January 2009 Grocery Challenge

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  • Rowan9
    Rowan9 Posts: 2,207
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    Couple of small bits and also orderd my veggie box which will arrive on Wed, so have updated sig. Back to work today, hence veggie box this week. We certainly eat far more veg when I order it.
    w
  • Julimk
    Julimk Posts: 349 Forumite
    I have enough in until ... seem to be famous last words here!:rolleyes:

    After doing masses of batch cooking while off work I was low on onions & tinned toms, which are far to basic to risk running out of, and totally out of lasagne sheets. Also, after baking with DD (priceless!:D ) low on butter and out of cocoa.

    So I went to Mr T with a list, which I stuck to, and spent a further £8.43. But realistically, as I am already 2 weeks in, this is the main shop for week 3.

    Back to work/school tomorrow & faffing around getting DD to her Dad’s & back at the weekend (he is agoraphobic & lives 80 miles away, so only sees her if I do it) should keep me busy enough to stay out of the supermarket …
  • Quick update, my target of £350, does not include cleaning products, just food stuffs, but does include delivery charge.

    Although that was refunded this week, as grapes were going off:)

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  • Allypops
    Allypops Posts: 244 Forumite
    Reb - sorry to hear about you losing your job. Hopefully you will be able to find something else, at least you are in the right place to make savings and maybe she will change her mind and find somewhere else to economise.

    Rosieben, thanks for your reply. I think that you are right: I must include my takeaways and buying out coffee and lunches. Otherwise if I get too close to my limit on the groceries I will probably just buy more takeaways and lunches to avoid an overspend. I know it sounds crazy - its just that kind of logic that gets me into trouble!

    Sent DH out shopping for a few bits - £40 lighter and I am sure there was only one full meal in there (but lots of toileteries - this is going to be tough). There seems to be so much that I didn't realise we spent! I really don't know how some of you are keeping your spend below £150 (or even lower) but hopefully I will gradually pick up on tips. I love the term "whoopsies" I take it this is something that has been dented or dropped? Certainly not having Frank Spencer's versions of "whoopsies" for tea I am sure! (sorry to lower the tone).

    I might even try for a NSD one day a week but have to try and get my head round what I do and don't need to spend - think I need to check the cupboards and freezer properly and plan, plan, plan!

    Allypops
    Allypops
    Married with 2 children
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  • Gailey, my new slow cooker (half price in tesco extra sale) came with a french onion soup recipe.

    I'll post it in case it helps. The new cooker is one you can put on the hob too, you may need to use another pan.

    put 6 finely sliced onions, 4tbsp of oil , 1tbsp sugar and 3 crushed cloves of garlic in a pan and heat gently.

    Once sizzling stir well and cook for 10 mins to soften, then add 200mls white wine ( or apple juice or stock or water at a push I reckon).

    Put all in the slow cooker on low with 600mls boiling beef or chicken stock ( use a cube ??) worcester sauce and salt and pepper for 4-5 hrs.

    Make croutons from bread toasted on both sides with melty cheese on.( your brie would do this, even the stilton might be nice)

    to serve you can add 2tbsp brandy if you want to, ladle into bowls and float a crouton on the top, fresh parsley is nice but optional.


    HTH

    Nicky
    Eat food, not edible food-like items. Mostly plants.
  • Hello everybody. Just checking in as I haven't been to the shops despite the OH nagging that theres no bread in (just so we would go to the 24hr supermarket and he'd fill the trolley with rubbish!)... I pulled out the 39p MrT value part baked rolls and that was the end of that lol.

    I do feel a bit guilty tho as he really scalded his hand today at work super-heating my HM soup in the microwave... :eek: xx
  • JennyBee wrote: »
    You can reheat rice

    As long as you cooled it and put it in the fridge within 90 minutes of cooking it originally. Sorry if that was obvious to some people, I always thought that was the one thing you couldn't reheat!

    Hi JennyBee. It's amazing how many people either think they can't reheat or freeze rice, or don't realise it's actually quite a big cause of food poisoning if it's not cooled quickly enough (because it's so stodgy the middle stays hot for ages so the bacteria can grow in it). One of my friends was the same - she though you couldn't reheat it even though she frequently buys Uncle Ben's 2 minute microwave rice (not sure what she thought she was doing there if it wasn't reheating rice!).

    I always make big pots of chilli and big pots of rice and freeze it all in individual portions for easy dinners. I find the easiest way to cool rice is to serve what you need for dinner then put the rest in a sieve and run it under the cold tap until it's all cold. I guess if you're on a water meter the other option is to put the drained spare rice back in the pot, fill it with cold water and then drain it all again about 5 minutes later (and repeat if necessary if it's still a bit warm). It freezes great, and only takes a couple of minutes in a pot of boiling water to re-heat it while the chilli is in the microwave!
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  • kunekune
    kunekune Posts: 1,909 Forumite
    Spent some money, but I think the gaps in the cupboard were real gaps! Also sent off invoices for about £450 of extra work, so that helps.
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  • gillst_2
    gillst_2 Posts: 98 Forumite
    Well it partly depends how you shop. If you do big shops and are happy to buy loads and loads at once thats fine-you do chance running out of things though. Do you have an inventory of what you have? Maybe you are running out of space and your DH wants you to declutter your food stocks because of that? I know that is my problem-there is food everywhere!
    Now I do it like you-Im constantly topping up and rotating-I did try to cut down and use up but I just cant do it! Its like Ive got an addiction or that I believe WW3 is about to happen or perhaps all of the shops are gonna run out of food? I dont know but-I stock up. I dont think there is a right way or a wrong way myself-each to their own. Id just cut back a little I suppose if I were in your shoes(my DH has given up on me)My excuse for my habits is that I buy a lot aof things when they are at the right price-?I only buy offers in general. If I let it run down I would have to buy things when I need them and I would end up paying more. The argument that the money would be better in savings doesnt hold any more with the interest rates so its better invested in bargains.(Well Im hooked).:rotfl: :rotfl:

    Thanks angelatgraceland and everyone else who has taken the trouble to respond to my query. :T
    I don't have an inventory (thinking maybe this is something I should do), and yes, DH does have a problem with the fact that there seems to be food everywhere - I have filled the kitchen cupboards and have now got stuff in the conservatory. Why do I do this? - I HAVE NO IDEA :confused:

    save-a-holic - you have definitely made me think about what I am doing. I did not see before that the food sitting there is actually money that we could have used to reduce our debts - something we are trying to do :eek:

    I think I am going to try a compromise. Will keep a healthy stock, but only in the kitchen cupboards. Will use up a lot of what we have got in, and only replace items if they are on offer or if I have completely run out and have nothing in I can use instead. Hopefully this will make DH happier and we can reduce our grocery shopping for a couple of months.
    Had a nsd today, so a good start.:j
  • Hello,
    Well all was going well here until my oven broke yesterday!! :eek:
    its 15 years old and has been playing up a bit over the last few weeks. Rang the gas man and he said have a play with the timer as it was just the oven part that not working and see if that helps, but it hasn't. So he is going to come and look at it tomorrow, but he said given its age will be better just to buy new!!! So all my meal planning for the next two weeks have gone out the window. We only have the microwave and all the meals I had planned all need the oven - I was using up all the odd bits in the freezer. So my shopping at Mr T's was a bit different tonight as had to get some ready meals (which I hate doing). So spent £36.03 and they didn't have any salad bits out as I went so late so need to nip tomorrow. I was only hoping to spend £25.

    Becki x
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