meal planning - where am I going wrong?

Hell_Dans_Un_Handcart

I can't seem to get our groceries down to less than about £35 a week - for two adults and one small child. I try to cook healthy meals so we get through a lot of fruit and veg - but I always choose seasonal/cheaper varieties. I buy one lot of meat (e.g. a chicken for a few meals, or minced beef/turkey) and one lot of fish (mackrel a lot recently, as it's very cheap!), and other than that we eat pulses and lots of mushrooms. I make all our bread and yoghurt, and I bake a cake or biscuits once a week - don't really buy sweet stuff otherwise.

I shop at Asda, and the butchers for meat; the only places I can get to. Our dinners this week include veg lasagne, fish pie, roast pots & spanish tomato sauce, mushroom pasta bake, roast lamb & veg, jacket potatoes with tinned tuna etc, poached eggs and beans on toast.

I've scoured the meal planning tips thread and I can't see where I'm going wrong (well aside from 9p noodles, but I think I overloaded on those in our student days!). I know £35 a week isn't bad, but it could be better, couldn't it?

Angelraesunshine

To me that seems fine, if you shop in asda are you looking out for the whoopsies and buying them up? and do you bulk out your mince meat with soya mince is the only other thing i can think of. Good luck

ubamother

I don't think you are going wrong at all - I think you're spending a third of what many families of your size spend!! If you wanted to eat the same way but shave pennies off perhaps you could make sure you are getting the special offers, buying own brands, or marked down stuff and cook extra and freeze. Amending meal plans to suit what is marked down in the shop can shave pennies.

There are brilliant people on this site who if you post a list of your shop from a standard weekly receipt they know how to delve in and find you cheaper equivalents - it's amazing!

dancingfairy

we spend about £50 a week for 2 adults. I would love to get it down to that little. Food is going up so much in price now and you sound like you are eating a healthy diet- I think you are doing really well.

dancingfairy

Are you cooking double and freezing half - that might help a bit. Also shopping later in the day when the fruit and veg etc is reduced. Look out for BOGOFS on toiletries etc.

Hell_Dans_Un_Handcart

Thanks all. I shop online so I suppose I don't get to have a nose in the reduced section; if I go in, I always buy twice as much as I planned! We eat own brand for the majority of things. I might have a think about freezing portions as I don't tend to do this often - our freezer is full of frozen yoghurt, veg and bread, lol.

10past6

Hell_Dans_Un_Handcart wrote: »

if I go in, I always buy twice as much as I planned!

Before you go shopping, make a list, you'll have a very good idea of the prices.

When you get to the store, most have a cash dispenser outside, withdraw a certain amount of cash to cover your list, this will prevent you from over spending.

"Ah, but I still have CC/debit cards with me" well, when you've taken out your cash from the cash machine, go back to your car, and lock them in the boot, now do your shopping.

Cornishpixie_2

Hi, Just taking out set amount of cash each week really helps. Also lists and basing some meals around what you already have in your store cupboard. I also use up left overs for lunches like pasta salad or rice. I guess you can only do what you can.

Penny-Pincher!!

There are 3 of us...all adult portions and we spend around £35-£45 a week. This time last year it was £25-£40 a week but with food price increases, we have had to increase our allowance for food. This does include household items too.

I think we eat pretty healthily and have our 5 portions a day of fruit and veg.

I am a food snob on some items:o

OH tries to get most bread/milk reduced late in the evening at Asda as we only like certain types of bread and they are now around £1.30 a loaf:eek: :eek:

ATM I am doing a biggish shop at Ocado and using £10 or £15 off vouchers on over a £90 spend which includes delivery. Ocado is now price matching Tesco on many items and they do pretty good deals on everyday items.

I was thinking about a Veg/Fruit box weekly but I cant seem to find anywhere local for less than £20+

HTH

PP
xx

RustyFlange

If you has things stocked up in your cupboards like I have then shopping becomes cheaper as all I do is replace what I use ... this week shopping cost me £12 for 2 adults and 2 children, however I do have to use the local shops to buy fresh milk every other day (my daughter is 1 and still likes a morning and nighttime bottle (I am fine with this as she no longer has baby milk so is cheaper) My list this week was 2 x mince beef - 2 for £4
milk - £2 ish
Chicken breasts x 5 - £3 (smartprice)
gravy granules - 89p
carrots - 48p
cauli & broccoli - £1.09
Onions - bag of - 39p reduced

Total £11.85
I have been doing it this way for the last 2 weeks, we have 2 freezers as i moved in with my partner (lived in 2 houses before) so I still had some frozen stuff in mine, I moved it all around and now have fresh meet in the freezer indoors and most other things go in mine in the garage ... May not work for some but seems to be working for me

Hell_Dans_Un_Handcart

Thanks again guys. I'm using up my storecupboard stuff, but for some reason, it seems to be running low...:rotfl:

We shop online for all sorts of reasons - mostly practical. It'd be way more hassle than it's worth to go in every week. I did think about just doing a bigger shop - and using money off codes, which are usually for larger amounts - every month or so, but the only place which sells fruit and veg within walking distance is Co-Op. Rubbish prices and it'd all go off in a week or two.