Fresh food is so much cheaper!

Florenceem

I have no experience of FF stuff/prices - is it frozen food?

katieowl_2

I think sometimes when people are on really low incomes (Like the guy mentioned who gets stuff from a foodbank) you have to bear in mind the costs of cooking. Chances are he will be on a pre-pay meter for the electric, and if they had an electric oven, it might cost a lot to run for the time it took to cook a jacket potato...I'd think twice about doing it for one person! The five minutes to heat beans or tinned spaghetti would be a lot cheaper!

But on the whole I'd have to agree totally. I do not understand why people feed their families on ready-meals, it must cost an absolute fortune!

Kate

Bella79

I always buy the 3 fo £10.00 chickens from asda, i get 3 meals out of each chicken for the 3 of us poss a few sandwiches as well, now that is fantastic value (imo) 9 meals there for £1.11 per meal, each meal does 3 so 0.37p!, of course then theres the cost of veg and potatoes.

Penelope_Penguin

As this is more about shopping, I'll move it to the Groceries Board

Hi, Martin’s asked me to post this in these circumstances: I’ve asked Board Guides to move threads if they’ll receive a better response elsewhere (please see this rule) so this post/thread has been moved to another board, where it should get more replies. If you have any questions about this policy please email [EMAIL="forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com"]forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com[/EMAIL].

gailey_2

I follow sw which means a lot of fresh.

yes does have additional costs

ways around it is-reduced salads
going aldis/lilds
growing our own
buying a lot of frozen veg

i have 2girls with hollow legs and a baby whos weaning
I try ensure they have their 5 a day

If I buy too much fresh sometimes goes off

find frozen has its place we have huge freezer so chuck in frozen peppers and mushrooms and onions into casseroles.
sometimes frozen veg as high nutritional value as frozen within hours of picking.

we go farmfoods and buy frozen veg and frozen fish

once a night we have night off with oven chips and breaded fish/chicken
very occasional takeaway.

rest of time its cooked from scratch

When I see the feed yoyr family for f8iver cards always seems pricey as thats just one meal over 5-7days..

we add cereal/toast for brekkie

babyfood

snacks

lunch -2packed lunches -so 10packed lunches a week.

desserts and treats.

household /toilitries.

I cant get it under £50 a week and thats with doping 90%from scratch.

everythings rising even value.

your menu sounds yummy I used red lentils to bulk out mince.

happy35

i cook from scratch nearly every day, but dont make my own bread or pizzas as i work full time and find this a step too far for me time wise

We do sometimes have frozen fish with HM oven chips and HM frozen peas, only buy fresh fish if I can get it at a good price so buy enough for a few weeks if I go the the fish quay. I will also do a pizza night now and again on a Friday night if I am feeling tired.

I spend about £50 max on food and that is for all meals for the 3 of us, OH and DS are big eaters so it is more like feeding 5 compared to the portions some people eat.

gravitytolls

VfM4meplse wrote: »

:eek:

I understand nothing about the attraction of Norfolk and never will. Dedham is as far as I will travel in that direction.

It's quiet, pretty, especially North Norfolk, and the children have a less hectic upbringing. As with all things it's swings and roundabouts, and it's amazing that a travel lodge holiday to London is cheaper than any sort of activity here.

lynnysinger

i think its the storage of veg that can make the difference. most of the fresh fruit and veg from the supermarkets dont last very long. if potatoes are on offer, i always buy a good amount, then ake them out of the plastic and into a black cloth bag (my old Lidl bag) and keep them in the dark. the same with all root veg. yesterday i used the last pack of sprouts from before christmas from aldi. they were still green, although had to take a bit more off than normal, but no difference in taste.

buy when on offer. store properly, and cooking from scratch becomes a no brainer.
a lot of the ready made meals are high in fats and salts, and never have the same consistancy or taste like the real thing.
with veg, ive started to cook differently too.
ive always used my steamer which has is three tier. i put the carrots in the bottom with the water cos i like them better, and the rest of the veg above in the steamer finishing with broccoli/asparagus on the top. but....still 3 pans to go in the dishwasher.
so, i tried this.
i put the carrots and sprouts into the water , and cook them together for a few minutes, then add other veg after. so if the carrots and sprouts take 10 minutes, i add the broccolli after 5 minutes, and then they are all cooked evenly together. this saves 2 pans, and makes a lovely stock for the gravy.
:)

Florenceem

I cook my vegetables in the microwave - use a pot specially for this - from the 99p shop. So quick - use a small amount of water plus the vegs keep their colour.

Big_Graeme

cooking-mama wrote: »

I also know i could probably half my shopping bill by canceling my Fruit n Veg delivery box,stop my meat from Costco.

Dunno where abouts in Scotland you are but I found the Sunday market at Blochairn has some decent deals on meat and veg.

Yesterday I got 8 huge gammon steaks for £10, 5lb of lamb leg steaks for £5 and a sack of spuds for £5, that will keep this months shopping bill down a bit :-)