Buying yellow sticker/reduced 2012 challenge

olliesmummy06

gailey wrote: »

Sounds fab I never get bargains that cheap but going to try tesco one night what time was it?

i do chicken pastys from leftover roast chicken be ideal with pastry.

Can I ask all bargain tesco hunters which one do you get bargains in?

express? metro? superstore or extra?
i dont have huge tesco within walkable distance or on decent bus route(evenings)if hubby drives and its late its no good as kids in bed.

the metro is hours walk and express garage one hours walk and nearby village one about 40mins?

is it worth the trip? been metro evening before and hubby said there was nothing.
been in express in city centre late evening and dident notice any superbargains.

is reductions better on weekday nights?
wonder which days best?

I go to a extra-its 24 hours. They do the reductions from around 7pm starting with bread and flowers, followed by veg then deli (pies, pasta, pizzas, ham, cheese etc) then meat. Sometimes it can be earlier or later and i have been in there 2 hours a couple of times but i just make myself look busy-plus i have got to know the other yellow sticker hunters too and we have a good chat about all our bargains whilst we wait. It is actually really nice in ours as we all talk about what we want then just get it if we can and split it so everyone gets what they want as some other people are very aggressive and jump in snatching what they can.

My mum went last night and was the only 1 there, i am amazed what she got-luckily we split everything we get so i am off up there shortly. She got....
8 x 500g lamb steak for 16p each
3 x sausage 13p
2 x sirloin/rump steak 20p
pizzas 15p
2 x desire post 2.5kg 10p
pork mince, chops, lions -unsure of price but pennies again
organice 2litre milk 4p

We are most def stocked to the rafters now and have a good 50 meat meals in the freezer so won't be needing anything for a while, i do wonder tho how long it will last as surley they cannot continue this? So i do tend to get at least a couple of things each week and use those before using things from the freezer-that way if it does stop we will still be able to eat cheaply for a while.

BJV

Try Tesco's late at night usually about 7pm. I go twice a week. Two small children and we wanted to save but not compromise on organic and free range. We are able to buy finest and organic meat, fish etc for pennies. Freeze it if there is too much. Last week got fresh blueberries and so much fruit and veg as well as fresh Tuna ( enough for four good sized pieces for £1.25) average price about £0.15.

Saving mega bucks.

gailey_2

thanks guys will try the 2nearest tesco express and tesco metro late at night and hope for best as never seen these prices. cant make it to larger store as buses crap at night!

gailey_2

victory wrote: »

gailey another thing I was thinking last night, I see in your posts you price up the meal costing, how can I do that? I now have 2 freezers full of whoopsies and obviously some have the label on for the cost so what do I do now, do I take it per item and then divide it between the three of us? Sometimes the eldest eats here also, mostly lives at his gf house so I usually do a meal for 3, lunches are at school, work, cereal ah cereal the cheerios and shreddies have come down to half price now at Sains was so happy I practically grabbed them off the shelves, bought loads of them stocking up on them.

All the brevita at Tesco is half price so bought loads of those and the big jar of carte noire is £4 at Mr T also so got loads of those, I have organized a cupboard that stores it all in, so thanks to Asda 50p soups, pot noodles and tin toms and all the other half price cereals and breakfast biscuits and the yellow stickers I have more than enough but will still go and see whatelse there is out there, I love the thought that it cost me less:D

Maybe next month I should get out a notebook and pen and start from the first day of the month writing down everything I spend on food but then I will have by then loads more for the future stocked away so does that count?

I would love to know how much I spend exactly, obviously this month thanks to the savings it is is considerably less than it used to be but where to stop now and start costing?

well done on recycling the broth.

I estimate approx costs

so take a notebook.

note down total cost of each item for example

pack value spagetti-25p
mince-reduced to £1
cheese-£2 on offer
garlic bread-35p reduced.
onions-50p a bag
chillis-50p pack of 3
pasata-25p[ smart price
herbs 17p value

Some items I can obviously say

mince =£1 -feed 3people divide by 3 so 33p per portion
garlic bread35p but thats for 3pack I cook 2 so approx cost 11p each*2=22p/3=7p each.

passata-would use whole carton 25p/3= 8p per portion.

the rest is trickier and harder to guess so its approx value

the 25p spagettei would last 2 meals so

25/2 = 12.5p then divide by 3 approx 4p per portion.

chillis-use 1 each sauce lasts 3meals so 16p per chilli

value herbs 17p just a pinch so guess maybe 2p
value salt/pepper-2p as well.

onions approx 5onions 10p an onion makes 5meals.
so 10p/3 =3p.

400g block cheese on offer we liem our chese so grate maybe a 1/3 block between 3 of us. nmormally pay around £2 a block so 70p\3=23p.

so totals

mince 33p
garlic bread 11p
passata 8p
herbs /salt/pepper 4p
onion 3p
cheese -23p
chilli 16p

total per person. 90p.

generally think if its under £1 per portion thinkk done well as even cheaper than feed your family for a fiver.Think thats based on 4people

for us the above would feed 2adukts, 2kids and have portion leftover for next day so that 90p for us would be lower .

Also depending on costs of what you buy pricing the same meal is varaible.

if spag bol done with reduced lines brings down cost even further.
Also depends on pack size as large mince with lentils could stretch to 2-3meals but only buy large pack when reduced other month got 1kg mince in spar for £1.50!

I do the weekend lidls offers and before xmas lean mince was £1.34 a pack brought 6 for freezer. its back on same deal next weekend.

Buying a mix of offers, value and reduced is way I do it as reductions not a dead cert so some nights very lucky other nights theres nothing so offer meat gives me a contigency!

mascarpone.- pasta sauce with it is lovley.
however i buy foil container and carboard lids from poundshop to put crumbles in you could of made a cheescake and popped in freezer for nice sunday lunch dessert in future as its no diffrent to say buyinga frozen cheese cake in iceland.

If I see reduced apples, rhubarb or blackberries reduced I either freeze as crumble or slightly more versatile stew the fruit and freeze in tubs as could be used to make crumble later date, mixed with ice cream or stired in a natural flavoured yougurt to make home made muller corner also nice wih porridge!

Im also going to try make some homemade liquers this year.

victory

Thanks gailey:D do you have a monthly budget you stick to? My OH was saying not to stress about the cost of the coffee (we bought 6) as that is the saving for the future,expense now but will not have to buy it for some months now , that I get but if I am always buying for the future?

ebayqueen_2

victory wrote: »

gailey I added more veg and some leftover baked potatoes to the christmas broth and will now make a heartier meal this evening, one question though lots of people say on here they freeze bread which I do normal loaves etc but with the french stick and the paninis or the ciabbata when it comes out and is defrosted, heated up it never has that soft taste it seems hard and solid sometimes and the kids and OH now dread it when I say I have some bread in the freezer:rotfl::rotfl:

Normal loaves fine but it seems to be the small rolls that don't have that soft taste.

Hi Victory

I wrap the ciabatta frozen in tinfoil and it comes out really soft from the oven. Hope this helps.

gailey_2

OOOPS forgot to address the bread

crusty bread does not freeze well might be ok in bread and butter pudding then frozen.
Or use up with soup next day!

never had issues with ciabbatta especially if its part bake one
same with panini bread have frozen those successfully.

victory we have done grocery challange lots and done well some months and failed others.

But the failed months are usually because we been lazy and brough convieniance or due to being busy not had chance to shop around or find reductions.

When I fisrt started used to try and meal plan 30days then find recipies then do shopping around that.

now I meal plan around offers and reductions cheap and meal plan weekly or few days before depnding on what reductions we get as not everything is frozen did my bargain gammon last night.

My one luxury is milkman £25 a month as get through 4-6pints a day!

Find on the months where we have extra money we become a bit lax and complacent.
but other months we reduced short trem like this month car mot and daughters birthday party so decided to try bring jan food bill down.

But I can only keep ot low if incorperates some frozen-farmfoods by far best as use money off coupons odd good grocery deal there too.

find the time to shop around aldis, lidls, butchers and poundshops.

thats the snag time realy does cost money.
to find the best reductions you have to invest time.

I think pycholgically we get pannicy when we spend large amount and buy in buk but economies of scale works our cheapest.

Best thing I can say to you is keep a virtual savings pot

as your oh is right 6coffees an saving but you dont really notice the saving sort of falls into a black hole.

The big supermarkets at end of receipt usually say how much you saved that vist with reductions and mutibiuys. keep all yoir receipts up for month and add up total monthly savings you maybe pleasently surprised.

even better if you could put the amount saved into bank savings account and use towards something nice !

My month officially starts 15th but paydays tommorow so starts then
aiming to spend 150this month including toilitries, household, ,milk, packed lunches for 2adults ,2kids and baby. It is a tough drop as usually spend 250-300 some months more:o.

But then think grocery challange should be flexible as lots reductions 1 month means less spent next month.

washing powder can last 2-3months.

bulk buying fave coffee or wine

a tip if struggling is have core budget then £30-50 contingency on top for reductions so then its a managed overspend.
I still struggle to get it right.

gailey_2

victory wrote: »

Thanks gailey:D do you have a monthly budget you stick to? My OH was saying not to stress about the cost of the coffee (we bought 6) as that is the saving for the future,expense now but will not have to buy it for some months now , that I get but if I am always buying for the future?

Is the coffee on special offer?
if so how much?
how much is it nornally?
how much do you get through,

we dont drink tea im at home
get through 1100g jar a week here

so work oput how much youuse and how much it would be normal price for month.

then work out 6 at offer price and difference in price,

yes bulk buying in some instances is worth it!

victory

I am not sure the coffee was such a great deal and had to be bought in a box of 6 , a bit of an over excitement on both our parts, what happened was the 100g went up to £3.58 from around the £2.35/45 mark but once in Mr T it went right back down to £2 so I bought loads and immediately the 200g shot up to £6.48:eek: when I went to get more the next day, told OH and he was like :eek: well we won't buy it anymore £6.48 for 200g is absolutely ridiculous, fast forward to the other day at Mr T in their £3 big huge banners there were a few boxes of carte noire 200g so I asked if they were £3 also he went to check for me and came back full of apologies that they had been put in the wrong place and were coming up at £4 each, with that thinking of the £6.48p tag it now has bought 2 then told OH , he said no not 2 let's buy 6 so we did...

So theoretically we saved £2.48p times 6 = £14.88 saving on coffee but did we save did we ? We would never have bought 6 of them in one go....

Coffee wise I have milky coffee and have 3/4 cups a day tops, OH has some after work so they will last an age.

It is like the brevita biscuits, we all know they were half price, that we have masses and they are there but are we just eating more of them now we know we have so many? Is it saving or over spending?

ebayqueen do you mean you put the tin foil in the oven to defrost/bake it? Or do you mean you freeze it in tin foil and put it in the oven like that straight from the freezer?

Our month starts the last day of each calender month.
Now I know that Morries does the yellow stickers around about the same time every day, yesterday I was in town actually clock watching to make sure I got on the bus to make it in time to stand around the reductions so I did not miss out:rotfl:

I have to contain the over excitement and plan, I do not so much as plan the meals in 30 days no, I get the reductions, put them in the freezer and think about combinations/meals/what to do with it as it comes out, I could not tell you how many meals I have in there but I know there is many, don't know if it is 30.


You see with the coupons/vouchers I use them al lthe time but got caught out with the coffee, I never had one and feel that I could have done better in reducing the 6 cost if I had some. As you can tell not particularly good at the first initial outlay, used to go to Costco and never could really happily part with £10.50 for a huge box of washing powder or comfort, toilet rolls in bulk that type of thing.

I go to Aldi love the place, Lidls not one near me, always in the poundshops, you are so right, once I have google coupons, looked at prices, look at the supermarkets flyers, go on quick grabbit, move from one supermarket to the other to get their weekly bargains it is time, a lot of time, I always shake my head about people paying full price for anything but needs must if they have a full time job, kids etc.

I have never done online shopping, I LIKE to see it, feel it, the reductions, it is a lot of work in itself yes.

The whole point of this, well mostly was to release some money for fun, once all the bills are paid, it is hard to keep our heads abouve water and the fun bit is passing us by, like a trip to the cinema, or that expensive but cheeky coffee out, or a mac with the kids, just some fun, so far the money on shopping is being reduced I would say sometimes dramatically but there does not seem to be anymore to play with. Going wrong there somewhere.

My next big spend is not so much on groceries but on the boots 75% off sale coming next week to see the coming year birthdays/xmas presents cost less.

turquoise_goat

Hi everyone,

I'm new to MSE and to this forum. I've been lurking for a while and have been amazed by some of the reductions you get! Previously I have been unable to find these but today in tesco express I managed to get a few things:

chicken jalfrezi ready meal- reduced to 35p from £3 (bought 2!)
individual size cheese and onion quiche- reduced to 39p
6 small lemon and raisin pancakes- reduced to 19p

It is a fairly small hoard compared to others' but I am very pleased with it :j

I'm going to try and get to a co- op some time this weekend to see if I can have any success there too!