meal planning - where do i start?

Flibsey

I know this seems silly to be posting just a few small tips, but pennies add up to pounds...
1. for a sauce which asks for cream, use half milk and half stock. you still get the creaminess but without as many calories or as much money, especially if you make your own stock!
2. oil can be used instead of butter in most things, but some things wont work with oil like cookie recipes. these you can use cookeen; dairy free, non hydrogenated and works like a dream with very little flavour difference if you add a teensy tiny bit of salt. oil also works incredibly well in a roux. cookeen not so well, but can be used if needed
3. arrowroot can be used as an egg replacement. slake it with some just under boiling water and whisk well. do about 1tbsp water to 1 tsp powder. you can also use heated milk instead of water. this works in a quiche, so instead of using 4 eggs, you use two eggs and two tsps arrowroot powder slaked in 1 tbsp water. it DOES work so long as you get the proprtions of arrowroot to water/milk right and so long as you whisk it really well. I've not used this egg replacement in anything other than quiche though!
4. grate cheese for sandwiches. you use less, it really works!!
5. smoked paprika is wonderful. use 1/2 tsp to pep things up. you wont notice its individual flavour, but it makes such a difference to pasta sauce, roast chicken etc.
6. stretch mince with economy rolled oats. so far in my house it's gone unnoticed in burgers, koftas, meatballs, spagbol and chilli!!! add a little extra stock if you think it needs it.
7. buy whole milk and water it down!! my mum used to do this.
8. leftover slightly suspect veg; in our house known as bendyveg; makes excellent soup. peel, cut off any really mingy bits, chop, sautee and add stock, milk or even water. blend. serve.
9. if you see black bits appearing on your carrots, don't throw them out, cut the black bits off while they are still dry. gives you at least a week extra life on them. if the black bit has gone wet however, just cut around it.
10. onions: sometimes you'll cut into an onion and find one layer has gone brown and smells funky. don't bin it! if you cut the brown layer(s) out and rinse the remaining white bits it can still be used with no detriment to flavour or to health of yourself or family.

all these are tried and tested by me and my family. shhh. nobody tell my husband about the oats!!

babyshoes

I second the oats! My very fussy OH didn't know about them for months, until she walked in on me adding them one day. Thankfully she now accepts that bolognese has oats in it - but if I had suggested it before she would have turned up her nose. I add them once the meat has browned but before adding tomatoes or other liquid, then add stock or something else beefy (like bovril) so they soak up the colour and flavour. If you add them later, it doesn't affect the taste, but you can spot them in the finished dish.

xRaindrops

Wow!!! :eek: I am truly inspired by all your wonderful tips and advice. Thank you for your replies! We were considering getting rid of the car and our cats to cut expenditure, but having worked a few things out food-wise with your help and suggestions, we may be able to keep car AND kitties!
I don't care about the car really but I would seriously be heartbroken if we had to rehome our babies! :happylove

the_cake

I still find meal planning quite hard, but having to live on a ridiculously low budget (I aim for about £3 a day for 2 adults + 2 cats) does concentrate the mind .... one of the most useful things I have learnt on this board is to use a slow cooker (they cook the BEST chicken!) and batch cook, using the freezer. I now tend to do things the other way round - over the past few months I have built up quite a good store cupboard, buying a few of whatever is on offer (most things come round on offer quite regularly if you keep an eye on them) - tinned tomatoes, for instance, or tuna, chick peas, coconut milk. Keep an eye on the Grabbit Board, and the Food Shopping & Groceries, and dive in when there is a good reduction, or a glitch (generally at T*sc* - I currently have a large pyramid of "free" jelly and custard from one of their recent bloopers). I then look at my store cupboard and work out what I might need to add (fruit and veg, usually) to make a decent couple of meals. I also keep a list of what I've got in the freezer - much easier than opening it and having a rummage. It's work in progress for me, but I am delighted by how much money it is saving us. Good luck, and don't stress too much about it - it does get easier with practice! Best wishes, the cake
PS If you have a breadmaker, this saves loads too, and the bread is so much nicer, as well as cheaper ....

Sambucus_Nigra

10p noodles [4 packets], 1 fried onion and some soy sauce with some chilli/curry powder will make a main meal for 2. Comes in at about 80p [yes, that's 40p each]. I lived off these things when I was completely brassic [they were 7p each then], plus Netto tomatoes for pretty much every pasta sauce dish [used to make a huge batch at the start of the week and it would last for 3-4 meals] ...and mayo instead of cheese on pasta [did you know you can water mayo down to make it last longer?]. And buy a huge bag of onions and spuds from farm shop - they last ages. Buy flour when on offer and make your own bread. Forage for fruit [good this time of year] for puddings.

MandM90

If you're not working right now maybe getting rid of the car is a good idea! You could try Freecycle for unwanted bikes or buy cheap second hand ones (my mum managed to get two lovely ones from there last year). Not only would you save on fuel, tax and insurance it's much healthier too and a free hobby. We're trying to change our lifestyle from frivolous to frugal and today had our first ride - on unwanted bikes "borrowed" from my mum's shed - and next week we're planning a bike ride somewhere nice with a picnic and I can't wait.

If you think outside the box there's probably lots of extras you don't need; for instance juice and squash...water is absolutely fine! Thought of a few more; try veggie Indian food...chickpea/lentil curries are cheap and filling. You can also curry leftover veg or turn it into a soup at the end of the week. Look at cheaper meats (i.e. turkey instead of chicken for stir fries) or cheaper cuts of meat. Some people find butchers can be much cheaper, you can explain you are on a budget and see if he can do you a better deal than supermarkets, thought that may mean buying monthly.

Bumpmakesfour

This is proving to be a huuge issue for me too!I even tried to copy someone elses weekly plan on another thread where they said they could do it all for about £15 but I couldn't get it below £46 :o No idea where I'm going wrong so watching this with interest!

Flibsey

I agree about the car thing, BUT remember you may need it to look for work or go to interviews.

babyblooz

If you could get a few chickens for in the garden you could make good use of the eggs - boiled for breakfast, with odds and sods of veg to make a spanish omelette, plus eggs to use in baking, you'd have plenty of time to cook up a batch of little cakes etc and freeze some into portions so you don't gorge on them all at once! Another plus is the manure they produce, so good for growing veggies!

skintasusual

Hi All,

We are about to take a massive drop in income and I need to be thrifty! Am useless normally!
We are ME, my OH, DS1 who is 2 and DS2 who is 11 months. He will be off formula soon, but they are both still in nappies - I use LIDL ones which are about a fiver for 50. laundry and toletires I usually buy whatever is cheapest at the time.

We also have 2 cats - need litter & food - any tips for cutting the costs on this?

I dont know where to start with meal planning and budgeting!! I have a slow cooker i would like to start using,

can anyone help me with where to start with all this??? like how to sit down and plan and stuff? I would be open to making my own bread and stuff too if it really is cheaper!!

Thanks in advance xx