Help With Grocery Shopping On A Budget

-MRS_T-

Mint1955 wrote: »

List what you already have in cupboards freezer fridge etc and see how many meals you can make out of them before you go shopping. You may only have to get a few bits to make a weeks worth. Pop the list on here if you are not sure.

Thanks Mint that sounds like a great place to start so I have done just that.

Here goes

Marshalls macaroni pasta x2
Peas tin x1
Corned beef tin x1
Sweetcorn tin x2
Bolgonese sauce tin x1
Sharwood tikka masala sauce x1
Icing Sugar x1
Strawberry trifle mix x1
Peach slices tins x4
Mandarins tins x2
Salt x1
Vinegar x1
Cornflakes x1
Butter x1
Sweet Chilli Sauce x1
Burger Relish x1
Bacon x1
Garlic Naan x1
Potato Scones Frozen x2
Burger frozen x1
Sausage rolls frozen x2
Chinese chicken curry frozen microwave meal x1
Pizza baguettes frozen x2
Diced onions frozen x1
Square sausage frozen x1
Cooked chicken strips 1/2 bag frozen x1
Spring rolls frozen 1/2 bag x1
Bernard matthews turkey nuggets 1/2 bag x1
Richmond sausages frozen 18 in bag x1
Chicken breast frozen 1 left
Peppercorn Kiev x1
M&S Sheperds pie for 1
Breaded fish x4 portions
Potato waffles x3 portions
Ketchup
Stock cubes beef x8
Stock cubes chicken x4
Beef oxo gravy granules
Chicken gravy granules
Chips frozen 1/2 bag
Corn on cob x8


This is my full kitchen I have taken an inventory of what do you think?

-MRS_T-

ragz wrote: »

if you can find a copy of Jamie's.Ministry of food at.the library that is a fab book. otherwise, start with Bolognese sauce...
from that you can make a lot things like lasagne and chili too. however you don't have to have 'recipe' food...
for real easy food think meat (eg chops) and two veg,
sausages mash and veg, chicken breast with veg and new potatoes.
even if you buy a frozen pie you can serve with potatoes and veg...

ragz wrote: »

Just to add, when I plan the week's meals I think like this...
One roast
One meal to use the leftovers
One or two meals with mince (spag bol, lasagne, cottage pie)
One meal with rice (chili, curry, even if you use a jar to begin with that is fine)
One jacket.potato meal (simple cheap cheese and beans or tuna mayo, left over chili)
One meal with chips (battered fish, burger, whatever)
One meal with mash!
One meal with pasta

that way you easily cover a week, but with plenty of room for variety and experimenting.

Hi Ragz those are both great ideas thanks. I think the plain options like chops, mince, sausages, chicken mash sound more like us tbh. I really like the idea you have above when thinking about your meal plans I will defo use that.

Thank you so much

Popperwell

For me and starters having had a quick look that's not a bad list you've posted Mrs T and in time I am sure that you will be able to adapt it even further.

Many of us are returning to food we associate with our childhood and what I would call comfort food...and many are trying live frugally by choice too.

I have just been reading a tweet from a BBC presenter who to save the cost of heating has gone back to bed with an electric blanket on...There are many starting to seriously look at their finances

claire1234

this morning i sat writing which meals we like and then doing a "pretend" shop on tesco.com
we like things like spag bol, chicken curry, mince n mash with veg, fish n chips, pasta etc,
we dont eat any ready meals as my oh doesnt like them prefers home cooked,
there is me my oh and our dog, this "pretend" shop comes to £110ish
this does not include any cleaning stuff or toiletries or toilet rolls or storecupboard items or coffee as im pretty much stocked right up on those things,

the pretend shop includes roughly 16 main meals, which include meat, the other nights we could have home made soup or big bowl of pasta which we love,
we usually have cereal/porridge for breakfast (stocked up on when on offer)
dinners can be sandwhiches (for work/out) or beans/egg on toast etc
snack for doughnuts / biscuits / fruits / crisps / youghurt

i usually buy 4 - 6 bread at once and freeze,
im wondering if a good option for me would be to do one monthly shop (roughly £110) then each week i would just need fresh milk, fruit and veg and anything we run out of,

how about think of all the different meals you and your family like list them and work out how much they cost, swap and change each week when the supermarket have offers on

hth

Mint1955

Very quickly and I am no expert but if that was my cupboard I would

Corned beef hash with tin corned beef frozen onions just need potatoes

Bolognaise sauce use with a few of the frozen sausages cooked and chopped plus onions (or the piece of square sausage)

Curry sauce add the frozen curry in as well as the one chicken breast chopped and cooked and use the nan bread warmed and cut into fingers. Add in some potatoes for bulk and any veg you have lurking about.

