Having trouble making groceries stretch

Nicky2905

ooh, thanks for that Lynzpower - might try lidl, the only issue is parking as ours is in the town centre and parking is HUGELY expensive (our town centre is dying because of it, but will the council listen??), so might now be worth the travel costs! The create your own pizzas are lazy dinners for when I'm rushing to get to my night shift

spike7451

You'll find that foods like those Birds Eye chicken thingy's are loaded with additives,you get a immediate sugar rush & then feel tired & hungry soon after eating them,Better to buy a bag of Sainsbury's value chicken portions (which are £3.89 for a 2.5Kg bag,you get legs,breasts & thighs.) & boneing out couple of thighs,stuffing them & roasting them.A bag of those last's me a couple months (single saddo) but you'd easily get more than a couple of meals from a bag.Then roast off the chicken bones to make a stock,freeze & use in soups ect.
Bulk your meals out with a lot of veggies,I use those 'soup mixes' to make risotto with & strip the meat off one of the above chicken portions,fry it up & add it to the risotto.If you're feeding a large family,a bag of frozen mixed peppers is better value than a pack of fresh ones.

schmucker

lynzpower wrote: »

Im another saying that maybe 40 isnt enough these days....


I know you can probably do the odd meal cheaper but those crispy chicken things are cheap, I have seen it for £1 for 2 in a pack with a bogof.

Suppose the other thing to do would be to try to stretch this out even further, eg, chicken sliced thinly then made into a club sandwich with a bit of ham, bread, salad grating of cheese etc. You could probably eat even less meat this way, as long as you have plenty of sides ( jacket potato, slaw, or roasted veggies, salad)

Maybe she shouldnt buy fruit and veg in Iceland, even with the discount their fresh stuff is pricey.

She doesn't, I had enough of black bananas and bruised apples, I would actually rate the quality of Icelands food the lowest of the low. My kids and even wife are that fussy, they don't eat any veg at all, kids love fruit though so we stock up and that.

I think I am gonna have to raise the amount we spend, £40 isn't enough, Well maybe for food alone it might be, but then you have toilet rolls and the likes.

Jules__2-2

I would try bulking out the meal with a few more veggies, if you can get to a local market they're often much cheaper than the supermarket so the money will go further!

schmucker

lynzpower wrote: »

Free range are 75p for 6 in lidl- so same price for FR as caged

Making a pizza base from scratch - our cheapie toppings tend around sweetcorn, mushrooms, onions, a few shreds of chicken off the carcass....
Makin

I can get them cheaper again, The brother in law is a farmer and every week gives us at least half a dozen free, usually a dozen though. We love eggs in our house, I find a couple in the morning keeps you going best part of the day thus meaning a lighter lunch.

schmucker

Jules_ wrote: »

I would try bulking out the meal with a few more veggies, if you can get to a local market they're often much cheaper than the supermarket so the money will go further!

Yep I do that, You can get a big bag of frozen veg for £1, kids etc won't entertain it though.

Chuzzle

I know what you mean... I have two teenage sons and a hubby that appear to have HOLLOW legs!!:rotfl: I have found that steering clear of processed foods has certainly helped fill their tums. I am rubbish at meal planning but have found this site is a godsend ....

http://resourcefulcook.com/

I also bake a lot of traybakes and portion up then freeze. Each day I take a few slices from the freezer and then we have them as dessert. Definitely fill up with fruit & veg - markets are the best for these as they tend to stay fresher longer than the supermarket stuff.

I am full time working, and it is all down to planning and deligating. Hubby does washing up, kids set table and also help with the baking (obviously depends on the age of your kids!). I never ever thought I could be this organised!!

Butchers meat is so much tastier than supermarket stuff as well I have found that I don't actually use as much at each meal time so I'm not really spending anymore money.

HTH

schmucker

I suppose this issue is more quality than quantity, As I say we are sick of nuggets, dippers, turkey drumsticks, value sausages, I would say nutritional value of these items are minimal. The only time we get quality is if something is date reduced.

schmucker

Chuzzle wrote: »

I know what you mean... I have two teenage sons and a hubby that appear to have HOLLOW legs!!:rotfl: I have found that steering clear of processed foods has certainly helped fill their tums. I am rubbish at meal planning but have found this site is a godsend ....

http://resourcefulcook.com/

I also bake a lot of traybakes and portion up then freeze. Each day I take a few slices from the freezer and then we have them as dessert. Definitely fill up with fruit & veg - markets are the best for these as they tend to stay fresher longer than the supermarket stuff.

I am full time working, and it is all down to planning and deligating. Hubby does washing up, kids set table and also help with the baking (obviously depends on the age of your kids!). I never ever thought I could be this organised!!

Butchers meat is so much tastier than supermarket stuff as well I have found that I don't actually use as much at each meal time so I'm not really spending anymore money.

HTH

Thanks for that, Yes I love butchers meat, it is so much nicer than supermarket stuff. Our local butcher usually has some decent offers and is fairly generous with portions, I am thinking £20 a week spent in the butchers should do a good portion of our dinners.

BitterAndTwisted

I think those nuggets and dipper things are terrible value although I don't see anything wrong with cheap sausages once in a while, especially if it's made into a casserole rather than just fried or grilled. They go a lot further as well.

Think about having a mince-meal once or twice a week. I don't see why half a pound can't feed four when made into a pasta sauce for instance although it's a terrible handicap if you can't bulk it out with veg. I'd be putting a stop to the not-eating-veg moaning right away.

I think your budget is very modest but sometimes when I hear that folk are finding it hard to feed their families it's often because both adults are working full-time and so they are very prone to swapping economy for convenience. Sometimes time has to be found and maybe some batch-cooking at the weekends might work.