Is anyone thinking of going vegetarian to save money?

[Appalonia]

I just did a Tesco order and the lamb steaks I used to order at the price of £4 are now £6.50. Am seriously thinking I could massively cut my shopping bill by not buying any meat. Is this a realistic way of saving money or is it just wishful thinking, as it might just work out as a few quid a month?

[LadyOfMisrule]

We've really cut down on meat for health and environmental reasons. I still buy mince and chicken, but cut it with a lot more vegetables and other fillers. I do a big roast quite often, but the meat element is very small, and it's padded out with Yorkshire puddings and stuffing, and loads of vegetables. I make curries and stir fries, but add nuts, seeds or paneer so that the protein element isn't entirely reliant on meat.

[Appalonia]

Yes I agree, go low meat is a good idea. I don't want to be vegetarian, just thinking of easy ways to cut costs as cost of living is going up and am worried it may soon skyrocket!

[OutlookStalking]

Following as we would like to eat more veggie. I find it hard to plan around other proteins.

To be fair our meat usually is cheapee - mince for lasagne / breaded chicken breasts...

[SarahAndQuack]

YY, totally normal. I only buy lamb when I'm feeling really flush (maybe 3-7 times a year, depending whether you include mince). I always tailor my meat-eating to finances as it makes such a difference.

My best tips are to go low-meat rather than no meat (so using meat as a a flavour rather than a main source of protein, eg. with chorizo in a stew with beans and peppers, or bacon bits on top of cauli cheese), and to buy lots of mince/sausages/burgers as these tend to be both relatively cheap, and frequently marked down.

[Seafog]

We are cutting down meat, in general, for a few reasons (cost/health/ethics) but not going full vegetarian.
We are doing a lot more vegetarian meals, really focusing on quality protein when we do have it.

[GeneLovesJezebel]

I halved my meat and bulked out with chick peas etc when we were short of money. I couldn’t quite give up the meat !