Realistic monthly food budget

haras_nosirrah

Hi all

Need to tighten our belts as hubby been made redundant and has two more days at work with no new job yet and I work part time

What could be a challenging yet realistic food budget to aim for for a month?

As we have known about this since December I have been stock piling so have a full freezer and full cupboards but not knowing how long this situation could last need to think longer term

Am hoping for March to just need to get fresh fruit, veg, cat food and dairy so have a very cheap month but the stocks won't last forever

As a family of two adults, a 2 year old and two cats (no vegetarians of strange dietary requirements) what would be doable long term?

£150 maybe?

purpleheather2810

I'm sure it's doable. Give it a try.

maman

purpleheather2810 wrote: »

I'm sure it's doable. Give it a try.

Definitely if you've been stockpiling. Start by meal planning from what you've got in and only buy absolute essentials or any YS items that are reduced to rock bottom.


Good Luck.

Sally_A

Without the stockpiling, £50/£60 per week should be doable.


Better smaller cuts of meat, sliced thinly be it steaks, chicken fillets etc. Use the 3 for £10 offers which should do you for at least 5 days.


Eggs and omelettes are also a very good base for a meal (15 free range mismatch eggs for £2).

2 veggie meals a week can almost be snuck in without meat eaters realising.


One very cheap meal is wafer thin ham (£1), chopped tomatoes (30p) - any leftover veg (??p), pasta (30p) and grated cheese (an ideal time to use the hard edges of cheese).

YORKSHIRELASS

When this topic comes up there is always a huge variation in what people think is reasonable. It depends on your circumstances too.

We are two adults and two teenagers and I can feed us for £250 a month. Three of us have a packed lunch so we like to eat a "proper" tea. DH works outdoors and has a big appetite, he likes his meat but is fairly unfussy.

I mealplan, its a lifesaver for me. I shop mostly at L*dl and just pick up a few extras at the local shops. Things like sausages I get from the butcher.

Try and think up cheap meals - such as homemade pizza or a soup and pudding night. Cut meat up into smaller pieces and pad out meals with lots of potatoes/veg/rice or pasta. I have a couple of enamel pie plates and I can make a chicken and leek pie with very little chicken! Crusty bread rolls, pitta bread or garlic bread helps to fill everyone up.

I freeze all leftovers, even fairly small amounts. Once in a while we will have jacket potatoes and leftovers.

There are loads of other ideas on here. Good luck with it.