Challenge - 7 days on a tight budget, what would you fix?

We're trying to cut our grocery bill as much as possible so we can play at Costco when we go to Newcastle on 1 August.

We do one big shop a week going to Lidl and Asda (ick, I know) or Tesco. We have a good butcher but he's a bit pricey. There are no decent green grocers that I know of.

We plan all our evening meals for 7 nights plus have things to hand for breakfasts (usually cereal or toast and yogurt) and lunches (soups or sandwiches or leftovers). This is for 2 adults and a toddler.

What would you fix for a super budget friendly week of meals?

 

Having lasagne tonight!  Super yummy and super cheap. 

Spaghetti and meatballs is also a favorite of ours. Most meals made with pasta are really cheap. 

Even pizza can be dead cheap if you make the dough yourself, make a sauce with a tin of chopped tomatoes, and a bit of cheese on top.  You can adjust what toppings you get to your budget. We usually do ham and pineapple.. because we always have ham for sandwiches and tinned pinapple is cheap too.

It sounds like you are already doing everything to cut your bill.  

What about the Student Menu for a week - Pot Noodles, beans on toast and Spag Bol!  

What about taking a trip to the supermarket, noting what's on offer and then going home and trying to arrange menus around that for 7 days?  Might be kind of fun!  Does Tesco online show you items by what's on offer?  That could inspire you.  

Or a Cupboard Clear-Out week.  You have to use everything in the cupboards and only supplement a few things.

What about the diet week?  Not good for a toddler, but I know I spend a lot less on groceries when I am in the midst of attempting to lose weight.  

Good Luck!  Enjoy the Costco binge!

Mince! Whenever I'm strapped I make everything with mince. LOL. Beef or turkey for burgers, lamb or pork for meatballs. That and whole chickens - breasts for a couple of meals and then all of the dark meat into curry!

Eggs are always a good cheap option. Frittatas or omlettes with veggies and cheese and a salad.

Lidl often have beautiful veg!
Their tomatoes, especially!

I always think that Flylady's rubber chicken plan is a great idea - 3 days you're eating chicken:

http://www.flylady.net/pages/FlyingLessons_ControlJournal8.asp

(am I going to have to revive the 'how far does your chicken stretch?' thread? )

There are a lot of good suggestions already (I totally agree with AnneR about the mince and kate_mate about eggs).  I'd add pork to the list of affordable (generally) meat (if you eat pork). Pulses might help out, but because it's summer, most people don't want a hearty bean soup.  But there are recipes out there which could be made from dried beans that would be great for summer (black bean burritos, homemade beans on toast).

With LC, if it weren't for mince we'd probably be broke.

(am I going to have to revive the 'how far does your chicken stretch?' thread? )

I think you should!
That was a good one...

lentils & couscous.

tragically boring, yes. but i love it.

Second the roast chicken idea, as well as the eggs

You can always make vegetarian chili mac, its prety cheap, beans, tinned tomatoes, etc- make a bean chili and add macaroni to it, basically

French toast

Pancakes

Omlettes

Fried Egg Sandwiches

Rice and beans

Roast chicken, coronation chicken/chicken salad sandwiches, shredded chicken with pasta and frozen veg mixed in with italian seasoning,  chicken and rice, chicken chili, etc

spaghetti and marinara sauce

campfire stew- stewing beef, frozen veg, tinned tomatoes, cooked in a crock pot

Any cut of meat that takes a long time stewing- like pot roast, that's pretty cheap and then you can make beef burritos, beef stroganof, etc  

lentils & couscous.

tragically boring, yes. but i love it.

One of our favorite dinners is lentil couscous with fried tofu and cooked broccoli on the side.  It's sooo yummy and cheap and makes good leftovers.

Eggs are always a good cheap option. Frittatas or omlettes with veggies and cheese and a salad.

I made a really easy, yummy, cheap frittata for dinner tonight.  Recipe here: http://www.1001recipe.com/recipes/food/chicken_and_vegetables_frittata/

Except I substituted ham for chicken.  You can use any type of meat really or you don't even need it.  We ate it with baked beans.

One of our favorite dinners is lentil couscous with fried tofu and cooked broccoli on the side.  It's sooo yummy and cheap and makes good leftovers.

Recipe?

Lidl often have beautiful veg!
Their tomatoes, especially!

Yes! We have 2 large ones further ripening in the window sill!

Thanks for the ideas folks... I know we have similar threads now and then but it's always nice to see some new ideas.

I make chilli in the slow cooker and add two cans of beans - pinto and red kidney - to bulk it out.

So, one night, chilli.

Then I get some shortcrust pastry and make wee pies using the chilli as filling.

Then we go jacket tatties with chilli and melted cheese on top.

It goes a LOOOONNNGGG way.