Cheap Fresh Fruit, Veg and Meat in Belfast

nozzadamozza

Hi everyone

I didnt notice a thread about this but hubby and I are on a money saving kick at the moment- the price of things in Tescos is getting scary:eek: and we have been watching all those scare shows on TV telling us what is really in the supermarket meats soo...

I was wondering if anyone had any recommendation for places to buy cheap fruit, veg and meat in belfast- if you know somewhere in the east of the city even better!

I know there is Georges Market but I have never used if for food- is it cheap? I tried a local butcher beside me in the east of the city and 2 chicken breasts came to over a fiver! Granted they were nice, I ended up paying more for them than I would have in Tescos lol!

warmhands.coldheart

Do you have a Chest Freezer as there are some Butchers who do value boxes of Meat... (I know some do in and around our area.. Armagh)
These work out good value but you really would need a decent sized freezer to store the stuff in (Unless you were on the Atkins Diet)
Also if you are just going to use the meat for a stew, curry or the likes.. try frozen, (don’t go for the ready made processed garbage) be it a leg of lamb from Lidl or wherever.... We had a Leg of Lamb (Frozen) from lidl done in a slow cooker recently and it was lovely...

With Veg, again I do remenber reading somewhere that unless your veg is fresh (Proably about 3 or 4 days old before it even reaches a supermarket shelf) and you are going to use it in a few days (2 or 3) of purchase (So overall NOT exactly Fresh!!) your better off buying frozen.. I even know Chefs who would recommend this (Peas, Cauliflower, Brocoli... Remember not to boil them to death when you cook them though, as you will then lose a lot of those same nutrients to the water.)

Note Also that:-
According to the British Nutrition Foundation, broadly speaking, the vitamin and mineral content of frozen and canned fruit and vegetables is equivalent to that of fresh products. Fruit and veg are usually frozen or canned very soon after harvesting and so the vitamin and mineral content is often preserved.

nozzadamozza

thanks warmhands.coldheart- I have started to buy frozen fruit and veg cos I was getting tired of veg going off so quickly. I dont mind if meat is frozen as long as it was cheap and good quality (than those things pumped with water!!)

arkonite_babe

For good quality meat in our house we have made sacrifices. I refuse to buy meat in a supermarket and so pay a little bit more in the butchers. As a result we have cut our red meat back and have it no more than 2 -3 times per week maximum. Chicken once a week, fish once a week and either leftovers or very simple meals the other times. For tips on making food stretch further, have you checked out the Old Style board? They are fabulous over there and for example, can show you haw to make a whole chicken stretch to more than one meal!

nozzadamozza

thanks arkonite_babe- I am starting to get into cooking and saving-as I am pregnant, this is my attempt at being an earth-mother lol so will def check out!

I have just found a butchers- Warwicks Butchers- on the bottom of the holywood road/ newtownard road who does a family pack of meat for £12- includes- 1lb of lean mince, 1lb of sausages, 1lb of veg roll, 1lb of frying steak, 2 chicken breasts and 4 pork chops:j - that will keep hubby happy lol

swannie_girl

Another family pack from north end of Belfast, McMAHON'S BUTCHERS, ATLANTIC AVENUE, ANTRIM ROAD (top of Duncairn Gardens), they do a £9.99 pack which consists of 3/4 lb mince, 1lb sausages, 1lb veg roll, 1lb pork steak, 1lb lamb chops and 1 1/4lb frying steak.

Another pack is priced at £7.99 which is: 1lb mince, 1/2lb sausages, 1/2lb pork steak, 1lb lamb chops and 1lb frying steak.

Fred.Ed

If you live near Comber (I don't, but go there for my meat), there's a butcher in Bridge Street, beside the photographer's, who does a family meat pack for £16. You get a decent chunk of silverside, about 2lb, or very large chicken; 1lb mince (lean); 1lb of steak pieces; 1lb pork steaks (great for curry, casserole, fajitas, stew); 1lb thick cut bacon;and 1lb sausages (pork or beef). It does us a full week and has to be the best value I've ever had.
Sorry if it's out of your region, my friend travels over 20 miles to get there and she buys 3 packs at a time to stock her freezer, maybe you could consider doing the same!;)
Recommend you buy extra pork sausages - they're delish.

Bigcammy

McCallums buthers on the Woodstock road also does a large family pack for around £20, has loads in it. They also do an offer on sausages with buy 2 pounds and get a 3rd free and the quality is superb.

Personally I'd rather have less of a high quality than more of low quality, then pad it out with plenty of spuds and veg. It's also well worth going to a decent greengrocers as you'll get better vegatables in most cases.

Mrs_Moc

I use Georges market for my meat & veg, I find the quality and price good.

doc_ni

Asian stores on Ormeau Road sell vegetables cheaper than Tesco, sorry vegetarian so cannot suggest meat, but both stores seem to have plenty of fresh meat in store as well.

One asian store is owned by chinese and other one by Bangladeshi
Hope this helps

arkonite_babe

doc_ni wrote: »

Asian stores on Ormeau Road sell vegetables cheaper than Tesco, sorry vegetarian so cannot suggest meat, but both stores seem to have plenty of fresh meat in store as well.

One asian store is owned by chinese and other one by Bangladeshi
Hope this helps

There's also an asian foodstore on Donegal Pass, it's slightlty more expensive than the Ormeau Road one though. Sunday is the busiest day in these and parking can be tricky at any time if you do decide to visit. Also good for spices, condiments etc as they are a lot cheaper than supermarkets. I recently bought 5lts white vinegar for £5, massive bags of spices for £1, and a 1lt container of mayo is £1.25 :T

Belly pork is good to buy in there, but they do have the more eclectic things like hens feet and trotter too :eek: