I keep hearing how so many families are in poverty and to be honest, it’s January so we all feel like we’re in poverty right now. Whether it’s a case of circumstances or you need to save some money, try this budget beautiful way of feeding the family for £35 a week. That’s £5 a day. This budget doesn’t include extras like clothes, cleaning products, pet food etc., so factor those into the weekly shop. I’m also going to give you menu ideas and what to do with the ingredients you’re going to buy. Don’t worry, they aren’t that complicated. If you have any of the items already, you save even more. I’ve made it for a standard family of two adults and two children. Prices correct at time of print (December 2019). I’ve researched the prices and products from Tesco, but you may be able to get cheaper from budget supermarkets (this post is not connected with Tesco in any way, it’s just where I do most of my shopping).
Shopping list (Tesco)
| Boswell Farms Beef Mince 500g 20% fat | £1.49 |
| Loose carrots x 6 | £0.36 |
| Growers harvest sweetcorn in salt water 325g | £0.35 |
| Willow farm Whole chicken x2 | £4.86 |
| Redmere farms white potato 2.5kg | £1.25 |
| H W Nevill’s Bread (Wholemeal or white) 800g x 3 | £1.18 |
| Stockwell & Co soft spread 500g | £0.69 |
| Tesco Bolognese pasta sauce 320g | £0.60 |
| Hearty food Co. Spaghetti pasta 500g | £0.20 |
| Baked potatoes loose x 4 | £1.20 |
| Stockwell & Co baked beans x 3 | £0.66 |
| 15 eggs | £1.19 |
| Cheese 460g (mild, mature or extra mature) | £2.30 |
| Grower’s harvest garden peas 900g | £0.62 |
| Corn flakes Cereal 750g | £0.75 |
| Red pepper | £0.45 |
| Creamfields apricot strawberry fromage frais 12 x 50g | £0.73 |
| Stockwell & co ready salted crisps 10 x 25g | £1.00 |
| Stockwell & co no added sugar double strength orange squash 750ml | £0.42 |
| Gala apples x 7 | £2.45 |
| Bananas x 7 | £1.05 |
| Sweet easy peeler clementines x 14 | £3.36 |
| 3 brown onions | £0.27 |
| 4 pints milk | £1.09 |
| Eastmans cooked ham 30 slices | £1.50 |
| Grower harvest long grain rice 1kg | £0.45 |
This total comes to £29.93, which leaves you a further £4.53 for treats or extra drinks for you. Here are the meal ideas to go with the shopping list:
Sunday: Roast chicken dinner
Monday: Chicken stir fry
Tuesday: Spaghetti Bolognese
Wednesday: Chicken soup
Thursday: Shepherd’s pie
Friday: Baked potatoes with cheese and beans
Saturday: Cheese and vegetable omelette
Breakfast will be cereal or toast with butter. Lunch will be a packed lunch style for all the family (apart from Sunday lunch) or leftovers if you have any. We are being frugal this month remember! I’ve included fruit, yoghurts, ham, cheese and eggs for sandwich variety. Drinks will be any tea and coffee you have, squash, water or milk. Remember, it’s just for a week, and if you’re cutting down on alcohol, desserts and chocolate, you may also lose a few pounds.
Pin it for later:
Sunday
Cook the two chickens as per instructions alongside roast potatoes, carrots, and peas or sweetcorn, whichever you prefer. Use 2-3 carrots so you will have some left for another meal. The idea is you will have leftover chicken for stir fry and a soup later in the week. You can make gravy out of the chicken cooking juice, water, 2 tbsp flour, and a teaspoon of marmite if you have any. Cook for a few minutes to thicken. Once cooked and after lunch, pick the chickens completely and save the cooked meat. Save in an airtight container in the fridge. Boil the carcasses in some water (cover the carcasses ¾ the way) for 30 minutes alongside any leftover veg and chicken cooking juices/gravy. Put the liquid stock through a sieve and keep for the soup. You can skim the fat off if you like and then freeze the stock. You’ll be using it on Wednesday. Tea can be leftover chicken feed (bubble and squeak), sandwiches, or cheese on toast.
Monday
Today is chicken stir fry day. Use some or all of the leftover chicken (depending on how much you have left), the rest of the sweetcorn, an onion and half the red pepper, sliced. Cook the rice as per instructions. Chop the onion and gently fry for 5 minutes. Once the rice is cooked, combine with the cooked onion and the chicken and vegetables. If you have any soy sauce, add it to the pan and stir to combine.
Tuesday
Spaghetti Bolognese today! It’s really easy too and you’re prepping for the shepherd’s pie at the same time. Brown the minced beef in a large frying pan over a low/medium heat. After a few minutes, the meat will start to brown and the fat will start coming out. You need very little or no fat to cook this mince. Once the fat comes out (it’s liquid, and looks oily), use a big spoon to scoop it out and pop it in a nearby pot. Keep going until most of it is scooped out. This will reduce the fat content of the meal and make it taste less oily. Add another of your carrots, finely chopped (or blended) to bulk it out, and add hidden veg. Then add the Bolognese sauce and stir through. Cook on a low heat for around 20-30 minutes, keeping an eye on it so it doesn’t dry out. If it starts drying, you can add a little water. Whilst the mince is cooking, cook the spaghetti as per instructions. Half the mincemeat mix and put half in the fridge in an airtight container. Serve the rest with spaghetti.
Wednesday
Get your stock out from the fridge or freezer. Chop up an onion and 2 carrots. Gently fry for 10-15 minutes. Stir in the chicken stock (approximately 1.4L), bring to the boil, cover then simmer for 10 minutes. If you have any other leftover chicken, add this to the soup, remove half the mixture and puree it with a blender. Tip the blended mixture back in the pan, add 200g of frozen peas, and season with salt and pepper and if you have any mixed herbs, thyme or oregano you can add a tbsp to the mix. Serve with bread and butter.
Thursday
Easy shepherd’s pie today. You’ve got the base already done with the bulked-out mincemeat. You can add some frozen peas to the mixture. Peel enough potatoes to serve the family, chop roughly and boil until soft. Mash the potatoes with a masher. Put the mince spread out in a large ovenproof dish and top with the mash. Run a fork over the mash and press down to make furrows. Place in a preheated oven at 180◦C for 15-20 minutes, until the mash is nicely browned.
Friday
Easy! Baked potatoes with beans and cheese. Five minutes each in the microwave and crisp up in the oven.
Saturday
You’ve got the other half of the pepper, the cheese you have left, an onion and the eggs. Chop the onion and pepper. Gently cook the onion for 5-10 minutes. Add the chopped pepper. Break up to 10 eggs into a bowl and season, whisk to combine with a fork or whisk. Pop the grill on to pre heat. Add the egg mixture and leave it for a few minutes to cook. Put the pan under the grill to brown the top of the egg.
I hope this helps you make your money go further, whether it’s January and money is tight, or any time of year you have a savings goal or need to pay off a big bill.
