Help me save on my shopping bill

RubyMurray

You can save a lot of money by using chicken thighs instead of breasts which are rather expensive for what you get out of them. To make them easier to skin to use chopped in curries etc I cover them in boiling water and simmer them gently for a short while (with bay leaves, peppercorns etc) and leave to cool in the water. The skin will peel off easily and you can take the meat off the bones to use for whatever you like.

carlos700

I would like to thank everyone who has replied to me there are some great ideas i will try them all.I am off to do my first shop today sticking to my list i have never done this before.I am going to buy just for a week i really do need to shop around to find the cheapest place for either a whole chicken or chicken fillets because fillets can be expensive.I will let you know how i get on thanks

Liz33

Do you eat mince? If you don't eat beef mince then I think you can get chicken mince, chop up some onions and mix in with the mince and an egg and a small amount of value flour. Roll them into balls, fry for 10-15 minutes and make a pasta sauce with value tomatoes, basil, onion, mushrooms, garlic (whatever veg you like really) then cook this in with them.

Cook some value pasta and you have a great meatball dish and you can freeze whatever you are not using at that point.

firesidemaid

just a quick tip or 2 to add!

in asda they do skinless and boned thigh fillets in the chiller section at £2.48 for six - loads of meat there for casseroles, stir-frys, curries etc. as with all these things it's a price per pack, so see which weighs the most and pick that one! it cuts up really easily with kitchen scissors.

also, for tuna/pasta bake use campbells condensed soup - mushroom is good -add a can plus rinse out with same amount of milk. buy when BOGOF.

good luck!

lynzpower

Must you use chicken?

I only ever buy chicken either a) as a whole one, b) thighs to marinade/ roast etc, they are cheaper, but c) I often buy turkey. turkey is leaner and tastier than chicken & way cheaper.

Chicken is a very expensive meat in general. Beek and pork are often cheaper. Have you tried pork fillet? With pork fillet you can just slice into medallions then we do them in the griddle pan serve with rice, pepper sauce and veg, or sometimes in a moroccan tagine type dish ( peppers, tomatoes, chickpeas cumin) Chops can be cheap as well

Beef mince is very cheap and can be usdd for the usual cottage pie/ spag bol/ burgers/ meatballs

If you buy from supermarkets we usually go t othe bargain corner for the reduced meat & fish then buy the stuff we need on the list for the week. then with any reduced meat we have we then plan in for next week.

Also dont forget to use the vouchers board theres often free vouchers you can get and the odd 20p off , 50p off etc, can bring a quid or so off your shopping, tescos & waitrose take them as a rule whether youve bought the product or not.

Do find out about your local butcher, mine does a freezer pack with chicken quarters, loads of mince, pork & lamb chops, loads of sausages, some minute steaks and a small joint of some sort ( whatever he has cheap usuallly pork) huge carrier full for 20 quid. this would last us as a couple a couple of weeks.

scheming_gypsy

gotta agree there Lynzpower.. was buying chicken today in Asda. £1.86 for 2 breasts, 301g each but swapped for 716g of turkey for £2.98

exlibris

sazzacat wrote: »

just a quick tip or 2 to add!


also, for tuna/pasta bake use campbells condensed soup - mushroom is good -add a can plus rinse out with same amount of milk. buy when BOGOF.

good luck!

I use these as a sauce with chicken pieces instead of the jars. Adding mushrooms or other suitable veg makes the casserole more filling. Other soups also make it more interesting eg. minnestrone, spring veg

I don't like chicken mince (it disappears) so make my own. I can buy chicken breast fillets from my butcher at £20 for 10lb. This is chopped in the food processor with onions, lentils and also padded with soya mince for poulterer's pie, lasagna, spag bol etc.

HTH

jennyjudd

The smart price frozen chicken is very good, we buy the chicken portions for about £1.68 and roast them off, and we get about 14 portions per bag. You could always take the meat off them and use it in a sauce, or buy the smart price frozen chicken breasts, a bit more expensive (about £4.99 i think), but they will go quite a long way.
I try to get away with using as little as possible in mine, normally 2 chicken breasts between 7 of us, plenty of pasta (£1 for 3kg) and lots of homemade sauce.

Lucie_2

If you're making chicken "in a sauce", like pasta bakes, curries etc, substitute the chicken for turkey breast, it is much cheaper & I bet no one will notice the difference. It can be a bit dry & tasteless on it's own but mixed in with a sauce it is fine.
As a poor student, I had a picky housemate who insisted she didn't eat turkey, only chicken. Anyway, I fed it to her for 2 years & she never noticed!

sammy_kaye18

Shortie wrote: »

(as I say it depends on the size of the chicken and I never buy a tiny one I admit).

I do this too. i work most sundays so when i actually get a sunday off or if i really fancy a roast i have to cook it on a saturday and instead of buying like 2 small chickens for £5 in tesco i save up and buy one huge chicken for about £5.

This then does a roast, sandwiches, soup, pizza toppings, stock , and whatever other meals we decide we fancy with chicken. (im only feeding two adults and a meat - phobic 3 year old)