What's your average family grocery spend in Ireland?

[AgesAndAges]

I'm always interested in these threads but I find it's hard to equate UK spends to Irish as the prices vary.

We are a family of 2 adults and 3 small kids. I normally shop in Tesco though I've found they have gotten very expensive recently. Our shop was always €90-€120 before, but these days I'm finding it difficult to keep below €140. That covers all meals, school lunches, dh's lunch most days, toiletries and earning products. Oh and nappies wipes for the youngest.

Am I realistic to think I could do it for less? I cook from scratch most days and have a small repertoire of very cheap meals that I mix in with dearer ones. I'd like to be more frugal without scrimping.

I used to shop in Lidl but found it wasn't
too much cheaper than Tesco and I couldn't order online or do click and collect so switched to tesco for convenience. I sometimes shop in SV and find them the most expensive, but their produce is aways fantastic and they are the only company who deliver to our address so it's a toss up.

How much do other Irish families spend?

[BiddyPop]

Making meals cheaper (and better) -
My lasagna/bolognaise sauce is full of veg because I do big batches and it doesn't feel like faff to wash out the mini food processor when I need to dice 3/4 onions, so I also whizz up a few carrots, a large handful of mushrooms, a red pepper, perhaps half a courgette etc to add to the sauce. Family half know I do it, but ignore that it's chock full of veg they don't normally eat (I don't usually admit to the courgette as DD won't eat it - but loves it when she doesn't know).

Shepherd's pie meat mix also has a load of whizzed up veg, but I also add whole peas.

Chilli also has a load of veg in it in chunks - tomatoes, peppers, kidney beans etc - and we do a veggie version as well.

Veggie curries with a tin of chickpeas along with the other veg are great also.

Bulking out dishes with veg is often a lot cheaper than loads of meat.

I buy the own brand easicook rice and pasta normally - not the absolute basics version (SV basics pasta is 49c for 500g, but their own brand pasta is 99c for 1kg - a difference of 1c if buying 1kg in total).

I tend to buy a lot of cheese and we like stronger mature cheddar - but Kilmeadan often has offers of the small block for €2 including the mature and extra mature, so I stock up with the offer as it lasts weeks/months in the fridge.

M&S do packs of individually wrapped chicken breasts, which are really handy for the freezer. But I also buy trays of freerange chicken breasts and boned thighs, and chop/freeze them myself.

Lidl's double packs of bacon lardons are great! They last ages as well in the fridge, and 1 pack is enough to fry and add to lots of fried mushrooms and an onion, dash of cream and some grated parmesan - or a jar of tomato sauce (or HM tom sauce), for a dinner with pasta. Or to add (already cooked) to other veg and leftover chunks of potato with eggs for a substantial Spanish omelette.

The various 49c veg offers usually have at least 1 useful thing in them. I always have carrots and mushrooms and a couple of peppers in the fridge. If I have summery veg (peppers, courgette, mushrooms, onion, garlic etc) that are starting to need to be used, I will dice them together and roast them, and freeze them to use in a plain tomato sauce, maybe with some bacon bits, chopped up sausages or some chicken or prawns from the freezer with some pasta.

I also have things like curry pastes and other marinades to put over meat when I take it out to defrost (night before or early morning), and give lots of flavour to cook later.

And I freeze bits of things leftover - so if there are a few small slices of pork left from a roast, I will use those along with some prawns and a bit of chicken and lots of veg for a Chinese stirfry. Or a half portion of a sauce from dinner might be enough for a lunch at work another day or a snack when someone comes in starving to keep them going until dinner. It's not always just about freezing a whole dinner-sized portion. I have also found that freezing dinner-sized amounts in single person portions have been useful for allowing us to juggle nights when there are only 1 or 2 at home rather than all 3, or to have different things (a chicken, a lamb and a veggie curry - maybe all on the table like a takeaway, or maybe each person wants a different one - but everyone having rice).

