Grocery shopping on a budget

in_despair_3

Would someone please mind posting their grocery list for a week?

We have a meeting with the CCCS next week, and I would like to know what they will consider a realistic budget for food for 1 week (2 adults, 1 baby)

Need to buy nappies and formula as part of that budget.

I also need inspiration for shopping - if my budget is going to be cut, then I will need to shop for ideas rather than anything else!!

Thanks

black-saturn

For a week I would usually write the following down as a list and then add things to it or change things depending whats on offer or reduced:

One large chicken (can do for 3 meals),
one large packet of beef mince,
one bread mix for the bread machine (or pizza base),
one large packet of stewing steak,
one packet suet (for dumplings),
one bag of frozen sausages,
one portion of mild cheese,
5 carrots,
1 parsnip,
large bag potatos,
4 tomatos,
2 onions,
1 leek,
2 loaves bread,
6 pints milk,
tomato puree.

You can make a pizza out of some of the ingredients. Cook the chicken, mince and stewing steak in the slow cooker (not all at once) and make a pizza from the bread dough. You can add and take from this list as and when you like. I didnt add drinks as I dont know what you like and you will need to add fruit as were not much into fruit so I dont get much.

fairylights_2

This is our fortnightly shop (due tomorrow morning). We do this online so we don't get tempted, and to get extra tesco clubcard points. It came to just over £50. There's enough there for us to eat a different meal every night for two weeks. We get big value bags of staples (pasta, rice, noodles) and ditto with loo roll, kitchen towel and tinned tomatoes - when they're on offer, we fill the cupboard. We bulk buy meat from the butcher, spend £5 a week and get a different cut/type each week, so there's always the mince/chicken/pork in the freezer. We just need to go out in the week in between for a top up of milk, cheese, fresh fruit and possibly a bottle of squash. I've been trying to bring the grocery budget down from £200 and I think we're getting there. It's a balance of money saving and eating properly though. Oh, and there are four of us, two adults, one three year old on a MASSIVE hungry growth spurt and a one year old that eats the same food every day as me. They're not fat, but they're not skinny either! :rotfl:

Clementine 1.7kg
8 x Bananas Loose
Cauliflower Each
Cabbage Savoy Each
Butternut Squash
Mushrooms 250g
2 x Onions
4 x Carrots
3 x Potatoes Baking
Tesco German Salami
Tesco Brussels Pate
Tesco Value Ham
Tesco Smoked Haddock Fillets
Whole Milk 3.408ltr/6 Pints
Semi-Skimmed Milk 4pt
2 x margarine
Cheese
Single Cream
Tesco Value Low Fat Yogurt 4x
5 x Tesco Value Fromage Frais 6 Pack :eek: for the kids, every night. must have their dairy!
2 x Tesco Malted Milk
4 x boxes of cereal
Sunflower Oil
2 x Tesco Strong White Bread Flour
Chutney
Birds Eye Potatoalphabites
Bernard Matthewsdinosaurs
Green & Black's Organic Chocolate Orange Ice Cream 500ml (we have one "date night" where the kids eat that rubbish above - they love it really - and we have really nice cooked meal, with pud!)
Kumala Zenith Merlot Pinotage Shiraz :beer: (to go with the ice cream)
Shampoo

Formula's a difficult one, as they need more and more of it as they get bigger, but pretty much as soon as they hit one, you can swop over to cows milk which will make life much easier. And as for nappies - in the short term cloth nappies are an expense, but not after you've got them! I've just sold my daughter's medium nappies for MORE than I bought them for. It paid for 75% of her large size nappies, which means at a cost of £15 to me, she won't need another nappy buying for her. :dance: and don't you believe the people that say it's hard or actually you spend loads on washing and energy and water. That's rubbish too. You can even use cloth wipes to wipe them with. If you go through a £2 pack of wipes in a week, that's £104 you'll save just on wipes in one year, potentially £250 or more from birth to potty! (don't get me started on nappies, I could be here all day! )

Lydia.42

Hi :j
Good luck next week with CCCS.
In the meantime, check out the OS (old style) board. People over there have tonnes of advice and experience on these things.
Loads of yummy recipes too.

jcr16

this is quite difficult as i generally do a big shop at iceland and tesco at start of month and then do top up shops. but i never spend more than £200 for 2 adults and 2 kids both in nappies and 1 in formula.

i buy tesco nappies in the purple pack. size 5 for daugther £6 odd , lasts 2 weeks and for son size 4 £6 odd again and this lasts just over 2 weeks. i buy 1 tin of formula it seems every 6 days or so. but then my son has just recently started having only 4 9oz bottles a day. so i hope this will cut down soon.

when i really put my mind to it , i can make meals for a week from nothing it seems and then anothor time i seem to use everything thing in cupboards.

i would say tho i always use mince beef ( £2 for a bag in iceland which does 4 meals for the 4 of us) i always do one freezer meal a week , which will be something like turkey drummers and chips or waffles. i buy sausages from iceland ( pack of 14 for £1) and with this i make toad in hole , sausage casserole etc etc.

also for wipes i will use cotton wool and water and a flannel for faces and hands. wipes are expensive.

HTH

mountainofdebt

I must admit I tend to write a week's menu and then check what I need to make those meals and those items go on my shopping list which I always stick to.

Has worked in bringing down our food bill but do get the odd compliants when there's a mnchie attack!

elona

This is an idealistic idea so do not skimp on it.

You can always prune it later.

Chops

Mince

Chicken

Lamb

Pork

etc.

Xbigman

If you want practical budgeting advice go to the old style board, it has loads of brilliant threads and will save you a lot of money.
If you want to know how much to put down then read the recent post regarding trigger figures. There is a link to a site that gives all sorts of information on what limits you can expect to be able to budget to (sorry I don't know the link).
Regards



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jellycat40

If you can why don't you shop on line. That way you can build up your regular shopping list and if you are not sure you need something you can pop to the kitchen!

Make a list if you go to the supermarket and don't then do what I do and add to it. Substitute if you need to or want to but don't add.

Don't go when the kids are cranky and don't go hungry.

I buy .................... No you really don't want to follow my example. I am c**p at it but trying very hard.

Apparently menu planning is good, can't see it working for me as there are a lot of us and I never know who is in for what meal. I tend to plan vaguely and then use whatever is to hand. So for instance I know we will have mince on one day but which is anyone's guess and in what for who knows! It is complicated by our diet with slimming world and what is free food with them.

Gone on a bit haven't I but I am trying to help you keep a perspective.

Louise

queenofthedump

Hi

I too shop week to week and only buy what I need for that week
which has saved us a small fortune- when I spoke to National Debt Line for 2 adults and 2 children under 6 they sais they would allow 445 per month for food and toiletries hope that gives you a rough idea

smokey112

When we where declaring Bankruptcy when have been allowed £450 per month for 2 adults, 2 teenage kids (part time at weekend and school holidays) and three cats.

Done our monthly shop last Thurs and spent £160 (£10 on jeans, £10 on ASDA card, £10 on wine )

This includes all meals for 4 weeks - tolietries etc.

Hoping only to spend on top up stuff like milk, veg etc

Batch cooked at weekend - freezer now full

HTH

Ang
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