If things get tougher?

Bobbykins

D&DD wrote: »

Luckily I started reading an american site a few years ago and they are really clued up to commodity prices etc soooo I stocked up on pasta,rice,oils,corn,flours and sugar which was quite handy seeing as these are all the things which the prices have gone through the roof on!
I also stocked up on cereals and stuff that was made in most part from these things It has saved us a small fortune and I still have um plenty

That sounds really interesting. Would you mind passing on the website details?

Cinny91

happytails wrote: »

I usually shop at ASDA but there is an Aldi near me i want to venture into this month and also a Lidl not far.

Definitely give Aldi a go. They do some really nice meatballs for £1.59 we cut them into quarters and they will easily feed 6 of us so they'd last you a couple of meals and when I went yesterday I got a 1kg packet of spaghetti for 85p.

The only thing you need to keep an eye out for is the fact they price somethings seperately. Like the bananas and cheese, me and my boyfriend have got caught out by this before! And their tinned tomatoes are 26p where as asdas own are 21p.

jamanda

Cinny91 wrote: »

And their tinned tomatoes are 26p where as asdas own are 21p.

Not any more they're not. I've just paid 26p for them

nicki_2

If I'm not doing an online shop from Asda (stocking up on UHT milk and other heavy items ) I price stuff online with Asda, then go to Aldi with that price list (with the per 100g prices ) and if its cheaper in Aldi then I buy it. Only problem is since I buy mainly Smartprice stuff anyway its generally cheaper for me to get it in Asda :rolleyes::rotfl: Mind you, our Aldi has just had a facelift and been extended so everything has been a bit up in the air for the past few months so I've mainly stuck to Asda. But they are literally opposite each other so its not a problem for me to pop to both

BigMummaF

Oh lordie ..just as I was getting into the swing of adding things to stretch the meals, someone has to mention health scares Admittedly I'm more keen to add beans & pulses as opposed to TVP & was going to ask which you experts would recommend re: taste & texture.

Kidney beans are a long way down the list as they are too easily recognised, but I'm thinking more about aduki, borlotti & flagolet types. I get tinned to keep in for Iggie, but will try dried as long as I can't really inflict damage upon our digestive tracts other than the obvious side effects of course.

Caterina

kittie wrote: »

I just ordered a couple of bags of soya mince, organic of course as I`m not eating the GM stuff, no way. It will mean lots of disguising but hey I can do it I used to use it loads when the children were small but I did get through quite a lot of chutneys and strong sauces too. A bit of warning re some of the properties though: it is an oestrogen mimic so I wouldn`t serve it to boys and to men who are wanting babies in the future. Ok with us as my we are way past that stage :rotfl: :rotfl: Then again, it might be what some of the population need. A bit more femininity in the male sex. Give em soya and a duster and get them cooking :T

So true, D&DD, so true (re soya and housework I mean)!

Anyway, don't worry too much about feminising the male, it really takes a LOT of soya produce to turn them, look at China, they eat loads of soya there and they are not exactly short of people!

Caterina

Caterina

In response to a lot of postings related to the increasing price of items in different supermarket, there is a very good piece of advice in the book: The Complete Tightwad Gazette (by Amy Dacyczyn) - see review: http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2007/07/27/review-the-complete-tightwad-gazette/:

The price book: This extract is from the article quoted above, for those who don't want to read the whole article:
Start a price book (p. 33) Get a three ring binder and a small pile of sheets with three holes punched on them. At the top of each page, write an item you buy regularly (toilet paper, peanut butter, etc.). Then start going to different stores and writing down the prices on the brands that you buy. Spend a month or two trying different stores out and jotting the prices, then start planning shopping trips using that book, focusing on stocking up on the items that are cheapest at a particular store. Plus you can find out if store flyers are actually saving a lot of money versus the competition.

Also, for those of you keen to stretch food using pulses, the best way of doing it is by mashing/pulping/blending/pulverising the pulses (grinding and using in soups/sauces). Beans, once they are cooked, are easily mashed and can be disguised in a tomato sauce as integral part of the sauce itself, and so can vegetables as well (a sample recipe for children by Annabel Karmel that can be modified for fussy husbands as well(!): http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/database/tomatosaucewithhidde_8411.shtml).

Re. the soya scare, I think it is wise not to eat too many soya products as they are manufactured food (so is bread, pasta, baked beans and so many other staples), but in a basic fresh food diet, consisting of whole grains, pulses, vegetables, meat and fish (for non vegetarians) a bit of soya would not have a very bad impact.

Soya products are also very different from each other, as soya is such a versatile food. For example, miso, tamari and shoyu (traditionally made soy condiments) are fermented soya products and are, in small quantities, very good for the intestinal flora, but can be overwhelming for people who cannot take a lot of salt in their diets.

Tofu and tempeh are good sources of soy protein but must be cooked to be made more digestible.

Soya milk and yogurt are very "cooling" foods and are best eaten during warmer weather.

Soy protein isolate (the stuff that makes tvp and a lot of other veggie products) is not an ideal food as it is very processed but can be eaten on occasions as a substitute for more "wholesome" protein.

Overall soya products are better for women than for men because of the oestrogen mimic effect that Kittie mentioned, but only if eaten in very large quantities.

Ceridwen, I also read about soya products being linked to Alzheimer but if I recall it was due to high aluminium content in some contaminated products - worth more research for me - it did scare me as the issue was related to baby formula soya milk (the stuff I used to supplement my twins when I could not breastfeed them). So any more info would be interesting.

In general I would keep an open mind and an attitude of moderation.

This is only my opinion as an almost life-long vegetarian and many years (now fallen off the wagon) macrobiotic eater.

HTH

Caterina

sarymclary

I shopped in Farmfoods last week stocking up my freezer and cupboards, and just went onto Tesco online to put in the identical (or Mr T's Value Brand alternative) items from my receipt, and I saved £30 by using Farmfoods! I was really surprised, although I've always found that a brimmed trolley in there was much less than I'd anticipate in Tesco/Asda/Sainsburys. I'm a keen supermarket tart, but my Aldi/Lidl's are too far away to make a specific visit economically viable, but my trip over to Farmfoods definitely paid off.

MRSTITTLEMOUSE

kittie wrote: »

I just ordered a couple of bags of soya mince, organic of course as I`m not eating the GM stuff, no way. It will mean lots of disguising but hey I can do it I used to use it loads when the children were small but I did get through quite a lot of chutneys and strong sauces too. A bit of warning re some of the properties though: it is an oestrogen mimic so I wouldn`t serve it to boys and to men who are wanting babies in the future. Ok with us as my we are way past that stage :rotfl: :rotfl: Then again, it might be what some of the population need. A bit more femininity in the male sex. Give em soya and a duster and get them cooking :T

Well soya has'nt harmed my old man kittie and he's been eating it for nearly 40 years.He is'nt in anyway feminine and we made plenty babies,no problem at all.My sons-in-laws have'nt been affected in anyway either so either it does'nt work that way or they have'nt eaten enough.

sparrer

Caterina wrote: »

So true, D&DD, so true (re soya and housework I mean)!

Anyway, don't worry too much about feminising the male, it really takes a LOT of soya produce to turn them, look at China, they eat loads of soya there and they are not exactly short of people!

Caterina

or put another way, they're certainly not short of short people :rotfl: