# How to feed a family on a budget



## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

moneybox said:


> Correct, if it wasn't for the food banks in London, people would be starving.
> 
> https://www.trusselltrust.org/


I can't understand how anyone needs a food bank when welfare rates are relatively high. I feed 5 people with healthy home cooked meals for a shopping bill of €60 a week (that includes toiletries, washing detergent etc).


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## shweeney (6 Oct 2016)

Purple said:


> I feed 5 people with healthy home cooked meals for a shopping bill of €60 a week (that includes toiletries, washing detergent etc).



that's  impressively low - €12 per person per day including all toiletries, non-food items etc.  does that include booze (not for the kids obviously )?  You should do a post - "How to feed your family for €12 a day"


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## cremeegg (6 Oct 2016)

Purple said:


> I feed 5 people with healthy home cooked meals for a shopping bill of €60 a week (that includes toiletries, washing detergent etc).



That is €1.71 per person per day, ( not €12 as suggested by another poster).

Frankly I find that hard to believe. I would love to hear how it is possible.


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## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

cremeegg said:


> That is €1.71 per person per day, ( not €12 as suggested by another poster).
> 
> Frankly I find that hard to believe. I would love to hear how it is possible.



Some Examples;

Curry:  
Chicken Thigh                              2
Spices (roast and grind them)      0.5
Tin of tomatoes                           0.7
Lentils                                        0.3
Chickpeas                                   0.3
Onions                                        0.1
Frozen Cauliflower                       0.5
Rice                                           0.5
Total                                          4.9
Cost per person                        0.98

Bolognaise (ish)  
Mince                                          2
Tin of tomatoes (x2)                   1.4
Tomato Puree                            0.25
Lentils                                       0.3
Onions                                      0.15
Garlic                                        0.1
Aubergine                                  0.7
Cheese                                      0.25
Pasta                                        0.45
Total                                         5.6
Cost per person                         1.12

Roast Chicken  
Chicken                                      4
Onoins                                       0.1
Potatoes                                    1
Carrots                                      0.6
Turnip                                       0.7
Stock Cube                               0.25
Total                                        6.65
Cost per person                        1.33

The Chicken leftovers can make soup for lunch the next day.
Other Lunch: Leek and Potato Soup (Less than €2 for a large pot)
(Can't do the correct formatting)


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## moneybox (6 Oct 2016)

Your veg prices are really low, i.e. potatoes 1 euro, I have just paid  2.50 for a 2.5kilo bag. Are you buying them loose of something.


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## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

moneybox said:


> Your veg prices are really low, i.e. potatoes 1 euro, I have just paid  2.50 for a 2.5kilo bag. Are you buying them loose of something.


I buy a large bag and use some of them at a time. Same with carrots, onion etc.
I go to the discount section of the meat section in Lidl and try to get stuff that's near its use by date as it's 30% off.


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## moneybox (6 Oct 2016)

Purple said:


> I buy a large bag and use some of them at a time. Same with carrots, onion etc.
> I go to the discount section of the meat section in Lidl and try to get stuff that's near its use by date as it's 30% off.



You are marvellous for budgeting so well, few can do what you do. Two of us and our grocery bill nearly touches 80 to 100 every week.


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## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

moneybox said:


> You are marvellous for budgeting so well, few can do what you do. Two of us and our grocery bill nearly touches 80 to 100 every week.


Needs must; I took a 45% pay cut earlier this year.


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## TheBigShort (6 Oct 2016)

Purple said:


> Needs must; I took a 45% pay cut earlier this year.



Does this mean you think you should be in line for a tax hike on your income? You know, after that whole top 20% pay too much tax debacle?


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## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

TheBigShort said:


> Does this mean you think you should be in line for a tax hike on your income? You know, after that whole top 20% pay too much tax debacle?


It's not about me, it's about what's best for the country (the medium term interest of society as a whole). 
I'm not complaining, I'm still well paid but I've a lot of fixed overheads.


