Cutting down food costs when you hate cooking

LadySher

My food bill is around 1100 a month, 1 adult, 3 teenagers and 1 child.

I work around 13 hours a day and hate hate hate cooking with a passion.  I usually do one main food shop a week, around £120 which is just general groceries, fruit, fridge stuff, toiletries, cleaning, junk crap and bread etc.  I throw a few things in i'm 'planning' on making a meal with which may or may not actually get cooked.  On top of that I probably spend £8 a day on coffee and lunch at work, kids school dinners, I stop at the supermarket or budgens on the way home for 'dinner' stuff - usually meat, salad, wraps, ready meals, pre packed soups/currys etc.  Kids all eat different meals so one night I might have a jacket potato, teens will eat pizza/chicken wraps/katsu curry (pre packed at a £5), little one will eat something light as she has school dinner etc.  We don't actually eat out or have many takeaways, maybe 1 a month.

I'm so bloody exhausted when I get home the thought of chopping or cooking anything is awful but this food bill is so high.  I'm going to be honest and say I'm never going to be a batch cooker or someone who meal plans down to the day but there must be some quick alternatives I do here, this food bill is killing me.

LadySher

Kids school dinners is in addition to the £8 I spend a day.  I'm probably spending £30 all in a day in addition to the £120 a week food shop.

LadySher

Weekends are always the same, BLT's for everyone.  Bacon and bread from waitrose and lettuce and tomato from the food shop.  Sundays is always a roast, two teens hate chicken and will only eat beef or lamb so thats another £20.  The only place im proably saving is the eggs from next door at £1.50 for a dozen and the local veg I buy from neighbours

Emmia

I'd stop with the different food for everyone. If you're having a jacket potato, they also can. 

Stir frys are quick, and easy, and you can buy bags of pre chopped veg so no real prep. 

Why don't the teenagers cook? It's a great life skill they need to learn.

LadySher

They do cook, they cook more than me. But they will only cook for themselves and the eating different meals is so ingrained.  They cook for themselves and if anyone else wants what they are having they will cook for them too.  If I said we are all having jacket potatoes at least two of them would say don't bother I'll sort myself out and they'd cook themselves something different or just not eat.

LadySher

I generally cook for myself and the two youngest.  The older teens cook for themselves when they come in.

kimwp

To lighten to cooking load: Cook double and have it two days in a row or freeze the second meal for another day. Spend some time meal planning four weeks of meals and creating the shopping lists for those weeks, then have them on rotation until you are bored enough to plan something else. Let the kids choose the meal (from the week's list) so you don't have to think about it. Get the kids to do the chopping and/or put on music while you do the chopping. Learn to chop really quickly?

 I'm not sure why everyone having different meals is an issue if they sort their own, unless that causes a lot of waste.

TheAble

The line you need to take is the whole family eats the same thing, and if you don't like it you go without. Occasional exceptions can be made but that's about it.

"Hating" chicken is a ridiculous concept. By far and away the best value Sunday roasts are pork and chicken; lamb on rare occasions when on offer (£5/kg); cheap cuts of beef if you know how to cook them.

£8 a day on coffee and lunches at work is nuts, you can cut that out immediately.

I sympathize that you're too tired to cook from scratch after work and know the feeling. The solution we use is to buy a mixture of easy stuff for when we're time poor, and more homemade recipes for those days when we do have time, and the weekends.

comeandgo

I would imagine if you are working 13 hour days then you only work a four day week so I’d wait until you are not so tired and cook those days.  It’s very easy to make a larger pot of mince with tin tomatoes, garlic, red wine if required and freeze what’s not needed.  This can be used for different pasta dishes.  To save on money you really must put in the effort or get those teenagers to do it all.  Could you “pay” the best cook to do batch cooking?
Also, if everyone is cooking their own food at different times your fuel bills must be high too.

Emmia

TheAble said:

The line you need to take is the whole family eats the same thing, and if you don't like it you go without. Occasional exceptions can be made but that's about it.

"Hating" chicken is a ridiculous concept. By far and away the best value Sunday roasts are pork and chicken; lamb on rare occasions when on offer (£5/kg); cheap cuts of beef if you know how to cook them.

£8 a day on coffee and lunches at work is nuts, you can cut that out immediately.

I sympathize that you're too tired to cook from scratch after work and know the feeling. The solution we use is to buy a mixture of easy stuff for when we're time poor, and more homemade recipes for those days when we do have time, and the weekends.

I sympathise with this more. £8 a day is very easy to spend if you're buying from Pret (or similar), it's all very well saying "take a packed lunch" but frankly if you're time poor... which the OP is, that's probably a bridge too far. I think the OP should tackle home meals first.

I think the OP needs to ensure that at home, everyone eats the same if the teens "don't like chicken" and that's what's on offer... then tough - they can either just eat the veg that goes with it (frozen peas, and tinned sweetcorn are both pretty instant) or go hungry.

There are also lots of quick options that can be made - stir fry, or I put boneless and skinless chicken thighs in an oven proof dish, with slices of lemon underneath, brush with a bit of sunflower oil, sprinkle with rosemary and bung in the oven for 30mins - then serve with boiled potatoes, and veg - carrots, peas, sweetcorn etc.

If the OP wants to have "something" as an alternative, then shredded wheat, plain Weetabix or a boring cereal like that can be available - none of these wraps, ready meals etc.

kimwp

I've been pondering this more and I think realistically if you want to reduce your food bill, you need to increase the amount of time you spend or reduce/change the expectations of yourself and your children in terms of eating/drinking what you currently do - eg homemade sandwiches and fruit for lunch for everyone with instant coffee for you. No pre-made katsu curry or salads for dinner - have easy stand-bys and stick to them (not popping to the shop will help with this). I sympathise - it's hard not to go for the easier, tastier option when you are tired.