January 2024 Grocery Challenge

LadyWithAPlan

Frugalistamama said:

Annoying I have spent over my weekly budget of £80 due to the 'surprise' HFresh box. Spend about £97.... 

They do that ... I cant wait to access my last HELLFRESH box with my credits and then cancel
My mum cancelled hers before xmas - they neglected to do so and it arrived anyway...

@London_1 as always you are an inspiration! 

@lovemula21 its the 'bargains' that take us down I dont mind when its protein/ YS chicken / freezable  etc but when  when it is just YS treat food I wouldnt have bought ordinarily  then I do feel I have overspent..

Food shopping
Grocery £80.77/£175 + Bulk £10.24/50 + £24.98 HellFresh
£14.93 -Grocery £9.79   Bulk £3.05  Hsehold - kitchen rolls £2.09
I popped to Lid as near gym after - largely to get some  DF yogurt   (so much cheaper than everywhere else)   and DF milk as will make a healthy df gf snack for Wed (Out all afternoon then straight to dinner party) and Thursday. (COLLEGE)
Inevitably I picked up more stuff especially with coupons.. More kale, store items such as chickpeas to make houmous,  puree, pesto, 

Food ....
Lunch - I  cooked my Mr Lid FR Corn fed chicken  in the Halogen in an hour), along with sweet potatoes and onions and served with peas and so much kale and some tamari soy. I may  yet turn into a member of the Shrek family with all my greens

My chicken FR  £8.88 from Mr Lid - will make 4 meals plus a great soup stock (20 min in pressure cooker) plus a fried with brown rice/veg extra meal Or add to make chicken soup .. or for a curry ... 

Dinner post gym - chicken thigh, wing, bit breast heated on HM GF brown bread with lemon olives, dijon mayo, guac plus salad of organic spinach, red pepper, cherry tomatoes... yep more greens... the HM Gf bread is lush toasted.

Snacks, salted peanuts (oops but post gym and was hungry - this is where I often buy crisps and sweets.. so at least there is some nutrition not just UPF) . satsumas, almonds , soya HM coffee

BROWN BREAD  - GF HM - had slice today still v tasty toasted (made Saturday) - rest sliced  in freezer.. This panasonc b/maker is simply the best (tried loads others but for GF its so much more reliable)  I will get to Ald and buy seeds/nuts to add to variations...
Risk is I start adding sultanas and make fruit loaf - love it but not for my post xmas waistline ...However you know it will happen

wishus

Meal plan done for the week!

Tonight: Caribbean lamb curry (freezer)
Tomorrow: sausage and chestnut sauce for pasta (freezer)
Wednesday: milk braised fennel with thyme and cheese, plus wedges
Thursday: basa fillet, garlic potatoes, coriander salsa
Friday: aubergine and potato curry and rice
Saturday: shepherds pie
Sunday: Jamie's pesto chicken traybake and salad

Shopping list done, will get done tomorrow. May need to advance cook most meals due to busy life!

JingsMyBucket

@LadyWithAPlan you just gave me an idea for a salad with some leftover roasted chicken we have in the fridge. Thank you! 

GolfR

Hi everyone!

I know I’m a bit late to the party but can I join please? I’ve been doing the challenge myself anyway but didn’t know about this thread.

My budget is £300 pm for myself and DD who is 10 and DS who is 13 but may as well be classed an adult the way he eats! My month will run roughly from and to the 23rd of each month as that’s when I get paid. We’ve all been unwell with covid over Christmas and I had a stubborn chest infection on top of it which I’m today finishing up my second course of antibiotics for and I’m slowly recovering thankfully.

According to my Emma budgeting app I’ve spent £100/£300 so far this month on groceries. It won’t normally be this low but none of us have had an appetite the last fortnight and I’m trying my best to eat from the chest freezer which needs defrosting. I go to Costco every 6 months or so so I’m hoping to get to max £3600 over the year. I tend to eat mostly home made food that I bulk cook and freeze (I must have around 40 HM single portion trays in the freezer to be eaten) as well as other stuff but the kids are fussier and I have to make them separate meals but hey ho. I have plans to get a top up shop with my Asda delivery on Sunday but I may need to buy milk and bread before that. I’m aiming to have the Asda order be no more than £50. I used to love food shopping but I hate it now which is good for budgeting I guess as I spend hours mulling over what I want and what I actually need from my shopping

I had around 1.5kg of red potatoes to use which we couldn’t face when we were ill and they were starting to grow so I made a massive 6.5l slow cooker batch of potato and bacon (bacon from the freezer) soup yesterday which will be my dinner with home made wholemeal bread for the next three days and I’m planning to make pink pasta with a pack of six YS pork and apple sausages from the freezer for tea for the next three nights (I’m a breakfast, dinner and tea girl). I’m quite happy eating things for three or so days in a row so this works well for me. Whatever is left of the soup when I portion it out later on, I will freeze in my foil trays. The end of the week I’m planning on having HM sea bass carrot and parsnip fishcakes from the freezer with veg and a tin of quinoa that’s been in the cupboard for over a year and HM salmon egg bites also from the freezer with baked beans.

I’m really excited for this challenge as I work part time (I could increase my hours but I love being home with the kids) so my income isn’t amazing but also to clear the freezer of some things that have been there a while thanks for letting me join!

