Need to reduce my housekeeping budget urgently

meliaalison

Hello all I would first like to say a huge Thank you as I have already got lots of very helpful tips from looking at all the tips but I am hoping for some more personal to me advice. Here is situation I am in my 3rd year of a degree my bursary has just been stopped so I have lost £550 per month over night I can't at present reduce my bills so the main way I can reduce my spends is through my huge food budget. My family consists of me OH, 21 year old daughter who eats here 3-4 times per week (more often when skint towards end of month when I am also skint!) and 3 other teenage children, 2 large dogs and a cat. I am at Uni a minimum of 4 full days per week, when on placement 6 months of year I am doing 37 1/2 hrs plus all uni work also I commute 3 hrs per day to and from uni/placements etc. so time is very limited as hubby works full time and kids are generally running around doing various things. I am amazed at some of your monthly budgets and know I waste an awful lot of money on rubbish but at present I am spending around 800-1000 on food which is just daft!!! however on a night when I get home it is so easy to just eat daft. We dont really do takeaways, I spend 30-40 per week on fresh fruit and veg, oh and OH is like many others I have read about on here as he does not feel he has eaten a meal unless a huge piece of meat is involved somewhere (rolls eyes!) apart from that we eat basically anything including offal (I am the only one that will eat tripe!). So basically I am up for any advice anything will be taken gratefully and tried, I use value products so am not adverse to anything although will only use good quality mince as I find value stuff counter productive. sorry that this post is huge but just trying to get all info in (I also have a hugggggge chest freezer!) I would like any recipe tips (all meals brekkie, packed lunches, evening meals) shortcut tips money saving tips anything, It is my oh's bd next week and daughters 21st so could also do with some celebration on a budget hints aswell please. Thank you all so much in anticipation of your advice because at the moment I am pulling hair out wondering how I am going to manage on a budget of £300 for housekeeping.

boo81

Hi

It sounds like you already do a lot of things that people would advise on here. Im just getting back to keeping a closer eye on my budget so im sort of in the same boat really.

I would advise looking through the other threads, the grocery bill thread would be an ideal start as it includes the recipes index if I remember correctly.

My hubby is the same with meat although gradually he is changing. I find things like chicken breast when cut up you can get away with less than usual, so things not in portion sizes - eg steak, are easier. Maybe you could make a trade off with him, cook something he adores for 2 half portions of meat. Maybe you could cook him a nice pudding or something - old style and therefore cheap!?!

I also cook things that can be served with or ithout meat such as lentil dahl. I have it just as it is but sometimes the OH wants a bit of chicken with it.

Bulking out with pulses is definately a good way of making things go further for lots of people.

Realy you need to identify the areas where you feel you are spending more and can cut back as its difficult from your post to tell where to start with giving advice.

Oh, if you do eat a lot of fruit and veg how about a local box scheme or maybe grow your own?

Lisaberry

For me I know that there are 2 main things I need to do to reduce my shopping budget...

1. Meal plan - and make sure I plan breakfast and lunch as well as tea
2. Stay out of the supermarket - I'm always popping in just for milk and coming out with £20 worth
I would love a big chest freezer, not just for batch cooking but to also freeze enough bread and milk to only need to do a weekly shop and not go there again!

I'm just starting to learn the art of eeking things out with veg/oats and lentils and I'm already shocked at how much further you can make things go!

My dh had a wobble once when the type of food on his plate suddenly changed. Funnily enough when I told him he could do the shopping and cooking if he didn't like what I was serving up he shut up!

meliaalison

yes I am also one of those pop into supermarket for milk and spend loads which is part of why my budget is so huge. I have however been completely inspired during the last two days. I have spent time on here as I have been unable to go to uni after the dog broke my toe..long and painful story. In two days I have bought 2 single duvet covers from tesco for a total cost of £3.91 (I always need duvet covers as my kids are all teenagers and still using tellytubby covers!). Bought an xbox game for my son for his bd next month for 3.95 I have got loads of absolutely wonderful recipes have just found the site approved foods.com from a link on here and have bought some couscous and rice (my staples for my luch box) so I will see how they are because they were jolly cheep. I have got the recipe for the washpowder and will be trying that out and have put this months food budget at £300 which is about £700 less than normal I have got a plan but my main struggle will be to stick to it and the more recipe ideas the better please. xx

zippychick

Hi Melia:hello:

Welcome to OS

Ok, there are quite a few threads and areas which will help you, but it sounds like you have some work to do getting your hubby on board..... He needs to understand you now have a SIGNIFICANT drop in your budget, and that will be reflected in the food you eat

Do the family just help themselves to what ever they want? That discipline will have to change as any food you have will now be planned for, so what about having a "free shelf" in the fridge for snacks - so they know what is allowed and what is off bounds

Regards all your kids - i would be getting them involved in batch cooking - whether they like it or not! They are grown up enough to know nothing in this life is free - and your daughter who doesn't live there also needs to chip in and help out as well!

There a quite a few threads/concepts which will help you. Oh, when you say you "eat daft" - what do you mean?

