Your 10 versatile ingredients to feed a family on a budget.

[PardontheFrench]

As a family of five we are desperately trying to cut down on our shopping bills and minimise waste to save some money.

Over the last few months I’ve taken note of ingredients/foods that are fairly cheap but versatile and I can be creative with and the challenge has actually made me enjoy cooking again.

Id love to add a few more to my list so what is first 10 items in your shopping trolley that you know will go towards one of more dish of meal.

Here’s mine… with a sneaky extra 3 that are bit more spendy but are delicious

Greek yogurt (breakfast, snacks, muffins, flatbreads)

chick peas. (Curry, tajine, enchilada bulker, Humous, salad etc)

Lemon. salad dresser, cake flavourer, breakfast muffins, Mediterranean meat/dish marinade

Wraps. chicken salad wraps, enchiladas, quesadillas, fajitas, breakfast wraps

Quorn nuggets. Above chicken salad wraps, sweet and sour chicken, katsu chicken, with chips and beans.

Macaroni. Mac & Cheese, lunch pasta salad, soup bulker, pasta bake,

Avocado, breakfast with egg and bacon, salad, pasta, on wraps with leftover chicken and mozzarella.

Eggs. With everything!!!

Honey. on porridge, Asian dishes, to make hot honey as dressing, greek inspired dishes, salad dressings, cake topping etc.

Good sausages. breakfast, meatballs, in pasta, sausage casserole, bangers in mash,

pine nuts.
A couple of fresh herbs
A nice cheese, rotate feta, Buratta, etc,

Tasty cheese so using less. Learn to make flatbreads. Use spices to make things more tasty. Tinned beans & tomatoes are fairly cheap. Buy veg that is seasonal. Invest in a freezer so you can buy in bulk and freeze what you don't use.

Mine would be: lentils, carrots, celery, spinach, potatoes, leeks, mushrooms, eggs, tinned tomatoes and tinned tuna.

Eggs
Potatoes
Garlic
Onions
Carrots
Tinned tomatoes
Chicken thighs/legs
Flour
Yoghurt
Tinned tuna

Long grain rice

Home made stock

Pasta for soup eg orzo, conchigliette, orecchiette

Passata

Mushrooms, especially larger field type

Shortcrust pastry

Beans, butterbeans, cannellini, haricot, borlotti etc

Potatoes

Onions and garlic

Milk

Pasta

Tomatoes

Eggs

Potatoes

Beans

Bread

Chicken thighs

Frozen mixed veg

Mince

Soup

I'm surprised to see avocado, pinenuts and burrata on your list of economical foods!
Potatoes, onions, tinned tomatoes, eggs, pasta, chicken thighs, tinned tuna, cabbage, smoked bacon and basmati are things we always have in.

I always try to eat what is in season, its its generally much cheaper: http://www.eattheseasons.co.uk/
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Pork mince
Wraps
Strong cheddar
Carrots
Kidney beans
Tinned tuna
Tomatoes/pasata
Fusili or spaghetti
Long grain rice
For the whole family last item would be peppers preferably red but orange or yellow are OK. For me I'd pick mushrooms.

I'd also like to add a tikka paste or jar or pesto. Both are often used in multiple meals.

@JC03745 in my OP I did say I’d add 3 extra things that were a bit more spendy but make a nice difference to our meals, pine nuts and Buratta were within that 3 and avocados are “fairly” (again the word I used in my OP) cheap especially if you buy from Lidl/Aldis.

We also budget by not eating or ordering takeaways so I don’t give myself a hard time for a few nice extras for the weekend.

Hmm...

Milk
Flour
Butter
Eggs
Cheese
Pasta - spirals or penne
Potatoes
Brocolli
Pancetta (OK not healthy but tasty)
Blueberries (Expensive but could use frozen)

Breakfasts - choice of blueberry pancakes, cheese and brocolli muffins, egg on toast

Lunches and dinners - lots of frittata/quiche options, pasta options, macaroni cheese, cheese or egg sandwiches (using breadmaker to make bread), jacket potatoes, homemade gnocchi

Snacks would be blueberries or raw brocolli florets (to be fair only me and DS1 like raw brocolli)

(Some of my options aren't very quick to make but it's tricky using only 10 ingredients)

I'd add halloumi and/or feta to your list. Or paneer. I always have a block of one of these in the fridge for an emergency dinner or lunch.

Cous cous too - as long as you have stuff to flavour it with (harissa is my go to).

Pine nuts would come a long way down my list of essentials, but almonds (flaked or whole) can be very versatile.

