Next week is the start of me knuckling down on keeping the shopping bill down.........

[FAQ]

and starting to meal plan etc again.

Problem is looking through all my old menu-plans they're mostly fancy smancy stuff I used to have to cook for exh (mostly meat) and while the DS's are still partial to a sausages and all the works (bacon, eggs, beans etc etc etc) and a nice roast chicken with trimmings they're also equally happy with baked beans or scrambled eggs on toast (as am I)

I need new ideas for easy simple, cheap recipes to cook them, , and have a slow cooker (which hasn't been used for about 2yrs )

I'm hoping to do an Asda shop near the weekend to be delivered next Monday (so 1st of September - new start of me planning again). I'm still doing baked bean lasagne, bacon and onion hotpot, sausages et all and mince with pasta (various variations depending on what I've got in the cupboards/fridge) but need new things.

Tell me what meals you cook on the cheap please

I did TraceyK's lentil soup tonight with cheese toast and boy did it go down a treat!

ahh yes soup recipes particularly welcome - I managed to find a few soup recipes that ex would find "filling" enough - but not many and I got bored of doing the same few - I found a space on the worktop for my bread maker making fresh bread to go with soup (don't make it as regular bread as we tend to go through more fresh bread than shop bought and when I worked it out 3yrs ago when we were totally skint I was spending more on baking bread for everyday use than I would have been buying it

I made soup for today from last nights roast chicken. wasn't bad for a first attempt.

I have also dropped down a brand level in some cases and that helps with the bill.

oh I already buy Asda smart price for most things - can't really get much cheaper than that

Need things that I can either freeze or make either a large or small portion of as I quite often never know until quite short notice if DP is going to get us a takeaway after I've put my DS's to bed, or bring steak or something round to cook for me...

chilli

Chicken risotto (using leftovers from roast)

Ditto chicken curry

lasagne (if you are mega skint you can use corned beef!)

Pasta and cheese for a cheap and quick meal

Home-made pizzas

Do you have a lidls or an aldi near you, FAQ? Their food is great quality and v. cheap too.

it's not so much the being skint - it's more the regular wasting of food and wanting to save for birthdays, Christmas, next years holiday etc.

I know I can cut my food bill down quite a bit - but stuck on the recipes

we have an aldi - other side of town - I do pop in when I'm over that way - but tbh I've never really seen anything that was particularly good value

stir fry?? bit of chicken, loads of veggies stir fried together & serve with noodles. I add a splash of soy sauce while stir frying to give a bit of flavour or you can buy sauce sachets for about 30p at Asda I think where all the rice & noodle shelves are.

they sell white fish fillets in the frozen department for around £1.66 and we usually get about 6 of so fillets in a bag which will do 3 meals, say a fish pie, fishcakes and then something experimental just to try it out

someone on mn suggested dahl when i was skint the other week & it's gone down a treat a few times since then although not sure my way is 100% the right way to do it but it looks like the pics on some cookery websites

make a shepherds pie rather than buy them? always tastier & can make for 3 of us cheaper than buy 2 in supermarket

bulk out your mince with red lentils whatever you have in mince add the same in lentils, no-one will notice and you will get twice the amount of lasagne for your money.
We also have carbonara [sp] as a yummy but skint meal. Beans on toast/in a baked potato is definitely an end of month money tight meal but yummy so no-one minds. Lamb shoulder is a good cheap cut for a long slow roast, I think the one I have in the oven now was a little over 4 quid and there would be plenty for 4 with mash. Chorizo stew - good for the slow cooker just add tinned toms, thyme and some veg and potatoes, if you have lots of mouths to feed or are just hungry add black eyed peas or chick peas.

I drove past a Lidl today. Is that a food supermarket and what else, if anything, does it sell?

ImnotMamaG, they sell food and all sorts of random 'stuff' in the middle aisles! they had tents and bbq's last time i was in our local one. ooh, almost forgot, cheap booze

Cheap meals we have:

Spaghetti Bolognese; rarely put meat in it, often do it with chopped tomatoes, lentils, frozen peas and any other veg you have hiding in the fridge. Not classic bolognese but it's good enough family fare IMO and if you chuck in tomato puree and some spices it's flavoursome.

Kedgeree: Pack of mackerel for a couple of quid, just add peas, boiled eggs and curry spice and bit of mayo...serve with rice

Cowboy Hotpot: Baked beans, chopped tomatoes, lentils and veg, topped with sliced potato and a bit of cheese

also do chicken and veg soup with leftover chicken bits/bones.

Hooked on shoulder of lamb. Half (around £3.50 in our local farm shop) does four of us easily (and we have huge appetites). Brown the lamb in a roasting tin in a bit of oil, take it out then saute chopped leeks, carrots, celery and whole cloves of garlic. Add a tin of tomatoes and some boiling water or stock, plonk the lamb on top and cover with foil. Stick it in a very low oven - I put it in about 8am and it's ready at 5 but can go longer without spoiling, just top up with water if it looks dry. Add a can or two of butter beans (or flageolet, cannelini etc) for the last 15 mins to bulk out. Any leftovers my kids love as a pasta sauce, thinned down with a bit of cream. Oooh, had it last night, want it again now.......