, news that sales of fresh vegetables and frozen foods are on the increase, with wonky vegetables up 38 per cent, indicates we're rethinking both what we eat and how we cook. The Waitrose Food and Drink Report 2022-23 reveals that customers are being savvier than ever when it comes to shopping on a budget, with 32 per cent looking out for special offers more than ever before. A quarter are economising by 'making shopping lists and sticking to them', 23 per cent are switching to supermarkets' own brands, and 21 per cent are making thrifty swaps, such as buying their veg loose instead of packaged. In my house I am the main cook, catering for a dairy-intolerant husband, a mildly fussy 13-year-old daughter and a hungry 18-year-old, just back from his first stint at university. I want to continue to cook the same type of meals we usually eat but as cheaply as possible. Can I do it on just £5 a day? As I write this it's half term and my daughter's not having lunch at school, so I will need to prepare three meals within the daily budget, including, ideally, a piece of fruit for after lunch and a thrifty treat. I don't usually plan our meals very far ahead and like to go with the flow, but a bulletproof menu plan is the only way to stay within budget and completely avoid waste. I do have some good habits already – I cook a lot and waste very little. However, I am easily swayed by a special offer that looks like a bargain but inevitably ends up in the freezer, which is now close to breaking point. Menu planning I spend some time on Saturday morning planning the week's meals. I start the menu on Sunday as the roast lunch will give me at least two other meals during the){kind=link}
I like to go with the flow, but a bulletproof plan is the only way to stay within budget and avoid waste. This was what was on my menu
With inflation at its highest level since 2008 and the average family’s grocery bill now exceeding £5,200 a year, we’re all looking at ways to reduce household costs. Alongside efforts to cut energy consumption (Argos sold 96 air fryers an hour in September; sales of Lakeland’s own-brand version nearly doubled), news that sales of fresh vegetables and frozen foods are on the increase, with wonky vegetables up 38 per cent, indicates we’re rethinking both what we eat and how we cook.
The Waitrose Food and Drink Report 2022-23 reveals that customers are being savvier than ever when it comes to shopping on a budget, with 32 per cent looking out for special offers more than ever before. A quarter are economising by “making shopping lists and sticking to them”, 23 per cent are switching to supermarkets’ own brands, and 21 per cent are making thrifty swaps, such as buying their veg loose instead of packaged.
In my house I am the main cook, catering for a dairy-intolerant husband, a mildly fussy 13-year-old daughter and a hungry 18-year-old, just back from his first stint at university. I want to continue to cook the same type of meals we usually eat but as cheaply as possible. Can I do it on just £5 a day? As I write this it’s half term and my daughter’s not having lunch at school, so I will need to prepare three meals within the daily budget, including, ideally, a piece of fruit for after lunch and a thrifty treat.
I don’t usually plan our meals very far ahead and like to go with the flow, but a bulletproof menu plan is the only way to stay within budget and completely avoid waste. I do have some good habits already – I cook a lot and waste very little. However, I am easily swayed by a special offer that looks like a bargain but inevitably ends up in the freezer, which is now close to breaking point.