How to survive on what’s in the store cupboard (plus a little money)

Want2BMoneySavvy

Only had a quick scan but think you could do some of these:
Protein

lots of eggs Omlette/fritatta with any spare veg. Good for lunches, or slices of fritatta for lunch
smoked mackerel - 1 pack mackerel and cous cous salad?
6 portions salmon and smoked haddock lasagne great for lazy nights, just defrost during the day for busy days.
8 portions fish pie as above
4 cod steaks in parsley sauce
4 cod fillets
pack of smoked salmon use in sandwiches, salads for lunches?
2 bags king prawns seafood pealla
2 haddock fillets
2 packs mussel meat seafood paella
15 salmon fillets creamy salmon and broccoli sauce for spaghetti, salmon fishakes, baked salmon with lemon, more fish pie??
10 fishfingers
2 smoked haddock fillets
3 bags breaded scampi

stewing steak - 500g slow cooker stew, steak pie
liver - 1 pack
pigs in blankets - 1 pack
12 sausages toad in the hole, sausage casserole, sausage risotto, sausage pasta bake.
2 burgers
bag of sausage rolls
8 mini burgers
1.5 bags quorn dippers
4 confit of duck
5 large meatballs

2 large pork chops
2 portions moussaka
1 small steak and red wine pie
1 portion spag bol
3 large racks of pork ribs
1 large belly pork slab roast, use leftovers for sandwich meat throughout week
4 medium rolled pork joints as above
1 pork loin fillet
500g lean diced steak chilli
2 pork steaks pork stirfry
4 pork kidneys

cheese 1kg
baked beans - 1 tin
red split lentils (2 bags) use to bulk out chilli, then use for baked potato toppings as well as serve with rice.
chickpeas - 1 tin bulk out chilli or cous cous salad
pack of mini quorn kievs
2 quorn burgers
4 crispy quorn fillets
2 cheese and broccoli quorn escalopes
bag of quorn mince
1.5 bags quorn dippers


Carbs

filo pastry steak pie?
2.5 packs spaghetti
half a bag paella rice
half a bag risotto rice
500g brown rice
250g couscous
3 small tins kids pasta shapes
6 soft tortillas use with chilli mix for a hot wrap sandwich at lunchtime.
250g wholewheat pasta
canelloni tubes
weetabix
cereals
porridge oats
4 blocks puff pastry
couple of handfuls oven chips
1.5 bags frozen roast potatoes
8 potato waffles
1 portion creamy mash
6 rolls


Fruit and veg (not really a problem to buy more as the local farmshop is so cheap)

carrots
parsnips
swede
brussels
salad stuff
bananas
sweet potato
tomato puree
4 tins tomatoes
green beans
loads of cherry toms (in the freezer, picked from the garden)
bag of garlic mushrooms
bag of onion rings
mushrooms
corn on the cob
2 bags brocolli florets
bag cauliflower florets
5 large ziplock bags of stewed plums (from garden)
extra large ziplock bag of blackberries (from garden)
2 ziplock bags chillies (from garden)
carrier bag gooseberries (from garden)



Miscellaneous

loads of bruchettas (mini pizza style things on french bread)
blackberry and apple crumble - 10 portions
stuffing
popping corn
gravy, ketchup, oil, soy sauce etc
herbs, spices
parsley sauce
cheese sauce
white sauce
miso soup
s/r flour - 1kg
1.5kg bread flour
sugar
butter
yoghurts
double cream
milk
85 vanilla pods

You have lots to keep you going, so aim to spend no more money on food all month, except milk/bread/occasional fruit top-ups. Lots in for breakie (porridge, stewed fruit and yoghurt, weetabix etc) so you should be fine.

Good luck!

Beki

ooh i'm loving teh isdeas so far - thanks so much xx

Beki

oh wow! i must've cross posted with you want2b, thanks so much xx

adelight

Wow! I'd get on a recipe website and search for "salmon" and see if anything appeals, some let you select a type of dish like quick, italian or low fat and on bbc you can enter 3 ingredients and it will find recipes containing those
Do not buy anything but milk unless absolutely necessary, like fresh veg.

Use the puff pastry to make pasties for lunches instead of sandwiches, eg. coat with tumeric and fill with curried diced veg, squash one meatball down with diced potato, squeeze out the sausage meat to make sausage rolls. Make sweet pasties with the frozen fruit.
If you have any busy days and kiddies, devote that day to using up the fish ready foods, leave them notes to make dinners like "mashed potato, peas and scampi".
You have so much tasty fish, I'd have some traditional fish and veg or breaded fish with wedges, but also try fish w/pasta, fish curry, even curry fish pasta(curried salmon pasta w/random veg mixed in is delicious). Seafood paella? Some sort of fishy stiry fry?
Liver sauteed in milk, onions and tomatoes served on pasta.
On river cottage last week he used left over fruit to make a custard crumble, would be a nice variation from a plain old crumble.
If you have friends over or get the cahnce to take food to a get together, use up the mini burgers, sausage rolls and quorn dippers. Maybe make a quiche too so it doesn't just look like an Iceland advert

Beki

oh wow.. thanks.. what a brilliant reply!!! i've got loads to be going on with already!!! xx

Penelope_Penguin

Beki wrote: »

Hiya, I found a thread the other day with how to categorise the food list, but i can't find it again now, so am posting separately in the hope that one of the BG's can move it if needs be - sorry to be a pain!

85 vanilla pods

As this has fallen from the front page of OS, I'll add it to the thread you already saw

I have to ask - why 85 vanilla pods :eek:

Beki

Thank you xx

the 85 vanilla pods was a bulk order that i joined in on, on the downsizer forum. because we ordered so many we got them mega cheap (like about 12p each) so guess what people are getting in their christmas hampers? vanilla sugar lol xx

[Deleted User]

vanilla pods are really expensive to buy now .My one is getting a bit past its best and needs replacing but I am going to wait awhile until I'm next in Faversham and buy them there as the Macknade Farm shop is a brilliant place to go to get all sorts of herbs and spices for cooking and I go about every three months or so and stock up.the smell as you walk in the shop is like Harrods food hal

Bella79

Hi all

Ive used these forums for a long time and had some great hints ans tips, now ive come for help, our monthly bills have increased and wages gone down

After all the bills are paid, we are left with £230.00 per 4 wks, this is for everything

2 large dogs (currently on dried food but this cost £50.00 pm for both

2 adults one toddler

This money needs to cover petrol at £15.00 per week and all food and anyhting else that crops up !

Ekkk dont know how im gonna make it stretch out and im starting to panic, and this situation isnt going to improve anytime soon so i have to make it work some how ?

Any help would be greatly appriciated, do u think its possible ?

Penelope_Penguin

Post up a list of what you already have, and we'll give you some suggestions

Take a look at this thread (I'd advise you to post your food list based on food groups rather than where they are in your kitchen that way it's easier to plan meals). It'll give you lots more suggestions. I'll merge this later.

Good luck :j