In dire need of help... or a kick up the bum

Mimi_Arc_en_ciel

How is this looking:

Thursday
Lunch: Cod with Orange cous cous (Left overs)
Dinner: Sausage Roll pie & Veg (from freezer batch)

Friday
Lunch: Sandwich & Fruit Skewers
Dinner:Chicken Stir fry (Freeze 2 portions)

Saturday
Lunch: Fish finger sandwiches
Dinner: Pork streaks with Piri Piri, Salad and Corn on the Cob

Sunday
Lunch: Chicken Sandwich
Dinner: Lamb Rack with Roast potatoes and veg (Not enough to freeze a portion)

Monday
Lunch: Cheese and onion sandwich & Fruit
Dinner: Pizza (From freezer)

Tuesday:
Lunch: TBC
Dinner: Sausage Casserole (Freeze 2 portions)

Wednesday
Lunch: TBC
Dinner: Pizza & Salad (Left overs from Monday)

So far I need to buy veg for the stirfry (Although thinking about it I have peppers, mushrooms and green beans, cauliflower and broccoli in the freezer...) and I'm sure I have stuff to make a sauce with

Where's the best / cheapest place to buy tupperwear? I hardly have any - I'm guessing this needs to change


EDIT: Am also moving soon and have been offered a chest freezer (My freezer is a slim line thing, would this be a good investment? I'm thinking of putting it in the shed and running electric in there


Oh and I went to the library and they have ordered me the Jack Monroe book - Just waiting on it now!

Gigervamp

Poundland sell packs of the containers used by Chinese takeaways. I've collected quite a few over the years from takeaways and they're great for freezing leftovers.

Mimi_Arc_en_ciel

Gigervamp wrote: »

Poundland sell packs of the containers used by Chinese takeaways. I've collected quite a few over the years from takeaways and they're great for freezing leftovers.

Oh fab - I think we have one of those near us!


Would you store per portion or per meal* (For example, Chinese stir fry, can probably freeze 2 portions - freeze together or separate)


*I sound an idiot!

Gigervamp

It depends how many are going to be eating the contents. If you only want one portion at a time, then freeze in portions.

I've found that two portions of mash fit, but if it's say casserole, with potatoes in it, one portion fits.

Mimi_Arc_en_ciel

ok thanks for that!


because I hardly need anything this week from shopping I thought id try and plan for 2 weeks.




Thursday
Lunch: No idea
Dinner: Chilli Con Carne (Freeze 2 portions)
Friday
Lunch: No idea
Dinner: Sausage Roll pie & Veg (from freezer batch)


Saturday
Lunch: No idea
Dinner: Chicken Stirfry (Freezer batch)
Sunday
Lunch: No idea
Dinner: Duck legs with Rosties and veg


Monday
Lunch: No idea
Dinner: Sausage Casserole (Freezer batch)


Tuesday:
Lunch: No idea
Dinner: Meatballs Chips & Veg


Wednesday
Lunch: No idea
Dinner: Chilli Con Carne
Feel free to fill in the blanks please

pigpen

Mimi_Arc_en_ciel wrote: »

It's odd, our Tesco is at the back of a housing estate which is a short drove (less than 4 miles I'd say) but not near the town. We have a home bargains in town butthat's it - its quite shocking what's there.

Lidl is a few towns over - the nearest one is 15 miles away (just checked their web)

The nearest aldi is 10miles

I'm gonna reply to this later - just saw the time and better go get ready for work.

Thank you everyone

I have a Lidl and an Aldi here.. about 5-10 minutes walk in each direction and I think they are rubbish.. they are expensive, their 'fresh' stuff is often mouldy in the packaging, their meat looks on the turn and the dairy/cooked meats looks sweaty in the fridges.. I wouldn't buy anything other than tinned stuff (assuming I knew what was in them given the Lidl labelling is not in English most often) and the occasional frozen bits and toiletries. I find Tesco MUCH cheaper in terms of the items I buy too.. and Home Bargains made me feel physically sick going in there.. whre do they find people like the ones they employ and even more scary the people that shop there?? It is frightening to think such people actually exist.. I've been in once.. NEVER EVER again! I don't care if their loo rolls are free!!! (which were also more expensive than Tesco)


We have meat every day almost.. if we don't have meat we have fish.. We don't have curries or spicy stuff and my bill is significantly cheaper than yours per person..

Often we have 2 cooked meals a day too but one will be scrambled eggs, beans, toast or potatoes/pasta/rice and burger type things or fish fingers whereas our evening meal will be a more substantial cooked dinner.

