ronniejacobs
Gold Member
omg 7 of you lol
sw when short of money
- Thread starter mummyroysof3
- Start date
kevandju5
Maintaining
I find SW is really expensive! All those yoghurts, fresh fruit and veg really add up, don't they? I buy Asda smart price natural yoghurts - the big ones - instead of more expensive individual yog's... Then add a bit of sweetener and some fruit, or even a couple of drops of vanilla or almond flavouring. xx
I don't find SW expensive at all. It's much more expensive to base your menu around pre-packaged and junk food than healthy, home-made meals.
Plan your menus around ingredients that are in season and on offer in the shops helps a lot. A vegetarian diet is much cheaper as decent meat is so expensive. Buy in bulk when things are on offer and batch cook which helps on the fuel bills.
There's a lot of advice out there if you look for it!
Plan your menus around ingredients that are in season and on offer in the shops helps a lot. A vegetarian diet is much cheaper as decent meat is so expensive. Buy in bulk when things are on offer and batch cook which helps on the fuel bills.
There's a lot of advice out there if you look for it!
charlottegrace1
Gold Member
There are 5 of us, me, o/h, son 19, 2 daughters 16 and 14 so all adult portions. I spend no more than £72 a week on everything (cos thats all I have) including cleaning materials and shampoo etc. It is a challenge most weeks but learn what times your local supermarkets reduce the meat and veg etc and get round there smartish. Aldi is good on the fruit and veg front for 49p. I make mince go further by adding baked beans to cottage pies and red kidney beans to bolognaise. Started growning my own veg this year in back garden so just started picking a bit of that but will increase this next year as its fabulous and cheap. Pots of soup are good and filling and if you have a bowl before your main meal, you may find you can do with smaller portions of the main meal.
I really wish that fresh fruit and veg weren't soooo expensive, I sometimes think you have to be rich to be healthy and fresh fish......don't get me started on the price of that lol
I really wish that fresh fruit and veg weren't soooo expensive, I sometimes think you have to be rich to be healthy and fresh fish......don't get me started on the price of that lol
madhousemum
Silver Member
seen as the government say about having 5 a day why they make it so expensive i must say they should bring it down in cost might actually help people to eat there 5 a day. i dont find it more expensive then normal.
salsaqueen
Full Member
I spend about £170 but that for 2 adults, 3 teenagers and 2 dogs and includes toiletries and cleaning stuff. I've never used lentils but I might give them a go.
lwtblb
Silver Member
I suppose I spend around £45 for OH and me but I could certainly do it for alot less! I grow veg but that's only just starting, but when the boys were little I could make 1/2 lb of minced beef go a long long way!
There are lots of good tips on martins money tips. I find pulses a wonderful way to keep full. I make soup with lentils and split peas, just for a week I would use own brands. Some of them are ok. Extend meat with rice potatoes, eggs. Spanish omellette is good. Shop at about 7 0 clock and the supermarkets reduce the bread and lots of things on their sell by dates, the same if you go to a market near 5 o clock, you can get bags of veg cheaply cos they don't want to cart it away.
Apparently if you look in the skips behind a supermarket they throw away all sorts! But I'm guessing you're not reduced to that yet!
I went into the back entrance of a small Tesco a few weeks ago (next to the bins) & I was horified to see it brimming over with bread...what a waste, I'm sure if they'd reduced it either earlier or at all lots of people could have taken advantage of a bargain.
In such difficult times I think it's disgusting that it all just gets binned!!
Even better, if it's going to be binned anyway, why not just give it away!!
Princess Sausage
Silver Member
Porrage is a great breakfast, I like it this time of year and also tinned grapefruit segments in the value range are low syn and very cheap way to eat fruit and is very good for weightloss. My other all time fave breakfast is 2 dry fried eggs on toast and fills you up for ages. Often growers put thier extra veggies or fruit at the gate and the other day I bought a huge bag of gooseberries for 50p stewed up with a bit of splenda, you get alot for your syns.
Low syn sausage casserole, Asda do a lovely mix with the recipe on the packet made with sausages, beans, tinned toms and onions, great for extra easy or syn the sausages.
Aldi 6 for 49p, I just go in for the fruit and veg!
Low syn sausage casserole, Asda do a lovely mix with the recipe on the packet made with sausages, beans, tinned toms and onions, great for extra easy or syn the sausages.
Aldi 6 for 49p, I just go in for the fruit and veg!
Iris
Full Member
Charlotte, if you have a good weekly market or farmers' market near you it can be worth getting up early and heading there for some bargains. The fruit and veg is usually top notch and often a lot cheaper than most supermarkets. Good place to pick up fresh fish, too. Herring and mackerel are easy to cook, great for the diet, and won't break the bank.
Like another poster said, cooking in bulk and freezing portions is really handy. Pasta sauce, curry, shep pie... all freeze really well. A big spanish tortilla style omelette with whatever you've got lying about in the store cupboard or fridge (plenty of potato!) can be really tasty and good for using up odds and ends. And if you're stuck for a cheap and cheerful (and easy!) pud for the family, you can whip up a microwave sponge pud in less than 5 mins. Stick a bit of jam or marmalade or canned fruit in the bottom of a microwaveable tub and top with standard sponge cake recipe, cover with cling and on for about 3 mins on high.
Like another poster said, cooking in bulk and freezing portions is really handy. Pasta sauce, curry, shep pie... all freeze really well. A big spanish tortilla style omelette with whatever you've got lying about in the store cupboard or fridge (plenty of potato!) can be really tasty and good for using up odds and ends. And if you're stuck for a cheap and cheerful (and easy!) pud for the family, you can whip up a microwave sponge pud in less than 5 mins. Stick a bit of jam or marmalade or canned fruit in the bottom of a microwaveable tub and top with standard sponge cake recipe, cover with cling and on for about 3 mins on high.
Shirleen
Gold Member
If there's a farm shop nearby go and buy a sac of spuds (you can buy washed or unwashed) a half sack of 13.5kg costs £5 for unwashed and £6 for washed.
Compare that to a bag of King Edwards 2.5g for £2 at Tesco.
I reckon you are saving about a fiver in spuds alone!
And because they are in sacks they last longer.
If you eat loads of spuds get a full sack to save more.
Frozen veg has been proven to have more nutrients than so called 'fresh' that have been flown miles and kept almost frozen, means they rot quickly.
Buy a pkt of lettuce seeds and sow thinly in a window box, two weeks after sow again the first crop will be ready in 2 weeks, lots of fresh baby leaves for salad. The Range sell a kit for £5 but you needn't spend that much.
Keep an eye out for handwritten signs outside houses selling tomato plants, or pepper plants pop them on the patio. The tom plants can be planted into a grow bag.
Swap at least one meal a week to vegetarian.
Compare that to a bag of King Edwards 2.5g for £2 at Tesco.
I reckon you are saving about a fiver in spuds alone!
And because they are in sacks they last longer.
If you eat loads of spuds get a full sack to save more.
Frozen veg has been proven to have more nutrients than so called 'fresh' that have been flown miles and kept almost frozen, means they rot quickly.
Buy a pkt of lettuce seeds and sow thinly in a window box, two weeks after sow again the first crop will be ready in 2 weeks, lots of fresh baby leaves for salad. The Range sell a kit for £5 but you needn't spend that much.
Keep an eye out for handwritten signs outside houses selling tomato plants, or pepper plants pop them on the patio. The tom plants can be planted into a grow bag.
Swap at least one meal a week to vegetarian.
Lucky7
Lucky7
Markets are often much cheaper than supermarkets for veg - if you're happy to go for seasonal and local anyway.
To make your lean mince go further, try using half lean mince with half quorn mince (wait til you see a good quorn mince offer - they often come up, and it won't go off in your freezer). I'm also a fan of using lentils to bulk things out.
I get frustrated when I go in Asda, as they sort all the reduced stuff into the reduced fridge throughout the day, but won't label it up until an *unknown* time. WHY??? Don't they want to sell the stuff off? That's why it ends up having to be chucked. Greedy sods!
I'm glad I don't buy bread any more. My dad and stepmum came to stay last weekend so I bought a loaf. My god - the price has doubled in the last couple of years.
To make your lean mince go further, try using half lean mince with half quorn mince (wait til you see a good quorn mince offer - they often come up, and it won't go off in your freezer). I'm also a fan of using lentils to bulk things out.
I get frustrated when I go in Asda, as they sort all the reduced stuff into the reduced fridge throughout the day, but won't label it up until an *unknown* time. WHY??? Don't they want to sell the stuff off? That's why it ends up having to be chucked. Greedy sods!
I'm glad I don't buy bread any more. My dad and stepmum came to stay last weekend so I bought a loaf. My god - the price has doubled in the last couple of years.
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