How much does a regular evening meal cost you?

[shylatte]

This year money is tighter and I need to cut back. We are fairly frugal, but good quality food is very important to us - our shop (for 5 of us) is approx £200 per week. I cook everything from scratch, buy value products where I can. Our main problem is that the two eldest are really into sport/fitness and protein is a big thing for them. Heavy carb meals don't satisfy them at all, and dc1 wants chicken breasts and cooked salmon fillets as snacks.
On a Thursday we have fish, usually salmon or cod, which costs about £12 for the meal (this is from Lidl, not a gourmet fishmonger). That is before veg and a carb side. As part of my 'cutting back' I bought 750g of prawns on offer for £5. We've just finished a stir fry, to which all of the dc have declared is more like a snack rather than a meal On Sundays the dc like a lamb leg roast, and that alone is nearly £20.
My question is, is this normal? What would be the average price of a meal and what size is your family? DH thinks this is fine but I feel it is too much, but don't know how we can cut back.

Can you keep boiled eggs in the fridge as a cheaper quick protein snack ? If dinners need to be meaty I would do more slow cooked meals with cheaper cuts.

Try giving them 50 grammes of protein per day or whatever is the recommended amount for their ages is and bulking out the meals with carbs and veg. So meatballs with a lot of spaghetti, tomatoey sauce and offer some garlic bread.
How about chicken fajitas bulked out with lots of veg, wraps and wedges?

Chippymunks that is similar to us then. If it was just the meals, it wouldn't be so bad, but they like 'good' snacks too. Things like a 6 egg omelette and natural peanut butter (which is expensive). Seeing this written down is actually embarrassing . I'm actually very worried about them leaving home and realuzing how much food costs! I should add that they are all really healthy weights/BMIs. They were much easier to feed when they were younger, it was only when they became teens that this started.

To add - that amount of red meat isn’t good for them longer term so maybe look for cheaper sources of fish as well? If you have freezer space there are some really good and reasonably priced online fish mongers that sell frozen fish in larger quantities.

They're old enough to understand that you need to reduce your food spends op. You say they won't entertain the idea of a vegetarian protein source - what about printing something from the internet about the protein conference of meat v lentils v eggs.
If they don't like the changes, they could contribute :)

The cheapest way to cut down would be to go vegetarian 3 nights a week. Could you explain to them that this is good for environmental/health reasons and so you're going to experiment with some veggie recipes to find some they like?

Other than that, mince is cheap and a small amount of low fat mince can make a huge chilli when you add tinned tomatoes and kidney beans. Also, fish pie mix.

shylatte they’ll learn when they go to uni. If this makes you feel better, I spent a staggering £475 on food last week, had one takeaway and a couple of lunches out!!!

I think you need cheaper cuts of meat. For example, chicken wings or legs are often very cheap relative to breast meat. Or do protein based soups and stews with limited carbs. I do a chicken and veg soup with a whole chicken that can easily last the 4 of us two dinners plus some leftover for lunches. Eggs are good protein and cheap - omelettes, fried eggs with beans and tomatoes/eggs. A leg of lamb or joint of beef is an expensive Sunday roast, but chicken or pork is significantly more affordable.

You must be serving what most people consider a double portion of meat or fish each time - are you serving that to everyone or just to the teenagers? Salmon fillets aren't a snack in anyone's book!

I would say our normal main meals cost anything from £2 (dhal) to about £10 (salmon and expensive veg) for four people, but most are in the middle of that. Snacks are toast, biscuits, cereal bars and home made bars/flapjacks, fruit or cheese.

If you want to be more frugal, don’t put a kilo of meat in a casserole, cut it back to 750g and put more beans and lentils in. Do chicken for the Sunday roast instead of lamb. Enforce a veggie meal at least once a week, curry would be good for that.
Agree meatballs is a good one, you can massively bulk them out mixing mince and crackers and stuff. Similar with fishcakes.

I’d be unlikely to tolerate “doesn’t eat potatoes” from a teenager as well, but I guess we’re all allowed preferences!

Gusto do some lovely chicken leg tray bakes, you could pinch their ideas.

A kilo of meat between 5 of you is an average of 200g per person, (approx 8 ounces) so while it is a lot for many people, it isn't unreasonable for a young man who does a lot of physical activity.

The meals themselves don't seem unreasonable but there are ways to can stretch your budget a little more without anyone feeling hard done by or particularly noticing:

1. when you make your bean stew with 1kg meat (as an example), add one extra handful of beans, then take one portion out into a box for the freezer before serving. Do this every time you make a casserole or stew, or a Bolognese or chilli. Mince dishes can be bulked with a handful of oats or some green lentils without compromising the meaty texture.
2. Your main savings will be on snacks:

Use eggs as easy quick protein rather than salmon.
Swap Breast for thigh or drumsticks for snacks
Use your frozen meal portions as snacks
Encourage them to eat carbs before exercise: baked potatoes etc are a real energy boost immediately before and after exercise. Protein is for maintenance the rest of the time.

Cheaper versions of meaty meals:

Swap 8oz steak for either 2 minute steaks with fried eggs or go for surf and turf: smaller steak with some scampi or prawns.

Or mixed grill: half a chicken breast beaten flat, serve with bacon, sausage, a pork steak and all the trimmings.

If you usually use a kilo of protein, use 750g instead and backfill with another protein or flavour sauce, and consider different cheaper cuts of meat. Pork instead of lamb occasionally for example.

You could try using lean mince and make large cottage pies with a lot of mash, use tinned tuna to make pasta bakes - both with lots of veg. Chicken thighs are cheaper and imo more tasty - could bake with spices/yoghurt and have with a load of rice/naans. Lamb mince and have homemade lamb kebabs, pork fillet tends to be quite cheap - my DH marinates this.

@hensintheskirting

Have you tried a cheaper protein source like beans and lentils? Meat is expensive protein. If I make a chilli or cottage pie I'll whack in loads of lentils as well as the minced meat to make the whole thing go much, much further. Lentils are high in iron too so are really good for growing people. They're often used as a meat substitute.

Can i ask, do you put the lentils in straight out the packet, into the mince?

If you can afford it it’s fine but your children need to understand how expensive these things are and stop demanding ridiculous meals!

A 6 egg omelette as a snack? If they want this they need to pay for it themselves.

They sound very immature and you’re facilitating it.

chippy dc1 intends to stay at home for uni, he said there was far too much talk of students eating packet noodles and plain pasta for meals!
When we have salmon I buy 8 fillets (dc1 and 2 have 2 each) and I've just calculated that it comes to £13.50 😢 They really aren't big though and I could eat several myself.

At eighteen, maybe a part time job is needed so your dc can start contributing towards the food shop.

I just think you need to add more fillers, increase the carbs and bilk up with veg.
Regarding the 6 egg omelette that could easily be swapped for two fried eggs on toast.

Of course he's staying at home for Uni!
I'd tell him fine if he pays board.

Or do one bit of salmon and add a fishcake?

If you aren’t prepared to tell your more than old enough teenagers the realities of the costs/want vs need/expose them to the real world where students are skint and eat what they can afford rather than stay at home and have Mummy serve them, then we can’t help you.

I would get the eldest 2 children to plan and cook a meal once a week and give them say £10-£15 budget, then it will help them realise how expensive the food is and help them for when they leave home

Dc1 works all weekend, has a very good savings account and asks for nothing. I know it might sound as if they are spoilt brats, but they really aren't. We have facilitated this, it is totally our fault.

Growing up we always had separate meals to my parents, who ate later. We used to eat multi packs of pizza (those 10 for £1) and biege food whilst my parents had really nice meals. I remember begging like a dog at my mum's feet to taste her food - so I think I have issues with what I perceive to be 'inferior' food. I like the idea of chicken thighs and cheaper cuts, I really need to do something. Chippy I'm definitely not in a position to be paying £400+ for a weekly shop!

2 salmon fillets each is way too decadent.

And I'd say regarding the fancy peanut butter etc, why don't you just buy one a month and once it's gone it's gone till the next big shop. Rather than it always being there. You can have treats and nice food but not on tap constantly.

You need to educate them about food and budgeting... take them shopping.. teach them how to cook.. then give them cash and tell them they are making dinner for everyone and this is the budget... prepare them for life.. you are not doing them any favours..
And if you are shopping and cooking then they eat what is put in front of them!!
Gawd almighty!!