Will cutting down our meat eating to a few days a week and eating veggie meals the rest of the time really work out cheaper?

[truthisinthewine]

As the title says really, we eat meat with most (although not all) meals. I am trying to make an effort to put a bit more thought into our meals, cut down on the cost of shopping and get us eating a bit healthier.

So would eating vegetarian type meals for part of the week really work out cheaper...i.e buying more veg and less meat or will the cost of the extra veg even it out and make it about the same? Am on a tight budget so won't be buying organic stuff.

We eat meat about twice a week, usually mince and chicken. The rest of the week we eat things like

Mexican bean fajitas
Veggie soups
Hot salads
Eggs

so yes it should work out cheaper esp if you buy from Lidl or the market.

Def def cheaper.

We have omelettes, veggie based pasta type meals to replace meat ones. If DH would eat lentils I would do lentil bolognaises too.

Yes defo!
I dont buy meat because it is too expensive.
Dont buy organic either.

I buy chicken, mostly thighs and drummers because it is very cheep.

once a week i buy good quality mince.

no red meat.

bet you shave off £20-£30 a week off your shopping bill if you stop buying meat.

Try it for a week, see how you get on.

It depends what veggie things you substitute for the meat tbh,

Mostly you need to substitute some of the meat for another protin such as pulses, lentils, beans, or some sort of dairy product like cheese, or tvp or quorn.

Things like lentils and beans are pretty cheap, especially if you buy them dry and soak and cook them yourself.

I bulk-buy carrots and add them to everything, they are our staple vegetable as quite cheap and filling.

If you want to economise and eat more healthily, you want to increase the variety of carbohydrates you use, in particular by increasing your use of pulses, which are very cheap and nutritious.

We have ,

dalh and chickpea and spinch curry,
stir fry vegtables with noodles (dryed) about twice a week and then use the remaining vegtables let over in a spanish omeltte

So thats four meals

rissotto with peas

where do you get your mince sunburnt?

It's certainly cheaper.

A typical week in our household might be something like:

• baked lemon and thyme risotto with roasted asparagus and tomatoes (asparagus on special offer at two bunches for 3 pounds and still cheaper than meat);

• Greek-style butter beans with pitta bread and Greek salad

• lentil chilli and rice

• veggie sausages, mash and vege with onion gravy

• thai curry and rice

• homemade pesto pasta

We average at about 70 pounds a week I guess and could make it cheaper if I wasn't brand-fussy etc.

Oh and a huge pan of veggie soup, followed by crumble and custard is a v popular and cheap meal chez Janeite.

janeite (have you been to kos yet?) that risotto sounds lush can I have the recipe? I can make a basic risotto already but baked lemon and thyme sounds gorgeous!!

Going in Auguest.

Right: tis a Lesley Waters recipe and is fool-proof and gorgeous. She says use two lemons but I use just one, as the girls don't like it too lemony.

Make 2 pints of veggie stock (I use Marigold).

Gently fry a large, chopped onion in butter until softened but not coloured (I usually stick some garlic in too but the recipe doesn't call for it).
Stir in 12oz risotto rice and about two thirds of the stock.
Put in a shallow dish, cover with foil and stick in a 200c oven for 20 mins.
Take it out and turn the oven up to 220c.
Add the rest of the stock, the juice and zest of a lemon, a chopped bunch of thyme and some grated parmesan. Cook for another 12 mins, uncovered. Gobble up.

Will add that to next weeks menu plan. Thanks! Sounds lush.

Thanks everyone...definately going to give it a go....that risotto sounds fantastic will definatel give it a go.

Anyone else got any good tips or meals they want to share?

Baked potatoes with tuna/cheese/baked beans and salad is very filling and very cheap

We have garlic bread (with cheese for added protein) on a regular basis with veggie soups. Red lentil, sweet potato and carrot is yummy.

Big salads are great and cheap- we make one with tuna and boiled egg, and another yummy one with baked sweet potato and sweet nuts.

Plain old small brown or green lentils are great just with tomato etc and eaten with rice or pitta bread and salad. I fry celery, carrots, onions, garlic and any other veg I want to use up (courgettes, aubergine, fennel, whatever) in olive oil until softened and browning. Add a few large tomatoes chopped up small, and whatever herbs you like (thyme, oregano, parsley or a bay leaf all work well) and let the tomatoes go a bit mushy in the pan. Keep stirring. Top up with stock and boil hard for ten minutes then simmer (about 40 minutes) until the lentils are soft and the sauce has reduced. You can add a squeeze of tomato purée if you want. If not veggie, you can also add a slice or two of chopped bacon at the frying stage for extra flavour. I have never yet met a child who won't eat this. It is far nicer than the sum of its parts and v v v cheap, filling and healthy.

we have gone from eating meat most nights to now only once or twice per week and have shaved abotu a third off the weekly shopping bill