Is it me or are those Sainsbury's feed you family for a fiver..

[MoonIsATiredSlayer]

a pile of poo?

Maybe I am just really bad at cooking but everytime I try one that looks nice it ends up tasting disgusting meaning I have to go and get chips as there is nothing else to eat.

Also the fiver doesn't count all the 'other' stuff' that you are expected to have lying around.

what amazes me is that it is seen to be a major achievment if you feed your family for under a fiver.

i would say that i have to do this for 6 nights a week.

i find it odd as its not hard to make a meal for under a fiver anyway.

Agreed but I am very lacking in originality and thought I would try some different recipes without breaking the bank.

So its just me then?

When it was first launched, it was great for me as I'm not or wasn't very domesticated, now, although I still use them on occasion, I find I can do meals for under a fiver and have got some great recipes from here actually.

I have cooked several and they have all been well recieved.
Agree with other posts - who can afford to spend loads on meals????

Fine, I will go away and try harder.

Blimey, what are you all Delia Smiths in disguise??

I haven't tried the Sainsbury's meals for under a fiver, but I definitely struggle to cook evening meals for 4 of us that come in at under a fiver. We spend a small fortune on food- I cook from scratch- I just don't know where it goes. Tonight I'm doing pork casserole for tea tonight. The ingredients have cost me about £14. It will feed me, my H, my two children tonight and I will have enough to freeze for the children on another day.

I tried 2.

The Hot Cross pudding thing which was nice.

A chicken with cous-cous thing which was so rank, we went to KFC!

It depends on what kind of meal you want I think and where and how you do your shopping. My SIL gets a months + worth of meat from the meat van at a car boot sale and freezes it all, so lasts ages. We like things with potatoes or pasta and I find adding more veg and things means I can use less meat.....
For example, if I do meatballs, I do them with grated onion, carrot and whatever else is laying about, so can get more from the meat iyswim. Stews and casaroles are great too.

Fayrazzled me too, I am trying to save money and food is where it all gets spent so I thought I would try some diiferent but they aren't very nice.

I think I am not a good cook, I am OK with the standard stuff (spag bol, shepherds pie etc.) but anything else seems a bit of a let down unless you buy lovely expensive ingredients

£14 for a casserole? How?

The only one I do is the meatballs one, I do find the ingredients on their own a little bland, so I add my own spices (which I always have in the cupboard), tis a good economical meal and filling too.

We like this. Had to do it a couple of times before I mastered it and messed about with ingredients and things, but nice and cheap depending on what you use

what on eart do you put in a casserole that makes it £14?

im a rubbish cook but do mostly try to cook from scratch.its cheaper just not to feed the dc

I get a bit narked cos I don't have a lot of time to cook so when I try and it turns out rubbish I am mightly pissed off!

My lot love the pork noodels and the toad in the hole!

I've asked dp to buy me a slow cooker. I hear you can just chuck stuff in it and go out and leave it.............

yes but practise makes perfect.although before dd became veggie i tried cooking her salmon fishcakes and they looked and smelt foul-i never tried again.

Pork with apple and juniper berries but I won't be adding the juniper berries as the children will be eating it (from Tana Ramsay cookbook):

1kg pork (I got 900g cost £9.80- OK i got organic so it could be made a bit cheaper but I prefer to use organic)
500ml cider: £1.50
fresh rosemary: 0.75
2 bramley apples: (I got a bag so will make apple crumble with the rest but say .30)
creme fraiche: 0.65
baked potatoes to serve: 0.99

I don't think this is a hugely extravagant dish.

that is why im veggie!dh is only meat eater in the house and if he wants meat he buys it,it doesnt come out of the tight shopping budget.

Meat is ridiculously expensive these days if you try and buy organic or free range but my recipe range is so limited that to cut meat off the menu would be even more of a disaster!

I make the waitrose meatballs in tomato sauce recipe which is really nice, and often make the meatballs myself well just squish the mince into balls. If I'm feeling particularly creative I mix lamb mince and beef mince together.

I'm on a roll now...

I make a bolognaise with half mince and half lentils which is nice and then the following day add kidney beans and chill and have chill con carne

You add Chilli?? Uhoh!

A kilo of pork for four people is a lot IMO. Need 100 to 125 grams of protein per person was how I was taught (used to cook for lots of people in previous life)

Sarf can you pop some over to me as I have no dinner for tonight. It will be chips again otherwise