Food Shopping help

bextas

Hi,
I know a lot of you are so experience in doing the weekly shopping cheaply so I am after your advise. I have about £20 for shopping this week. All debts, bills and essentials paid yippee! So we always take packed lunches and don't eat out and we love all food not fussy so what should I buy when I do the shop? We already have 2 packs of mince in freezer and 10 pork loins as well as frozen veg and a big bag of carrots. I am pregnant so fruit and veg is a must.
Thanks

billinghamfan

How many people in your household?

bextas

Sorry just 2 adults

Heffi1

Have a look over on the old style boards as there are people on there who seem to be able to make their money stretch so far.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=33&order=desc

billinghamfan

okay the pork loins if you have spices soak them in them with a little olive oil then you have the frozen veg so that is potentially 5 meals although a little boring. Pork loins cut in chunks can be used in a stir fry aswell.

If you get a packet of tomatos tinned toms, kidney beans (tescos value are fine) then you can make a vat of chili con carne (with just one packet of mince) gordon ramsey's receipe is online and great. That again is potentially lots of other meals (freezing is the key).

Spag bol is another meal you can make with the mince and if you add lots of veg the meat will go futher.

I also make pasta sauce with just tinned toms, so veg and spices.

Fruit wise, do you have a local market near you veg is generally cheaper and fresher there. If not always buy loose veg at the supermarket, yesterday I brought 6 bananas loose they were 65p a packet of value ones which had 6 in them were a £1!!!!

Omletes are a good source of potein and cheap.

Also go through your cupboards and look at all the tinned and dry stuff you have and start getting a bit creative.

Hope this helps.

Also I think there is a website where you can type in all the ingredients and it will give you some receipes.

FireWyrm

How many days?

I'm assuming 7 so here goes.

1) Chicken (roasted), potatoes, broccoli
2) Risotto and peas from left over chicken and render the carcass for stock. Herbs to taste and perhaps tin of tomato for bulk
3) Pizza with home made dough (you'll need 1.5 Kg of strong flour = 68p). Render tin of tomotoes with herbs for sauce and top with ham, chorizo (99p from Aldi), mozarella and tin of pineapple. One Hawaian 20" pizza. Eat half today and half for lunch tomorrow
4) Lasangne. 1Lb cheap mince, herbs, stock cube, some cheese, lasagne sheets. Will do two adults two days comfortably
5) Left over lasagne from yesterday
6) Packet of pork sausages, more of your packet of potatoes mashed with cheese and green veg with gravy. (Use some of the stock from the chicken to make chicken gravy if you want).
7) Soup and bread or pot luck concoction from what is in your cupboards?

Shopping List :

1 x Chicken (medium about £3)
800g mince (£1.79)
Large bag of potatoes (5kg)
Brocolli
Bag of birdseye frozen peas (£2.50?)
2 x tins tomatos (£1?)
1.5Kg strong flour (60p)
Chorizo, ham, pineapple, mozarella (x2)
Lasagne sheets
Cheese (big block about £4)
Pork sausages (£1.50 from aldi)

That should about do your £20 in.

wannabee_in_credit

Firewyrm, can I just say that is absolutely fantastic... I really am amazed at how far you can make £20 go.
I always try to do stuff like that but run short of ideas. Thankyou - I'll be stealing this.

FireWyrm

wannabee_in_credit wrote: »

Firewyrm, can I just say that is absolutely fantastic... I really am amazed at how far you can make £20 go.
I always try to do stuff like that but run short of ideas. Thankyou - I'll be stealing this.

Thanks. I considered adding additional options but I think most people might not be so happy about them. These are family favrourites in our house.

1) Fried breaded lemon liver. Bread it like chicken and shallow fry. Serve with pasta.
2) Oxtail slow cooked stew.
3) Roast, stuffed belly pork, or chinese variations include glazing with honey and 7 spice, or one tin roasting the the root veg.
4) Paella with frozen squid, mussels and prawns. Get packets of mixed frozen sea food from the fish counter and you can make some tasty stuff.
5) Its a little early for pumpkins, but when they do arrive, a pumpkin and chicken stew is always a show stopper.
6) Fennel is in season and dead cheap, so any fish with fennel will go.
7) Chicken bits are cheap and I make a sort of chicken, chorizo, pea, tomato and herb risoto that is gutsy and filling.
8) Tuna is relatively cheap but obviously way out of scope for this requirement. However, put some tuna loin in a bag, chop in some spring onions, lots of coriander, soy sauce, chilli, garlic and ginger, leave to marinade and then flash fry so you get a nice crisp coating.
9) Something that we call Chilli Eggs. Basically, a tin of tomato, some stock, chopped veg like carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, chilli etc. Stew for a bit, then break 4 eggs onto the mixture in the frying pan, sprinkle with sharp cheese and cover. Cook for 15 minutes more and serve.
10) Home made sausage rolls are so easy. Packet of puff pastry (£1), some sausage meat from your local butcher or split a packet of sausages, mix with tarragon, paprika. Lay sausage meat out on puff pastry down the middle, spread liberal french grain mustard and roll. Cook gas mrk 6 for about 35 mins. Serve with cheese mash, or beans or almost anything.
11) Steak Kidney suet pudding...real winter stick to your ribs stuff. Cheap and easy to make.

cottonhead

When I was expecting we had a very low income and I used to also spend £20 on food. I would use the things you have to make pasta bakes or spice up the pork and have mash or veg on the side. Iceland do cheap pizza - £1 each and also garlic kievs for £1 so thats another 2 night sorted cheaply if you like those.
get some bread - you cant beat beans on toast. The bread can be sandwiches for lunch, cheese on toast or beans on toast for evening. Rice is also cheap and filling. Actually you could do a roast 1 day - roast the carrotts and get some poatoes to roast and some cheap yoirkshire puddings - tesco value ones are really cheap but tatsy and then roast the pork. Get the fruit and veg from the market if you have one and also go to the supermarket at the end of the day and see what they have in the bargain section. I got some great stuff for really cheap prices that way. I got a whole pack of 'the best' range of sausages for 50p and froze them for another time.
Good luck.

