Where can I save on my weekly food shop?

LameWolf

The one thing that particularly struck me was if you have a half-way decent market with a fruit'n'veg stall anywhere near you, buying your fresh F&V there might well be a lot cheaper. Also, you could buy the exact amount you want - just one carrot at a time, if you so wish, so you wouldn't have to forgo those! I haven't bought F&V in a supermarket in several years, and the prices you quote for them seem to me to be very expensive!

Luckylucy

Thanks, I used mysupermarket to do the shop [STRIKE]and Asda was about £17 cheaper than Aldi [/STRIKE] Looking at wrong shop! Aldi didn't compare at all to the shop. I will try and find my closest one.

At my MIL's today and there is a big Lidl across the road so I am going to pop accross in a minute and pick up some bits. Have a go at making these sauces!

Broomstick

Luckylucy wrote: »

Thanks everyone I'm not on a special diet, I just have an odd diet if that makes sense! I feel sick every time I eat or drink anything no matter what size I have so I try to just eat really fresh foods, in little bits throughout the day.

If feeling sick when you eat or drink is at the root of it, have you seen a doctor? There might be a really simple solution or maybe an undiagnosed food allergy that throws your system. If you could get this sorted then it would widen out your choices and may make reducing the food bill easier.

B x

Jacksmummy

all fruit and veg buy lose or if have got an Aldi or lidl nearby or even a farm shop that sells fresh produce.

the mince beef on your list is really expensive, try a local butcher or even buy Asda value mince, I've had this in the past and its fine

Pizza's.. much cheaper to make at home.
My recipe
250g bread flour
2 tsp yeast
1 tsp sugar
0.5tsp salt
175ml water
2tbsp oil
Mix all above together fold out on the worktop and knead for 10 mins, then let in an oiled bowl to rise for 30mins then roll out.... cover with topping of your choice, I batch cook these so I have something ready in the freezer for days when I'm too busy to cook.

Chilli ... make your own
my recipe is
500g mince
1 tin value kidney beans
1 tin value tomatos
mushrooms (optional)
1tsp garlic powder, 0.5 tsp chilli powder, 0.5tsp paprika (up the amounts if you prefer it more spicy
1 oxo cube.
chuck it all in the slow cook and leave for 4-5 hrs

Garlic bread .. make your own
mix garlic powder in with some spread and a pinch of mixed herbs, spread it on any type of bread and pop in the oven for 5 mins

As others have pointed out the Lasagne, cheese, curry and bolognese sauce can all be made at home much cheaper.

chips - make your own
fishfingers, spread, crumpets and squash can you not use own brand??

good luck ....let us know how you get on x

Butterfly_Brain

Luckylucy wrote: »

I need to cut down on the weekly shop. I think I am spending about £80-£90 a week on the four of us currently. I've like to get this down to £50. I've done a typical shop on mysupermarket and it's already over and missing lots of things that we don't always need every week but need to get at least once a month. Like loo roll, toiletires, nappies, Cleaning stuff etc...

Im sure I can get this down but I am at a loss of where to start!

shopping list 40 items: £67.91

2x Wall's Mini Twister Ice Lollies (8x50ml) £3.00 any 2 FOR £3.00 NOT ESSENTIAL
2x Weight Watchers from Heinz Double Chocolate Brownies (2 per pack - 172g) £2.00 was £1.78 NOT ESSENTIAL
1x ASDA Chosen by You Roasting Parsnips (680g) 91p USE THE LOCAL MARKET AND FARM SHOP FOR VEG
1x ASDA Smartprice Mixed Vegetables (1Kg) 75p
1x McCain Original 5% Fat Oven Chips - Straight Cut (1.81Kg) £2.00 was £3.30 MAKE YOUR OWN CHIPS AND WEDGES
1x Birds Eye Fish Fingers with Omega 3 (10 per pack - 280g) £1.00 was £2.09 MAKE YOUR OWN OR MAKE FISHCAKES
1x ASDA Ham & Pineapple Pizza (330g) £1.00 MAKE YOUR OWN IT IS EASY
1x ASDA Garlic Baguettes (3 per pack - 510g) £1.00 MAKE YOUR OWN
1x ASDA Chosen by You Egg Lasagne (375g) 50p
1x ASDA Basmati White Rice (500g) £1.08
1x Weetabix Chocolate (24 per pack - 540g) £2.68
1x Clover (500g) £1.50 USE OWN BRAND CEREAL
1x Cheestrings Original (8x20g) £2.00 CHEAPER TO BUY A BLOCK OF CHEESE AND SLICE UP
1x Arla Lactofree Semi Skimmed Milk (1L) £1.34
1x Cathedral City Mature Cheddar (2x350g) £4.00
1x ASDA 1% Fat Milk 4 Pints (2.27L) £1.00
1x ASDA Mixed Weight Free Range Eggs 97p(6) WHY FREE RANGE WHEN YOU ARE ON A TIGHT BUDGET? £1.35 FOR 15 EGGS AT ALDI
1x ASDA Smartprice Strawberry Fromage Frais (6x55g) 42p READ HOW MUCH SUGAR IS IN THEM :eek: MAKE YOUR OWN YOGHURT AND ADD FRUIT
1x Dolmio Lasagne Sauce - Tomato (500g) £1.00 MAKE YOUR OWN
1x Dolmio Cheesy Sauce for Lasagne (470g) £1.00 MAKE YOUR OWN
1x Ragu Bolognese Sauce - Original (454g) £1.98 MAKE YOUR OWN
1x ASDA Chosen by You Mild Chilli Cooking Sauce (500g) £1.00 any 2 FOR £2.00 MAKE YOUR OWN
1x ASDA Chosen by You Tikka Masala Cooking Sauce (500g) £1.00 any 2 FOR £2.00 MAKE YOUR OWN
2x Warburtons Medium Sliced White Bread (800g) £2.00 2 LOAVES HOVIS 50/50 £1.60 IN FARMFOODS
1x Warburtons Crumpets (9) £1.00 NON ESSENTIAL MAKE YOUR OWN PIKELETS
1x Warburtons Half & Half Sliced Sandwich Thins (6) £1.00 WASTE OF MONEY BUY OR MAKE PITTA BREAD INSTEAD
2x ASDA Butcher's Selection Lean Irish Beef Mince (500g) £7.00 any 2 FOR £7.00 800G MINCE IN ALDI IS £2.69
1x ASDA Wafer Thin Honey Roast Ham (480g) £2.50
1x ASDA Butcher's Selection Chicken Fillets (5 per pack - 930g) £6.50 FARMFOODS CHICKEN FILLETS OR MINI FILLETS (WHICH I PREFER) ARE £10 FOR THREE BAGS AND I GET 3 MEALS FROM EACH BAG