Grocery shopping budget thread

Meal planning - how do you do it? - essential on such a tight budget

Batch cooking ideas please - to help you be better organised and have meals "ready" to eat at night

Meal bulding blocks for the freezer - easily transformable ready meals

Cooking for the freezer - ready meals

Store cupboard challenge - to learn to produce meals from the cupboards

Shop around for your veg box

Bulking out meals

Leftovers - use it up, don't throw it in the bin (do you waste much food?)

There's some ideas for starters . I'll think ....

Also would be worth your while visiting Debt free wannabe - posting up a State of affairs and letting others suggest where you can make savings. You would be surprised what others see you don't :money:

I'll add your thread to the first link later to keep all the alike discussion together

thanks
Zip

frugalzzz

I feel your pain OP. I have recently come down from a MASSIVE €1200, to €600, (I live in ROI). This month I'm down to €420 with one week to go. I think we'll make it out with of the month with a spend €500. That's a big drop for us. I love to cook and my dh is a bit old school regarding a big piece of meat at dinner time too.

My main success has been through meal planning and buying 'Whoopsies". I've also dramatically cut down on waste.

For example last night, I rounded up 3 red peppers, an aubergine, 2 courgettes, some red onions, garlic (all of which were on the turn), chopped them up, glugged on some olive oil and threw them in the oven for about 90 mins. We're having them tonight with couscous, and a €1.55 'whoopsied' roast chicken.

Forward planning is really important.

Good luck!

Trinny

Hi there

OUr house has two adults and a hungry cat and we usually manage to cook from scratch and buy good quality meat and free range eggs for just under £150 pm.

Menu planning helps me, as does meal planning
Its worth doing an inventory of your store cupboards, fridge and freezer, it helps me not to forget stuff in the back of the cupboard, fridge and then have to throw it out.

All the links mentioned above are really good, but i remember feeling a little overwhelmed when i started to try to become OS. I would change one thing at a time.

If you need to save money, try Martin's drop a brand challenge, check out the local market, or farm shop.

Personally - i leave the OH at home when i shop as much as possible, as he has in the past filled a handbasket full of junk - for his personal consumption - with a bill of £35 :eek:.

I am sure you can make big savings - but make small perminent changes rather than cold turkey followed by a fall off the wagon.

OS works best when it just becomes part of your daily routine.

Best Wishes

Trin

seabright

Stir-frys are cheap & fab. One chicken breast (or equivalant) per 2 adults and whatever veg you've got knocking around in the fridge. I don't buy stir-fry sauces, I just fry them up in a mix of seaseme (sp!) oil, soy sauce and some spices. It never tastes the same twice!

And, if you have leftovers, it'a makes a very yummy sandwich filling

knithryn

On Shirley Goode's blog (she was a cost cutting TV cook way back in the eighties) she recommends using 3 course meals at dinner time ie
cheap or homemade soup and bread rolls
portion control on the meat in the main course
filling pudding like homemade crumble and custard

If you bought the cheap soups, and batch made portions of chilli etc, you could get away with only cooking veg (and rice etc) each night, and a pudding every other night.
The idea is to fill folk up on cheap stuff with plenty of veg.

For the veg, you could easily make seasonal and cheap soup using the veg bargains at Aldi or Lidl.

I'd also recomment Aldi cat food - it's a lot cheaper than Whiskas etc and our fussy and sensitive-stomached cats are fine on it. I'd also recomment aldi loo rolls, cleaning products and shampoos etc.

Get everyone involved on board, and avoid buying stuff like crisps and biscuits. Perhaps when your daughter comes over for dinner she could make a batch of biscuits in return for the dinner, or make a pudding. That would help with the workload and be a nice contribution from her.

meliaalison

wow thankyou all some great ideas I am going to go and look at those threads. I have made a great start nipped to asda and grabbed 4 packs of them chicken fillets that they have at £3 that is 4 meals made the chicken and broccoli pasta for tea have fed 5 (hubby has had 2nds) and it cost me £5 in total for the meal. Went in to see mr T and got lots of woopsies. Got 2 packs of diced lamb for £2.50 each plan to use one of these at a time to make a lamb biryani thought I would pad it out with letil dahl and bombay pots possibly onion baji's but not sure also have some chappati flour in back of cuboard so going to use that. I also got a very large chicken for £3 so thats another 2 meals some stewing beef for £3 prob enough for 2 meals and 4 packs of mince (that was normal price) plan to try and stretch them for 6 meals I also got a piece of rib beef which was woopsied it cost £7 which sounds a lot but it was half price and am going to use it for my OH's bd tea which I plan to make a 3 course meal for under £15 so I have £8 left for the other 2 courses and the sides to go with the beef any ideas?? So I have spent £46 so far for 17 days worth of evening meals well the meat bits anyway and at this moment in time I am really enjoying it.....does this feeling wear off????

meliaalison

ooh knithryn I just read your reply and have been smilling to myself ever since the thought of my daughter actually cooking something is very amusing it is not I hasten to add because she cant cook because I have taught all of my children to cook (my 13 year old son is always cooking meals) however my 21 year old daughter believes in the cooking fairy and she is the only person I know who can use every pot, pan, plate, bowl and utensil in the house to cook beans on toast lol but nice thought however I will be checking out aldi for cat food etc and that is a very very good idea about 3 course meals and one which I will deffinately be using so thankyou x