop your veggies

Now, this is the easiest part. While I suggest your chopping all vegetables into fine chunks, you can go your way! You can dice them or even julienne all or a few, as per your liking.

Step 2: Fry up the garlic

Nothing in the world smells as heavenly as sauteed garlic. Its delightful aroma when cooked, well it is best you experience the delicacy that is cooked garlic. Try to fry the garlic in one or two tablespoons of oil to bring out savory notes. And from one broke person to another, NEVER throw away that oil.

Step 3: Re-purpose the garlic oil for your sausages

Who does not love fried food? But since we are doing healthy, let us repurpose the garlic oil. While cocktail sausages are small, try cutting them in halves. Trust me, you will not regret the garlicky flavoring that seeps into the chopped sausage pieces.

Step 4: Add Veggies to Cooking Garlic

Once the garlic pieces have browned up, set the heat to low and throw in your chopped veggies. Toss them around in the pan so that each piece has a light coating of garlic oil. Do not forget the salt and pepper! While many food vloggers might suggest white pepper, I advise otherwise to save you some bucks. 

Step 5: Add honey for sweetness

Now, sauteed veggies are a savory dish, yes. But who really likes salt over salt over salt? So I add my own twist to it with honey! You can substitute that for sugar, maple syrup, or anything you like! Just one to two teaspoons of something sweet will enhance the smoky, rich, and tangy taste that the veggies and meat bring. 

Step 6: Let the water dry out

Now, while you have not added any water to the food, some ingredients like bell pepper, carrots, and beans will ooze out their stored moisture, so I suggest letting it dry out. Keep flipping the veggies to help cook them better. Set the stove at high heat for a few seconds while flipping so that the veggies brown, giving them a smokier flavor.

Final Step: Taste your creation

Are you ready for the smoky, sweet, and BBQ-y sauteed veggies and sausages? Grab your fork and dig right in! You can even make extra portions so you can prep meals days in advance. As usual, you can use any veggies and any cut of meat for this recipe. My mother even uses tofu cubes instead of sausages which taste delectable! Of course, we only do that if there is some excess cash after a week’s end.

Endnotes

Life is hard. PTSD is harder. But food has kept me alive, quite literally. Before my mother and I escaped, we had no prior planning. It was sudden, but we had help. The one thing we did discuss before leaving was food.

This dish is nothing fancy. It’s a one-pot, or one-pan, meal! You do not need a side dish for it unless you are craving something crunchy to elevate it.

Abuse makes you forget to eat. But when you have all your favorite ingredients, which are cheap, and they work well.. suddenly the world seems so light and beautiful. 

I do hope you enjoy cooking this and enjoy a humble meal that keeps you happy.