To think it’s actually hard to live off this for the rest of the month?!

[munnyya]

I have 350 to last me and dd (2) until 29th of august. This is for food and household essentials like washing tablets, dishwater tablets, shampoo etc only. I think this is incredibly difficult to do? Am I going wrong somewhere? I can’t understand how this is meant to last us until then.

Switch to aldi/lidl for shopping if you haven't already.
Don't be scared of trying own brand items, their dishwasher tablets are great for example and a fraction of the cost of branded ones. Same with washing tablets, a box of own brand powder would work out much cheaper (Aldi's/Asda is good)
Never buy ready prepped veg or fruit, for convenience frozen is cheaper and just as good for you.
Buying in bulk is usually cheaper too like a big pack of mince that will do 2+ meals that you can freeze in portions (will last 6 months in freezer), also you can bulk out meat with red lentils half and half.
If you're struggling to cook or find ideas I really like bbc good food website, or eat well for less (BBC or facebook page), or actually I get good ideas in the free magazines you get in Asda & Tesco each month - they usually have a 5 day meal planner or similar.
Meal planning is essential, and a shopping list, do it on the weekend for the week and then you only buy what you need and can do things like buy a whole chicken for Sunday then leftover cooked chicken in a stirfry or pasta on Monday (frozen veg and dried noodles for stirfry not the pre packed stuff!).
I spend about £100 a week on groceries for a family of 4 so definitely possible.

Perfect comment! Good food website will be your best friend! Those little dish do work out pricey compared!

It's not your fault that nobody taught you how to cook. But it would be great if you could teach yourself - or find somebody to teach you. You could ask a work colleague if they would show you some simple recipes?

Or you could use youtube. There is a man called ChefJackOvens who does simple teaching videos. Maybe just pick two of his recipes to start with. Buy the pans and ingredients that you need, then practice them until you get them right. Good luck!

Seems plenty to me, we spend that a month on two adults for everything and we eat well. It’s not like you need shampoo or laundry tablets every week surely? We meal plan, batch cook and use beans/veg to bulk out things like chilli or curries. There’s lots of instagram accounts where there are cheap meal ideas.

You can actually see some of the menu cards online - https://www.hellofresh.co.uk/recipes

This bangers and mash recipe - https://www.hellofresh.co.uk/recipes/quick-bangers-and-garlic-mash-665f1dcc90118509c3abf166 is easy. It obviously serves 4, but it's easy to halve the ingredients. I often can't be bothered with making the gravy as per their recipe unless I've got the box, so I've just got a tub of bisto in the cupboard.

Shop weekly instead of every day and you will save a fortune. For one person and a cat you could save yourself £150 a week, £600 a month &7200 a year.

Another example of the internet age and computers vs learning stuff at school that is actually useful. When I was at school (centuries ago) we had proper cookery lessons every week. We would take all the ingredients for a dish, prepare and cook it - boys and girls. Nowadays the emphasis seems to be on tech which is great to look for info but not so great if you're hungry.

People should really prioritise what is important in their lives. I often hear people moaning that they have no money but spend a fortune on mobile phones and the internet etc. You will probably argue that your NEED the internet to live but food is far more necessary.

Jamie Oliver did a £1 a portion series of recipes, available on line. When you go shopping take a list and stick to it. It is easy to get side tracked into buying stuff you don't need. Before you go, plan ahead and try to get a balance so you're not having the same sort of thing everyday. Pasta everyday for a week is a bit boring. Steer clear of ready meals as they are expensive for what they are, you are paying someone to make them for you, and they are over processed, so full of salt and other undesireables.

Frozen peas and beans are good value as you don't pay for the pods, they are frozen quickly so keep their nutrients and you only need to cook the amount you need. I often add frozen peas or broad beans to dishes as they bulk them up without adding too much to the cost.

With batch cooking eg stews, curries etc you can freeze portions easily in either plastic bags, there are loads of different ones in all supermarkets or for a more sustainable option use the click-lock type of containers (systema is the best because it is affordable but doesn't have the transferable nasties that some plastics do).

Don't buy named brands but instead use supermarket own brands, if you already do this try a cheaper supermarket. I always make a bee-line for the reduced and short dated sections wherever I shop. Dented tins are great because the contents are fine and the tin will be crushed for recycling anyway.