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## TheBigShort (6 Oct 2016)

Purple said:


> It's not about me, it's about what's best for the country (the medium term interest of society as a whole).
> I'm not complaining, I'm still well paid but I've a lot of fixed overheads.



So yes to a tax hike then if you are one of the 80% contributing to only 25% of total tax take?


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## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

TheBigShort said:


> So yes to a tax hike then if you are one of the 80% contributing to only 25% of total tax take?


Of course, fair is fair.


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## TheBigShort (6 Oct 2016)

Purple said:


> Of course, fair is fair.



Ha! Ha! You are a gas man! 
Instead of you getting a tax hike, why not high earners take a pay cut like you? Everyone wins, a fairer tax system and increased competitveness!


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## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

moneybox said:


> You are marvellous for budgeting so well, few can do what you do. Two of us and our grocery bill nearly touches 80 to 100 every week.


I buy whole spices. They last for years. A few minutes on a hot dry frying pan (Tablespoon of Coriander seeds, tablespoon of Cumin seeds, a Cardamon pod) and a blitz in a coffee/spice grinder (£18 on Amazon) and they are great. Add in a half tablespoon of turmeric and a teaspoon of chili powder and it's ready to go. I grow my own herbs so I've fresh coriander as well. Some Ginger and a the juice and zest of a lime if budget permits.


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## Firefly (6 Oct 2016)

TheBigShort said:


> Does this mean you think you should be in line for a tax hike on your income? You know, after that whole top 20% pay too much tax debacle?




You are assuming Purple is not in the top 20% even after his paycut


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## Firefly (6 Oct 2016)

Purple said:


> I buy whole spices. They last for years. A few minutes on a hot dry frying pan (Tablespoon of Coriander seeds, tablespoon of Cumin seeds, a Cardamon pod) and a blitz in a coffee/spice grinder (£18 on Amazon) and they are great. Add in a half tablespoon of turmeric and a teaspoon of chili powder and it's ready to go. I grow my own herbs so I've fresh coriander as well. Some Ginger and a the juice and zest of a lime if budget permits.



I don't believe you. You'll have to prove it


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## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

TheBigShort said:


> Ha! Ha! You are a gas man!
> Instead of you getting a tax hike, why not high earners take a pay cut like you? Everyone wins, a fairer tax system and increased competitveness!


I was one of the people who cut my pay. We lost a big customer earlier in the year due to the collapse in oil prices. The choice was cut pay and cut people on the shop floor or for all senior managers to take large pay cuts. The latter was fairer and more sustainable in the medium term. It's about fairness and the medium term interest of the company. We were the ones who weren't doing our jobs properly (i.e. anticipating what was, with hindsight, obviously going to happen)so we had to take the hit.
People here get paid what they are worth. No more and no less. That means some people on the shop floor are on €90,000 a year and some are on a little over the minimum wage. Nobody is on the minimum wage for very long though as if they are not increasing their value add to the company they will be thrown out.


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## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

Firefly said:


> You are assuming Purple is not in the top 20% even after his paycut


Good point


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## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

Firefly said:


> I don't believe you. You'll have to prove it


I've given you the recipe, are you looking for me to cook it for you?!


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## Firefly (6 Oct 2016)

Purple said:


> I've given you the recipe, are you looking for me to cook it for you?!



Exactly!


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## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

Firefly said:


> Exactly!


Freeloader!


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## TheBigShort (6 Oct 2016)

Firefly said:


> You are assuming Purple is not in the top 20% even after his paycut



Good point, didnt think of that. In that case he should get a tax cut.


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## Firefly (6 Oct 2016)

My real name is Johnny !


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## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

TheBigShort said:


> Good point, didnt think of that. In that case he should get a tax cut.


