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Reverse Meal Planning

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Comments

  • joedenise
    joedenise Posts: 18,620 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper

    First bit of reverse meal planning today for ages! Popped into the Co-op and managed to get one of their steak and chips deals so we're having that tonight. Was reduced to £4 for members and I also had a £1 your shop so just £3 for steak of chips - can't be bad! We'll have it with some onions and mushrooms. The mushrooms definitely need using up!

  • Suffolk_lass
    Suffolk_lass Posts: 11,161 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic

    Still freezer diving here. Chicken thighs with salad and new potatoes tonight. Left over ragu for tomorrow in a mean lasagne

    Save £12k in 2026 #2 I have banked £9004.48 so far, against a £10k target The 2026 Save £12k in 2026 thread is here
    OS Grocery Challenge in 2026 I am sticking with a £3000 annual budget for 2026 - currently £1111.79 and most of my May purchasing made
    I also Reverse Meal Plan on that thread and grow much of our own premium price fruit and veg, joining in on the grow your own in 2026 discussion thread
    My keep within our budget diary is here
  • Suffolk_lass
    Suffolk_lass Posts: 11,161 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic

    That's proper bargain @joedenise - I'm about to dive for more of last year's courgettes to add to celery for a veg soup

    Save £12k in 2026 #2 I have banked £9004.48 so far, against a £10k target The 2026 Save £12k in 2026 thread is here
    OS Grocery Challenge in 2026 I am sticking with a £3000 annual budget for 2026 - currently £1111.79 and most of my May purchasing made
    I also Reverse Meal Plan on that thread and grow much of our own premium price fruit and veg, joining in on the grow your own in 2026 discussion thread
    My keep within our budget diary is here
  • EssexHebridean
    EssexHebridean Posts: 26,017 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic

    Nice deal there joedenise! I too had a punnet of mushrooms heading to past their best territory so cooked the lot last night - two thirds of them were eaten with our couscous and the balance have been popped into the freezer.

    Salmon out of the freezer for tonight - I'll cook a portion of pasta to go with, and then that will use up the remaining lettuce plus some home grown leaves too in a tossed salad.

    I need to give some thought to tomorrow - I have a hunch that the meal plan is currently blank. Might go for an easy cheaty option of soup and toasted crumpets though. I like a no effort thursday night tea!

    🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
    Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
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    Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00. Balance as at 31/12/25 = £ 91,100.00
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  • joedenise
    joedenise Posts: 18,620 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper

    Using up the LO fajita mix from yesterday's lunch for lunch today by stirring it through pasta and adding some sweet chilli sauce! It's a very tasty dish and I make it quite often.

  • rtandon27
    rtandon27 Posts: 6,803 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic

    I thought we'd not been doing reverse planning here for a while, but somehow when I went to put away some ice cream sticks today there was plenty of room in the freezer! - a drawer's worth of space over three drawers!) I've also been really careful not to replace anything that has been sitting in there for a while when it gets used - only what we eat regularly so that might be helping as well.

    My latest trick to get OH to eat what we have in the house, is to give him an either/or option between two things I want us to use up - last Sunday it was Confit duck legs or Lamb steaks - we had duck. This week I'll say to him Pork or Lamb. I'm not replacing any of those things until we've made our way through what is there - if he really does not fancy a meal we have toasted bagels instead with boiled eggs and cheese - those items get replaced weekly so it is a strategy that is helping us make our way through the stores.

    4 YEARS 10 MONTHS DEBT FREE!!! (24 OCT 2016)
    (With heartfelt thanks to those who have gone before us & their indubitable generosity.)
    ...and now I have a mortgage! (23 AUG 2021)
    Original End Date - Sept 2041 New projection - Sep 2038 (reduced by 3 years)
  • Suffolk_lass
    Suffolk_lass Posts: 11,161 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    edited 10 June at 11:40AM

    I used up Christmas frozen carrots and leeks with a big bag of prepped squash to make veg soup that will feed me lunches until Mr Sl gets back from his bike thing, this morning. Just sitting still for a minute before I whizz it with a blender. The kitchen frozen veg drawer feels properly spacious, until I bring the next lot in!

    Save £12k in 2026 #2 I have banked £9004.48 so far, against a £10k target The 2026 Save £12k in 2026 thread is here
    OS Grocery Challenge in 2026 I am sticking with a £3000 annual budget for 2026 - currently £1111.79 and most of my May purchasing made
    I also Reverse Meal Plan on that thread and grow much of our own premium price fruit and veg, joining in on the grow your own in 2026 discussion thread
    My keep within our budget diary is here
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