Food budget...

Kilty_2

Don't think I can cope with commuting to Uni for much longer - so thoughts are turning to finding a flat share with someone.

So... trying to find out the minimum amount of money I could spend on food in a week without spending all day every day in the kitchen - I can cook and don't mind doing so, but don't want to spend hours making things because they're slightly cheaper than xyz, etc.

So if you're living in a student flat - what's your food budget and how far does it get you?

:T

Lokolo

£100 a month, I eat like a king though. You could cut that down but I would aim for £100 being the most. (I don't have breakfast, but I usually eat enough dinner for 2.)

HappyMJ

My total groceries budget is £45 per week for 1 person...but that includes 100% of meals at home (with less than 30 minutes in kitchen each day) with drinks as well. It also includes household cleaning products, soaps, deodorants, washing up powders/liquids etc.... If I eat out I take some of the £45 and use that on takeaways.

It's a lot to spend but I'm not watching pennies too closely and do drink a can or two of lager each night so you could cut it down to £20-£25 per week quite easily I think.

msgnomey

there are lots of ideas about ways to eat cheaply if you look on the oldstyle board
xx

devildog

I guess it depends on what foods you would be happiest eating.
There are plenty of students that live on baked beans, cereals and noodles(that cost les than 10p packet)
My eldest who is in 2nd year of uni (private rented accom) spends max of £30 per week and cooks everything from scratch, cooks in bulk where possible too and freezes. Most weeks it is less than £30 but that is what their budget is.

angelofmel

well ive just spent nearly £70 at tescos but then that is including food for a party on sunday!

my boyfriend and i normally spend around £40-£50 a shop but we dont go weekly, more a week and a half. also i try as much as i can to do fresh home cooked meals and things which is generally more expensive. i try to each lunch at home always though so that saves a bit more money.

Indie_Kid

Mine was £25 a week. I made at least one cooked meal a week, which would last 2-3 days.

minerva_windsong

When I was a student my food budget was £25 a week, but I normally spent £15-20 (more if I was getting cleaning products). That normally covered cereal, fruit and yoghurts for breakfast, soup/spaghetti and bread for lunch (or sandwiches or similar if I wanted them) and stuff like pasta/noodles with veggie 'chicken' pieces, vegetables and sauce for dinner, plus the occasional treaty snack or dinner such as supermarket pizza.

I know you said you didn't want to spend hours in the kitchen but I used to batch cook things like shepherd's pie or lasagne or chilli on a Sunday afternoon and freeze them so I'd have quick meals to grab and microwave in the week when I couldn't be bothered to cook. I also tried to eat lunch at home or bring lunch onto campus as much as possible, and bought own brand or value everything (the exception being teabags). Not being a 'snacker' helped as well.

ultimatedingbat

I spend £10-20 a week. Depends on whether it's a need everything week or a top up week

Renya

Between £10-£15 a week, but this week I've been commuting so I haven't spent a lot on food

glider3560

My budget is £25 per week, when averaged over the whole year. That also includes cleaning products - but these obviously don't need to be bought every week!

Like Lokolo, my evening meals are probably enough for two, so it depends how much you eat.

I tend to eat "home-made" food three or four times a week. I tend to make three or four portions, then freeze them all in old plastic chinese takeaway containers. That means I only actually need to cook properly once a week - every other time I'm just heating up something I've already made. Other days of the week will just be packet/frozen/tinned stuff.