January 2009 Grocery Challenge

mardatha

brilliant ty all of you. I know all these things already (oooh hark at her LOL) but I always forget them ... you need to make a record of you all in chorus and sell it
I should be able to get this down a good bit. We don't eat a lot- we have porridge for breakfast , & I can make good soup that does lunches, so really its just 1 meal a day plus toast for supper.
Until I found this site, when we were working, I spent £80-£90 a week in tescos. So I was pleased with my wee self getting i down to £50...but it could go a lot lower yet.
I hate loathe and despise cooking --but I got nothing else to do all day so just need to learn to like it ! I have a crock pot and a remoska, so there's no excuse. I just need MOTIVATION & NAGGING.

zarazara

it might be easier to try this from the other end, ie dont throw food away, freeze and re use left overs for example. this approach will bring down bills as once you throw something away not only is it a waste of that item but you have to relace it with something else to eat, so the cost of that ,meal is added to it. eg if you throw half a tin of beans away it costs ,say, 25p, then open a tin of soup, that cots, say, 60p. you've lost 85p. whereas eating the half tin of beans means you've saved it.

AlwaysHappy

I went to Aldi today, hoping to get some of their 39p veg, what a disappointment, they obviously get a delivery tomorrow, the shelves and veg trays were empty!. Got a couple of bits from there, and then went to Tesco for the veg and all together spent £8.07. Couldn't update my signature earlier - not sure if problem with site or my computer, but I've now got £23.04 to last until payday on 20th. The freezer is full, I've got the slow cooker on with a huge load of soup in there, and I'm heading over to look at the £20 to last a month thread for inspiration. Would reeeeeeeeallly love to stick to budget but not hopeful.

EssexHebridean

Definately join us on the "Don't throw food away challenge" which is currently housed on the "Leftovers" thread. Something which works for me is to do a "Stock up" shop once a month which is when I buy things like tins, pasta, rice, loo rolls etc. Then I have a "weekly" list of stuff I need to get regularly - milk, fresh fruit and veg.....that's about it. That was when you go into the Supermarket (or online, in your case) you spend less time browsing therefore less time to be tempted. ALWAYS use a list. PLAN meals - using techniques like bulking out (grated carrot, porridge oats, red lentils etc) and cutting meat into smaller pieces so you use less. Sausages are another food I found I could cut down by cutting them in half - four sausages make a great sausage casserole for two of us now! Really learn the contents of your cupboards too - pull everything out, wipe the shelves, and then replace noting what you have as you go. You're bound to find things you'd forgotten you had.

You can definitely cut down on that budget - I spend well below that per week for the pair of us and cat, and we buy meat from the farmers market and have a fortnightly organic veg box. :eek: Good luck!

jamanda

Mardatha, isn't there anything left in the garden you can use up? I've still got brussels and b. tops, and the "tufts" of long gone cabbages. When I cut them I slice the stem, leaving root intact, and cut a cross in the stem. Resulting "tufts" keep me going with greens. You might have something else you can use to make a meal with oddments you already have.

Flylady_Flower

cw18 wrote: »

The closest market to me seems to start knocking their prices down closer to 4pm -- but if they've anything left the best deals are after 4:30pm. I've been known to wander around just after 4, refuse to be pulled in to buying anything at that point, and then reappear a half hour later. Don't often get anywhere with any further haggling though -- though I did once manage a good one on chicken portions 10 minutes before closing

Thanks CW18, I've never done it before, so thought I should have an idea on times before I attempt....;)

Watch this space....:cool: :cool:

mouseymousey99

Hi, I know its an old one but this tip really worked for me, when you have made a list of things you are getting on line, print it, then jot down the things you are going to make with it. Its reminded me of what I was going to do - rather than just pulling out the first thing to hand. I also keep notepad and jot down anything I think will be useful (ie tons of ideas from here).
My other favourite tip is using your library, if I see a cookery book I fancy I ususally 'test drive' it from the library first.
Best wishes

mardatha

ok. I will, I promise...:) and if I dont appear regularly on the leftovers thread COME AND GET ME AND DRAG ME IN !! I haven't got so much money that I can afford to throw it away any more.
Jamanda, this will be the first year I'll grow veg -- never done it before just tomatoes on the windowsills. All thats in the garden is grass --and the feral guinea pig is munching his way through that fast

666paw

Thanks to everyone for all the advice and support given, I will join in next month as I must.
I now have my all bran (thanks) and have made my blueberry muffins, yipee. (Although all gone as a friend came round and decided she liked them so let her have them, will do some apple ones instead as got loads of apples about to turn)

:j :j :j

Kadeeae

EssexHebridean wrote: »

Definately join us on the "Don't throw food away challenge" which is currently housed on the "Leftovers" thread.

.............You can definitely cut down on that budget - I spend well below that per week for the pair of us and cat, and we buy meat from the farmers market and have a fortnightly organic veg box.

Can you post a link to this thread? Sorry, I went looking and got lost

If it's not being toooo nosey, can I ask what sorts of things your buying on a weekly shop? There are just the two of us also (plus a very old dog with special dietary requirements) and I too seem to hover right around the £55 pound a week range. Would love to get it down if I could.

Have to go for today, but I'll definitely be checking back tomorrow sometime!