Fish and chips and tin sweet corn

Sausages bacon waffles burger potato scones type fry up

Chicken strips in sweet chilli sauce with spring rolls and corn on the cob

Have a mix up day one has shepherds pie one has Kiev and chips and child has turkey nuggets

Pizza baguettes and sausage rolls for lunch

Sausages mash and gravy and peas ( or chips and beans)

You may have to add in a bit to bulk out but that gives you an idea how it works.

Butterfly_Brain

-MRS_T- wrote: »

Thanks Mint that sounds like a great place to start so I have done just that.

Here goes

Marshalls macaroni pasta x2 Macaroni cheese
Peas tin x1
Corned beef tin x1 Corned Beef and potato pie or hash
Sweetcorn tin x2
Bolgonese sauce tin x1
Sharwood tikka masala sauce x1
Icing Sugar x1
Strawberry trifle mix x1
Peach slices tins x4 Make up a sponge mix put peaches in the bottom of a dish and top with sponge serve with custard or make a rice pudding add some vanilla essence a little sugar then add the tinned peaches dab with butter and cook in the oven
Mandarins tins x2
Salt x1
Vinegar x1
Cornflakes x1
Butter x1
Sweet Chilli Sauce x1
Burger Relish x1
Bacon x1 Dice and fry with onion and a couple of tbsps of sweetcorn cook macaroni and add a tin of tomatoes with a tsp of sugar
Garlic Naan x1
Potato Scones Frozen x2
Burger frozen x1
Sausage rolls frozen x2
Chinese chicken curry frozen microwave meal x1
Pizza baguettes frozen x2
Diced onions frozen x1
Square sausage frozen x1
Cooked chicken strips 1/2 bag frozen x1 buy a pack of egg noodles add sliced vegetables and use the sweet chilli sauce serve with spring rolls and plain rice
Spring rolls frozen 1/2 bag x1
Bernard matthews turkey nuggets 1/2 bag x1
Richmond sausages frozen 18 in bag x1 If you allow 4/5 sausages sliced for each meal you will get a sausage toad, sausage casserole, sausage pasta plus a second meal of choice
Chicken breast frozen 1 left ..... slice the chicken breast and add some onions and any veg that you have, cauliflower, carrot, broccoli mushrooms whatever you like then cook gently in the the tikka masala sauce, serve with the naan bread and plain boiled rice
Peppercorn Kiev x1
M&S Sheperds pie for 1
Breaded fish x4 portions Fish and Chips
Potato waffles x3 portions Cook and serve with fried eggs and baked beans
Ketchup
Stock cubes beef x8
Stock cubes chicken x4
Beef oxo gravy granules
Chicken gravy granules
Chips frozen 1/2 bag
Corn on cob x8


This is my full kitchen I have taken an inventory of what do you think?

HTH but I am worried that you have so little fruit and veg, fresh, frozen or canned.
Try to build a store cupboard if you can things like flour, sugar, pasta, rice, oil etc

craigywv

i agree with POPPERWELL go back to childhood food more, not every meal has to be a gourmet delight...thanks to being on this forum in the beginning i have learnt that, i was spending soooooo much money on fancy !!!! every week then slaving away for hours and to be honest hLF OF IT WAS LEFT ON THE PLATE. i now would do one night scrambled eggs, tomatoes grilled bacon and toast guaranteed empty plates,another night stew made in slow cooker bulked out with red lentils,another night spag bol.,i grow my own veg , today i planted 3 bags of spuds from poundshop and a bag of onions 300grams in the bag!!! a packet of scallions 24p in ebay and packs of carrots i will hopefully yield a massive crop from these i do most years except last year my spuds got blight. i also grow loads of raspberries, blackcurrants makes great amounts of jam, and in summer last year a mixed salad pack in poundland with lettuce, beetroots,radishes costing a quid fed us all summer. also get checking the reduced section in supermarket and dont be too fussy that bag of bruised apples for 5p can make a lovely appke cake or crumble. also so can all the fruit thats damaged make a massive fruit cocktail we do a reduced shop once a week and peel and chop all the fruit and veg and freeze or make it into grub. pasta is great with a packet of bacon a good hearty dinner can come from this, freeze everything , i could go on for hours but i would bore you so good luck and delete that order you have made for supermarket delivery.......go to grocery challenge first few pages jot down recipes you fancy and buy or chop and change with what food you have in your kitchen already and im sure you will end up with a lot more meals than 3 for your £50 xxx

-MRS_T-

WOW Thanks Butterfly thats a great help. You are quite inventive I would not have thought of most of them with they ingredients. We are so used to eating the same say 6-8 different meals that you kinda just get into a rut.

My hubby and son do eat fresh fruit and thankfully they both love it, its me that has the worst diet of all. We were just due a supermarket shop so thats why there was nothing on there. I am not the best at vegetables so we have to try harder with that for sure.

I did try to grow my own veggies and planted some spuds, strawberries, spring onions, tomatoes and lettuce but I only managed to get anything from the spuds, not quite sure what I did wrong with the others.

