Shopping Smarter?

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  • Hales82
    Hales82 Posts: 59 Forumite
    It seems to me that your first strategy should be staying out of the supermarket at the weekends. It's so annoying to pop in for a pint of milk and find yourself £20 lighter with a bag full of "treats" that you don't really need. I used to do that all the time but now I really can't afford to so I only step into a supermarket about once every ten days.

    This is the reason for getting my shopping delivered on a Thursday. When it came on a Monday we'd eat lovely fresh meals at the start of the week and then towards the end the fridge would be a bit empty and we'd pop to the supermarket. £60 later I'd come out wondering !!!!!! we'd spent so much money on.

    By getting it delivered I don't buy anthing other than what I need and it coming at the end of the week means we feel like we get the nicest, freshest food when we want it... on the weekend :)

    Linda32 thank you for your suggestions. They're all fab :T and will take them on board.

    I LOVE the sound of the chilli beef meatloaf, exactly up my family's street. Will be trying that next weekend when the shopping comes. Thank you :T

    I love this board already and this is my first post here :rotfl:
    LBM: January 2011 DFD: August 2016
  • I am proud (?) to say that I have never bought a roll of kitchen paper or a J-Cloth in my life. I could have been very sheltered but I have no idea what you'd actually need them for when something else I already have could do the job. I'm a great lover of proper dishcloths. Oh crivens, I think I've turned into my granny without noticing
  • Hales82 wrote: »
    The 2 chickens are 2 teas each, easily. Bargain for £10.

    Make stock from the bones and leftover bits, and you'll have at least 4 portions of soup, too :D
    :rudolf: Sheep, pigs, hens and bees on our Teesdale smallholding :rudolf:
  • this is exactly what I have just been mulling over myself. thinking of once a month stocking up on the 3 for £10 meats from the co-op, basics such as beans,coffee ,flour etc from tesco and cleaning stuff from home bargains,
    leaving in theory just the fridge stuff yoghurts,milk,ham etc to get once a week.

    I am in my first month of the grocery challenge and just logging all the money we spend just to see how much...what an eye opener!
    sealed pot challenge member 1063..pot emptied to go toward credit card.new pot started 27/3.;)

    march grocery spend £480:eek:
    April budget £310..
  • jenster
    jenster Posts: 505
    First Post First Anniversary
    Forumite
    this is exactly what I have just been mulling over myself. thinking of once a month stocking up on the 3 for £10 meats from the co-op, basics such as beans,coffee ,flour etc from tesco and cleaning stuff from home bargains,
    leaving in theory just the fridge stuff yoghurts,milk,ham etc to get once a week.

    I am in my first month of the grocery challenge and just logging all the money we spend just to see how much...what an eye opener!

    love the 3 for £10's got mince . chicken and a big tray of chops last week
    u wont go wrong especially if u keep looking here for some great idea;s
  • rachbc
    rachbc Posts: 4,461 Forumite
    i tend not to go for the 3 for £10 as they tend to be cuts I don't use - I bulk buy meat from farm shop or when ocado send me a good voucher! I get chicken thighs from asian supermarket - £2.60 or so kg boned and diced! I the portion it out into 300g packs and freeze.

    I have just started meatfree mondays with my family and have definately noticed a saving - we have eggs, some pulses (not as popular), cheese on those nights.
    People seem not to see that their opinion of the world is also a confession of character.
    Ralph Waldo Emerson
  • It is often cheaper to buy a whole chicken and cut it into portions yourself; plus it gives you all the bones and trimmings for some very good soup.
    If you don't have enough bones for soup, then freeze what you have each time until you do have enough; you can use them from frozen! I make stock and soup in a pressure cooker. It's both quicker and saves energy.
    Look at the Stardrops thread for saving on cleaning. If you don't like Stardrops then buy Flash concentrated, the type that you used for floors and general cleaning, or what ever brand you do like, it isn't quite as cheap as Stardrops but is much cheaper than buying the diluted stuff in trigger bottles; you are paying for water! Keep the old bottle and mix 2 tablespoons of product with 500ml water; I add a splash of bleach for the bathroom.
    Go to Home Bargains before anywhere else as they often have groceries cheaper than the supermarket as well - I am limiting myself to one shop a month because I was buying extra and ended up giving stuff away to my daughter "as it was so cheap".
    Do look on the old style board for further tips.
    However £70 a week still isn't bad at all.
  • With regards to the loreal kids shampoo, my daughter has v thick hair which gets very tangled and I just use plenty of my own conditioner on it ie whatever is on offer and it seems to keep her hair pretty manageable and helps keep the nits away lol x
  • I've been posting this everywhere recently but tbh I can't get enough of it. It's a sausage and bean chilli recipe so fairly cheap on the meat (sausages) but loads of protein in all the beans.

    Serves 4

    Ingredients
    • 1 or 2 onions
    • 4 carrots
    • 1 packet (8-10) sausages
    • 1 tin chopped toms
    • 1 tin baked beans
    • 1 tin mixed beans (the cheapest I've seen is the mixed bean salad for about 47p, though I normally double up the recipe and use two separate tins of beans e.g. kidney and blacked eyed as it works out cheaper).
    • Squirt of tom puree
    • Glug of honey
    • Selection of spices - plenty of chilli powder/flakes, plus cumin if you have it, garlic, paprika etc.
    Method
    1. Fry the onion, carrot and sausages til browned.
    2. Add the rest of the ingredients and warm through.
    3. Bung it in the oven in a covered casserole for a couple of hours or in your slow cooker for the day and enjoy - your house will smell delish!
    We don't normally eat it with any accompaniments as it's such a tasty meal in itself but ocassionally we might have rice or pitta with it.

    It also freezes really well and is just as tasty when reheated (hence why I normally make 8 portions in my massive slow cooker).

    Hope that helps someone :)

    Cait x

    P.S. I agree - cut your dishwasher tablets in half and they're instantly half price!
  • frizz2
    frizz2 Posts: 90
    First Post First Anniversary Combo Breaker
    Forumite
    Hi Everyone,
    I agree with all the ideas, I forgot to mention that I also have a monthly menu plan and that also helps me save money on my shopping bill. I buy meat in bulk and tick it off my list as I put it in the freezer and then know that I have bought it already.
    I use Boots basic range or it it essentials? shampoo and conditioner at 60p for a 500 gram bottle. The ones for dry and damaged hair are really excellent value. This is the only thing I buy from Boots. I get other toiletries from WIlkinsons.
    I also do stock checks, when I write down everything in my cupboards and try and use some of it up. For example I make up Jelly or value angel delight as desserts. I also make a different set of cakes for the week. I make chocolate chip cookies, cupcakes, flapjacks or a fruitcake as desserts. This saves me lots of money. I buy SunSip value Coke bottles 2 a week for the weekend at 40p a bottle. Also I recently bought icecream cones at 29p from Lidl and value icecream at 70p from Tesco and I had a butterscotch icecream sauce in th cupboard. My boys think this is a fantastic treat! It is so cheap! But, I do buy fruit and veg as well. I tend to stick to apples, tangerines, and pears as these are on the whole cheaper. I also try to buy vegetables from my local market. I hope this helps!
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