Stir frying is easy, favourite veg and protein of choice (I'm vegan so I use tofu). Dust the protein in flour, which you can season with (sea) salt and pepper (black is best) then fry in hot oil, you don't need a wok, a deepish saucepan will do, when browned I remove and then do the veg. Start with what takes longest eg onions, then peppers, courgettes, broccoli etc and add a sachet of your favourite stir fry sauce (very cheap and less hassle than making one). Put the protein back in to heat and serve with rice, instructions are always on packet. Tip for the veg, cut into similar sized pieces so they cook more evenly. This you can batch make and freeze but it is better to cook the rice fresh each time.

When you have made a few easy options you will become more confident and start experimenting with different ingredients. This is how all recipes evolved. Chicken Tikka Masala happened by accident in a curry house in Birmingham when a customer ordered a curry and I think they said it was too dry, so the owner added a tin of tomato soup, it was enjoyed by all who had it and hey presto a truly British curry was born. Puff pastry happened because the cook forgot to add the butter or and so added it after when rolling out the dough. When cooked, the butter left little air holes in the pastry thus creating flakey/puff pastry.

Don't be afraid to have a go. There are bound to be some simple ideas on line which you can then adapt as you get more confident. If you have never been taught something you can't be expected to magically know how to do it. You are not the only person who can't (or thinks they can't) cook, so get in the kitchen and rattle those pots and pans because you don't know what you can do till you try.

Excuses excuses
stop giving your child ready meals every day, you can’t afford it and it’s so unhealthy
go to the library and get some Annabel Karmel books - they are free
follow people on insta like yummylittlebelly and follow their recipes
try a new easy dish every day, like pasta w a bit of tuna and sweetcorn or an omelette

there are TONS of free resources to find to cook easy dishes without having to be Gordon Ramsay

@munnyya I won't judge you for not knowinghow to cook, but I do think it's time to take the time now. You will save so much if you cook yourself. Look up simple recipes eg pasta or traybakes.
And leftovers can go in plastic Ziplock bags in the freezer.
If you're just cooking for yourself and child, no-one will judge you... have a go!

OP take it one step at a time and don't panic, write down a list of food you and your daughter both like, go online to a few supermarkets and write down the cost of each item, this will give you a good idea of what you need to spend. Most supermarket websites also contain recipes including basic budget meals such as spag bol/shepherds pie etc.
Go to your local poundland or similar and buy some 'lock and lock' style containers for the leftovers or for sauces you may make such as a basic pasta sauce.
Don't forget the internet is your friend when it comes to food on a budget and there are hundreds of recipes and ideas out there. As others have also said, if you have the storage space buy certain things in bulk such as rice/pasta/potatoes and household cleaning stuff to like washing powder/loo rolls, budget stores such as Aldi/Lidl often win awards for their products proving they are as good as named brands.
Just stick to the basics if you are not a confident cook, it will get better the more you do it, lots of luck I'm sure you will be fine and you may even find you enjoy the cooking and I'm pretty sure cooking from scratch will be better for you and your daughter.
I know what it's like making ends meet once the bills are paid and there's not much left over, I'm sure you will be ok.

Go onto you tube for meals and prepping loads on there that’s how I gained confidence in cooking

start simple and work your way up

don’t buy the baby sauces as they are full of crap just make a sauce with no seasoning for baby and some for you

good luck now as I know it’ll be hard to start with

get powder/liquid not tablets for the machine, get the cheaper dishwasher tabs or wash up by hand ?

shampoo costs £1 you can't use more than a bottle a month?

It sounds like you are buying a lot go pre-prepared food which can end up being spenny.
buy the chicken and make the sauce and as other have said plan you meals.

Jamie Oliver had a really good series on cheap meals that I watched in Uni and i still use those recipes now. making a fish/chicken curry was made super simple with fresh ingredients.

Hello Fresh might be an idea if you aren't a confident cook at all. They are not cheap but for a few weeks it might be helpful and it might help you learn to cook. You can get a lot of discounts as a new member.

To start with I'd recommend The Roasting Tin series of books by Rukmina Iyer. Really simple, delicious, chuck it all in one pan and bung it in the oven recipes.