[mawi]

I actually used to think Dunnes was the most expensive but I keep trying their own brand stuff until I found what we like and what we didn't. We were so broke a few years ago SVdP for a few consecutive weeks gave us vouchers for our shopping and they were for Dunnes. I used to alternate between Tesco and Lidl.

I very rarely buy brand name anything. This week they had potatoes on special for 0.49c so I bought 4 bags and our meal plan changed slightly to accommodate them. The first thing I do is fruit and veg deals, then over to the reduced meat section. I usually do end up in Aldi after as I love fruit and veg but refuse to pay €3 for a bag of oranges when I can get them in Aldi for less than half.

Dunnes own brand cereal is not nice but will eat any other stores own brand so we do not buy cereal there as I am not paying for branded.

Once a month I go to Tesco and buy a few bits from there that I prefer. I use their teabags, 160 for €1.78. I have food allergies so buy their free from range (my favourite from all the stores) for the freezer and their free from pasta. That costs me about €10/15 a month.

I rarely use a jar of sauce but always have a few in for Dds if we are not in. I try to cook from scratch as much as possible. I make/bake jammy oat bars, cookies, tea brack and scones. We don't buy any biscuits.

We only use 1 loaf of bread a week and usually not even the whole loaf so we now take 4 slices and freeze them and then every few weeks we don't have to buy a loaf. I use a lot of websites to help me stretch the ingredients I have as much as possible, I use a slow cooker at least twice a week in the winter and I use up veg at the end of the week for soup.

I buy stuff on special offer and freeze them and once a week I tidy my freezer to see what I have before I go shopping and always buy for 8 days instead of 7 so we always have extra for them weeks when we are tight or need to get washing powder or the car breaks down.

We had a few month about 5 years back where we had €30 a week max for shopping and it seriously refocused me on how to eat frugally but healthy.

[AgesAndAges]

Thanks ladies some great helpful tips 👍

Buddy I totally understand the need for more convenience stuff when your busy, and it really does add to the bill doesn't it? I used to bulk stuff out with red lentils, must start doing that again.

Mawi do you mind me asking how you get away with only 1 loaf of bread a week? Everyone's a white carb fiend here so we go through truckloads of bread/wraps/bagels/baps. What do your dds eat for lunch? I have a breadmaker which I love, but I don't use it half as often as I should 🙈

[AgesAndAges]

So this is the receipt from last week's shop, it totalled €147. This is the meal plan I had:

Roast chicken/roast potatoes/peas/stuffing
Sausage casserole/couscous
Sausage/mash/peas
Frozen fish/mash/beans
Chicken casserole
Beef stew
Broad bean pasta

I had some ingredients already and doubled up on the stewing beef as it was on offer and I figured I'll use it next week too.

For lunches, the older kids take a wrap with fruits, and then crackers and veg sticks for their break and the toddler takes a wrap and then has some pasta or beans on toast when she gets home. I normally have a sandwich/salad/soup/baked potato.

DH normally takes a sandwich and soup or a ready meal. I know the prepacked soups and ready meals are something that pushes the bill up, but it's a trade off between that or buying an expensive cafe/deli lunch. The irony is that we have a soup maker and I've offered to make him homemade soup that he can take in a sistema cup but he prefers the supermarket one

[mawi]

We used to eat about 3 loaves a week but we cut it down greatly by firstly switching to brown bread and the DC didn't like that as much so started eating different things for their lunch and dh now hates white bread, he says it bloats him too much and I have a few food allergies so I don't eat it at all.

For lunch Dd1 has a wrap with ham, cheese and chorizo or tuna and cheese, a packet of dippers, a yoghurt drink and water. She has texture issues so unfortunately no fruit. Dd2 has 2 sausage rolls (cold), dippers, a fruit smoothie and 2 different kinds of fruit usually grapes and orange but sometimes strawberries or pear or apple. Just depends really on what I pick up. Her smoothie is made with banana, pear, frozen berries and orange juice.

