£40 for the whole week for a family of four!

charleybabes

we have a lot of bills and a bit of a catch up this week so we have to basically use the whole of OH'S wage..we are going to be left with £40 to feed a family of four 2 adults and 2 children..
i have to buy nappies and wipes aswell..

we do have a pork loin in the freezer and a pack of diced chicken...

do you think it is possible to live on this small amount this week???

BitterAndTwisted

Yes, I do. Absolutely. The first thing that would go out of the window would be the wipes. These are a complete non-essential in my opinion.

Why not list every single thing in your store-cupboard, fridge and freezer and I daresay some of us will come up with some ideas. Some indication of what you and your family cannot or will not eat might be helpful

villagelife

I think that it can be done and you'll get lots of advice but can you list what else you have in your cupboards.

AnnaV

You could put a message on Freecycle for nappies - lots of people (me included!) have some leftover now they have potty trained.

Wipes - use a flannel/cut up towel/dishcloth and soap and water, stick in washing machine afterwards.

Food - definitely! Have you emptied your cupboards and worked out what you have already? Anything lurking in the freezer?

charleybabes

right.. will do a list of things in my cupboards and freezer ( fridge is empty!) and get back to you !

good idea bout the wipes.. got loads of flannels

rachbc

ok how old are the kids and when you list can you tell us the weights - 'a pack' can be 200g or 800g.

sure we can help you do this

jcr16

oh yes easily. i do about £40-£50 for a family of 5 plus 3 cats.and that includes one pack of pull ups for little one.

But it only works if i meal plan , and i make everythign from scratch.

Marks and spencers do lovely mince beef for £4 for 2 500g packs, also 79 % sausages for £3 for 2 packs. a chicken is £5 in morrisons and that is enough meat for 1 weeks meals.

do simple meals like home made mince beef and onion pie with veg and pot's ( either mash or roast) a lasagne with peas and home made garlic bread, toad in the hole with mash and veg, sausage casserole with jacket potato, roast chicken , chicken curry ( can always use a jar of sainsburys 8p sauce which is really nice) and chicken fried rice ( any veg cooked ie peas, mushrooms peppers etc fried over and couple rasher's of bacon if your have it, then add cooked rice and chicken to frying pan and fry to heat through. scrummy).

you can find local fruit and veg shops sell for cheaper sometimes.

charleybabes

the kids are 4.5 and 2.5- my oldest is at school and has a packed lunch so i need things for a packed lunch also

right here goes...

in my cupboards - 1 tin of chopped tomatoes/1 tin of tom puree
2 tins of tuna
4 tins of beans
box of lasagne sheets
bag of pasta
family size pack of micro rice
3 boxes of stuffing
2 packs of couscous

1 box of cereal
salt/pepper/ various spices/beef and chicken gravy granules

Freezer - Pork loin
pack of diced chicken breast
diced gammon
pack of pork chops
1 bag of southern fries chips
3 garlic baguettes
pack of potato waffles
fish fingers
bag of frozen peas

RAS

charleybabes wrote: »

the kids are 4.5 and 2.5- my oldest is at school and has a packed lunch so i need things for a packed lunch also

right here goes...

in my cupboards - 1 tin of chopped tomatoes/1 tin of tom puree
2 tins of tuna
4 tins of beans - what sort of beans? baked? black-eyed???
box of lasagne sheets
bag of pasta - how much weight
family size pack of micro rice
3 boxes of stuffing
2 packs of couscous - weight

1 box of cereal
salt/pepper/ various spices/beef and chicken gravy granules

Freezer - Pork loin - weight
pack of diced chicken breast - weight
diced gammon -weight
pack of pork chops - weight/number
1 bag of southern fries chips
3 garlic baguettes
pack of potato waffles - number?
fish fingers - number?
bag of frozen peas

Any bread, marg, fat, oil, flour?

Any other veggies at all?

AnnaV

charleybabes wrote: »

the kids are 4.5 and 2.5- my oldest is at school and has a packed lunch so i need things for a packed lunch also

right here goes...

in my cupboards - 1 tin of chopped tomatoes/1 tin of tom puree
2 tins of tuna
4 tins of beans
box of lasagne sheets
bag of pasta
family size pack of micro rice
3 boxes of stuffing
2 packs of couscous

1 box of cereal
salt/pepper/ various spices/beef and chicken gravy granules

Freezer - Pork loin
pack of diced chicken breast
diced gammon
pack of pork chops
1 bag of southern fries chips
3 garlic baguettes
pack of potato waffles
fish fingers
bag of frozen peas

Tuna pasta bake
Fish fingers, chips & beans
Chicken with rice & peas
Lasagne
Pork chops peas & cous cous
Chicken & gammon pie

You'd just need to buy some minced beef, milk, bread, cheese, flour, eggs, maybe some carrots and mushrooms.

rachbc

are you on half term? might give a bit more flexibilty for dd's lunches.

Last time you were in this boat in Nov what did and didn't work for your family from the suggestions you got?

TBH you have enough meat for the week - I'm only be looking at fresh stuff and maybe breakfasts

Big bag value oats should do for porridge for the week - buy ff milk and mix half and half with water for the porridge