AIBU to be shocked by the cost of four pizzas and basics?

[Merryoldgoat]

Guess how much my shopping basket cost:

2 x margarita pizzas & 2 x pepperoni pizzas (supermarket brand - in a box tho, not the cheaper cellophane wrapped ones)
2 x tubes toothpaste (oral B)
2 x tubs Vicks Vapo-rub

I have been to the doctor and stopped at Co-op as I needed a few things missed off the weekly shop.

I started making my own pizza and omfg once I did I couldn't face buying pre-made ones again, just because of the cost. Even the cheapest, crappist shop pizza seems extortionate compared to homemade.

I know not everyone wants to make them or has time, i totally get that, but on those days I'd literally rather go without and just eat cereal or something because the shop prices seem SO steep for something that costs pennies to make at home and I just can't stomach it 🫢

So you're not alone. I dont know where the mark up goes (I mean, obviously I do: wages,.marketing, transport etc) but even the poshest flour, yeast and oil is cheaper and so I just can't 😆 I kind of hate that i camt face the proce of the convenience!

I never understand why people have branded over the counter medicines instead of the chemist's own brand.

I think that this may be an instance - and I don't wish to sound elitist at all here -where a little knowledge of the active constituents of drugs is useful but even if you don't, just ask the pharmacist if they've got it in the own brand.
They won't lie.

What Greek yoghurt pizza base?! I’d like to try that. My kids are autistic so I’m always trying to find ways to minimise the processed food where possible.

I needed Vaporub and there was no own brand in the coop. But I would be wary of an own brand because I don’t know if I it would be strong smelling. Buying something because you know it works is perfectly reasonable. I used an own brand one once and it had barely any menthol scent. It was like peppermint petroleum jelly.

Some people prefer certain formulations - I only like soluble paracetamol or co-codamol. Certain formulations are horrible and others aren’t. If I but Solpadrine or Panadol I know what I’m getting. The generics aren’t consistent across pharmacies.

It’s nothing to do with not understanding how to read medicine labels.

Part of it is people not knowing that there might be another alternative; but a lot who do know will still be heavily swayed by the advertising.

The same people who wouldn't consider Lidl ketchup instead of Heinz, because they think it might not taste as nice, will feel far more strongly when it comes to their health, and figure that it's not worth gambling with something as important as that.

Obviously, the active ingredient is exactly the same - as the pharmacist will advise if asked - and it has to pass the same rigorous safety standards; but people remember the adverts and know the name, so they tell themselves that it's better.

Even my MIL, who was a nurse for 40 years, will still only buy Panadol and Neurofen, as she believes they're just more effective than the generic ones.

• 125g self-raising flour (or roughly 8 heaped tablespoons)
• 125g plain full-fat Greek-style yogurt (or roughly 4 heaped tablespoons)
• 1 tsp baking powder

Tortillas also work great for quickness

Coop is expensive. I was going to guess £35 but changed to £40 when you said Co-op!

It's really worth avoiding buying from small convenience stores if you can, and being a bit flexible to take advantage of offers. I can get two margherita and two pepperoni pizzas (Pizza Express), two pots of Vicks and two tubes of Oral B Pro Expert for £23.50 from Ocado, and if I didn't care about the brands I'd be paying less again.

I buy Lurpak. I'm usually an own brand devotee but I've never found an alternative spreadable butter that tastes remotely as good.

£34

I don't use Greek yoghurt for pizza, but yeast is easy enough. 140 ml of water and a bit of sugar and a sachet of yeast,give it a stir, 220 g of strong flour, mix in a pinch of salt, pour in a scant tbspfl of olive oil and all the yeast mixture. Mix it and combine, will soon form a dough ball, knead for a bit (maybe 30 secs) put back in floured bowl in a supermarket bag, 3/4 hr later, take it out and knead it to knock down. Split in two equal halves; that's two pizzas. I put one half in the fridge in a large yoghurt tub. Flatten the pizza and make in the usual way.

co op are great for deals but otherwise it’s expensive. They did a deal not long ago, 2 pizzas and a tub of Ben and Jerry’s for £5. Bargain. Just don’t buy anything else when you’re in there getting your bargains 😂

And use the Trolley App too. Plus always check out Amazon as well.

Literally just equal quantities of self raising flour and greek yoghurt with a pinch of salt kneaded together to form a dough and rolled out into a pizza base. I prick it with a fork, bake it for 5 mins then add toppings and cook in the oven. It's a great dough for making any easy bread type products. You can roll out thin and dry fry in a pan for flatbreads or make into rolls and bake.

@RedToothBrushI do but no longer buy HP sauce as my family are happy with Daddies. Baked beans are M&S at 45p a tin. There are certain things I can’t get away substituting

Poundland or Boots for Sensodyne only. Poundland usually has 2 for £4 and Boots usually does £2.80 tubes on special.

Aldi beans are 40p and better than M&S ones imo

I was also gobsmacked to see how expensive sourdough bread is the other day. I make a loaf myself every week but it is a process that takes several days of thinking ahead and I forgot to feed my starter. £5 for a loaf!!

We went without bread.

Heh! I've kept a starter going since lockdown, so a couple of times a week keeps it in trim, you don't have to remember to keep on top of it.

Asda's own brand beans are good.

That's semi-randomly reminded me of the Baked Bean Wars of the late 90s (I forget which year exactly), when supermarkets tried to outdo each other with the cheapness of their beans.

I remember that Kwik Save No Frills beans went down to 3p a tin; but I seem to recall that there was another shop that had them at a penny (that may be a false memory, though). We students at the time took full advantage!

Yuka isn’t always accurate as they don’t assess how much of an ingredient is in something proportionally. So an item could have a teeny tiny miniscule bit of something that wouldn’t be in any quantity to impact health, but get a low rating.

Agree. Lots of people trust Yuka implicitly but we don't actually know how it comes to its rating. It was introduced to me as a rating for low UPF, but single-ingredient things like cream and tahini score very low.

I’d have said around £40

I only take notice of the additives. I know if I buy cheese it’s going to say it’s too fatty and mark it down. I’m trying to buy as few items with dodgy additives as possible. Also one item might be ok but it’s not just one, it’s numerous we’re consuming on a daily basis.