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## TheBigShort (6 Oct 2016)

Purple said:


> I was one of the people who cut my pay. We lost a big customer earlier in the year due to the collapse in oil prices. The choice was cut pay and cut people on the shop floor or for all senior managers to take large pay cuts. The latter was fairer and more sustainable in the medium term. It's about fairness and the medium term interest of the company. We were the ones who weren't doing our jobs properly (i.e. anticipating what was, with hindsight, obviously going to happen)so we had to take the hit.
> People here get paid what they are worth. No more and no less. That means some people on the shop floor are on €90,000 a year and some are on a little over the minimum wage. Nobody is on the minimum wage for very long though as if they are not increasing their value add to the company they will be thrown out.



Fair play to you. And many others lost their jobs or took pay cuts too. Added to that they also took on increased taxes. 
Thats why I would be opposed to further increases. Not because it doesn't have merit per se, but because the suggestion that any extra taxes would be used to provide tax relief for those on higher incomes.


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## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

TheBigShort said:


> Fair play to you. And many others lost their jobs or took pay cuts too. Added to that they also took on increased taxes.
> Thats why I would be opposed to further increases. Not because it doesn't have merit per se, but because the suggestion that any extra taxes would be used to provide tax relief for those on higher incomes.


Sure, but USC was introduced as an emergency tax and is punitive on higher earners. It is fundamentally unjust that the system is being changed so that those high earners are seeing no reduction in their marginal tax rates.


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## moneybox (6 Oct 2016)

Well I have never seen a thread go off track as much as this one


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## Firefly (6 Oct 2016)

moneybox said:


> Well I have never seen a thread go off track as much as this one



Are you going to offer anything meaningful to this thread? Another recipe maybe?


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## cremeegg (6 Oct 2016)

moneybox said:


> Well I have never seen a thread go off track as much as this one



I'm pretty sure some of these posters think they re in the  "*" *thread


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## Purple (6 Oct 2016)

cremeegg said:


> I'm pretty sure some of these posters think they re in the  "*" *thread


They all run into each other eventually.


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## TheBigShort (6 Oct 2016)

moneybox said:


> Well I have never seen a thread go off track as much as this one



At least its still about money. Another thread questioned my taste in movies and the attributable (or non-attributable) quotes of Mark Twain!


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## Firefly (10 Oct 2016)

Soup is such an obvious one. I keep the tips from brocolli in a bag in the freezer. Then sautee a chopped small potato and chopped onion in some butter for a fre mins then add in some chopped carrots & the brocolli tips & any other veg lying aroundand a stock cub and a simmer for 10 mins or so. Then I use my 6e Tesco hand blender and then I have some really good, healthy & cheap soup. I always make plenty and freeze in portions....just take it out the night before and soup at the ready.


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## mtk (10 Oct 2016)

More like 250 per week for three here all in .so about 12 per person per day. Cannot see how to knock much off and still eat well tbh


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## thedaddyman (10 Oct 2016)

I can never understand how people can spend so much money on food. Family of 4 here, €70 a week in Dunnes including toiliteries + a couple of small shops at the weekend for fresh bread etc and a tenner a week to the milkman. Overall, €100-€110 a week and that includes a bottle of wine. No pre-packed meals, cook everything fresh and lots of fruit and veg.


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## Boyd (10 Oct 2016)

GF and I budget E250 per month on groceries/toiletries (not alcohol) and we generally have some left over out of that. Similar to above, no pre-packaged food etc.


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## Firefly (10 Oct 2016)

mtk said:


> More like 250 per week for three here all in .so about 12 per person per day. Cannot see how to knock much off and still eat well tbh



Is that just for food?


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## Firefly (10 Oct 2016)

thedaddyman said:


> No pre-packed meals, cook everything fresh and lots of fruit and veg.



That's the trick.


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## Ceist Beag (10 Oct 2016)

We grow our own potatoes, beetroot, gherkins, berries, tomatoes, lettuce, and a few other bits. Tend not to need to buy jam any more, we're able to produce enough fruit ourselves (plus plenty more for eating fresh). Can make about 40-50 individual portions of soup from the tomatoes annually, chutneys from the beetroot, pickle the gherkins. Porridge most mornings which saves on expensive (and unsuitable) cereals. With all of that, we still average about €120/150 per week here (not all on food). We possibly could get down to €80 per week on food by sacrificing some things. Meat and fish are probably the biggest spend but that's a choice we make as we could buy cheaper cuts. Fair play though Purple, that's impressive budgeting ... and thanks for the tip on whole spices!


