Energy Saving Cooking Ideas?

chirpychick

Good Morning, 
I haven't been here in so long, life is so very busy. I hope everyone is well. 
I am looking for some help and I thought this would be the best place to ask!
My oven is costing a fortune to run. I have a slow cooker which I do use but probably not enough. 
We had a George Foreman which stopped working this week, we'd like an air fryer but cannot afford to buy one right now. 
Therefore my question is what is the cheapest way to cook, we do have a microwave. 
My son has declared "please no more salad!" LOL 
In Oct we will have use of the log burner which is tiny but can do a few things. 
I am struggling to think up meals which don't require too long in the main oven (or not at all) or things which can be cooked perhaps in bulk to utilise the oven when it is on.
I am feeling a little desperate because my gas and electricity went from £117 to £248 and is due to increase again. I have been watching the smart metre and my oven seems to be the biggest culprit. 

I have done everything else I can think of:
We don't have lights on at all
We only use the television for a couple of hours
We have permission to charge things at hubbys work
We don't use the tumble dryer
We wash at 30 and only when we have a full load
Everything except main appliances are switched off at the plug unless in use
We only boil the water that we need
We have turned the boiler down (but not too much)
We have reduced the amount of time we have hot water to an hour every other day

We tried washing up instead of using our ancient dishwasher but as every person in our household has physical and neurological disabilities it became a bit of a nightmare so we reverted back to using it, we cannot afford to replace it for a more energy efficient one so we again only run it when full. 

I am actually really scared as I know many people are and if you think there's anything i've missed i'd be grateful.  
p.s we are vegetarian and nut free

jojo700

I'm sure someone else will come along with good ideas, but I think if you have a slowcooker then that is a good way to keep costs low. They are often being given away or low cost and someone once told me they only cost as much as a lightbulb to run. I use mine a lot for one pot meals such as chilli, casseroles etc. There are loads of veggie recipes which can go in a slow cooker. Also for your hob use steamer pans if you have them, so that you are only using one of the burners. Put potatoes in the bottom, then stack other veg on top to steam. Another good tip is when cooking things like rice and pasta (or even potatoes and veg if they are chopped up small, you can bring to the boil, cover with a tight fitting lid and then turn off the gas/electricity and the things will still cook, and will just take a bit longer than if you left the hob on. 

Brie

There's been a number of threads about money saving cooking ideas on Old Style Money Saving so you might want to look for those.

But the one thing that jumps out at me is your log burner.  Depending on the type it's a great way to cook all sorts.  If it has a flat top and you have decent cast iron or thick bottom pans (or can get some via a charity shop or freegle etc) then you can cook lots on that.  Stews, heat soup, beans etc.  Bake jacket potatoes, even do the Sunday roast (veggie or otherwise) or cakes!  

Brie

try these

Learn to Cook Frugal Style — MoneySavingExpert Forum

What are the most cost effective foods to make at home? - Page 2 — MoneySavingExpert Forum

I also noticed there's a Vegan thread that might be of use.

Tink_04

I know this probably won’t help but I have been given a ninja cooker and have pushed myself to keep the main oven off. It’s doing good so far, I’ve made a few things in it and not used to main oven since I got it. 

It’s expensive but there is a variety of other things available which could help. 

Could you maybe try some surveys to help towards an airfryer? Sorry if you already do this for other things.

if you have the oven on plan what you can make and batch cook as much as possible. Times are getting very tough.

Tink

Jolaaled

jojo700 said: Another good tip is when cooking things like rice and pasta (or even potatoes and veg if they are chopped up small, you can bring to the boil, cover with a tight fitting lid and then turn off the gas/electricity and the things will still cook, and will just take a bit longer than if you left the hob on. 

If you pre-soak rice for a few hours, it definitely shortens the cooking time.
I'm intending to experiment with a home made haybox/wonderbag over the next month or so, to see if I can cut down on fuel costs a bit more. 
I use a remoska, which is cheaper  to run, compared to the main oven. 
I try and remember to defrost frozen veggies yo room temperature,  before cooking/microwaving. 

jennystarpepper

Halogen oven from Clockworks Arg0s, about £42.  My big range oven went pop and I bought one of these.  Not good for pizza, but everything else is good,  but would use a roasting bag if food 'spits'.  Fraction of the cost of using an oven.

bouicca21

@Tink_04. How much does the ninja cost to run?  

maddiemay

If you don't already, it might be worth you signing up to Freegle/Freecycle and local Facebook selling site, you can request as well as offer on Freegle for a replacement GF type grill, airfryer, 2nd slow cooker or Remoska. User name need not necessarily identify you if it matters.

sunnyflower

Simple things, I expect they help a bit 🧐
I use the top oven which is smaller.
Use smaller saucepans & fill them with boiling water as opposed to boiling it up on the stove.
Cook enough food for a couple of days if possible.
My slow cooker is going to be well used in the months to come.
Is a  GF type grill cheaper to run than an oven ? Is a microwave cheaper than an oven? 
I have no idea.

joedenise

I use a pressure cooker quite a bit, particularly in winter.  I think it makes much nicer stews than the slow cooker.  Probably slightly more expensive to run that the SC but it's on for a much shorter time.  I can easily make a large stew (about 8 portions) in 40 minutes from start to finish, excluding prep time.