Food budget plan

Islandmaid

Suki - your post pretty much is what I was going to say

My hubby is another manual worker, HM soup, sandwiches, or leftovers from the night before s dinner, if he has access to a microwave that day.

I know things like baby Bells are easy to grab, and kids love them, but they are expensive, as are micro burgers, as Suki said, downgrade from premium brands, and don't stress at the moment about your lack of cooking and baking skills, they are something that you can work on, but right now, it's about feeding your family on the cheap, without cutting down too much on nutrition. By basic cake bars or biscuits, Aldi 'digger' Chocolate biscuits are just over a pound for 18 bars, sliced basic white bread, basics ham or cheese with sliced cucumber for sandwiches, as Suki said cheap bags of crisps and a couple of cubes of 'block' cheese.

This is to get your family over a financial 'hump', you can learn better cooking from scratch meals when you are less stressed x. We all had to learn to cook and for me it was for the same reason as you - we were skint and prepackaged and branded food was just too expensive - you'll get there

kerrypn

RedCola wrote: »

I wish I knew how to do the home made burgers / pastys / noodles etc.
I just cant.
When I made my meal plan, I looked at all the ideas posted on here, and thought how well they would work. except I don't have a clue without following recipes, so I dug out a student cookbook and looked at recipes there, and wrote the ingredients down.

I could make this so much cheaper, I just don't know how.

Your meal plan looks fine; but if you wanted to give a couple of my suggestions a whirl (you said you weren't sure about recipes )

Potato and Leek Soup

8 or 9 Large Potatoes (or equivalent smaller ones) cut as if boiling for mash
3 Leeks chopped
4 chicken oxo
Salt and pepper to taste

Bung the above in a large pan, fill water to cover all spuds and Leeks, bring to boil and leave to simmer until spuds are soft. I liquidise mine find it tastes better. You can add a little bit of milk or cream at the end if you like but not essential this freezes beautifully and I always have enough left to freeze for another meal or lunches

Roast Pepper/Mushroom quick quiches

Shortcrust pastry
4-6 large eggs depending on size of quiche
Grated cheese grate enough to make your egg mix fairly thick, although depending on cheese used you might need less if strong variety
Salt and pepper to taste
A dash of milk

Extra ingredients: peppers/mushroom/onion/broccolli/ham.... add at the end of following method and have any flavour you like

Line pie dish with pastry (either store bought or hm)
Blind bake if possible for 10 mins

Combine eggs,milk,cheese,salt,pepper and any other ingredients you fancy. Pour into part baked pastry case.

Bake for 25-30 minster at 180c or until eggs set and top golden brown

If you're using mushrooms though cook them first as they tend to sweat. Peppers can be roasted off in a hot pan in a couple of minutes.

Also highly recommend you looking up how to make a couple of basic sauces (white sauce, tomato Base, onion base) because these are super cheap to make and give you so many more options for meals. Carbonara is one of the easiest but tastiest quick fix meals, as soon as you know how to make the Base it's dead easy. I make my tomato Base sauces with value brand chopped Tomatoes and passata find its smoother

Cheap soups like mushroom/tomato make great pasta bakes as well. I'd also recommend a yellow label night, bit of a treat night as well you can often pick up some lovely bits of meat this way, and I guarantee if you posted here you'd get loads of suggestions what to do with it...it's a good time in the evening to forage the reduced fruit and veg too, I've often picked up bananas for 10p and made a banana loaf.

I warn you though it gets addictive! I used to waste so much money on food, found this board and adapted things to suit us and never looked back. You're doing great keep it going!

Hth x sorry if I'm telling you how to do stuff you already know x

miffedatparkingcharge

Packed lunches happen to be the bane of my life. No idea why. Have you got pasta? and can you make a tomato sauce - onions fry off gently, (this makes them sweeter), *& garlic, add tinned tomatoes, herbs, salt &pepper. You can throw in some cheese or bacon. Divvy out into appropriate person's need size pots. Would there be complaints if it happened two days in a row?

This can easily be eaten cold. Lidl/Aldi really do have better prices snacks/crisps stuff.

Cannot recommend Twinks hobnobs enough. Good luck.

miffedatparkingcharge

RedCola wrote: »

I wish I knew how to do the home made burgers / pastys / noodles etc.
I just cant.
When I made my meal plan, I looked at all the ideas posted on here, and thought how well they would work. except I don't have a clue without following recipes, so I dug out a student cookbook and looked at recipes there, and wrote the ingredients down.

I could make this so much cheaper, I just don't know how.

How about following a recipe online? You've made a list, could you search google, I'm sure there will be a youtube/facebook/delia that you can press pause and continue as you need?

You will be brilliant.

RedCola

I read all comments, since my last. I emptied my online trolley at Asda, and we went to Aldi and B&M today, as suggested.

We used £67.61 of our budget and the idea is it will last the 2 weeks.

I will update my first list of food, so I can use it as 'inventory'.

Thank you so much to all that have replied to me. I've picked up so many tips.

RedCola

I've updated my list now. Although I didn't include any cleaning / hygiene products ( conditioner, washing liquid, antiperspirant, foil, hand soap, toilet roll, kitchen roll etc )

We didn't buy much meat - just bacon, pate and pepperoni.
I can't believe how much we got for our money, and I did worry so much once we loaded the till.

Now, to put it into plan!

RedCola

Just wanted to add a thank you for all the recipes and lunch swaps etc..

Suki, I will choose a recipe to get help with!

suki1964

Sounds like you are getting it together, well done for the supermarket change. We don't have Aldi here so I use lidl only and the only product I've bought which I wouldn't buy again had been the tinned sardines. Every other product is as good, or better then a named brand

Our grandchildren and children before them have never questioned the changes from the big brands. They happily munch their way through the cereals and biscuits and drink the pop and squash. DH is happy with the razor blades and shaving foam and the cat guzzles his food

If I didn't have allergies I'd swap all my cleaning stuff over but certain things I can't. Those that I have have worked just as well as brand names

What really works for me in keeping the costs down by shopping there, is there aren't a million choices of everything. They only sell one lot of frozen peas, one brand of tinned tomatoes, so it's so much easier to be aware of the prices. Also their special offers on fruit and veg and meat which run weekly and then special weekend deals, can really help. And as your confidence with cooking grow, you too will get great Value from them as well

RedCola

Suki - Thanks
I liked the limited choice of the same item too - took away a lot of anxiety.

Today I sent my husband off with a lunch box full of goodies, and I'm so pleased with myself for once! I made up a pizza style pasta (used a little bit each of pepperoni, ham, mushroom, pepper, cherry tomato and cheddar. I'd made a HM pizza sauce for it.)
Then I made chocolate cinnamon buns (followed recipe from student book)

So he had pizza pasta, nectarine, hard boiled eggs and 2 buns for lunch. I then packed some cereal in a pot, with an apple and banana for his breakfast. Plus 2 bags of crisps to snack on. So cheap, all from the cupboards and I'm sure it will fill him up. Fingers crossed it all tasted alright. He was so surprised this morning!

angelpye

Well done for a great start.

My favourite recipes are nearly always by Nigella, Jamie Oliver or on BBC food website. Usually simple recipes with not too much nonsense going on so food tastes fresh. I am not a natural cook but I think overtime I have learned simple meals that taste good. Would recommend surfing the net and looking up some of their recipes.