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## Purple (10 Oct 2016)

Ceist Beag said:


> Fair play though Purple, that's impressive budgeting ... and thanks for the tip on whole spices!


 Needs must. When the money was there I spent more, now that it isn't I don't because I can't. There's no point in whinging about it. Nobody owes me a living.

+1 on the porridge for breakfast, it's great. A teaspoon of jam works to sweeten and favour it.


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## Firefly (10 Oct 2016)

Purple said:


> +1 on the porridge for breakfast, it's great.



Every morning for me. A spoon of blueberries, a chopped banana and drizzle of honey and I'm good until lunchtime. Mon-Fri I make it in the microwave, but on Sat & Sun I go all out and cook it slowly on the hob.


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## Firefly (10 Oct 2016)

Pasta bakes are also cheap - I add a ton of cooked pasta to a dish, add a carton of cream, a tin of chopped tomatoes and a cup of grated cheese. Mix it around and bang it in the oven for 20 mins. Easy to re-heat leftovers the following day for lunch.


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## Purple (10 Oct 2016)

Lidl chorizo is great in a sauce for pasta. Fry it with some garlic and tomato puree and add a tin of tomatoes and some olives and you have a nice sauce.

Anchovies (one or two) in any stew or tomato sauce add great depth. Dried mushrooms (porcini or shiitake) also add a great meat flavour if you are going veggie or nearly veggie.


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## mtk (10 Oct 2016)

Firefly said:


> Is that just for food?


Includes Toiletries washing powder . Paper goods , etc etc( wine bottle a week  €12 say) Wife buys a good few organic type products  which may inflate number


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## Firefly (10 Oct 2016)

mtk said:


> Includes Toiletries washing powder . Paper goods , etc etc( wine bottle a week  €12 say) Wife buys a good few organic type products  which may inflate number



You had me worried there if that was just for food!


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## Firefly (10 Oct 2016)

Purple said:


> Lidl chorizo is great in a sauce for pasta. Fry it with some garlic and tomato puree and add a tin of tomatoes and some olives and you have a nice sauce.
> 
> Anchovies (one or two) in any stew or tomato sauce add great depth. Dried mushrooms (porcini or shiitake) also add a great meat flavour if you are going veggie or nearly veggie.



Think we have the recipe (see what I did there?) for an AAM cook off!


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## Ceist Beag (10 Oct 2016)

+1 on the chorizo Purple. Pancakes are another cheap but nutritious meal. A few eggs (and if you have your own hens all the better!), flour, milk, provides a meal for the family for a tiny cost. Drizzle with some honey = happy kids (to steal Gerry Canning syntax!).


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## Boyd (10 Oct 2016)

Firefly said:


> Every morning for me. A spoon of blueberries, a chopped banana and drizzle of honey and I'm good until lunchtime. Mon-Fri I make it in the microwave, but on Sat & Sun I go all out and cook it slowly on the hob.


Not a fan of porridge but I do make home-made muesli using quinoa, honey and dried fruit. Add berries on top, sorted for breakfast. 
Eggs scrambled in the microwave, served on bagel is a super quick/cheap breakfast as well.


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## Purple (10 Oct 2016)

Ceist Beag said:


> +1 on the chorizo Purple. Pancakes are another cheap but nutritious meal. A few eggs (and if you have your own hens all the better!), flour, milk, provides a meal for the family for a tiny cost. Drizzle with some honey = happy kids (to steal Gerry Canning syntax!).


 Add a little baking powder and caster sugar to the pancake mix and you have fluffy American style pancakes.