Could portion sizes be reduced?? If you are eating enough for 2 you could actually be buying for 6 people rather than the 3 that you are?? Just with you mentioning you'd like to lose weight it made me think this might be an issue.. so in effect you could be having a '3 serving' portion of breakfast cereal and the equivalent of 4 cooked meals a day!!!! That would NOT be good for your weight or your purse!


Work out the calories/fat/salt etc in each meal and weigh what you are serving!

brizesaver

pigpen wrote: »

I have a Lidl and an Aldi here.. about 5-10 minutes walk in each direction and I think they are rubbish.. they are expensive, their 'fresh' stuff is often mouldy in the packaging, their meat looks on the turn and the dairy/cooked meats looks sweaty in the fridges..

That is awful! I suggest you email their customer service and notify them that their stores are so poor. I live in Oxfordshire have both a Lidl and an Aldi relatively close by and they are both wonderful.
Nice staff, and good fresh produce, and Lidl reduce stuff early too, sometimes 2 or 3 days before the date.

To the OP: like others have said, cook and freeze.
I live alone and buy a bag of potatoes and make mash, eat one portion, freeze the rest in single portions, either in plastic bags or earthenware bowls, (they freeze very well) I also buy decent quality sausages when they are on offer, grill or fry them all and freeze per two, that way I always have something to eat in the freezer when I don't feel like cooking after work.
Leftover cheese can be grated and frozen, as can virtually all leftover tinned stuff, just keep a bag in the freezer and add your tomatoes, sweetcorn, baked beans whatever to it each time.

Lastly, don't make it too much of a crusade, life is for living and if you enjoy the occasional treat, then buy it!

Mimi_Arc_en_ciel

I’m eating the right sized portions – everything is weighed etc as I’m doing “weight watchers” – My weight problem is a thyroid issue (I haven’t got one! It was removed and I’m on medication, my weight yoyos from 10 stone 12lb - 12 stone 2lb so I’m seeing if I can maintain a weight through WW)

The portions I make serve me and the kids, usually left overs are taken to work for lunches. I rarely freeze which is where I think I need to start. Like today – I have a pork mince and rice meal for lunch that i had for dinner 2 nights ago, i could have had this as a dinner instead of a lunch IYKWIM

I think what I’ll do is double my portions up when cooking, freeze two and then have them the week after (does that make sense?)

That way, I should only rarely be shopping every other week

And thank you – i know not to completely over kill without treats – but with moving etc i really need to sort my money out (Home owner now, time to grow up!)

helenaimeej

Have you tried quorn? It's often on offer, can be frozen (probably will be sold frozen) and can be really good in curry/chilli. It's also excellent for those on weightwatchers apparently.
Notes on using quorn:
Chicken style pieces in curry seem to absorb more flavour than meat, so will be spicier (good!)
Quorn mince can absorb more liquid than meat, so when making chilli be on hand with some water and tomato puree to top up from the liquids in your usual recipe.
Mince comes in a couple of packaging type - the big frozen bags are cheaper than the refridgerated trays.

If you're not into quorn, try replacing some of the meat in dishes with bits of carrot or other veg you like, so it's still got meat but it's lasting longer.

Also with the cola, maybe you could experiment with making your own fizzy drinks - lime cordial and diet tonic can go a long way, but do experiment.

Best of luck!

Doc_N

pigpen wrote: »

I have a Lidl and an Aldi here.. about 5-10 minutes walk in each direction and I think they are rubbish.. they are expensive, their 'fresh' stuff is often mouldy in the packaging, their meat looks on the turn and the dairy/cooked meats looks sweaty in the fridges.. I wouldn't buy anything other than tinned stuff (assuming I knew what was in them given the Lidl labelling is not in English most often) and the occasional frozen bits and toiletries.

How peculiar.......and it's not that long ago that you were telling us what good value Aldi and Lidl are! (".....take the money to Lidl or Aldi and do your shopping there.. that is how you'll get the most from the money.")

I find it difficult to take your comments about Aldi and Lidl seriously - none of it seems to be based on reality. Did you have a nightmare, perhaps? Labels not in English? Illegal, and certainly not true - there's always an English section.

And then there's the annual Which? top supermarket award. And the winner? Aldi - with Lidl 4th after Waitrose and M&S. Tesco were next to bottom.

"For the first time ever, Aldi has been voted Britain's top supermarket, according to the annual Which? supermarket survey.

Aldi's 76% customer score means it narrowly edges out Waitrose (75%), which has been voted the best supermarket every year since our survey started in 2007."

Who are you kidding?