I did my shopping this week on Tuesday, spent €45 in Dunnes and €11 in Aldi.
My meal plan for the week is
Tuesday Roast chicken and ham dinner
Wednesday Chicken and ham risotto
Thursday Stew
Friday Freezer dinner because it's being a busy one and I knew it was going to be so bung it in the oven and wait for it to ding just.
Saturday Sweet potato and hake
Sunday Lasagne
Monday Chicken curry

[chartreuse]

I spend a lot on fruit and veggies, at least a third of the total of every shop I do is F&V. I haven't had good luck with Aldi or Lidl in this regard but I find Tesco pretty good, and SV has great F&V but it is noticeably more expensive than Tesco.

Our local dunnes had a makeover recently and is amazing, it's like one of those Paris food halls, it's almost a treat to shop there. Anything we have tried, esp from their luxury range has been very good, M&S level.

I meal plan, but I have 3 vegetarians and 3 carnivores to cook for so usually cook 2 separate dinners 😩

[LaurieMarlow]

I hate Dunnes too. It actively annoys me to have to go there. And I can’t think of any reason why I’d darken the door of SuperValu.

I spend about 80 euro a week in Lidl. 2 adults, 2 small kids. Then about another 80 euro a month in Tesco, though ideally that’d be the Tesco in Newry as its much better.

That doesn’t include alcohol though, which we buy separately. And I’d pick up bits in M&S/Fallon & Byrne occasionally too. Vast majority of cooking is done from scratch.

[LaurieMarlow]

Our local dunnes had a makeover recently and is amazing, it's like one of those Paris food halls, it's almost a treat to shop there. Anything we have tried, esp from their luxury range has been very good, M&S level.

I must say I disagree strongly with this.

Post make over Dunnes looks good, but the quality isn’t there IMO. Classic fur coat and no knickers. I just feel more ripped off than usual.

The only exception is the Sheridan’s counter, which I do appreciate.

[SunnivaGunne]

2 adults, 1 child, 1 teen and a dog here. I spend €60 in Aldi every week then top up to about another €40 during the week in whichever shop I land. We don't eat a lot of meat, maybe once or twice a week. So usually €100 a week. If I shop in Dunnes or Tesco I only buy special offers. I could survive with only Aldi quite happily.

I was in France and Spain recently and found France similar in price (apart from wine and fruit which was cheaper in France) and Spain was generally (though not always) cheaper. They were both cheaper to eat out and for alcohol.

[SunnivaGunne]

LaurieMarlow in my town Super Valu is the ONLY one that consistently and generously supports local charities and projects. That's why I would try to buy some things there though they are more expensive, they are certainly not M&S (who do not support the locals In that way) expensive.

[LaurieMarlow]

Actually M&S do a lot more charity stuff in Ireland than you’d think.

They’re hopeless at publicising it though. I have friends who work in the area, which is the only reason why I know.

I’m in Dublin, so admittedly have a lot of choice. But from a shopping POV there’s nothing that SV offers me particularly. My mum used to love the SV break offers. Do they still do those?

[DuchessDumbarton]

Brilliant useful thread.
Family of 4 plus pets here.

Weekly shop in or around €50 which will be less by the time I've used a SV or Dunnes money off voucher.
Monthly/6weekly "big" shop delivered from Tesco or DV (depending on what voucher/ offer I have). That varies from €120 to €150ish.

Unfortunately we live very close to a SV and Aldi and petrol station, so regular "top ups" around €20 per week of "rubbish" choc & crisps.

Work has been hectic over the past 3months and I have been unwell, so meal planning has gone out the window a bit (no energy). Thanks to Biddypop I am inspired to get back on to it.

Normally have at least 5 frozen batch dinners in freezer for when things are busy.
DC also now of an age where they can throw together a fast dinner of pasta and a sauce.

Interesting comments about Dunnes....our local one is a bit of a trek to get to/awkward parking, so I don't go regularly. It's always a bit of a treat when I do.
Nice sauces, I find their cheese fab, and I love the €10 off €50 offer.

Our Dunnes seems to be good to support local food producers, so its easy to buy Irish (farming background, so it's a bugbear of mine......e.g. hate Chinese garlic, are we mad shipping it half way round the world?).