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## Firefly (10 Oct 2016)

username123 said:


> Not a fan of porridge but I do make home-made muesli using quinoa, honey and dried fruit. Add berries on top, sorted for breakfast.
> Eggs scrambled in the microwave, served on bagel is a super quick/cheap breakfast as well.



Mrs. Firefly makes homemade granola using Jumbo porridge oats. She adds God-know-what to it (seeds a whole lot of other things) and some maple syrup and it's good too.

I'm always amazed at the junk I regularly witness people put into trolleys and often saddened when I see over-weight kids next to over-weight parents with a trolley full of frozen food and fizzy drinks.


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## shweeney (10 Oct 2016)

Purple said:


> Curry:
> Chicken Thigh 2
> Spices (roast and grind them) 0.5
> Tin of tomatoes 0.7
> ...



how old are your kids Purple - my son would eat that much food on his own 

I still find it hard to believe you can manage on €60 per week - ~€5 per day for dinner leaves you €25 left per week for Breakfast, Lunch, Detergent, Loo Roll, Bread, Milk (2L a day is another tenner a week on it's own), Booze, Shampoo and all the other guff you need to keep the household running...


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## Purple (10 Oct 2016)

shweeney said:


> how old are your kids Purple - my son would eat that much food on his own
> 
> I still find it hard to believe you can manage on €60 per week - ~€5 per day for dinner leaves you €25 left per week for Breakfast, Lunch, Detergent, Loo Roll, Bread, Milk (2L a day is another tenner a week on it's own), Booze, Shampoo and all the other guff you need to keep the household running...


Kids are 18, 14, 13 and 7.
Bulk it up with lentils and give them lots of brown rice.
If your son eats 8 chicken thighs in one go you need to have a word with him ( and it's no wonder you spend so much on bog-roll )
Lentils and pulses can be bought dried in bulk. Very cheap way of doing it and they last forever.
Breakfast; Porridge. It's almost free it's so cheap.
Lunch; sandwiches, soup, that sort of thing. Soup is almost free as well.
Bulk buy loo rolls etc. Own brand shampoo and detergent. Same for bread and milk.
Booze is a luxury; If you can't afford it you can't have it.
If you can afford to smoke you are not poor.


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## Purple (10 Oct 2016)

If you really want to save money then make the same curry but leave out the chicken. Add a butternut Squash (cut into cubes and roasted in the over with a little olive oil first)  and strips of carrot (use a peeler to cut long thin strips, gives colour and great texture) instead.


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## Purple (10 Oct 2016)

Grow your own herbs. Great way of adding colour and flavour to dishes.


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## Purple (10 Oct 2016)

Great Takeaway replacement for kids/family;
Two or three packets of chicken wings (Lidl or Tesco) cost around €2 to €2.50 each.
Cut off the ends and then cut them in two at the joint. Toss them in seasoned flour and roast in the oven until they are very crispy. When done coat in Franks Hot Sauce. That and home made garlic bread and some home made potato wedges and you have a replacement for pizza type take away for under a tenner.


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## RichInSpirit (10 Oct 2016)

Great thread Purple. I might borrow some of your recipe ideas.


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## Monbretia (10 Oct 2016)

I think its the way the recipe is written Purple, I presume you mean €2 for the chicken thighs but when I looked first I thought you meant 2 chicken thighs for the whole family and I thought that was pretty small portions too!


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## Purple (10 Oct 2016)

RichInSpirit said:


> Great thread Purple. I might borrow some of your recipe ideas.


I got most of them from the TV, or they started that way and evolved, so they aren't really mine.


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## Leper (11 Oct 2016)

Purple's €60 shop per week for food and toiletries+ detergent.  Schoolbooks, clothes, transport, utilities, entertainment etc are in addition. It can be done and he has not hidden his shopping strategy.