Edited to add - I promise my future posts won’t be this long

London_1

Off to Dobbies this morning for my freebie coffee with my friends, but will check to see if there is anything worth having in the W8rose outlet there .
I will get the rolls if reduced, or sometimes they have skimmed milk reduced to 41p for two litres which I may buy as it will do a good sized rice pud in my slow cooker, but if nothing is available I just walk away. purse firmly closed. 
it could be another NSD for me or perhaps a low spend day if there are reduction I only buy if I know I can use it up or freeze it

 Certainly don't need any staples at the moment or tinned stuff.

 I have another slow cooking pot full of chicken on this morning I had a Plant Chef  chicken coconut korma sauce given to me by a friend, as it had been a replacement on her Tesco order, and it wasn't until she looked at it a week or so later she realised it had coconut in it and she loathes coconut so she kindly said did I want it, I swapped her with a jar of marmalade as I seemed to have two jars in stock for some reason, so we were both happy I decided to use up some more of the chicken mountain from the freezer. Its in the slow cooker at the moment so will be decanted once cooked and portioned up for the freezer for a later date. I didn't realise how much chicken was in the freezer until I started digging around, but I don't mind and it will all be used up and batch cooking it saves on fuel at least

Frugally onwards chums its a loooong month this month

  JackieO xx 

Soontobeoap

Welcome @golfR. The more the merrier and lots more ideas,

DH went to Aldi and bought cereal milk and juice yesterday £6.66. I havnt done a main shop for 9 days so it is time. Really pleased with how I have managed to string it out by supplementing ingredients and slightly changing meal plan. I have a big shopping order coming from Tescos tomorrow. There were lots of offers on things we eat so I have gone ahead and bulk bought a few things.

We are going away on 18th until 30th Jan and I have some Tesco vouchers to use so I will let you know how I get on.

I am going to try the same budget next month and use my nectar points but should be well stocked from my big shop this month. 

Good luck everyone. 

AnimalTribe

I haven’t been to the shops since last year, but I’ve now run out of lettuce, tomatoes and fresh milk. I have UHT to use up and I’ve lots of other veg so I’ll be able to avoid the shops for a while longer. The last of the Christmas Brussel sprouts were shredded and used in fritters last night. I was a little unsure about the recipe but they turned out well. I’ll roast the last of the Christmas parsnips today. All of the 19p veg from last year has kept really well in a cold room, so I’m very pleased with that.

sarahj1986

sarahj1986 said:

sarahj1986 said:

sarahj1986 said:

sarahj1986 said:

Good evening 

I’m starting this again. Things have been all over the place! Moved home in August, daughter started school in September and our son was born in October. I’ve let things slide and honestly when I look at my bank transactions I’m disgusted in our food shop spending. We have a holiday booked for August, we need to cut back in order to pay for that 

As I have a newborn, he is breastfed but his nappies, wipes plus all our toiletries, household cleaning are included on this budget. We start giving him solids in April. 

Factoring all that in I’m going for £360 a month, ideally less but I think around £80 a week is right, some weeks will be more, others less. I’m determined to do it 

so @elsiepac I’m down for £360 per month 

First spend today 

£13.52 spent 

made up of the following 

£2.25 in Poundland on Barney and Party rings, neither on CC so cheapest in there

£4,90 on toothpaste and a new toothbrush for my daughter. I always let her pick her toothbrush and the toothpaste for her is safe price as Tesco and the sensitive toothpaste is cheaper there than Tesco 

£6.37 M&S. I find their beans are the nicest, 50p a tin but still decent price, plus bread and milk (same price as Tesco) and some tea cakes I found reduced to 92p a pack 

£346.58 left big shop due tomorrow 

£73.43 spent

£12.69 in Morrisons. My daughter loves the weetabix melts, only place I can find them locally. They aren’t cheap either £3 for a small box. Plus I’d forgotten to order honey, soy and cornflour 

£60.74 Tesco delivery due shortly. My husband is doing dry January so about £15 of that is a few packs of 0% beer for him that will last a few weeks. Plus nappies, wipes, some household items, 

£273.15 left 

£11.70 spent 

£5 at a cafe that does a kinda “cake and savoury” sale every day. So we got 4 items for £5

£3 in Poundland on Skinny bars usually £1.25 everywhere else

£3.70 in Tesco on reduced sausages 

£261.45 left but we dont need a massive shop next week as we’ve got loads in - don’t need crisps, snacks, toiletries, cleaning stuff, toilet roll. We will need fresh things like fruit, veg, milk. We have a lot of frozen meat/fish so should be ok there. 

£49.35 spent

I went over to Lidl for a change. I picked up a few bits not on the list but reduced/on offer and will get used. We will only need milk and maybe bread till next week and potatoes as I couldn’t carry them home (although I only need to carry thrm
over the road) 

£212.10 left 

wishus

Think I'm doing okay...

Raced round Alldi and Hasta today with my list and got all I needed. Went slightly off list in picking up a waxed Christmas star cheese for 50% off in Alldi. Used Perkbox in Hasta, and in Alldi, I realised I had not put my main card on EE Air Rewards, so that has been fixed which means more money coming off my phone bill. £26.96 spent altogether.

moneyowen

Need to tighten up my spending a bit.  Unexpected stay over my son and granddaughter over weekend had me having to do a quick Asda shop adding £42.60 to my spend.  Brings my spend so far to 120.83/350.00