Cheapest meal

carriel_2

Just wanted to add a thank you to everyone posting on this thread, I'm trying to cut down our food budget, its gotten a bit out of hand, so i'm loving all these ideas.

Bogof_Babe

I just thought I'd share a discovery with you - I bought a tin of Sainsbury's Basics Minced Beef & Onion because it was dented so reduced from 66p to 44p.

I just opened it, quite prepared for something resembling cat food at that price, but I was pleasantly surprised. I had half of it for "brunch" (I know ) with half a dented tin of sweetcorn and some Smash instant mash out of a +50% free pack, so my meal cost about 50p and was actually very tasty.

If it hadn't been reduced I'd never have bought it, but I've had a nice surprise.

cupid_s

Right can i just ask about dented cans.
I have never and would never buy dented cans. I thought that dented cans firstly were more prone to possible bacterial contamination and give you food poisoning.

Also if tins are dented the protective lining inside the can de broken and tin then could get into the food causing severe nausea, vomiting diarrhoea and bad abdominal cramps. This is also why you should never leave food in opened tin cans and you should put it into a bowl instead.

Has no-one else heard this or do you just not worry about it?

Bogof_Babe

I always check by pressing the top of the can to ensure the seal hasn't broken (if it has then the lid will "click"). Also if it was extremely dented, so that you could run a thumbnail along the indentation, then I would leave that on the shelf - in fact it shouldn't be there in the first place.

They do discount tins that are just slightly dented i.e. only cosmetically imperfect, or if the label is a bit ragged. These are the bargains!

I never leave unused contents in the can - I transfer them to a pyrex dish with a lid, and straight into the fridge.

apple_mint

tanmu wrote:

One dish that goes down well in our house is my mixed bean chilli - I buy a mixture of dried beans and pulses from my local caribbean/asian supermarket by weight (they stock a wide variety and it costs mere pence per pound - I keep a wide range on hand in my store cupboard), soak them overnight, then boil the next day until soft. When they are cooked I simply sautee onion, garlic, celery and any other left over veggies I have left, add chilli powder and fresh/dried herbs, add the beans and cook together for 15 mins or so. Then serve with rice. I sometimes add a couple chopped up (good quality) sausages (if i have gotten a good deal!) at the sautee stage for an extra treat. This dish goes really far, is very filling, and extremely healthy. It can also be frozen.

I made this last night but added a tin of chopped tomatoes, some left over lamb from the roast and some tomato puree. It was delicious!

cupid_s

Bogof_Babe wrote:

I always check by pressing the top of the can to ensure the seal hasn't broken (if it has then the lid will "click"). Also if it was extremely dented, so that you could run a thumbnail along the indentation, then I would leave that on the shelf - in fact it shouldn't be there in the first place.

They do discount tins that are just slightly dented i.e. only cosmetically imperfect, or if the label is a bit ragged. These are the bargains!

I never leave unused contents in the can - I transfer them to a pyrex dish with a lid, and straight into the fridge.

Cheers (thanks button not working grrr)
I suppose if it's only dented a teeny tiny bit it's not going to damage the inside coating.
At tesco's the other day they had some tins that were hugely dented. Like you say they shouldn't be selling those but I'm not sure everyone is aware of this, including the shop staff!

tanmu

Glad you liked the recipe apple_mint. I had actually forgotten to put tinned tomatoes and tomato puree in the ingredients - I get through tonnes of them each week, they are invaluable for making all sorts from pasta sauces to just adding flavour and making dishes stretch further....eg, normal minced meat chilli made with a can of chopped tomatoes can feed twice as many people...

tirednurse_2

I love tinned tomato soup (cheapest brand, obviously) with a huge mound of mashed potato in the middle. Just the thing on a cold winter's day.
I know it is still only August but I have already started to gather my nuts for the winter.

Counting_Pennies_2

I had some left overs from our Sunday roast, so I chopped up the sausages and turkey, then sliced the roast potatoes, added some peas and runner beans. I heated them up in a saucepan, then poured over 8 beaten eggs to make a frittata, delicious!

I cooked it over a low heat until the eggs started to set beneath the surface then popped it under the grill for the top to set.

HappyIdiotTalk

vanoonoo wrote:

tesco sell value bacon pieces for cooking and its really inexpensive 670g for 78p I grill it all and them crumble it up getting rid of any rind or fat that may be in there. its usually a mix of smoked and not smoked and sometimes a mix of back and streaky but its fab for using in meals like carbonara.

I made carbonara tonight using bacon pieces from Sainsburys and thought they were rank. They were huge chunks of disgusting pork, I could only manage a couple of mouthfulls of them and had to leave the rest. Bacon lardons from Morrisons or Aldi are much nicer. Wont make that mistake again.