Reducing weekly food shop bill

Hunnie

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Me and OH have just moved into our first house together and I've had a realisation of how much it actually costs to feed us for the week!

Needing tips on how to cut down on weekly food bill as I resent going spending lots of money each week when I'm sure there's a way of not doing!
 
We stared to economise! We get the packs of chicken from tesco which are diced for £2 and already split in two and use that to cook 2 meals! Not as much chicken in your dinner but saves loads!! And we having salads with dinner and coleslaw . Really does save!! Xx
 
How much are you spending a week and how much would you like to reduce it by? What sort of things are you buying? Do you cook? If not do you want to cook, i can recommend a good starter cook book.
 
We do things like bulk up casseroles with tins of chickpeas or haricot beans, really cheap and make a meal stretch to two especially if you are cutting down on the meat content like constantstar says. I also use them as a complete substitute for meat sometimes which saves a lot of money! I seem to remember Titch posting some good economising food ideas too a while back. Like getting a roast chicken, having the roast on sundays but making it stretch to another 2 or three meals after by using left overs in a salad and making soup with the carcass. I do things like getting pre made puff pastry and using it as a base for a tart which consists of whatever leftovers i can find in the fridge with a bit of pesto/pasta sauce/tom puree/ketchup as a base and any kind of cheese(s) for the top.
 
Eating veggie twice a week really helps. Indian food is wonderful veggie - dahl, curried cauliflower, etc. I cook it all homemade, but I'm sure you could find recipes for it

Xx
 
I try to do most of my shopping online so I resist the urge to add things to the trolly that we dont really need just cos they are on offer etc. If I do go to the supermarket, I try to go late in the day when they reduce the meat etc and then freeze it, cuts down the cost quite a bit.
Some of the supermarket own brand things are the same quality as the name brand ones so can save quite a bit each week just by switching
Also keep an eye out for vouchers online to save off your shopping.
We're trying to cut down as much as possible now there is a little one to save for!
 
Do you have a big freezer OP?

I would suggest on bulk cooking things that freeze.

I would also suggest you head to the supermarket just before closing to nab some bargains (which you can then freeze!) You can get good cuts of meat that are use by that day but fine if you freeze them.

Have a few days when you eat veggie, a veggie curry is cheaper than a chicken curry.

Jacket potatoes with cheese and beans / omelettes / pasta with homemade tomato sauce are cheap and filling (plus also quite healthy)

Plan you meals in advance so you can make sure you don't have too much waste. IE if today's meal comes with salad then do something for the next few days that you can serve with salad so your salad stuff doesn't go bad.

Stock up you cupboards with all your herbs and spices - they are expensive to buy but a worthy investment!
 
if you eat a lot of fresh fruit and veg, places like Lidl can be really good, as their prices are low and often have many on offer too!
 
I sometimes do a 'blue stripe' shop if Im skint and so only pick up the really cheap stuff like the blue stripped stuff in tesco, it all tastes fine and some things you don't even notice the difference! It also helps to decide what meals you are going to have each day and only buy those things.
 
I sometimes do a 'blue stripe' shop if Im skint and so only pick up the really cheap stuff like the blue stripped stuff in tesco, it all tastes fine and some things you don't even notice the difference! It also helps to decide what meals you are going to have each day and only buy those things.

Yep - lots of the "budget" range items are perfectly fine!

Things like pasta, tinned tomatoes, biscuits, orange juice etc you really cannot tell the difference.

Also another tip is to go for cheaper cuts of meat - you can get 10 boneless and skinless chicken thighs from Sainsburys for £4... Whereas you'd be hard pushed to get two breasts for much less than that.

I use sausagemeat to make meatballs (you have to buy premuim sausages though) you then take the meat out of the casing and cut up into little "balls". This is much cheaper than making meatballs and it is such a tasty meal!

xxxxx
 
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We always buy our basics as value range, most are just as good as branded products. We also dont eat much meat and if we do have a spag bol or chilli we bulk it out with cheap veg so it is healthier and cheaper!! Also always write a list and stick to it or if you are happy to go every day then check out the reduced bits and you can make a meal out of most of that stuff. Hope this helps??
xxx
 
i suggest planning your meals for the week, so make mince dinner one day but save half the mince for spag bol the next eve etc? or we would cook a roast chicken dinner and we use the remaining chicken for sandwiches for work and for maybe a curry :)

is it just me that finds 'budgeting' makes you eat a lot healthier too? xx
 
I find I spend less if I write a list before I go shopping too, or even better, write a list then do an online shop! That way you don't get tricked into buying stuff you don't really need.
Also double check all the 'offers'. Sometimes the 2 for £3 type offers are on items that are say £1.60. Unless you need two, don't buy two!
 
