£100 for 5 weeks food - family of 4

sandraroffey

got an iceland near to you?? i go there early, be there when they open the doors, the meat reductions have to be seen to be believed. i wont buy any meat unless its reduced. everything half price, then straight home and into the freezer. if you are there 5 mins after they open, its all gone. large chickcens, £2 each. minced beef down to a pound for a large tray. a tray of nice pork chops for £1.50. try it.

Butterfly_Brain

I use fresh tomatoes for the baked bean lasagne.
It works with potatoes instead of lasagne sheets as well.

http://www.cookuk.co.uk is a good site and has step by step pictures to help with all sorts of recipes

Butterfly_Brain

DebtFree2012 wrote: »

Monday

DebtFree2012 wrote: »

Breakfast: Porridge * 3.
Cost 750g pack of Hot Oats £1.32..... 1kg smart price/basics porridge oats = 75phopefully will last the month.
Made with Jam 84p ..... Jar smart price/basics mixed fruit jam 32p to last 10 days (it’s used when I am not there on toast etc and the invisible man that eats everything)
Milk for the week £3
Breakfast juice for the week 65p

Tea: Gammon, eggs, beans and HM wedges – already had in. Cost £0.

Tuesday
Breakfast: Porridge * 2.
Wheat biscuits pack of 48 £2.48 (last 14 days at least)

Tea: Mam and Dad's for tea every Tuesday Cost £0.


Wednesday
Breakfast: Porridge * 3.

Tea: LO chicken from Sunday with LO pasta from last night in HM milk/cheese sauce and HM sun dried tomato and rosemary bread (Thanks Weezl :T). Cost £0.


Thursday
Breakfast: Porridge * 2.
Wheat biscuits

Tea: Diced beef (slow cooker) with Yorkshires, carrots and peas. Cost 65p bag carrots (last 10 days?) 99p bag frozen peas (last all month)

Friday
Breakfast: Porridge * 3.

Tea: HM chicken parmesan with HM chips (kids veggie soup and bread) Cost £2.30 a pack of chicken thighs only costs 99p in Aldi for chicken 39p for soup. Everything else is in the cupboard.


Packed lunches (1 week)
1 loaf bread 90p
Tin tuna 64p
Fromage frais 88p
Mousse 28p
Raisins (to last the month) £2.99
Spead £1.20
Yoghurts 8 for 58p
Biscuits (whole month, 2 packs) 90p
Bananas £1.07
Malt loaf 28p
Cheese £2.81

This is the first week’s write up (I will get better at this I hope!). There are other things that came in the shopping such as teething gel and soap etc. The shopping total (inc items not mentioned yet) came to £52.05 as I said but I had £2.05 in purse so I have £50 left for the rest of the month which is week commencing 01/08, 08,08, 15/08, 22/08. Gulp

This Saturday’s meal is accounted for and everything is in for it so not spending there.

I will go shopping on Sunday for the following items for next week:

chicken whole £4.00
carrots £0.76
prawn crackers £0.69
veg stir fry frozen £1.09
waffles £1.00
gravy granules £0.20
mozarella £0.84 ......47p Aldi, Asda and 49p Sainsbury basic line
cherry toms £1.00........ 69p Aldi
fromage frais £0.44
mousse £0.27
yogs £0.58
lasagne sheets £0.39
garlic clove £0.30
baguette £0.39 (HM Garlic bread)
golden syrup £0.77 (this is to make flapjacks and such like for the packed lunches)
porridge oats £0.75 (ditto above plus to bulk out if possible, haven't tried latter yet)
milk*3 4 pinters £3.00
breakfast juice £0.68
bananas £1.07

Total £18.22

This allows me to make the following evening meals:

S: Sunday Lunch - Roast Chicken
M; Chicken stir fry (from Sunday LO) with prawn crackers
T: Mam and Dad's
W: Gammon, eggs, beans and waffles
T: Minced Meat and Yorkshires with veg
F: HM Pizza
S: Lasagne
S: New shop

With any left over veg I will make a soup or something using the carcass.

If you don’t see it on the shopping list then I already have it in (or have forgotten to add it:eek:!).

I have forecasted week 3 which is £19.97 as it contains meat (bacon and sausage for multiple meals) and also week 4 which is £7.38 and is a using up of everything that’s left week but will do more detail nearer the time.

Therefore I have just under £5 left which I have no doubt will be taken up by things I have forgotten.