EJG1982

evening bextas (well jel on the preggers part, babies are my debt free goal:j)

im recently new to the budget food shop aswell, not the best chef and bad habits in laziness for cooking or not eating at all but thats what kicked me into gear. finding cheap quick fixes to keep me interested.

personally i find online shopping is a blindin option when you can.. im a tesco girl and it always save me picking up the so not needed extras they happily sneak round the store!

it allows you to clearly see your cheapest options as you can filter low to high, you'll be amazed at how different prices are for the same product. even if you just use this without ordering online to see cheapest options before heading out..some of these great recipe's given would be a good starter, spend a little time comparing items, my absoloute fav so far, so much so my fella even tells his mates is tesco 'everyday value' fabric conditioner, i used to get the average £3-4 branded for less than a litre but switched and saved to 90p for 2ltr!!:eek:, just as good if not better as soooo much cheaper..not food i know but you get the idea, unless your partial to fab conditioner soup :rotfl:

i saved massive amounts doing this, filled every food space for less than £50 once that kept us (2 adults) going for couple weeks. also plan ahead and delivery can be as little as £2-3

you can also browse the cupboards for what you already got, im a classic for doubling up if i go to the shops. they have recipes linked to items aswell.

on the actual recipe front..
VEG!! i not a lover of boiled/bland veggie, also veg goes a long way once chopped up and spread about in different dishes.. so my versions..
roasted.. quick,easy, brill to cut up ready and chuck in freezer to pop in roasting tin whenever, drizzle little oil over cougettes, carrots, parsnips, peppers, pots.... few herbs & boom taste sensation.....ive even had it with some left over mince fried up when we were really skint, sounds strange but got the thumbs up from fella.. can have it cold next day (minus mince lol) mixed as salad..

cauliflower, broc, pots, sweet pot, brussells , cabage blah blah blah...MASH THEM! again so quick and easy in one pan of boiling water, dont even peel pots if skin good, just chop it all up, mash it rustic with munchy lumpy bits..dob of mint sauce or wholegrain mustard (cheapy tesco goes miles)..dob of butter.. chuck a few sausage sticking out the top with your gravy flowing like a volcano :rotfl:

my al la mashveg goes great with stewing steak on slow cook, again tesco great for this off deli as you can buy what you like..again stick in freezer..brown it off (once thawed lol) and pop it in casserole dish/cook pot with a stew mix packet (or gravy granules, again skint moment) with some splosh of redwine..bootiful winter warmer

with most veg they last a long time aswell, i know friends that ditch perfectly good stuff in bin as its couple days past its date.. shocking when ive had it actually weeks past and its as good as new, veg is an obvious one when its looking a little sad so common sense kicks in telling you not to ditch..

pastas/rices are a winner aswell, get a lot for you money and can do so much with them. dont be pulled into expensive pasta sauces, chopped tins toms, puree, herbs, fresh toms, peppers as taste great cooked up, mixed in and popped under grilled with cheese.

oh, chicken thighs over chicken breast are always cheaper. personally i find meat more moist aswell.. grilling them first, pull aprt bones/skin then roughly chop meat & mix in with thai curry sauces (tesco own lol) over rice is fab.. i say grilled first as i tried stripping bones without and its just annoying :rotfl:

just always have bare essentials in the cupboards that you can turn to in times of need..

so for the boring babble but i was on a roll and the food shop is one of my biggest downfalls with dosh wasting and i just want to help where i can!!

best of luck

Bosniavet96

Well, there certainly seems to be a lot of suggestions for you to be going on with. I would make the following suggestions reference the shopping:-
1. Have a look at the leaflets/online sites that various supermarkets & cheap retailers (I mean, Lidl, Aldi, Farmfoods, etc) publish to see what special offers are on, & if you are able to, get the best deals from each one.
2. If you have time, & are able to get there, go to your local supermarket & look for the "reduced to clear" sections, & the reduced fresh items. Recently, I got a belly pork joint (enough for 2 large servings) for around £1.50, a kilo of fresh mussels for £1, & numerous "ready meals" for under a £1 (previously well in excess of 3 times that), to give but 3 examples.
3. Don't be afraid to try the budget lines offered by major retailers, if you don't like the very cheapest baked beans or bread for instance, you can always move up to the next ones (I personally like the 47p loaf from Aldi, although Farmfoods do Hovis for 75p in my area).
4. Experiment - I've tried a few things, & always try to mix fresh & other ingredients, so grillsteaks or fish fingers with fresh vegetables, or a chicken accompanied by frozen vegetables. Obviously, depending on the time you have available to cook, prepare etc, you are only limited by your imagination I suppose.
5. Leftovers - I often end up eating the same meal for 2 or 3 days , or freeze it for later.

This weekend, I think it's venison casserole for me, just have to defrost it & put the meat with fresh, frozen, or tinned vegetables into the slow cooker...........