Similarly Diana Henry (my favourite cookery writer) has a book called From The Oven To The Table, with the same concept and an entire chapter of chicken thighs recipes which are ridiculously good.

@VeryHappyBunny

People should really prioritise what is important in their lives. I often hear people moaning that they have no money but spend a fortune on mobile phones and the internet etc. You will probably argue that your NEED the internet to live but food is far more necessary.

I think it's now obvious that a mobile phone and internet is indeed a genuine NEED. You can barely do anything without them.

BUT, the key here is to control the costs, like with anything. There's no NEED for a brand new iPhone every two years for £50-£75 per month. They last far longer, typically 5-6 years before the OS becomes obsolete and you start being limited as to what apps you can use. What people need to do is come off their contract at the end and go onto a Sim only contract (or PAYG) which means that they can continue to use the same phone for around a tenner or less for minutes/texts and internet! Unfortunately, too many people forget when the contract ends and carry on paying the full £50-£75 per month, effectively wasting £40-£65 per month!

Same with home broadband. Get the intro deals which look cheap but then don't notice when the initial period expires and their direct debit shoots up, instead of keeping control and either renegotiating a new cheaper contract or moving to a different provider.

It "can be" cheap to have a mobile phone and internet. There's no need to be paying £50-£100 p.m. for a mobile contract and home broadband. Just take control and change/negotiate at the end of the contract. And certainly don't upgrade your phone for the newest shiniest model just because you fancy something new when you're short of cash!

Don't be disheartened OP. There are plenty of really helpful suggestions on this thread and the snotty ones are snotty in general and not just towards you. There's no shame in not knowing something you've never been taught.

I didn't learn to cook as a young person, we mainly lived on ready meals and my mum was very harsh about anything I tried to help with which discouraged me. I'm not Nigella Lawson (whose mother incidentally taught her to cook) but I can do tasty basics now after teaching myself.

Have you got any friends/neighbours that might be willing to do some dishes with you? That could be quite fun. If not you can learn yourself, it just takes a bit of time to learn from google or recipe books. But it's worth it, if only so you can teach your child and they don't feel helpless too as an adult. I went out of my way to teach my kids basic things and they are both better than me now and accomplished cooks. So start your child young and get them chopping, pouring and stirring at an early age.

cheap pasta, tinned tomatoes, cheap frozen veg. value range shampoos etc.
It is absolutely doable. I've done it.

Its ok not to have confidence with cooking, but your not performing for anyone. there's no one but you and a baby, no one is there to pass judgement.

take it as the perfect opportunity to learn, necessity and good nutrition for you and baby.

Ignore the people who are criticising you. I bet these people have never lived below the breadline themselves. Their comments give it away.

Do you need to buy nappies for your toddler? They cost quite a bit too.

My advice is to try a food bank. I know that the one that I used to volunteer at gave ingredients for four basic meals (but no fresh) and the people who ran it gave a bit of advice on how to cook the food.

Other than that, pasta, cheap tin of tomatoes (ones with garlic/herbs in if you can find them) with a tin of tuna, or a couple of sausages would do a meal or maybe two. Baked potato and beans with a bit of cheese. I would also find out when your local supermarket reduces its prices. I know that my local Tesco had a freezer section - five items for £5 which included packs of sausages and pizza. The local Sainsburys reduced all their fresh stuff (including bread) to ridiculously low prices half an hour before closing.

A bit off the wall, but if you get really, really desperate, your local Sikh temple/community will provide you with cooked meals for free. It is part of their belief system apparently.

Good luck.

Like any contract, don't get sucked in for the long term. Make sure you can stop the contract at an early date and remember to cancel it. Otherwise it WILL cost more than normal shopping.

i watched that £1 portion with jamie oliver , it was so good!

a shame you can't get coley for 30-70p anymore :(

This. It's the best time to learn. And the best way of learning is by doing. Google is your friend. Google "quick, simple, cheap meals on a budget" and look at the recipes that come up.

Yes, 100% - I should have said that. It can be good for learning to cook and it isn't too bad when you have offers but at full price it wouldn't be a good option.

That's loads for an adult and child. I spend about that for myself and adult dd and we don't scrimp

Whereabouts do you live? If you're anywhere near me I will happily teach you some easy meals.