Please help me make the food in my cupboards last as long as possible.

Readytomakechanges

We've finally been hit with the realisation that we've been consistently spending more than we have each month and it's time to overhaul our finances.

One area we've been seriously overspending in has been food. My husband and I both tend to buy our lunches at work. We're often lazy/tired in an evening and can't be bothered to cook so get many takeaways. We often eat out with the kids. All this has to change!

So, today I have done an inventory of everything in our cupboards and have found there are many items that have been forgotten about as I'm not sure what to do with them. I was hoping some of you money savers would have some ideas that would make everything last as long as possible as we literally have pennies from the kids piggy banks to last until the end of the month and from then on need to stick within our limited means.

Thank you so much.

Readytomakechanges

Spice Cupboard:
Thyme
Rosemary
A vanilla pod
Tsp Vanilla flavouring
100g dried apricots
4 Knoss rich beef stock pots
1 lamb stock cube
Some butterscotch pieces
45g curry powder
7 whole nutmegs
Bisto chicken gravy granules
Cardemon pods
4 cinnamon sticks
Ground corriander
Loads of ground cinnamon
Paprika
Corriander leaf
Rosemary
Ground Nutmeg
6 beef oxo cubes
2 tsp ground cumin
90g Dried cranberries
1tsp dried oregano
English mustard
Garam Masala
Bay leaves
Soy sauce
Dried basil
A fresh basil plant that is rapidly dying
2tsp corriander seeds
Cornflour
Chicken Stock Cubes
Whole cloves
Crushed chillies
Coriander seeds
4 vegetable oxo cubes
Special blend for 3 mustard mash
50g goji berries
Tabasco sauce
Parsley
Bay leaves
Mixed spice
Cayenne pepper
Tumeric
Minced Garlic
Mixed herbs
Fennel seeds
Onion flakes
Baharat
Chinese five spice
Black peppercorns
Sicilian lemon extract
Dried mint
50g shelled pistacio nuts
Breadcrumbs
Red wine vinegar
Extra virgin olive oil
Liquid glucose
Coconut cream

Store cupboard:
150g puy style lentils
100g red lentils
500g arborio rice
6 packets of microwave rice (each contains rice for 2)
200g cous cous
180g basmati rice
3 large baking potatoes
3 medium sized potatoes
1kg sweet potatoes
250g pasta spagetti
100g canneloni
500g mini wheat and oat pasta zoo
800g penne pasta
2 large wholemeal rolls
1 loaf bread
1 carton passata
i jar Aldi Tomato & herb pasta sauce
1 x jar spinach & ricotta pasta sauce
1 x tin sweetcorn
1 x tin chickpeas
4 x tins baked beans
1 x tin spaghetti hoops
1 x tin chopped tomatoes
1 x tin mushy peas
1 x tin hotdogs
1 x tin chunky veg soup
4 x tin tuna chunks
1 x tin pacific pink salmon
1 x tin of tuna steak
Honey

Baking cupboard:
Plain flour
Self-raising flour
Baking powder
Pistacios
Corn flour
Seed and grain white flour
Caster sugar
Easy bake yeast
Loads of raisins

Fruit bowl:
6 large bananas
3 nectarines
7 small pears
There are also loads of blackberries around at the moment that we intend to pick.

Breakfast cupboard:
Large bag of granola
Large bag of museli
Medium box of raisin wheats
Ready brek
1 x sachet oats so simple strawberry microwave porridge
4 weetabix

Fridge:
6 pints milk
10 eggs
Tomato Ketchup
Salad Cream
Branston pickle
Lemon juice (from concentrate)
Soy sauce
Margarine
Butter
2 x blocks cheddar
Mango Chutney
Jar of tikka masala curry paste
V. small amount of jam and marmalade
Hendrsons relish
HP sauce
Sandwich pickle
1 x parsnip
4 x large carrots
1 x courgette
1 x sweet pepper
Garlic cloves
3 x green chillis
6 x cocktail vine tomatoes

Freezer:
Large bag frozen broccoli
Small bag frozen mixed vegetables
Medium bag of chopped onion
2 small chicken fillet portions
190g scallops (no idea why my husband bought these - I don't know how to cook them!)
2 X cook-from-frozen fish chargrills
Bag of frozen spinach
Bag of frozen peas
Bag of plums, given to my husband from a friend's plum tree (husband wants to make a crumble)
2 x pork sausages
2 x large pizzas (each enough for 2 adults)
2 x kids ready meals

We also have tea bags and sweetener, although my husband is running out of coffee.

