Eat for £12 a week?

quintwins

Lol my kids love berries and grapes aswell as raisins so I suppose in some peoples eyes we do have nice things, a bag of branded crisps would be nice, meat is what does it for us as we now buy chicken breasts we found lovely local ones that have nothing added they cost £20 and last just over a month, we are partial to a nice steak!! hmm maybe I could mange on £30 lol


Steak is bought as a whole sirloin so cheaper and used at weekends to try cut down on takeaways making it cheaper, there's method in my madness.

Boodle

quintwins wrote: »

Lol my kids love berries and grapes aswell as raisins so I suppose in some peoples eyes we do have nice things, a bag of branded crisps would be nice, meat is what does it for us as we now buy chicken breasts we found lovely local ones that have nothing added they cost £20 and last just over a month, we are partial to a nice steak!! hmm maybe I could mange on £30 lol


Steak is bought as a whole sirloin so cheaper and used at weekends to try cut down on takeaways making it cheaper, there's method in my madness.

My kids do too lol. Their grandmas like to have grapes and a punnet of berries when they visit as they feel like they are treating them without buying sweets and chocolate etc We all do what feels natural for ourselves, and I think that is what this thread ended up proving more than anything else as I read through the past posts :O

tigerfeet2006

At the moment I am spending between £50 and £90 every 7-10 days or so for 5 of us. If I can make it stretch further then I will. Though I am trying to use up my store cupboard at the moment.

kerrypn

I think I can do it for under £12 a week but it would be based on an initial 4 week shop

Breakfast
Weetabix/toast

Lunches

Salad/cheese sandwich/jacket potatoes beans on toast/cheese on toast. Piece of fruit/yoghurt

Week 1 Evening meal
Roast Chicken potatoes and veg
Chicken and HM potato wedges(using some chicken off roast)
Bolognaise makes 4 portions
Chicken Soup(Home made)(From carcass of roast)makes 4 portions
Cottage pie makes 4 portions
Chicken Curry makes 4 portions
Chilli makes 4 portions

Week 2
Chilli
Cottage pie
chicken curry
chicken soup
Bolognaise
Risotto
Scrambled egg on toast

Week 3

Chilli
cottage pie
bolgnaise
chicken soup
chicken curry
jacket spuds and cheese and beans
Fried egg on toast

Week 4

Cottage pie
chilli
chicken curry
chicken soup
chilli
risotto
jacket spud and beans

Shopping list

Large Chicken £4.73
Minced Beefx3 £3.75
Tinned toms 3 tins £1
Curry sauce 23p
Sack of spuds £2
Frozen carrots £1
Frozen green beans £1
Rice 40p
Cheese £1.60
Eggs 6 for 85p
Onions £1
Beans £1.49 ( 4 tins)
8 Loaves of bread £7.20 FF offer
16 pints of milk £3.60 FF offer
Weetabix £3
Lettuce £1
Cucumber £1
Tomatoes £2
Chicken Oxo £1 (poundland)
Garlic Granules 59p
Chilli powder 63p
Margarine £1.19
Basics yoghurts 45p for 6 x2 90p
Apples £1.50
Bananas £1.19

Grand Total £43.85 or £10.97 per week

Bit spare for any treats etc

I know the meals get a bit boring but if its cheap you're after

Amaretti_2

I have never worked out what I spend on food, just always shocked at final bill, most of it being cleaning products, toiletries and pet food so the actual food probably doesn't come to that much.

I've built up a good store cupboard now so only need to buy fresh. I will look at my last shopping bill and add up the food items, then see how low I can get it next time.

I suppose it's all about being selective, things like peppers at 80p are expensive but carrots are cheap. Going to start making home made soups, they are filling and cheap.

tigerfeet2006

Amaretti, why don't you have a go at the Grocery Challenge, it's a great way to get a handle on your budget.

I use http://www.approvedfood.co.uk for treats and some extra special deals. We also go to Costco, but you need to be in certain professions to get a card for there.

Oh! and I also have to who are gluten free to complicate matters.

Caterina

Family of 4, £12 x4 = £48. Vegetarian.

30 eggs: £6
3 packs of 500g pasta (at Turkish shop)= £2
1 Kg dry beans= £1
1 Kg red lentils= £1.50
500g porridge oats = £1
3 types of veg for 4 at the market = £3
2 large lettuces at the market = £1
tomatoes at the market= £2
Olive oil (pro rata 1/2 lt)= £1.50
2 Kg bananas at market: £2
2 Kg apples at market= £2
Bread for the week (from Turkish shop)=£2
1/2 Kg of cheddar = £3
2 packs of vege burgers (8 per pack) at Sainsbugs=£3
12 tins tomatoes on offer at 3 £1= £4
1Kg yogurt at Turkish shop= £1.50
1/2 Kg almonds = £4
250 g butter= £1

Can't be bothered doing the sums but I believe I get some change from the budget of £48!

I could go on, but this is more or less the shopping I do most weeks, sometimes the veg varies, sometimes I do not need to buy almonds, I would get peanuts or hazelnuts which are cheaper, I am always looking at special offers - what I am trying to say is that it can be done if you shop wisely and cook from scratch.

Caterina

Amaretti if you have a Lidl or an Aldi near you the cleaning products are much cheaper than at supermarkets. Also you can use less cleaning products or make your own for much less than buying chemical stuff. There are plenty of links on this forum for homemade cleaning stuff and if you google it you also find loads of interesting links.

Caterina

Boodle wrote: »

.... or that to not eat aubergine as a weekly staple is somehow depriving their children.....

Boodle I just came back this morning from the market with a loaded trolley and they were selling bowls full of aubergines (4-5 large ones) for £1! We had grilled aubergine, courgette and halloumi (total cost £2 for 3 people and that's because of the halloumi) for lunch and it was gorgeous!

I suppose that in London we are lucky to have lots of ethnic shops and markets, but possibly these are not accessible to people who live in small villages and towns.

Amaretti_2

tigerfeet2006 wrote: »

Amaretti, why don't you have a go at the Grocery Challenge, it's a great way to get a handle on your budget.

I use http://www.approvedfood.co.uk for treats and some extra special deals. We also go to Costco, but you need to be in certain professions to get a card for there.

Oh! and I also have to who are gluten free to complicate matters.

Gluten free can work out expensive. Will look at the link, thanks!