Fruit & Vegetables
Drinks
1x ASDA Seedless Red Grapes (500g) £1.50 £1 ON THE LOCAL MARKET
1x ASDA Whole Cucumber 50p
1x ASDA Clementines (700g) £1.00
1x ASDA Smartprice Potatoes (2.5Kg) £1.18 4LBS FOR £1 ON THE MARKET OR £6 FOR A 25 kg SACK
3x ASDA Apple, Grapes & Cheese (150g) £3.00 NON ESSENTIAL YOU ALREADY HAVE GRAPES, APPLES AND CHEESE ON YOUR LIST
1x ASDA Bananas (10) £1.50 1KG BANANAS IN ALDI 68P AND YOU GET ON AVERAGE 8 LARGE BANANAS TO A BAG
1x ASDA Gala Apples (600g) £1.25
1x ASDA White Mushrooms (400g) £1.00
1x ASDA Golden Delicious Apples (600g) £1.35
1x ASDA Chosen by You Apple & Blackcurrant Squash Double Strength with No Added Sugar (1.5L)
£1.25 any 2 FOR £2.50
1x ASDA Chosen by You Summer Fruits Squash Double Strength with No Added Sugar (1.5L) £1.25 any 2 FOR £2.50


Few things instantly, the squash should last the month, the weetabix should last two weeks. The random parsnips are for me as I eat them on their own I have a slightly odd diet! The chips should last a month as well.
I've stopped buying lettuce as it always goes off as I am the only one that eats it, same with fresh carrots We eat a lot of fruit which apart from the meat is the biggest expense I think. I also would like to add some more meat if possible like lamb as my diet consists of Fruit, Parsnips, Cheese, Tomato's and cold cooked meat, with the occasional slice of toast (The thins are mine)

I need to learn to cook and budget better. I am very much a top up shopper and just shop fortnightly so once i've got a weeks worth of fresh food I tend to also have a weeks worth of bung it in the oven frozen stuff instead of planning and making the most out of what I buy!

I would use a butcher for meat but they closed down on the 23rd December! Mr T is my closest shop large enough to do a grocery shop, But is more expensive than Mr A, I am thinking of saving myself the fuel and just getting stuff delivered as it's still more expensive in fuel to get to an actual big supermarket or town with a market sufficient enough.

I have heard about these multi cooker things that you can use as a slow cooker and a steamer? are they any good?

Thank you in advance for any advice!

I know that a lot of my recommendations may seem harsh, but I feed a family of four adults including a vegetarian plus one fussy adult occasionally (DD's BF) on £50 a week and sometimes less, I cook everything from scratch and even have experimental meal days.

I only buy ice cream and ice lollies in the summer.

I fill my freezer or cupboards when I see something on special offer (I have a separate £25 in a purse for that)

I used the local market, butcher in the next town and farm shop when our butcher closed which it did for over a year here. I just did a bulk order.

The best advice is to meal plan, make a list and just take cash with you so that you are not distracted.

Replace one of the bottles of juice with water or tea

Have a soup and pudding night once a week, basically a good home made soup with home made bread or crusty bread from the baker or supermarkup followed by a filling pudding such as rice pudding, chocolate sponge, apple sponge, jam sponge a fruit crumble etc.

It is our soup and pudding night today and we are having roasted parsnip and apple soup followed by HM rice pudding and a dollop of jam .

Have a vegetarian night, something like a quiche, macaroni cheese ( you could add peppers, tomatoes or any other veg that you like to it) mushroom risotto, lemon risotto, creamy mushroom pasta, hm pizza, vegetable curry, egg and chips etc

If you would like I could post my meal plan for this week and you will see how I do it

There are lots of great threads on here for cheap meals

http://www.cheap-family-recipes.org.uk/costings.html?opt=rcost

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4084527

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/710445

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=30668199&postcount=2854

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/235198