How can I budget my weekly shop?

bargainbonkers

Hi, I'm new here!
I'm a recent MoneySaving convert and discovering this website has realised how much I really do spend. I'm 18, live with just my boyfriend, we have two cats and we rent a house - So we're pretty independant. The problem is, we're ending up having to eat into my boyfriend's overdraft each month to afford to live, and I think one reason this happens is because we're not very budget-savvy.

We spend 30-50 a week for food, for the both of us and the cats. I'm sure this can be cut down somehow, but does anyone know roughly how much I should get off of this? I was planning on going value-almost-everything, but I'm awful when it comes to meal planning, especially freezing and using one ingredient for multiple dishes. I'm young and new to this and desperately need general help in this area.
Any tips welcome.

Thanks a bunch, :rolleyes:

lisa26_2

Meal planning saves me a fortune!!! Aim to cut your budget by a few pounds each week rather than making a huge jump in one go. If you check out the 'old style money saving' forum you'll find loads of tips to help you.

Dizzy_Ditzy

Lisa is right- planning is absolutely key. Half an hour a week makes all the difference!

Buy a pack of mincemeat and split into 2-3 parts, thats 2-3 meals already. Same with chicken breasts, packs of pork chops etc. A local market would have a meat man where you can buy loads of meat for not a lot- seperate them and freeze them and you have a ton of meals ready there.

Instead of bulk buying all your fruit and veg at the supermarket, go to the greengrocers on an as and when basis. You will find it a lot cheaper, you only buy what you need and you dont have a ton of stuff to be binned at the end of the week.

With your cats- shop around for their food- at the moment the stuff I get for mine is £3 a box in Tesco, but £4 something in other supermarkets. Always make sure they have plenty of biscuits as well as they are cheaper and bulk their meals out as well.

I quite often use my supermarket dot come as well for checking prices. i am quite lucky in that I have tesco, co-op, asda and morrisons all within a 3 mile radius so i can get what i need in the cheapest places.

Like I said, you just need half an hour a week to sit down and plan things

Good luck and let us know how you get on :-)

anguk

I agree with Lisa, get yourself over to the "Old Style" board, they really are the queens (& a few kings) of the household budget.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.html?f=33

There's everything you need to know about meal planning, batch cooking, freezing etc.

alwaysonthego_2

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Pink.

Hi bargainbonkers,

Welcome to MSE :hello:

Everyone's needs/wants are different so it's hard to put a figure on what is a reasonable amount to spend on groceries, but this thread should give you an idea of what others spend on their grocery shopping:

Grocery Shopping budget threads

It might also be worth joining in with the December 2009 Grocery Challenge thread. You can set a reduced amount that you feel comfortable with and if you manage that then try to reduce it a little the following month. Everyone sets themselves a personal grocery budget and try to encourage and support each other throughout the month to stick to their own budget. What you include in your budget is entirely up to you.

For lots of tips and ideas on cutting back your grocery bill have a look at Martin's article on Supermarket Shopping and we also have a new board where grocery offers are posted regularly: Food Shopping & Groceries Also the Discount Codes 'n Vouchers board has vouchers and codes that should help with online shopping.

Meal planning takes a bit of getting used to but once you do it's a great way to save money by making sure you don't buy unnecessary things. Perhaps try it for one week to see how you get on by making a list of what you have at home and trying to build your meals around that...although this probably isn't the best week to begin, but something you might want to look at after Christmas. To get some help with it, have a look in The Complete Menu Plans Collection.

For cheaper meal ideas have a look here: Cheap recipe threads

I'm sorry to have bombarded you with links but if you take the time to read through them it should save you some money. Good luck with reducing your bill.

Pink

beautiful_ravens

Heres one tip I can think of -

Buy a packet of soya mince £1.50 ish.
Buy a small pack of beef mince £1.20
Cut the mince into 3 parts and freeze each in a bag.
When you make, say, a spag bol, use one portion of the mince, defrosted, and bulk up with half a mug of soya mince (pour on boiled water and leave for 5 min before adding to pan)
Use half a tin of stick-blended value tomatoes mixed with beef/veg stock cubes to make a fake ragu sauce
Buy baby onions and just use one in the pan.
Serve with value spaghetti; grate normal cheddar on top, or value full flavour cheese.

Do this for the 3 meals, and its hardly cost anything! That only leaves 4 other meals to plan, I suggest rubber chicken

Good luck.

The soya mince lasts ages, and if mixed with real meat, doesn't notice too much.

funkymonkey849

My tip is to try and make as many meals out of what's already in the fridge/cupboard/freezer because there's always more than you think lurking in there! Then nothing will go to waste.

Also try and have some simple meals like beans on toast, egg and homemade chips, jacket potato, vegetable or lentil soup - all these are so easy to make when you're in a rush and cost a few pence per serving.

Meal plans take a a bit of practice, but after a while you know what makes the best meals out of as little ingredients, and you'll be able to plan a weeks meals in a matter of minutes. Good luck! x

NeedToSave87

Hi,

I bulk out meals such as lasange, curry, spag bol with lentils. This makes it go twice as far and I also freeze left overs.

kunekune

Hi, and welcome to OS. There are people who manage on £30 or less a week, but to be honest, £30 a week for two adults is not that much. £50 is the least I could happily do it on, and in fact I spend much more than that. While it might well be possible to live even more frugally, I don't think you are being very extravagent to start with. It sounds as though your budget generally is very tight. What percentage of your income is going on fixed costs such as rent and transport? Sometimes the awful truth is that our income is simply not enough to live independently.

clutterydrawer

I don't think £30 is that much, either...i spend £10-£15 per week (to feed one adult...no cats )

you could maybe cut it down a little, but it depends how badly you need/want to. if you post the sort of things you buy/cook at the moment it could help people suggest ways to cut down.