Which reminds me I think I will give it a go this year again.

I have since being offline today managed to make a meal plan for this week coming using the ingredients that I posted, although I think I may change one or two of these to your receipes as they sound nicer.

I have amended my supermarket order and taken out some things and added some new things in. It is still £60 odds but I think it has went much further I hope. I have 5 dinners for this and obviously other stuff that I need.

What do you think?

-MRS_T-

QtyProductSubstitutePrice 1Cheesey pasta£0.97 1Medium Wheatgerm Loaf£0.70 1Pasta in Sauce Cheese & Ham£0.70 1Chicken Tikka Filler£1.00 1Tortilla Wraps£1.00 1Salted Tortillas£0.46 1Original£1.00 1Oranges£1.50 1Juicy Burger Relish£1.00 2Batter Mix£0.14 1Vanilla Ice Cream£1.00 1Choc Ices£0.60 2Semolina£1.16 1Ham Wafer Thin£1.90 16 Black Pudding Slices£1.00 1Potato Scones£0.50 1Lean Beef Mince£3.33 2Chicken Breast Mini Fillets£6.67 1Vine Ripened Tomatoes£1.50 1Lettuce Iceberg£1.00 1Soft White Rolls£0.65 1Raspberry Swiss Roll£0.25 1Scottish Porridge Oats£0.65 1Strawberry Jam£0.29 1Baby Beetroot£0.98 1Salad Cream£1.00 1Apple & Blackcurrant Squash (No Added Sugar)£0.42 1Milk Cooking Chocolate£0.74 1Pineapple Chunks In Juice£0.43 1Chosen by You Simmer Sauce Mixes Creamy Peppercorn Sauce£0.32 1Beanz£0.50 1Carrots British£0.92 1Plain Naan Bread£0.59 1Blueberries£1.00 1Exhilarations Concentrate Strawberry & Lily Kiss 21 Washes£1.50 1Little Angels Toilet Training Wipes Fragrance Free£0.70 4Flumps£0.40 1Classic£1.00 1Garden Peas£0.26 1Tikka Masala Sauce£1.00 1Apple Pies£0.50 1Toastie White£1.00 1Yogurt Low Fat Pineapple Bio£0.30 2Yogurt Low Fat Raspberry Bio£0.60 1Yogurt Low Fat Peach Melba Bio£0.30 2Yogurt Low Fat Mandarin Bio£0.60 1Fromage Frais Fruit£0.45 1Fromage Frais Fruited£1.00 1Vitality Raspberry Yogurt Drink£1.00 2Fresh Milk Semi Skimmed£2.00 2Barn Eggs Mixed Weight£1.70 1River Cobbler£2.00 1Mashed Potato£0.85 2Cucumber Whole£1.00 1Apples Granny Smith£1.94 1Ready to Eat Bananas£1.00 1Sugar Snaps£1.00 1Babycorn£1.00 1Wheat Bisks£1.47 Subtotal£62.82Delivery£3.00eVouchers£0.00Savings£2.38 Total£63.44

Butterfly_Brain

Cheesy pasta is easy.To make a cheese sauce you need 25g butter, 25g flour and 300ml of milk plus 50g grated cheese and 1 tsp mustard. Plus pasta of choice, you will also get a far bigger serving.
I make a macaroni cheese using 500g fuselli pasta 25p, HM cheese sauce 40p including cheese (Or you can buy one for 42p) a small chopped onion 8p and sometimes I add a tin of tomatoes 33p. I top with a little grated cheese (40p/50p) and slices of pepperoni (½ a pack 40p),
tasty and cheap. feeds four for £1.13 that is 28p a portion that is without pepperoni or tomatoes, if you include those then it will be £1.86 so that would be 46½p a portion.

Make your own tortillas 20 would cost 50p

Do you really need tortilla chips? make your own by cutting your own tortillas by cutting into triangles and oven baking.

Potato scones
500g of mashed potatoes
100g of plain flour
50g of butter
Pinch of salt

A griddle pan is the best way to make potato scones though a frying pan can also be used. The trick is not to let the potato scones mixture get dry.

Boil the potatoes and then mash them thoroughly. Add butter and salt.
In a mixing bowl mix in the plain flour with the mashed potatoes make sure that the mixture does not go dry.
Empty onto a flat surface and use a rolling pin to roll out the mixture evenly and to a thickness of 3mm. Cut into triangles or you could use a round cutter or even cut into oblongs, but traditionally they are triangles.
Put each triangular potato scone into the griddle or frying pan and cook on both sides until brown. Serve hot.
Ice cream and choc ices are all very well in the summer but not in winter
save money by getting your tomatoes, lettuce and potatoes from the market or check out Aldi super six prices.

Why buy chicken breast mini fillets? You can get a bag of frozen chicken breasts 8 breasts for £3.99 just slice them up, it is just the same so that would save you £2.69 :eek: