I'm still spending too much on food.

Scumblepancake

Nelliegrace said:

It might help to use cash for your grocery shopping. It does make you careful about what you put in your trolley if you have just enough money and no credit cards with you.
I look at the stuff which tempts me and think, “Is this food?” I try to buy nothing but ingredients, and basic foods my Granny would recognise. I look at the price per kilo and buy the best value, and divide packs of meat and fish into portions and freeze some. Simple home cooking saves a lot of money. DH makes all of our bread, good bread for less than the price of supermarket basic stuff. The Pauper’s Cookbook by Jocasta Innes was my lifeline when we struggling financially. 

I recommend reading this.

We take a flask of good coffee and something homemade if we are going out. 
Meals out are a planned treat, a special event. 

Think about how much you are spending on food each week and work out how much it is for the year. 
£5,160?
Think what you could do if you saved even half of that amount.

I don't eat things with more than 3 ingredients. I'd forgotten the Paupers Cookbook, I have it and I'll have a look again, thank you. It's a shocking amount of money when you add it up over the year, I must get my self under control!

Toonie

As others have suggested having a look at your receipts is a good start, as is writing an inventory of cupboards and freezers and then doing a meal plan. I plan my shopping around a 7 days worth of meals and then pushing my shopping day back one so that each "week" gives me 8 days which saves me a bit without realising it.

If you give us an idea of the meals you do eat we may be able to give some suggestions. For example, I eat relatively low carb as I struggle to digest pasta and rice, so I use potatoes and a very simply rye bread as my main carbs but I don't have much of those. I spend around £250 per month for two adults, mostly fresh food/ingredients and very little processed food as I can't eat it, so reducing your spends should be possible.

annieb64

Still have a very tattered copy of the Paupers Cookbook which I bought when we were first married and very hard up. I still make some of the recipes although I now use the slow cooker for the bacon, potato and onion hotpot. 

Scumblepancake

Toonie said:

If you give us an idea of the meals you do eat we may be able to give some suggestions. For example, I eat relatively low carb as I struggle to digest pasta and rice, so I use potatoes and a very simply rye bread as my main carbs but I don't have much of those. I spend around £250 per month for two adults, mostly fresh food/ingredients and very little processed food as I can't eat it, so reducing your spends should be possible.

Today I had butternut squash and leftover chicken soup for lunch and rice, mackerel and kale bake with cheese on top and some salad for dinner. 
Lunch tomorrow is leftover chicken bake I froze and for dinner I'll have the rest of the soup and the rest of the rice and fish. Mostly I eat some protein, loads of veg and sometimes some rice, occasionally I'll make some flatbread or soda bread. Generally I cook enough to have lunch the next day, sometimes I cook more and I freeze that.

You are right I am not planning enough. I like your way of extending 7 days into 8. I have some pork belly I expect to make 4 meals out but I haven't thought of how yet and some stewing steak that I'll cook with the rest of last weeks bone broth and leeks, celery and onion to make a stew. I can add barley to that to extend it too. 

gwynlas

One thing I have done before is to shop with £10 and see how many meals I get using basics such as eggs , canned fish, yellow stickers etc. Another is checking out as many shops as you can like B & M or farmfoods for basics such as cans of tuna etc as it varies so much supermarket to supermarket.
I buy treats like chocolate biscuits when I see special offers and keep them out of sight, knowing they are there if needed is enough, I can leave them for weeks and weeks or even buy another before using them.

CapricornLass

One thing I found helped me when I needed to save money was to use a basket, not a trolley.  It gets heavier of course as you put items in it - so you make sure the items you put in and lug round the shop are the ones you really, really need!

Meal plans and lists  were the other things I found really useful.  This included 'shopping' for items from the freezer and store cupboard, as I found I froze things and then ended up not using them.

weenancyinAmerica

I've been having to use my walker when I shop - and I put things in the basket under the seat - it also limits what I can buy. If I am going to buy something big, then I put the small things in the basket, put the seat down and carry things on that but it only fits about two bags of groceries at the most. I have really cut back on how much I get at a time. I also have to use the walker to get items from my car to the house, and one trip is my limit right now. So two sacks is it.

Rosa_Damascena

weenancyinAmerica said:

I've been having to use my walker when I shop - and I put things in the basket under the seat - it also limits what I can buy. If I am going to buy something big, then I put the small things in the basket, put the seat down and carry things on that but it only fits about two bags of groceries at the most. I have really cut back on how much I get at a time. I also have to use the walker to get items from my car to the house, and one trip is my limit right now. So two sacks is it.

I have to say I agree - for different reasons. Primarily I get a walk every day this way, but I also have a hatred of unloading the car boot.

TracyS66

I do the following to help my spending, I have a note book and I allow £60 per week for food, and I keep a close eye on what I'm buying I really don't buy many extras. Hubby and I have a chocolate treat 2 times a week.
I have a list of what's in my freezer and every month we have a bits and pieces dinner to use up all the odd bits.
Store cupboard is also checked and I try to keep the stock levels low, without running out. Fridge is the same, I keep and eye out for stuff that needs using up before I go and buy anything else.
I also do a weekly menu, and change it depending on what i have available. The £60 does not include dog or rabbit food or toiletries. 
Some weeks I do go over but not by a huge amount. I am not in a job at the moment so I have to watch the pennies all the time.

Nelliegrace

My coffee treat is to buy Aldi £2.79 ground coffee instead of the £2.29 pack. The £1.99 coffee beans are good. 
We get a free hot drink for two every month, plus a birthday hot drink and cake for two, for £12 a year membership at the local garden centre. We both get a free coffee when we pass Waitrose on the way home, though we spend very little there. “Free” adds to the treat.

It is nice to meet friends for a drink or meal, but are there other less expensive places to socialise? A walk with a picnic, an activity at the sports centre, a book group at the library, knit and natter, or something at the community centre. We have a pub lunch occasionally, but just a main course, and I prefer to drink free tap water with it rather than some overpriced non-alcoholic drink.

Retired people can join the University of the Third Age, U3A, for about £10 a year. There are all sorts of classes and groups. DH enjoyed an afternoon of chess, and a cup of tea every week for £1.