But, the groceries bottom line is < €60 per week for a family.  Last Saturday, the lady in front of me at the check-out till spent €164.00 on one trip to Aldi.  In fairness, she nearly needed the Munster scrum to shove the trolley. The wine absorbed quite an amount of this along with the 3 pack pizzas, the discount burgers, large packs of crisps, bucket load of fizzy white lemonade and not even an angle grinder.  Her size spoke volumes (pun intended). But, I wonder how much of her €164.00 found its way to the bin uneaten.

Purple, you're rising in my estimation.


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## Firefly (11 Oct 2016)

Leper said:


> Last Saturday, the lady in front of me at the check-out till spent €164.00 on one trip to Aldi.....and not even an angle grinder.



LOL ! How much junk in my shed is as a result of an impulse buy at Aldi!!


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## Firefly (11 Oct 2016)

One of my best purchases is a slow cooker - cost me about 20 euro. For the past few weekends I've put in a kilo of Housekeeper's Cut (8.99 from Aldi) with  a glass of wine, a glass of beef stock and a few crushed cloves of garlic. Lob the whole lot in to the slow cooker and cook it on medium for about 7 hours. It literally falls apart. I make a gravy then from the juice - it's quite fatty so I put the juice into a jug and keep skimming the fat from the top. Then I make a quick roux and pour the juice in through a sieve and simmer for about 15 mins until it thickens. The meat will usually do us for dinner that day and easily lunch or a dinner for the kids the following night. Total cost is about a tenner. (Granted the wine technically would probably cost 2e for a glass, but I have a big stash under the stairs from my last trip to France!).


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## Purple (11 Oct 2016)

Leper said:


> Purple, you're rising in my estimation.


When you are at the bottom the only way is up!


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## PGF2016 (11 Oct 2016)

Firefly said:


> Every morning for me. A spoon of blueberries, a chopped banana and drizzle of honey and I'm good until lunchtime. Mon-Fri I make it in the microwave, but on Sat & Sun I go all out and cook it slowly on the hob.



Sounds good but I'd also throw in some ground almonds to ensure you get some protein.


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## Purple (11 Oct 2016)

PGF2016 said:


> Sounds good but I'd also throw in some ground almonds to ensure you get some protein.


Frozen berries are cheaper than fresh ones and they are better for you.


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## Purple (11 Oct 2016)

Firefly said:


> Pasta bakes are also cheap - I add a ton of cooked pasta to a dish, add a carton of cream, a tin of chopped tomatoes and a cup of grated cheese. Mix it around and bang it in the oven for 20 mins. Easy to re-heat leftovers the following day for lunch.


Add a tin of Tuna for a fish pasta bake! A little Dill and some Lemon juice is also good.


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## Purple (11 Oct 2016)

Leper said:


> Purple's €60 shop per week for food and toiletries+ detergent.  Schoolbooks, clothes, transport, utilities, entertainment etc are in addition. It can be done and he has not hidden his shopping strategy.
> 
> But, the groceries bottom line is < €60 per week for a family.  Last Saturday, the lady in front of me at the check-out till spent €164.00 on one trip to Aldi.  In fairness, she nearly needed the Munster scrum to shove the trolley. The wine absorbed quite an amount of this along with the 3 pack pizzas, the discount burgers, large packs of crisps, bucket load of fizzy white lemonade and not even an angle grinder.  Her size spoke volumes (pun intended). But, I wonder how much of her €164.00 found its way to the bin uneaten.


Don't buy any processed food.
Only by cheap cuts of meat (on special offer).
If there's a good offer then bulk buy and freeze.
Lots of protein in beans, lentils and pulses of various types.
Buy whatever veg is on special offer and buy lots of it.

Fried chickpeas are also a great snack. Cut up a few sun dried tomatoes (jars are cheap in Lidl) and fry with a drained jar of chickpeas (or dried ones you soaked and boiled), a scattering of cumin seeds, a few dried chili flakes and a little dried or fresh mint. Costs less than €1 and is full of protein.


