6000 meals under 50p in 2010; feeding your family on a low budget

tomtombeanie

elektra-2007 wrote: »

I noticed people are bulking out mince with oats...how do i do this, do i put them in raw or cook them first. do i need to add water?

i do all my mince cooking in the slow cooker (bolognes, chili, filling for shepherds pie) and i bung the oats in at the beginning.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...&postcount=628

this is my chili recipe, i haven't costed it but i know it's quite cheap per serving as i am stingy with the mince and use value chopped toms. may be of use to you? x ttb

mark55man

So reporting back for Wednesday 6th January

All snowed in - so bit choatic with everyone coming and going, also some very hungry bunnies from all that running around. In addition to the below - apples and plums were munched unattributably. Enjoy the recipe for Igloo Beans :D!!

Today's Summary - 15/18 :eek: :eek: meals 50p or under:
Summary Total - 100/108 = 92.6%

Breakfast: 50p or under (6/6)
4 lots of cereals + milk + glass fruit juice (Lidl OJ 100% fruit @ 60p/litre)
DD1 - Omelette - One Egg 16p (+splash milk) + Toast + glass fruit juice (Lidl OJ 100% fruit @ 60p/litre) = 16p + 2p+ 6p = 24p
DS2 - Eggy Bread (18p) + OJ = 24p
Lunch: 50p or under (5/6)
OP, OH, DS2 Bacon Sandwich (2 slices) Lidl Bacon £1.00 for 7 slices = 28p + 3p bread each. DS2 had seconds so that's 62p
DD1, DS1, DD2 - Igloo Beans (that's beans cooked on a stove in an igloo that they made with friends) = 58p + shares of yesterday quorn a la king = 86p = £1.44 for 3
Supper: 50p or under (4/6)
OP & OH : portions Chilli Con Carne & Rice from yesterday - 42p each with 2x tortilla (14p each) + Apple = 80p each
DD1 DD2 DS1: Baked Potatoes Beans and Cheese + Apples = 10p+29p+30p+30p = 99p for 3
DS2: Ham Omelette (20p + 16p) + Apple = 46p

mark55man

tomtombeanie wrote: »

i do all my mince cooking in the slow cooker (bolognes, chili, filling for shepherds pie) and i bung the oats in at the beginning.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...&postcount=628

this is my chili recipe, i haven't costed it but i know it's quite cheap per serving as i am stingy with the mince and use value chopped toms. may be of use to you? x ttb

So I tried the Oats - but OH thought it made the sauce gloopy - should I just water it back to non gloopiness or is there a trick. Maybe will try grating carrots instead

zippychick

mark88man wrote: »

So I tried the Oats - but OH thought it made the sauce gloopy - should I just water it back to non gloopiness or is there a trick. Maybe will try grating carrots instead

I imagine oats to have that texture, so stick to lentils myself. A little water should thin it out. Also grated carrot and other veg as well. If things dry out, i just add water from the boiled kettle

clearingoutmyloft

I'm a devotee to finding cheapest, healthiest food available so just love your thread. I buy 25kg sack of potatoes for less than £5.00 from my local farm shop, and, when available, similar size sack of carrots for around £8.00 - both massively cheaper than supermarket prices. I store them in the garage and they last about 6 - 8 weeks for a family of four. Also, 3kg bag of pasta from Tesco for just over £3. Gives the staple carbs for a lot of meals!

First time on a thread so hope this appears ok!

zcrat41

Just been catching up with your thread and I'm now really wanting igloo beans!! They sound so fun. I need to build me an igloo.

Pity I'm 28 not 8!

Smiley_Mum

Cazzdevil wrote: »

Hi Mark,
Great going so far, I applaud your efforts and can clearly see you have your family's health in mind.

Just another suggestion here but a fond favourite in our household is corned beef hotpot, we just chuck whatever bits and pieces of veg we have lying in the fridge (usually carrots, onions, parsnip, mushrooms and anything else which is looking a bit past its best) in an oven dish along with garlic, enough stock to cover the veg and salt & pepper, then layer up sliced corned beef then sliced potatoes on top and stick in the oven for an hour (sometimes grate some cheese onto the spuds after about 40 mins too)

We usually find that one tin of corned beef stretches to enough hotpot for 4 very generous servings and this one should satisfy the food police too since it has plenty of vegetables in.

Easily works out within the 50p pppm.

Good luck with your endeavour

Thanks for that. We had corned beef hash for tea tonight which has roughly the same ingredients so will try this recipe as an alternative.

The amounts I used for 1 adult and two children

1 tin of corned beef, cut into cubes 320g

11 small potatoes - around 450g I just used the last of a bag of baby potatoes.

1 medium onion
1 clove of garlic, crushed
200g of carrots peeled and cut into chunks
olive oil, s&p

Fry the chopped onion and crushed garlic clove in olive oil for about 10 mins.
Boil the potatoes and carrots till cooked, chop into cubes.
Add the chopped up corned beef to the frying pan and cook for about 5 minutes.
Add in the cooked veg and a little salt and pepper, cook until everything is a little crispy.
Sprinkle in some spices if you prefer when cooking. I put a little smoked paprika in.

It was enough for us, empty plates all round.

The portions are what the LFHW website would recommend.

MushyPeas

maryb wrote: »

I looked on the lovefoodhate to waste website but some of the portions seemed huge to me. What do others think?

Hey maryb, I used some of their measurements today... for one portion of sultanas it said 2 tbs, or 80g . Hey ho, at least it gives a bit of guidance!

Loving the thread Mark, thanks for all the ideas

maryb

hello clearing out my loft, nice to see you.
I also buy sacks of potatoes though I can't get them as cheap as £5. However I've never bought carrots in bulk. The ones I buy from the supermarket have black spots on or go flabby after a week so I assumed a sack wouldn't keep.

Presumably you don't find that - I wonder if it's because I keep my carrots at the bottom of my (larder) fridge. It's supposed to be the right temperature for veg but I might try keeping some in a paper bag in the garage with the potatoes and see if they last longer

boredofbeingathome

I also buy sacks of spuds- similar price of £4.50 for 54kg-2X 25kg bag. I can get smaller ones as in size of spuds for £2(2x 25kg bags at £2 EACH-)
- i love them and they ain't that small..but i am lucky to live near a rural area- not so good working in it at the moment.
Carrot sacks are about £2-£3 but have gone up a bit this year.