Monthly food budget help

stuarj1

Hi everyone.

I'm a "takeaway" kinda guy. Which means I'm spending a huge amount on food each month, most of which is going to waste.

I'm planning on doing some of the challanges in the DFW threads to get my overall expenses down.

Food by far is going to be my biggest problem - I can't cook and I'm don't even know where to start with shopping on a budget.

I live alone and I'm not really bothered if I have many repeats during a month or even a week. I could quite happily eat 2 different dinners alternatively if it means clearing my debts quicker. I eat because I have to, not really because I actually enjoy food. Maybe that's because all I'm used to is takeaway and doing this will actually make me appreciate food a bit more.

What would you say would be a realistic monthly budget? I would need to include "packed" lunches for work & the odd snack here & there.

Any suggestions on easy to make meals for a complete novice?

Any tips on what to buy and how would also be good.

Thanks very much.

SailorSam

The easiest way to make meals if you're not a good cook is in a Slowcooker.
You can get them from about £10 and it's just a case of throw everything in and wait a few hours. Things like curries; casseroles; soups all eezzie peazzie.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?p=1332010#post1332010

SailorSam

You may find this helpful.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5224390

UMD

Have you looked at the monthly Grocery Challenge threads? That's where I've started, although I've currently only got £5.20 left for this month... oops :eek:

pm2326

Hi, do you have anything in the cupboard already?

Your budget will depend on what you already have and what you like to eat. What takeaways do you eat, Indians, Chinese, Italians, chip shop, pizza?

PasturesNew

I'd say a slow cooker - and just stick to 2 recipes that are easy and work for you. e.g. chilli can be as simple as: tip raw lean mince in, chop up one large onion, tip in a can of tomatoes and a can of kidney beans (drained) and then add 2-3 teaspoons of chilli and/or some splashes of chilli sauce. Pop the lid on and 6 hours later it's dinner for 2-3-4 meals, which you can pop into plasticware in the fridge and what you've not nuked after a couple of days can be tossed into the freezer.

You can also use it to cook a whole piece of meat (think Sunday roast) -and then serve that with frozen roast potatoes and veggies with some instant gravy mix. Cook the meat in the SC and then portion it up and toss it in the freezer, so you can nuke it the following week/s.

The Takeaway Secret (there's a thread on this site) is good too - with recipes for takeaway food. I've used their kebab meat recipe and made that in a slow cooker, that was easy enough - and tasty.

A whole thread of that book here: https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2665259 - once it gets going everybody's raving about the sweet/sour chicken and the kebab and uploading photos.

The main thing is to start with just identifying 2-3 things that are achievable, don't try to get clever at first or you'll end up wasting money on stuff that's too long-winded to put together.

It's "just you", so hard to get excited about cooking at all really

Try to do too much and it's just boring.

FairyPrincessk

I'd probably start with 'types' of meals. So, I'd maybe start with mince based meals and learn to make several-

Spag Bol
Cottage Pie
Chilli


Once you've manged something you like the taste of then cook up a big batch on the weekend and freeze in individual portions. Move on to your next meal type--say chicken.

I'd probably learn:
Chicken stir-fry
Chicken Fajitas--don't bother with a kit. Cumin, ground coriander and chilli powder is all you need to season the meat. Just buy peppers, an onion, shred some cheese and cheap wraps and you've got all you need.
Baked Chicken and veg.


These meals have several advantages in your case. 1. The cooking methods are simple, they involve relatively little prep and they store well. 2. The involve common ingredients (more on that later. 3. The first set freezes well, the second set is quick to make in an evening so you have a mixture of 'ready meals' and 'whip it up after work.' 4. Most of them can be adjusted as you become more confident with cooking. For example, start with jarred pasta sauce but brown your own mince, use packets of stir fry sauce. As you get more confident, learn to make your own sauces (or start from the outset if you're happy to).

Initially you'll have an outlay for the basic spices/seasonings but even that shouldn't be too bad. It will depend on what quality of meat you buy and where you shop, but I'd probably allow around £30/week for this initially and then it will come down as you've built up your spices and can eliminate jars/packets etc.

To get the budget down even more, designate one night a week as Jacket Spud night and another as soup and bread. HM soup will be cheaper.

Tink_04

When starting out try recipes with few ingredients until you get the hang of things - a roast chicken can do a few meals - roast - meat for sandwiches - Curry (even if you cheat and use a cheap jar of sauce ) - stir into pasta.

joedenise

I'd also suggest borrowing some student cookbooks from the library. Also see if you can borrow Jack Monroe's cookbooks - all the meals are really cheap. She uses lots of beans of various kinds.

She also has a website (https://www.agirlcalledjack.com) which has loads of recipes. Most are fairly simple.

Good luck. I'm sure you'll enjoy your food more if you cook it yourself and you'll know exactly what's in it.

Denise

Butterfly_Brain

Recipes are just a set of instructions and there is no need to be scared of them, and don't forget you can add or takeaway any ingredient.

Lunches could be a sandwich, or a salad with tuna, boiled eggs and salad potatoes etc, in the winter a homemade soup in a flask with some bread always goes down well.
If you want some easy soup recipes just ask.

We often have a soup and pudding night

Jacket potatoes take 15 minutes in the microwave and you can have them with tuna, sweet corn and peppers or bolognaise or chilli, bacon and cheese is lovely.

Egg and chips is tasty,cheap and easy