Hello there,
I read all your posts about the pantry challenge. I moved to UK over a month and a half and trying to stick with my food budget. From my past experience here how I get around with cutting corners. Back home there is a thing going on during recession, majority is trying to stick with 25.00 per week (per person)as people who are on Social Benefits because that how much they get per person. Well I am trying 25.00 for two of us. I am pleasantly surprised by discovering that food here is much cheaper.
When I have to start my pantry I don't count how much I spend, I just buy everything I need to create my meals. In total I think we spent 120.00 for the start-up, then I budget 25.00 per week for two of us, only for groceries. In my wallet I have 10.00 extra for items on sale to top up my pantry.
I love cooking and we eat healthy meals. I bought twice roasted chiken on sale for a 1.60 each and created two meals out of each chicken. One was: chicken legs and wings with salad and the breast I made enchiladas, not bad at all for a chicken for 1.60.
I will have to look into buying and roasting my own chicken. Do you recon is it cheaper?
I do make my weekly menus me to as it helps a lot. I love the markets for a pound I bough a bowl of potatoes and created a few meals: mashed potatoes, fries, baked potatoes, scalloped potatoes and soup.
Ladies if you make your weekly menus can you please post so others can get menu ideas.
Here is mine for the next week:
Monday
Fish fillet in the oven (form Iceland), crabcakes (made by me), mushy peas, fries and coleslaw.
Crabsticks from Iceland for only a pound, making my own crabcakes will last me for two meals, or one meal and the rest mixture I will use for my next meal by rolling in a fish fillet and bake in the oven with in a sauce.
Tuesday
Chicken, vegetables stir-fry on rice.
Wednesday
Enchiladas with green salad (lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, peppers, avocado, onion)
Thursday
Baked potatoes with minced meat, mushroom, onion, corn topping, and tuna topping for myself.
Friday
Meatloaf with spinach and mushroom in beetween with mashed potatoes, sote carrots and gravy.
Carrots again, a big bowl for a pound only, made carrot, curry soup; carrot, celery, raisin salad; roasted them; and still have a few left.
Saturday
Penne pasta with chicken strips, vegetables in rose sauce (cream cheese was on sale 90p for 400gr., so I have to use to make the rose sauce by adding milk and a bit of chopped tomatoes)
Sunday
Assorted grill:steak, sausage and chicken thigh with roasted carrots parsnip, onion and a couple potatoes.
If we out on Sundays the we have a good British fry-up or I spoil us with egg Benedict in the morning and in the evening a very light meal or just a salad.
In the mornings we have healthy cereal mixture with bananas. I buy muesli from Sainsburys for .59p for 1kg. mix with raisins and different cereals on sale, then store in a big container.
I always try to have homemade soup in the fridge to keep us going if we are really hungry.
Emergency snack is: tuna melt or sardines on slice of bread top with cheese then grilled, pate, cheese, carrot and celery sticks with dip.
That all on my side I hope it helps.
