PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING

Hello Forumites! However well-intentioned, for the safety of other users we ask that you refrain from seeking or offering medical advice. This includes recommendations for medicines, procedures or over-the-counter remedies. Posts or threads found to be in breach of this rule will be removed.

Veggie meal plan on a budget. ANy pointers?

Options
pinksorrell
pinksorrell Posts: 24 Forumite
in Old style MoneySaving
Hi all,

I have spent a frustrating few hours trying to find a thread on finding a vegetarian meal plan on a budget. I am also trying to lose weight so there's an extra challenge. I am not so keen on SW or WW - more interested in the back to basics idea of home made food. I have used a Tesco diet plan in the past which lost some weight but it was too expensive for me to maintain in cost of the plan and also extra items to buy.

I have 3 children to feed aswell so any recipe ideas/meal plans would need to be adaptable to feed a whole family.

PLease could someone point me in the right direction. Thanks.

Comments

  • rockie4
    rockie4 Posts: 1,264 Forumite
    Combo Breaker First Post
    Options
    I don't know how to do linnks :confused:but if you look in the indexed collections at the top of the page and go into 'complete cooking collections' you will find veggie meal plans in the vegetarian bit, it's down at the bottom :D

    I found it really useful when I started out on MSE :T
  • SunnyGirl
    SunnyGirl Posts: 2,639 Forumite
    Options
    Weezl's thread is a good one for cheap meals and lots of them are vegetarian

    Feed a Family of Four on £20 for a month is a good thread too.

    Cheapest Healthy Meal has some good ideas on it

    Hope that some of these are some help to you.
  • savingforoz
    savingforoz Posts: 1,118 Forumite
    Options
    Cooking in bulk for the freezer helps immensely. If you have a slow cooker, use that to make bean and veg based casseroles, curries and chillis and freeze what you don't use. Bulk out casseroles in the slow cooker with oats, grated carrot and lentils. Use the oats sparingly unless you want flavoured porridge! - they do bulk out a lot. The lentils are best cooked for 10 minutes first or else they have a tendency to stay a little hard.

    If you look in the weekly meal plan thread, some posters have veggie meal plans and it's always possible to adapt the non-veggie ones.

    If you have a pressure cooker, pulses are much cheaper if you buy them dried and cook them, rather than ready cooked in tins.

    Always think how you can s-t-r-e-t-c-h food around more meals - for example I used to buy a carton of silken tofu, and scramble it for 2 weekend breakfasts. Now I use the same tofu as the basis of a vegan meatloaf and it now provides 6 main meals. See the difference?

    Check out Weezl's thread entitled something like "living healthily on 50p a day" - she's not veggie but does a lot of veggie meals and what's not veggie can be adapted.

    Hope this helps.
    Life is not a dress rehearsal.
  • newlywed
    newlywed Posts: 8,255 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Post First Anniversary
    edited 15 May 2009 at 3:23PM
    Options
    Gingham Ribbon did some threads on veggie cooking....

    http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=257885&highlight=

    Spring: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=399846&highlight=
    Summer: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=257885&highlight=
    working on clearing the clutterDo I want the stuff or the space?
  • blueberrypie
    blueberrypie Posts: 2,395 Forumite
    Combo Breaker First Post Name Dropper First Anniversary
    Options
    newlywed wrote: »
    Gingham Ribbon did some threads on veggie cooking....

    Her mealplan is here: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?p=2857738#post2857738
  • ItchieFeet
    ItchieFeet Posts: 98 Forumite
    Options
    Hello there!

    You could also try Slimming World's website - the Green days are completely vegetarian and there is a FREE sample weekly menu online to get started.

    They even have home made chips - on a diet!! Yummm
  • pinksorrell
    pinksorrell Posts: 24 Forumite
    Options
    Thanks for all that! It's kept me busy sifting and sorting. I find meal plans very useful as knowing what I am going to make makes preparation easier and relieves stress. Less likely to be persuaded by kids to visit the local chip shop (again!)

    There's a wealth of information on these pages when you've found what you're looking for. I shall be back.

    I'm off now to make a potato dinner from the link to Weezl's pages. Result!!!!
  • savingforoz
    savingforoz Posts: 1,118 Forumite
    Options
    Please share your meal plans when they're done, pinksorrell! Glad we've been able to help.
    Life is not a dress rehearsal.
  • Penny-Pincher!!
    Penny-Pincher!! Posts: 8,325 Forumite
    Options
    Veggie or Soya curry or chilli or spagbol
    Shepherds Pie
    Cheese & Onion Pie
    Veggie Crumble or pie
    soup
    Nut roasts
    To repeat what others have said, requires education, to challenge it,
    requires brains!
    FEB GC/DIESEL £200/4 WEEKS
This discussion has been closed.
★ ★ ★ Meet your Ambassadors

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 343.2K Banking & Borrowing
  • 250.1K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 449.7K Spending & Discounts
  • 235.3K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 608K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 173.1K Life & Family
  • 247.9K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 15.9K Discuss & Feedback
  • 15.1K Coronavirus Support Boards