There are two adults and two small children in our household.

Grumpelstiltskin

Well you have all the ingredients for Tuna Pasta Bake, but no meat at all?

Out,_Vile_Jelly

That will keep you going for ages! It's great having so many herbs/spices as they last and can pep up any kind of "leftover surprise" meal.

Do either of you have access to a microwave at work? You can make some spicy lentil/veg soup to heat up for lunch; healthy and filling.

That is actually a lot of food, giving you a range of options. You've got loads of interesting ingredients (sweet potatos, coriander seeds etc)- do you not enjoy cooking or find it too tiring? Spicy cous cous with stir fried veg or jacket spuds with tinned fish are easy, healthy options.

Readytomakechanges

I think the not cooking in an evening is two fold:

1. By the time we've finished work and got the kids to bed we just want to sit down, especially as I often have extra work to do on the computer.
2. I know this may seem silly to some, but I have an anxiety problem with the kitchen being a mess and struggle to cope with the mess that cooking creates, even only short-lived mess.

We have loads of 'filler' ingredients, but are lacking meat so I'm not really sure how to go about making actual meals out of what we have.

This morning, I had some lamb so chucked it in the slow cooker with curry paste, chickpeas, chopped tomatoes and coconut cream and will add some of the frozen spinach just before serving it up with rice. I love slow cooker meals that just involve chucking the ingredients in in the morning, with no mess or fuss in the evening, but none of the recipes that I know use up all of the ingredients that I have and most involve meat.

We're mainly having cheese/tuna/egg sandwiches for lunch. My husband doesn't have access to a microwave at work. I do, but usually am lucky if I get 5 minutes to inhale my food while doing something else, so no time to heat something up.

Readytomakechanges

Thank you for the replies so far. How would I go about making spicy cous cous with stir fried veg? (amateur cook)

Grumpelstiltskin

If you buy some stewing beef chunks and throw that in the slow cooker with chopped carrot, parsnip, frozen onion herbs and stock cube and leave that all day.


Cook enough to do 2 meals and freeze half.

AutumnLeaf

Hi OP

I have similar issues about making a mess in the kitchen. I find that doing food prep once a day helps with that so, for example, if I was making a salad for lunch, I'd also chop up veg for a stir fry later. It means you only get the chopping board out once and means less mess when you make a meal later.

As for not having time at work, do you and OH have a couple of thermos flasks handy? You could heat up two servings of soup while eating breakfast and then you'll have a hot lunch ready when you are!

ALx

Grumpelstiltskin

If you have more cheese than you will use up then grate some and freeze it.


You then have it to top a jacket potato etc.


You need to look firstly at what you can do with the fresh food you have to avoid wasting any of it.


Another thought for the fresh food.


Sliced courgette, pepper, tomatoes, some of the frozen onion again. Cook in the oven with some torn up basil to make Ratatouille.


Oh please don't buy frozen onion again, fresh onions will last for weeks in a cupboard and much cheaper.

Stevie_Palimo

Perhaps you could get Jesus to come over and x the food 10 fold.


On a serious note I suppose it is about preparing a meal large enough that you can eat the leftovers for a lunch or another meal.

MallyGirl

throw some of the dried spices in to the dry couscous before adding the boiling water - coriander, cinnamon, paprika would be quite Moroccan and this would then be nice with some chopped dried apricots thrown in. slice veg into strips and throw in a hot wok/frying pan with onion, garlic. Dash of soy sauce so it is not too dry and there you are.


Another suggestion is risotto - either veggie or to make the small chicken breast go further. would be better with parmesan but finely grated cheddar at the end would do.


sausage casserole - tinned toms, veg, onions, spices, cooked sausages cut up into chunks so you are less conscious of how few there are. serve with rice or jacket.