Food budget £12.50 a week - help please!

[Deleted User]

Floss wrote: »

The OP posted why she was on such a tight budget and why she avoids carbs in her first post.

With respect, we don't know the full circumstances.

We don't know the OPs financial commitments.

For all we know, the OP could have massive debts, which would leave her struggling, even if her benefits were still in the 10s of thousands per year.

NB. I'm not saying this is the case here, but let's not jump to conclusions, that it must be the fault of the Government/benefit system.

There was an article in the paper recently, about a family who earned £100,000 pa, but struggle to cope, due to their extravagant lifestyle of £11k per child private schools, long holidays, expensive eating out, buying designer clothes, and buying food from very expensive shops, eg. F&M.

Would you say it's a disgrace that, in this day and age, this £100k pa family are struggling?

Going back to the matter of cheap food, when you have a bit of spare cash (eg. a bit left from the £50 your were generously given), it might be an idea to put in stock some long shelf life items.

Something like a (48 sachet) box of Asda instant noodles, for £9-60, and/or a 20 can tray of Aldi beans, for about £6.

Likewise, 5 minute soup, which is currently 4 packets for £1 at Asda, and makes 1 pint per packet.

Not the most exciting foods, but they keep for a very long time, and will prevent you from going hungry, if things go really bad.

clarryd

Go to markets pick up the late deals of fruit and even vegetable just before the market shut's.

This is normally is a great deal instead of £1 a bowl you might get 2 bowls for £1 or even 50p depends on what is in the bowls.

As another post suggests get large packets of rice/pasta and fill yourself up that way, as this is a cheap and easy way to make meals. You just have to add the veg that you got from the market to make a tasty dish.
Even tinned tomatoes gives a dish a different dimension.

Aldi do value mince £2.69 for about 1k divide this into 2 and stretch it by adding the pasta/rice to bulk the meal out.

[Deleted User]

Just a thought, but is there no way the OPs DRO could be varied, to give her more cash for essentials, in this case food?

Wills106

As has been already mentioned find wild food for free!

Yesterday in 25mins My Mother, her brother and I collected 3kg of Damsons. Made a few jars of Jam and 2L of Damson Gin.
Ok you need to buy in the Gin, but for the Jam all you need to do is buy in sugar which isn't dear.

You can have it on toast, cereal, porridge etc Most jams in the past were used with meat much like cranberry preserve etc.

The week before we collected 6kg of Blackberry's between 4 of us in 1hr30. If you bought that in a shop your talking £60-£90 for that amount!

If you have any of that £50 left look for a cheap or even free slowcooker. You can get cheap cuts of meats that have the best flavour and make them super tender. I got a 1.5kg pork shoulder joint today for about £5. That's enough meat for over a week for me, so going portion it up and shove in the freezer.

cuddlymarm

Hi

I can't really add much that hasn't already been covered but some of my money savers are
If veg is for sale per item eg cabbage, swede, cauli etc go for the biggest as you can stretch big veggies over 2 or 3 meals
Also dried milk is ok to cook with or put in tea or coffee ( but not so good to drink on its own )
If you are cooking spuds and veg cook extra to make bubble and squeak for another meal ( I often freeze the extra and then throw it in the oven or for a fry up, just get it out a couple of hours before you want to cook it)
Also don't stick hard and fast to a weekly meal plan ( if something's going off use that up and juggle your plan a bit)
When you open a block of cheese grate it and freeze what you aren't using ( you can really stretch cheese a long way like this)
Oh and don't buy what you don't like even if it is cheap. Life's too short to eat food you don't like and it will just go to waste.

There's an awful lot of people struggling to feed themselves and their families at the moment so any help on here is most welcome. Until you have walked in someone's shoes you shouldn't think you know what they are going through, it wasn't until we went bankrupt and lost everything that we realised how many other people weren't that far behind us. There were lots of lovely people gave us support like a big family and long should that last.

Sorry got a bit off track there
I hope things pick up for you the OP and everyone else
Cuddles