Agree. Especially the lentils. So useful for bulking out and thickening sauces and casseroles. And delicious. All varieties.

My staples are:
Flour
Sugar
Milk
Eggs
Potatoes
Cream
Frozen peas
Dried beans/peas/lentils
Rice
Passata

I have an allotment and weekly fruit/veg box so these are the things I buy from the supermarket to make the most of whatever fruit and veg is seasonal.

Onions
Carrots
Potatoes
Eggs
Pasta
Butter
Cheese
Red lentils
Peanut butter
Bananas

3 spendy things would be

Bacon
Feta
Beef/ lamb

Cutting costs is much easier being veggie

Cauliflower is my most versatile ingredient

Whole wheat pasta, lidl sells big bags. Carbs should ideally be around 10% fibre.

Eggs

Rolled organic porridge oats (you don't want instant or those with glyphosate).

Frozen fruit and veg esp things like spinach (nothing added like salt)

Lentils etc. A slow cooker is good for beans.

Bags of seeds, lidl and poundland have them.

Bananas, apples

Whole milk and yogurt

Olive oil, cold pressed unrefined flaxseed oil (lidl)

Tomato paste and passata. Lidl passata is much nicer than their tinned tomatoes. Paste is the same everywhere except stay away from the sainsburys one, horrible!

Good luck !

Pasta, tinned tomatoes, cheese, onions, potatoes, frozen peas, frozen sausages, frozen chicken legs, baked beans, eggs.
Ideally some bread, butter, porridge, sugar and fruit could be added to that - but if not no one is going to die.

Big bag of carrots (about 0.55p for kg) - we use them in everything (bolognese, curry’s etc) or as a vegetable side. When they’re about to turn if there are any left I make a soup with them (add lentils or any other veg left in the fridge)

red lentils and cans of baked beans - again use to bulk out anything, put them in soups, make curry/chilli with them. Also baked beans great on a jacket potato, toast, potato waffles etc obviously.

chorizo and the packs of cooking bacon- a little bit goes a long way for flavour - in omelettes, quiches, on homemade pizzas, chucked in a bolognese/pasta sauce.

Sea salt
Pepper
Chilli
Garlic Powder
Onions
Potatoes
Tinned Tomatoes
Olive oil
Rice
GF pasta

Means that anything that's a good price/offer that's actually an offer and not a test for the numerically challenged can be bought in the knowledge you'll be able to do something with it.

If we put salt, pepper, chilli and garlic powder into a 'We've already got those' category and slip a box of chicken stock cubes in the cupboard with them, I'd add

Chickpeas
Small pot of yoghurt as I could make more with some milk
GF flour
Eggs

OP, Learn to bone a chicken leg. Four chicken legs are £2.50 in Tesco but once boned, they can be treated like chicken breasts and provide a good portion each.
Once cooked, the meat can be used in wraps & fajitas, pan fried, used in casseroles or curries. I pan-fry mine with garlic & lemon juice.

Spanish omelettes are inexpensive, healthy and filling.

Bottled black olives. Simmer with tinned tomatoes and fried garlic to make a filling sauce to go with wholemeal pasta.

Or make Putanesca sauce with anchovies. Simple & fabulous.

Buy packets of Asian branded spices. Check what you'll actually use but if you get chilli, cumin, coriander, turmeric, black pepper and frozen garlic and ginger it will cost under £10 for enough spices for around 10 to 20 meals and transform cheap ingredients like pulses into something tasty.

Also get block coconut, which is a quarter of the price of coconut milk and Mae Ploy Thai paste for quick and easy curries.

Pasta, tinned tomatoes, eggs, dried or canned beans, bacon cubes, even chorizo as you don't need to use much.

Look for meat joints on offer or that have been reduced and serve with carrots broccoli or sprouts in winter and roast potatoes for a simple roast that's not expensive to produce.

Red lentils, carrots, celery, tinned tomatoes. I cook them with cooked onions, garlic and some vegetable stock and whizz it up into gallons of soup. Eaten with whatever bread I find reduced at the end of the day.

We were in absolutely dire financial straits after my 5yo was born and he was practically raised on it- strong as an ox 🐂! I still make it now and it's a real favourite. A dash of lemon juice at the end makes it particularly delicious.

Onions
Celery
Carrots
Tinned tomatoes
Baked beans
Spaghetti 28p from Lidl
Potatoes
Rice
Whole large Chicken
Lidl Bread

Eggs
Lentils
Bananas
Plain yogurt
Carrots
Cucumber
Porridge oats
Seasonal veg
Herbs and spices
Olive oil
Root ginger (this and olive oil add lots of flavour and have lots of health benefits)