i find shopping online really helps as if i go instore to buy bread and millk i come out 30 quid lighter haha. i try and do a £100 shop a month on sainsburys as they offer free delivery then just pick up basics like bread and milk throughout the month.
like others have said own make stuff can be ok. but theres lots of cheap meals out there like omlette / egg on toast eggs are so cheap! pasta aswell like tuna, sweetcorn you can make bulk and it lasts :) xxx
 
Me and OH have to do this every week. We go to Asda and manage to get a weekly shop for both of us for about £30.

Look out for the deals. (Coco pops for a quid, 4 pint milk, two for £2 etc). Also own name brand stuff. Asda's own food and drinks are actually really nice and no different to well known brands. We especially love their smart price orange juice which is just 54p! And OH swears by their 13p rice pudding :)
 
You can also look into the 99p store, I get 3 tins of tuna in there for a £1 :) be careful though as not all stuff in there are cheaper than supermarkets. x
 
agree with the above. some own brand items are just as good as other brands (tinned tomatoes, OJ etc, squash). Also eating less meat saves (my husband is vegetarian anyway). I would also suggest looking at the type of veg you buy, for example, root vegetables tend to be cheaper than medeteranian vegetables. you could also sign up to email alerts from all the supermarkets in your area so that you learn in advance who are doing what offers.
 
I have a banking spreadsheet on my laptop, with one worksheet of it listing all the prices of my usual stuff listed from my receipts, (bit sad I know!) helps me plan , juggle meals tok fit that weeks budget etc

Order the meals correctly, to allow your leftovers to be used next day etc, or freeze straight after leftovers have cooled down, so they are not wasted in the fridge. I save all extra cooked veg in bags for Devons meals.

We have the following menu most weeks

mixed veg Soup (eg carrots, sweet pot, parsnip, and half pack bacon) - own chicken stock, from boiling chicken carcass)

Sunday meat pie (home madestew from value beaf and any veg), plus brought puff pastry to make a pie
(cook double if sale offer meat going out of date, and freeze a portion to make another pie next week)

Spag bol - again cook double for next week, using mushrooms, onions and or aubergine to bulk up mince!!) You can then use this for shepherds pie with mash (add some gravey into mix before going into oven to make more meaty)

kids have home made maccaroni cheese and we have jacket pot and beans (kids hate them!)

Stirfry with any misc left over meat , frozen in freezer at different times, you can make a chinease sauce with very little really, any brown suger (for the sweet bit), bit of white wine vinegar (for the sour bit), bit of chinease five spice , pinapple if you have some, soy sauce. If you have noodles as well , (hard ones boil in 4 mins!), drain and add soy sauce and splash sesame oil, and they taste just like takeaway ones!!

chicken thigh fillets are cheep, make homemade chicken nuggets, with your own bread crumbs from old bread (grind in mini chopper and freeze)

If you have a freezer , it will be your best freind
 
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I've found the reason why we are spending so much money a week.....OH is like a big kid when we go and just puts pointless and expensive things into the trolley like squeezy golden syrup when we have a full tin of it at home already?!

We've saved quite a lot of money on meat recently as OH used to work at a butchers and gets discount so we have a freezer full of meat at the minute.

I can't do the veggie option as OH is very much a meat man and won't touch the stuff :(. Trying to slowly get him to try other things so that we save money and have a wider range of meals to eat but I think it's going to be difficult :(. He doesn't eat veg, pasta or fish or anything with tomatoes.

I think once he goes back to work full time I'll be doing the shopping on my own and I'll be able to make sure we save a lot more money.

At the minute we are spending about £130 every week and a half.
 
I agree with Pound Stores - I get things like 3 tins of Heinz beans, Heinz ketchup, Oxo Cubes, multipacks of crisps etc...

I also get a lot of branded stuff like my soap, shampoo & conditioner, shower gel, washing up liquid etc...

I also agree that planning is paramount - JJ Mum one day I aim to be as organised as you :)

xxxxxxx
 

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