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## steph26 (12 Dec 2016)

Purple said:


> Great Takeaway replacement for kids/family;
> Two or three packets of chicken wings (Lidl or Tesco) cost around €2 to €2.50 each.
> Cut off the ends and then cut them in two at the joint. Toss them in seasoned flour and roast in the oven until they are very crispy. When done coat in Franks Hot Sauce. That and home made garlic bread and some home made potato wedges and you have a replacement for pizza type take away for under a tenner.


purple if you had some Doritos around crush them up and use them as coating for chicken and bake for thirty minutes. it does give the chicken a bit of a crunch.


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## Lane One (15 Dec 2016)

Purple ,your inventive recipies are inspiring.Perhaps you might consider doing a regular slot on radio. I would be moving the dial to learn from you


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## Purple (15 Dec 2016)

Lane One said:


> Purple ,your inventive recipies are inspiring.Perhaps you might consider doing a regular slot on radio. I would be moving the dial to learn from you


Thanks, but all credit goes to TV chefs and Google.


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## Purple (27 Oct 2022)

Given the cost of living "crisis" I thought I'd resurrect this thread.


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## Harfang (27 Oct 2022)

I think trying to do more vegetarian days is the way to go. So much cheaper. When one is lucky enough to get a take away , indian especially , the veg options are cheaper and just as good.


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## Look ahead (27 Oct 2022)

The price of eggs now, I was shocked when I see 2.50 for half diz free range today.


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## VonHohenzollern (28 Oct 2022)

Vegetarian is cheap when done right and minimising waste. Tinned tomatoes and tinned beans and peas are a great component of any pasta or rice meal and can stay in the press for a very long time.

Also the use of spices cannot be overstated, a good spice base is what makes a good takeaway. If you start experimenting with spice then your interest in takeaways will decline.   

After that, I find burgers are a great meat centered meal that is very cheap to make.


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## Purple (28 Oct 2022)

VonHohenzollern said:


> Also the use of spices cannot be overstated, a good spice base is what makes a good takeaway.


Yep, there's a great shop opposite the Garda Station in Tallaght that sells spices and just about everything else cheap. They also have an excellent selection of rice. It's easy to feed a family of 4 for €10 a day.


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## Cervelo (28 Oct 2022)

Not necessarily "feeding a family on a budget" but I like to think that the way we shop for the two of us is fairly good price wise
We now do most of our shopping in Dunnes as we feel it's the best value compared to Lidl and Supervalu 
We don't shop per se to a budget but we do shop to the value of the vouchers we have, usually a €50 and €25
But where I do feel we make the difference is how we shop and the three main things we do are
1. we only buy what we are going to consume
We go into the supermarket with a list of what we need for the coming week or things that need to be replaced
We have very little wastage from our food I'd say 98 to 99% of what we but is consumed
we never spend more than a few cent over the voucher amount
2. we always look for the best value or use on the goods we consume
Quite often in a supermarket you will see items that are bigger in size or branded "Better Value" and you would naturally presume that that is the best value compared to the same item in a smaller size but you would be wrong
Two examples of this are Dunnes "Better Value" 18 Large Eggs is more expensive per egg then Dunnes 12 large Eggs and Sanex shower gel 570ml is more expensive per ml then the smaller 500ml 
We also don't buy chicken breasts anymore as we feel a whole chicken is better value and gives us more options on the meal front depending on how we use it
3. we always avail of special offers and bulk buy for storage
Once we have the weekly essentials done if there is any money left unused on the voucher we would go looking for deals on non perishable stuff
I can't remember the last time I paid full price for Sanex shower gel, Gillette shaving cream, Oral B toothpaste or tooth brushes, Listerine mouth wash to name a few. Those and lots of other non perishable foodstuffs are nearly always on special offer at least a couple of times a year


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## Harfang (28 Oct 2022)

I know there are fans of vouchers for this and that. Loyalty cards points etc. what a darn pain in the ass. I go to Aldi and just think I’ll be doing ok here. I got rid of all those loyalty cards. I wish supermarkets would do away with them. Of course they use them to gain stats and info on us and that’s worth a lot to them.


