November 2013 Grocery Challenge

[Deleted User]

BlueMoo wrote: »

Yep I have the same budget as you approx £20-25 per week for 2 people.
Gammon is very versatile.

For example

1. Roast gammon with mash pots and mixed veg
2. Thin slice of gammon on half a croissant, topped with a spinkling of grated cheese popped in the oven
3. Sliced cold gammon with salad sandwich
4. Pasta with HM tomato sauce (bulked out with extra fresh tomatoes) with gammon strips
5. Gamon glazed with lemon and spring onions served with a jacket potato and veg
6. Gammon with egg, chips and beans
7. Spaghetti Carbonara (using Gammon rather than bacon)
8. Pea soup with chopped up pieces of gammon with wholemeal bread
9. Gamon fake stir fry (the traditional doesn't really work) with sliced cabbages (instead of beansprouts)/mange tout/green beans/baby corn/general spring greens
10. Chicken pie (mixed with a white sauce or a bit of gammon)

Basically anywhere you could have bacon or chicken, substitue for gammon.
As gammon is so flavourful, a little can go a long way. (Especially in something like a pasta dish/bake)
Helps convince the OH they are having a 'meaty' dinner as well.

ETA: As well, the variety of different flavours/spices/textures of the meals really helps stop 'sameness' fatigue. i.e You really feel like you have eaten the same thing over and over.

Wow these are fantastic ideas. Thanks so much for taking the time to post them:A. I will be giving some of these a try. I have been a bit lost recently in putting together meal plans and fed up of having the same things all the time. You have inspired me to be more creative.

physicsgirl

Did the weekly shop Monday evening, spent £17.22 in Ald! and £16.06 in T*sco, which wasn't too bad considering OH was with me. And considering £9.83 was spent on nuts to go into a nut roast OH wants to try (not try MAKING you understand, he wants to try TASTING it...). But on the upside I shouldn't have to go to the supermarket until next week (fingers crossed), I got 8m of nice Christmas wrapping paper in Ald! for 99p and a 75p T*sco Price Promise voucher :T

Ooooh plus, I took back 2 towels and a bag of Halloween sweets that didn't get used, so £13 refund. Not sure whether to minus this from my November grocery spend, or whether to just treat it as unexpected windfall :S

BlueMoo

Thanks very much Allie23.

Yes sometimes with a limited budget, meals can get very repetitive as you can't buy all different kinds of fish/cuts of meat etc or you have large quantities of one meat to take advantage of YS or bulk buying.

My OH is pretty much a human dustbin and will eat what he's given, but he needs to have proper meat with a meal and he can't eat the same thing again and again.

It's not a problem - it's a pleasure to help others trying to 'spice up their life' :rotfl:

Bookworm42

Have enjoyed catching up on the posts this afternoon. Will have to give the rice pudding a try.
I've been a bit less disciplined the last couple of days. Not sure why. Have started picking up more bits for Christmas as I see them. Have decided not to include them in GC. I have a monthly savings account for Christmas which I'll be withdrawing soon so I'll use that budget. I also do the Christmas savings stamps at Mr T. As well as Christmas there are 3 family birthdays in December which means I need to plan ahead to spread the cost.
I spent £0.75 in M & S, £6.00 in P*land and £7.87 in Mr T on Tuesday. Today I spent £6.07 in Mr T. It's these extra spends that push my bills up. Shouldn't need anything else until weekend (except a paper).
Off to update my signature (and check out the rice pudding recipe )

sachatith

Had an accidental spend last night - rubbish day at work followed by getting home to the dog going crazy for three hours from the fireworks (no joke, 5.30 onwards was a nightmare) so was literally siting and holding him. Couldn't get the washing up done (that the OH said he would do the night before...) and couldn't cook because of the dog.

OH was out at an appointment until 8 so before I knew it I had told him to pick up takeaway.

To be fair, it's the first one we have had in about a month and a half and we were verging on two a week so I don't mind so much, but it is our tightest month yet and we have SO MUCH food I was annoyed with myself. Nice though ;p Also, we were meant to be getting takeaway for OH birthday this Saturday but his Mum and Dad have offered to hold a 'winter bbq' at theirs so free food

I've learned from it, I did last nights washing up this morning so that when I get home I have a clear space to work with and no excuses I still have five portions of lentil and butterbean casserole but thinking I may scrabble and get some more room in the freezer so I can put 3 portions in the freezer and make something else so that I can vary it a bit.

BlueMoo

Sachatith - how about blending the lentils and using it as a base for vegetable soup. Or alternatively boiling til mushy and using as a potato subsitute for fish cakes? Healthy and tasty!

ETA: Or blending with bacon bits and apricots to make chicken stuffing? Or mixing with roasted red peppers and clams (or prawns/mussels etc) sprinkling with paprika/cayenne for a catalunian style meal

First_Trouble

BlueMoo wrote: »

Allie23 - is this just for you?

S0omething I always found is very cost effective is a joint of meat - have it roast, have it in sandwiches, have it cut up in pasta in a sauce, fry up cubes and have it in an omelette (perhaps even spanish style bulked out with tomatoes and paprika potatoes), have it in a rice dish (curry or just glazed with honey and soy and chilli), have it slow boiled in a stew with winter veggies - parsnips/butternut squash/swede. A joint can easily last you a whole week like this.

I did this last week with a joint of gammon (£5 from Sa1nsburys) and did two of us for the week.

I do this with chicken. Can quite easily get a roast, Pie, Stew and Soup out of one large bird.
Been thinking about trying it with beef or lamb but not sure whether you would still get tender meat of if too much cooking will turn the meat tough?

BlueMoo

First_Trouble. This isn't a problem. You can either cut the joint in half so only cook bits portion at a time.

Alternatively, before you re-heat the meat, you can just quickly put it in a pan with a bit of boiling water (or stock) to tenderise it for 5-10 mins and then it is also hot so you can just add to the ready sauce/veg/or give it a quick pep in the frying pan.

Honestly, you can have the toughest meat in the world and with a bit of boiling it will be tender again. It might take you a while but it will get there.

If you are using already cooked meat in a stew based recipe, there is no need to boil as it will get the boiling from being in the stew.If you are using the meat in a crispy type scenario (put into omelette/chinese style) then leave as it is and fry in the frying pan.

First_Trouble

mooomin wrote: »

I had a spend of £9.72 in Aldi last night which consisted of two big bags of cat litter (enough to keep the kitty sorted till I get paid on the 18th hopefully!), milk, bread, a kilo of bananas, 15 free range eggs and two packs of peppers.

I'm going to chop and freeze the peppers tonight. I made a massive pot of pea and ham soup this morning before work, so that's my lunches for the rest of the week sorted, and I also made a vat of bolognaise last night. That fed both of us last night and will feed us tonight, and I froze two dinners worth as well.

Tomorrow we're having roast chicken, the following night will be chicken & chorizo jambalaya. I have no idea what to do with the carcass to make stock or what I would use it for. Can any more OS people than me give me some suggestions?

I always make stock from the carcass. You can just add water for a really thrifty stock or add some veg like celery, carrots, onions and some herbs. Off cuts of veg will work too. Just boil for ages until the bones are stripped completely should end up with something that tastes like a weak chicken soup.

I also reserve the meat juices from a roast as these pack a serious flavour punch when added to soups or stews along with the HM stock.

Islandmaid

£1 on milk today - first spend of the month - BAZINGA!!!!!!!