£8 budget

[Snoopdoggydo]

So I want your best ideas for cheap meals that aren’t miserable. £8 budget for 6 days worth of food (just for me). I have been slowly building up more seasonings and spices over the past few months adding one on each food shop so I should be ok there. I would rather have a better meal at tea time than have to factor in lunch. So skip breakfast and lunch!

This cold weather means comfort food suggestions only, I should be able to do 2 meals and split each across 3 days easily enough. So roughly £4 each meal, please share your ideas!

I admire your positive attitude to life OP. Do you have a separate budget for things like soap, deodorant, shampoo, conditioner, washing powder, bin bags etc?

Download the olio app. You can get free food that shops don’t sell. Mine is brilliant- you can pick up all sorts. Yesterday it was what was left over from school canteen - filled rolls and baguettes, fruit bakery items etc.

Op..... savoury mince and dumplings??? Beef/chicken casserole and dumplings??? Any extra can be turned into a pie or savory cobbler for later in week. Jacket potato with cheese and baked beans are my favorite comfort food in cold weather

I pressed post too soon. Just to mention that my local community pantry also runs a repair cafe, and offers clothes. They also do in local deliveries for people to who can't get there in person so it may be be worth you checking any nearby.

yourlocalpantry.co.uk

Sorry don't know how to do a link

I'm pretty sure M&S minced beef (I know!) is £2 something for 500
gms - 20% fat though! I always buy their minced beef.

Chickpea curry with veg (onions / carrots / celery / peppers - whatever you've got), mix of curry spices, tin toms, tin coconut milk.

Add some creamed coconut and a few gentle spices and you have cheap food of the gods (ottolengi recipe too so you can feel posh)

Do you have garlic and olive oil?

1 large onion, cut into wedges about 1 cm wide (30p)
1 red pepper (55p)
1 tin butter beans (59p)
Chorizo - about half a ring (ring £1.89)
Garlic (55p if you don't already have it)
Olive oil
Chicken thighs if you can afford them - if you put chicken thighs in, this is really good

Fry the onion until soft-ish then add chorizo cut into rounds about the thickness of pound coins. Add quite a lot of garlic (I would put 3-4 cloves, but depends how much you like). Cut the pepper to bits about 2-3cm square is (doesn't matter but don't cut too small).

Fry the chicken thighs if you are using them so that they are browned (I take the skin off). Cook for about 15 mins. You can miss this step if just having the chorizo.

Add butter beans and mix through so all covered in oil, garlic etc. and cook for 5 mins. If you have chicken thighs or want this to go further, put an extra tin of beans in and double the bang for your buck.

It's so easy and is always delicious.

A tray of chicken thighs and/or drumsticks is very cheap, 2.50 ish.

A ham shank is about £7 at the butchers may even be less. Big stock pot of soup with lentils, potatoes and veggies, it will last you days. Or you can freeze portions.

Down load the "Too Good to go" app a d see what food is available to you locally
Morrison's do one by us: £3.09 and usually included fruit / bread / veg - a good pan of veg soup & bread will last you a few days

Every week batch cook something. Eg week 1 chilli, 2, bolognaise, 3 curry, 4 lasagne, 5, bacon pasta etc etc .
Eat a portion and freeze the rest in 1 portion freezer bags. Let's you build up a base and gives lots of variety. A whole chicken is def your friend. Use the stock for soup, risotto etc.

Someone else may have said this but if you are making a chilli or spag bol, bulk out the mince with some lentils. It doesn’t matter which sort and most supermarkets do ready cooked ones but obviously much cheaper to buy uncooked and cook yourself. You can make your mince dishes go so much further.

Soup mix soup goes on for ever. Good if you can add a ham shank £2.50 round here. Soak the mix overnight and slow cook if you have one with shank. You could sweet talk the butcher to bone the shank as you say you don’t like bones but it does add flavour. I have The Paupers Cookbook from the Sixties and loan it out to those in straitened circs. It’s by Jocasta innes.

Sausage casserole

Fry off and onion and carrot in a casserole dish.
Fry a pack of sausages
Add tin of mixed beans and tin of chopped tomatoes
Into oven for 30-40 minutes

Serve with rice. 2 sausages per portion will last you 3-4 days.

@Duh Sainsburys, their cheap Stamford street range

I love beans on toast! One woman’s misery is another woman’s comfort food I guess!

Micro rice is expensive! Just buy some bog standard and cook it.

Omelettes could be a good shout?

Potatoes scallops and fried egg

Just again thank you everyone who contributed to this thread.
I am really looking forward to my tea tonight. The suggestions of spaghetti bolognese were too much to resist, I even managed to budget in some garlic bread!

oOoOO garlic bread ❤️ enjoy x

Bag of gram flour. Soup and homemade chapatis.. Could eat that every day..

Get those spices in some cheap soup op...