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## becky (28 Oct 2022)

Keep an eye on offers for sunscreens in Dunnes


Cervelo said:


> Not necessarily "feeding a family on a budget" but I like to think that the way we shop for the two of us is fairly good price wise
> We now do most of our shopping in Dunnes as we feel it's the best value compared to Lidl and Supervalu
> We don't shop per se to a budget but we do shop to the value of the vouchers we have, usually a €50 and €25
> But where I do feel we make the difference is how we shop and the three main things we do are
> ...


I got decent sunscreen in a posh dunnes, they have nice make up too. It was 25% off and with voucher I got a 36€ sunscreen for €22.

Worth looking at supplements too, if you take them.


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## Odea (29 Oct 2022)

Our shopping system is almost identical to Cervelo.  We also look at the "reduced" items section. Food coming up to it's sell by date.  Picked up a half priced chicken yesterday. Cooked it as soon as we got home.  A nice sandwich, a chicken stew, a chicken curry, a stir fry.....several meals from about €2.50.
We will also start picking up some of the Christmas extras when needing to make up the €25 spend with voucher. Also birthday cards, envelopes, light bulbs etc. in the non food aisle.


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## Cervelo (29 Oct 2022)

becky said:


> Keep an eye on offers for sunscreens in Dunnes
> 
> I got decent sunscreen in a posh dunnes, they have nice make up too. It was 25% off and with voucher I got a 36€ sunscreen for €22.
> 
> Worth looking at supplements too, if you take them.


Would agree with you there Becky Mrs C buys her bits a pieces there as well as it's nearly always cheaper than other places
The supplements are good value but unfortunately I use a brand that Dunnes don't stock but I get them in Boots on their 3 for 2 offer
I shop in Cornelscourt and generaly anything on sale south of the checkouts is included in the vouchers
Even the cd's, records, books and other household items if you still buy those items 



Odea said:


> We will also start picking up some of the Christmas extras when needing to make up the €25 spend with voucher.


Did this a couple of weeks ago when I saw tins of Chocolate Kimberly's were on offer, two tins for €20 after voucher €16
but unfortunately they didn't survive till Christmas, in fact I don't even think they lasted a week


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## becky (29 Oct 2022)

Odea said:


> Our shopping system is almost identical to Cervelo.  We also look at the "reduced" items section. Food coming up to it's sell by date.  Picked up a half priced chicken yesterday. Cooked it as soon as we got home.  A nice sandwich, a chicken stew, a chicken curry, a stir fry.....several meals from about €2.50.
> We will also start picking up some of the Christmas extras when needing to make up the €25 spend with voucher. Also birthday cards, envelopes, light bulbs etc. in the non food aisle.


I get cards, bulbs, envelopes in dealz. If I need to make up a € or 2, I but tin of tomatoes, a bag of lentils, the own brand jasmine rice in a pouch (its about 69c) etc.


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## ClubMan (29 Oct 2022)

becky said:


> Keep an eye on offers for sunscreens in Dunnes
> 
> I got decent sunscreen in a posh dunnes, they have nice make up too. It was 25% off and with voucher I got a 36€ sunscreen for €22.





> I get cards, bulbs, envelopes in dealz.


And you manage to get the family to eat that stuff?


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## Cervelo (29 Oct 2022)

ClubMan said:


> And you manage to get the family to eat that stuff?


You'd be surprised what a dollop of Helman's Mayonnaise can do 








						Hellman's Mayonnaise advert - Bob Carolgees
					

Bob Carolgees gets a gig without Spit The  Dog advertising Hellman's Mayonnaise on 1980s UK TV.




					youtu.be


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## becky (29 Oct 2022)

ClubMan said:


> And you manage to get the family to eat that stuff?


They have to be very hungry.


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## Groucho (30 Oct 2022)

becky said:


> They have to be very hungry.



I assume that you use the cheap sunscreen as an alternative to butter on their morning toast?


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