To ask for cheap, cheap food ideas

[redandpinkhearts]

£20 to feed family of four for a week!

Do your worst, MN!

Reduced counter
Veg chilli
Pasta with tomatoes
Jacket potato with beans
Home made pea and ham soup or potato and leek with cheap bread

Aldi 12pk sausages cut each one into 4 fry them off use 1/3 in a spaghetti and meatball style dish, 1/3 in pasta bake style dish and 1/3 in bbq sausage casserole.

Omelettes

Soup with crusty bread

Pancakes - kids think it's a treat

Brilliant - thanks!

My shopping list would be
Toast for breakfast £1 (two loaves)
3 bags pasta Pasta £1 (3 x 30p bags )
Tinned tomatoes and purée £2
Onions 50p
Tinned mixed beans £1
Chilli 50p
Rice £1
3 x Tinned sardines £1
Cheese £4
Baked beans £2
Potatoes £2
Milk £2
Bag stew veg £1
French stick 50p

Cheese and potato pie
Bean chilli and rice
Pasta with tomato sauce
Sardines on toast
Jacket beans and cheese
Pasta with sardines and tomato sauce
Veg soup with crusty bread

What do you have in the store cupboard in terms of basics? Avoid expensive meat and fish and stick to herbs/spices, tomatoes etc to enhance what you may already have.

Good suggestions above - reduced sections especially good after 7pm ish depending on the store (think 10p fruit and veg)

Check cupboards and fridge/freezer as you may already have the makings of some meals and bits you've forgotten about.

Think about nutritious filling basics like those from pp. Also possibly things like porridge, eggs, potatoes, that go a long way. Go virtually veggie for the week if you can make a big veg stew and reheat.

Aldi and Lidl can be significantly cheaper for fruit and veg if you can get to one

What do you have in your cupboard and freezer and fridge already? Have you tried jack munroes website? Cooking on a bootstrap

Go through your store cupboard (and freezer if you have one) list everything, and do a meal plan to use it up first. Post your list here for ideas about what to make with what you have available.

Porridge for breakfast is cheap and filling.

Put a plate of bread out with dinner, to help fill everyone up.
Add lentils or rice to any meat dishes to make them go further.

Easy:
Porridge for breakfast costs virtually nothing, a couple of big bunches of bananas are £2. So £3 for breakfast. £5 if you want to get a few litres of longlife milk with it.

For lunches make a few of loaves of bread (you do not need a bread maker), e.g. Recipe and top with creme cheese and tomatoes, peanut butter/jam, cheap ham - all easily within budget and big filling lunch.

For dinners:
Lentil Ragu (I double the recipe for a full week's dinners - ignore the less standard ingredients, it's nice without bay leaves and oregano/thyme/even garlic & cheese - I just get cheap veg at Aldi and a 1kg bag of red lentils at Tesco: Recipe - total cost around £5 for double the recipe incl cheapo spaghetti, but it's also nice on potatoes or just on it's own topped with cheese or other veggies on the side)

Jacket potato, beans and cheese
Whole chicken, wedges (from jacket potatoes) and frozen peas
Chicken (from the day before) in a sauce with rice
Spanish omelette, eggs, potato, potato, onion, peas
Tuna pasta bake

Add frozen garlic bread for a £1

These are great, cheers!

What have you got in already?

Nothing food wise, plenty of soap etc.

Liver and onions mashed potatoes, liver is so cheap

No rice or pasta? No potatoes or even frozen veg?
Any herbs and spices or baking stuff?

Does this need to include packed lunches?

Op do you have anyone you can go to for tea a few evenings ? If you were one of my friends or family I would have no issues having you over for tea a few evenings

pasta - 55p
Passatta - 45p
Chicken popcorn to mix in £1 currently in the party freezer food section
Add in any frozen or tinned veg if you have it in the house already.

Buy rice, bag of mixed frozen veg and fry together and the crack an egg in and until the egg is cooked (stir the whole time your frying because I learnt that the hard way)

Scrambled egg and toast with sussages (usually you can get an 8 pack for £1)

Uncooked egg noodles £1 a pack
Add frozen veg and whatever meat you have, bacon is nice in it and you can find packs of bacon for £1

Omelette just buy eggs and add in whatever you have, potatoes or veg in it will make it more filling, serve with bread and butter (my dh puts the omelette in like a sandwich the odd time her has omelettes) to make it more filling.

Follow 'feed your family for about £20 a week'. Has some great ideas and a website full of cheap recipes

Vegetable stew with whatever veg you have or can buy reduced. Red lentils are great for adding protein & thickening a soup or stew.

Pasta with tinned toms & a stock cube or salt & pepper with grated cheese

Rice with veg curry

Rice with bean chilli

Jacket potatoes with cheese & beans

Bread & butter added to a meal is cheap & fills you up.

Beans on toast or soup for lunches.

Home made soup with past their best veg, bought for pennies in the evenings
Pasta with cheese on top. Add tuna, sweet corn etc if you can to make a pasta bake
Baked potatoes and beans/cheese
Veggie casserole with tinned toms and packet dumpling mix
Try Home Bargains or B&M for cheap tins, noodles etc

Veg chilli is our go to recipe for a really cheap meal.

lentil spag
lentil shepherds pie
jacket pots

Try Jack Munro, Cooking on a bootstrap

Was just going to say read Jack Monroe! Absolutely brilliant. She started her blog when she had to feed herself and her son for £10 a week. Her books are really good too.

cookingonabootstrap.com