Please feel free to comment.





My Comments/Notes:

• I work full time and try to cook from scratch where possible.
• Breakfast is for 3 of us, me and the kids, DH has his but hours before we do so I can't monitor what he has other then when I see something running low. He isn't extravagent though.
• We have 2 portions of fruit in the packed lunches, only 1 of which I buy as DH brings me apples home from his job.
• I vary veg based on what’s on offer so although it’s peas and carrots this will change if possible and will incorporate more as I can.
• My kids love prrodge and weetabix with raisins and fruit so the jam is a basic if I don’t have the fruit available however it’s added when possible.
• We drink water with tea and the kids have juice for lunch and I have water. God knows what DH has as he is at work and doesn’t come out of my pocket lol:T.
• They all, not me, have puddings every night and this is fruit, tinned fruit, meringues, HM rice pudding or a yoghurt and if they eat their tea they can have a biscuit before bed – even DH if he is good LOL.:rotfl:

OK there will be loads that I have missed but I am trying and although there will be room for plenty of improovement I am sure, it's one step at a time for me and writing it down is really helping me. Thanks to all that have commented so far - I am going to read those now.:A

Buy some large potatoes and make jacket potatoes = cheap and filling.

Make some fairy cakes and twinks hobnobs at the weekends to go in lunch boxes or for snack attacks.

Apple sponge is lovely and so easy to make
place some sliced apples in the bottom of a baking dish sprinkle with a little sugar
make a basic sponge 4oz butter, flour and sugar, 2 eggs,
Spread over the apples and bake until the sponge is cooked and serve with a 6p basic custard

Butterfly_Brain

There are plenty of cheap ideas
here http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?p=364086#post364086
here http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=185160
here http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?p=68212#post68212
and here http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=168963

firesidemaid

Bfly brain, i too was about to post re porridge oats and value jam.

i make my own jam from whatever is in the hedgerow, allotment, freezer from last year, reduced etc. i still have a couple of jars from last year and have made loads already.

sugar is the one thing that seems cheap @ £1.22 for 2kg in asda at the mo, and a a kilo will make you quite a few jars.

i was annoyed with myself the other day when i bought value peppers in mr m's for a fair bit more than i found in mr s's - altho they did have a £1 off coupon for a el paso fajita dinner kit - anyone know where they are on offer?

there is a fortune to still be saved if you can buy everything at the cheapest place - it does help with mr a's 10% cheaper deal.

i have finally notice the last couple of weeks that my essentials are going up - i even complained in mr a's that my value biccys had doubled in price in a week!

pauleyc

Hi there
Just wanted to say, what a great job youre doing. I have cut down my shopping bill but if i actually plan like you im sure i could cut it even more.

Also one thing i saw is about buying teething gel - you can get it free from the chemist, along with kids paracetamol - think its called care of the chemist (something like that) and you just need to register when you have lo with you, and i they have to be with you when you want something but it can save a fair bit. Oh also once registered you can use any chemist (in your area)
hth

saterkey

Have a look at the value pack of raisons/sultanas, these are sometimes with the cake baking or biscuits aisle, rather than the raisons in boxes that are so expensive, you can make your own little bags up.

satchmo1

Just popping in to say "good luck", and to suggest that you add lentils to your stews/casserole/lasagna etc. to stretch the dish. Get the kids involved with meal suggestions based only on what's in the cupboards/freezer - you might even get them to make an inventory? Do you grow basil? A leaf or two in a salad sandwich is superb

Hugs for you to reach the end of your challenge with some pennies in your purse!

M0neysav3r

Aldi chickens are £2.99 and they're not small
Aldi cherry toms 69p
Aldi Bread - 47p a loaf
Aldi Bananas - 66p a Kilo (or 68p cant remember now)


They're also good for lots of other things too but thats saved you a few quid straight away

quintwins

pauleyc wrote: »

.
Also one thing i saw is about buying teething gel - you can get it free from the chemist, along with kids paracetamol - think its called care of the chemist (something like that) and you just need to register when you have lo with you, and i they have to be with you when you want something but it can save a fair bit. Oh also once registered you can use any chemist (in your area)
hth

scripts are now all free over here, but before they were i used to get calpol and cough bottle from the chemist (i never needed teething gel really my kids were all fab and we're very thankful for that) but i never had to have them with me, we had to fill out a wee form with our details and the reason for getting said medication each time but i regularly went on my own