[CraicGalore]

Food quality is far superior in Ireland, without a doubt, especially meat & dairy produce.
I'm Irish and have lived in Ireland and the UK (and beyond) throughout adulthood. I genuinely don't understand this sentiment. Comparing Irish and British chicken bought in (say) Aldi, or cheese bought in Waitrose/SuperValu, and I can't taste or see the difference myself. When in the UK I tell my family they're eating Irish cheese - whether they are or not - and they always say they can tell

I do find eating out in Ireland much more expensive though, for similar places. I don't go to any chains by choice though.

[AnOojamaflip]

I'm with you on that CraicGalore. Irish food is better is a bit of conformation bias and jingoism.

Sometimes I feel it's because there's more shite food on offer in the UK, but still not sure that's true as I have to remember I don't actually do my weekly shop in the uk as o can't compare!! Also when I did live in the UK I didn't have a family.

I wouldn't to shocked to discover there's a higher percentage of lower-quality/chain restaurants in the uk though (frozen food/microwave type places). However, rscently I'm starting to feel the average standard of restaurants in Ireland is starting to go down (or I'm getting fussier!)

[Whoseagooddoggiethen]

Im spending far too much recently so one more top up shop tomorrow and my purse is going into hiding!
Going to meal plan from the freezer as its choc full atm and go from there.

[CraicGalore]

I agree with you @AnOojamaflip

The low point of the "chicken shop" of the South of England just doesn't exist in Ireland so on average the takeaway food may be better. But most of that low cost, reformed chicken comes from mainland Europe or Asian farms anyhow, so isn't relevant either way to the discussion.

But comparing like for like, I think the difference in taste is imaginary.

[Whoseagooddoggiethen]

My friend lives in the Uk and says you cannot get decent ham there. Or at least what you do get is very different to here? She also brings back rings of white pudding and bags of Tayto when she goes back! Maybe we just like Irish things so much that it seems always better to us

[Superlooper]

OP, can you post the first page of your receipt again, it's a bit blurred. Maybe put it over 2 pics. Can definitely see ways you can swap and save...e.g. toilet roll, handsoap, more own brand stuff. But am squinting at it!

[Superlooper]

SuperValu still do the getaway breaks, you just need a Real Rewards card for them I think, no need to collect points.

www.supervalugetawaybreaks.com/

[DublinBlowin]

2 adults and 3 children we probably spend about €220.

About €150 on the main Tesco weekly shop and then 2 top up shops of about €35 usually at SV or M&S.

I think Irish meat is better than the U.K. If I buy Irish steak from the supermarket it's always pretty good. In the U.K. I'd never buy supermarket steak.

[Apileofballyhoo]

But Dunnes (another Irish based supermarket) have either a five euro or ten euro discount on your next shop depending on whether you spend 25E or 50E first off. Don't know how they do it, unless they raise the prices of everything in store to compensate.

That's exactly how they do it! But I'm sneaky and only buy stuff there that is on offer. Find it way too expensive otherwise.

OP, I spend €100-120 for 2 adults, one child who eats more than either of the adults, and one small cat. We all eat gluten free so bread and flour are a little bit more expensive. I do nearly all my shopping in Aldi but I go to Supervalu for things that are the same price there so I get the points, specific brands we need, and they have sometimes got suitable veg or fruit in their super 7.

[Ballygowenwater]

This is a really interesting thread. Me and my toddler are moving home in a few weeks time and I’ve been trying to roughly budget to see how much I need to be earning.

I spend a lot of time in Ireland already and really rate Dunnes. The vouchers are fab and their own brand stuff is really good.

[Whoseagooddoggiethen]

It will depend what part of ireland and how much accomodation costs @ballygowenwater! Congrats on the move. Im sure we are lucky to be getting you

[Ballygowenwater]

Lol- not Dublin. Cos there’s not a Hope I could afford that as a single mum 😂

Mid-west

[Whoseagooddoggiethen]

Same as myself! In not too far out of Dublin but born and raised here and still work in dub etc. What made you decide on the move if you dont mind my asking?