To ask for your thrifty tips on keeping the food shop down

[savingsavvy]

Absolutely everything in the food shop has gone up and not just by 10% in some cases a lot more. The 20p here and 50p there is adding up and I'm keen to be as thrifty as I can to retain our current shopping budget without having to increase it too much.

I already intend to to the following but there must be more that you can share and we can all help each other:

Buying bigger/bulk packs such as pasta, toilet roll, where it's cheaper it buy a bigger pack

Stock up on non perishable items when I see them on special offer

Convert a bit of the fresh items to frozen and stock up on the freezer - tends to be cheaper and don't need to worry about things going out of date

Downgrade where possible, I've done this with bread so far and will try some of the cheaper butter/spreads

Over to you!

I don’t eat carbs so can’t fill up on cheaper rice, pasta and potatoes so I have made savings by switching to cheaper cuts of meat like chicken wings and brisket. I eat the cheaper veg like cabbage, onions and carrots.
I buy aldi cheap loo roll and cleaning stuff. I have switched back to soap powder and use half the recommended amount straight into the drum rather than using the draw and buy whatever is the cheapest which is usually Aldi’s own or Lidl’s own. I use Aldi’s own toothpaste, deodorant, mouthwash, shampoo and conditioner. I use bars of soap rather than shower gels. I don’t buy brand labels anymore for pretty much everything.

Never go shopping hungry (or thirsty).

Yes I find the same. Also can go back to it and change it / add or take things out.

I saw a program about Costco recently, apparently it’s not cheaper than supermarkets, they did a calculation and loo roll wasn’t as cheap as Asda or Lidl. The only tips I have is to brand down if you can and do online shopping with a list to save impulse buys.

Tins and frozen veg.

@Orangesandlemons77

What do you mean ocado is do ing a third off please

I put loads of stuff on subscribe and save on Amazon. Works out cheaper for the things I buy - and often, very much significantly cheaper as you're protected from price increases whilst subscribed

Cut out meat.
When you do cook with mince pad it out with red lentils.

Ooh clever!

Who gives a crap loo roll

I think this depends on where your local Costco is. We have one and it used to save us money, however Costco is 45mins away so with the cost of petrol we have currently decided it wouldn't save us any more when you add the extra driving

Fabric softener works exactly the same if you dilute it half and half with water. I keep a spare bottle and pour half the new bottle in and then fill both bottles back to the top with water.

I buy value tinned tomatoes and blend them down rather than buy passata, and add a little tomato purée if they’re not tomato-ey enough. I’ve also stopped adding onion and garlic to my tomato pasta sauces - I just use basil and tomatoes now and still tastes lovely.

I’ve gone a step further and stopped using it on most washes, no-one seems to have noticed!

I’ve gone a step further and stopped using it on most washes, no-one seems to have noticed!

I haven't used it for about 2 decades - waste of money and make gym clothing real of sweat
I use powder for washing and use about a third of what they suggest, clothes smell nice and air dried are fresh
£6 quid box of powder will last me 90 washes

loo roll I have found that all loo rolls have larger cardboard rolls inside and swapped to an online company that seemed to be much more expensive - but the loo rolls last twice as long

Sometimes larger cuts of meat work out cheaper as do several meals. Whole chicken, gammon joint, pork loin etc.

If you do anything with mince bulk out with lentils. Tastes better and no one notices. Works well in cottage pie or lasagna. Fill them full of additional veg. Frozen mixed veg bulks out a cottage pie brilliantly. Can get two days worth (2 adults and two kids) out of a fairly small packet of mince

Big packs of chicken thighs, rather than lots of little packs of chicken breasts. I prefer thigh meat anyway.

Is it who gives a crap?

Costco is not cheaper than lidl or aldi. But if you have storage and freezer space it can be worthwhile

@BaaCake - Does who gives a crap actually work out at better value? We bought a big box once and it did seem to last for a while (and I loved the pretty wrappers in the bathroom!) but I didn’t think I could justify carrying on as they were so much pricier than the supermarket ones

I thought it was just me that did that! It doesn't gunk up the drawer so much either.

You have to be choosy with the cheapo packs of toilet rolls. If you look closely you will find that they have a bigger inner cardboard roll in the middle and they wind it looser, so you're getting less bogroll for your money than if you bought the dearer one.

Switch to Aldi or Lidl , & top up elsewhere for all the things they don't do.

Buy cheap tinned tomatoes, & add a pinch of sugar if necessary.

Offal is still very cheap - can be about 50p pp for a good quantity of meat.

Does who gives a crap actually work out at better value?

I find we use half as many rolls per week

I'll find the code for you...

VOU9337918

This is for ocado, a third off, min spend £60, max reward £30 valid until 20/6/22