Do you cook based on the offers e.g super six/lidl?

whiteandlight

Does anyone else set up their meals around the special offers on veg? How has it worked? Is it worth it? We are tying to cut costs while improving our dinners both cots/health wise so I'm curious as to how it works for others

This week
Sweet potato 39c
Onion 39c
Red apple 39c
Tomato 39c aldi
Courgette 39c
Kale 39c

Mushroom 49c lidl
Lettuce 49c lidl
Tomato (Cheaper in aldi)
Kiwi 69c

With some research on recipes I'm looking at these thus far:
1. Sweet potato soup using a variation of
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/sweet-potato-and-ginger-soup-10000000522520/


2. Chicken and mushroom casserole with breadcrumbs. Mums recipe


I'd appreciate any help/advice/recipes to try. I've gotten much better at baking, time to tackle our meal times!
With the low cost of the offers I'm hoping to save!

Lovely Bloke

Sweet potato and Kale colcannon is lovely.

Animord

French Onion Soup?

To be honest the things that the multiples sell cheaply on those offers are cheap anyway. So for instance, your chicken and mushroom recipe - what are mushrooms normally? Say €1,20 and say you make four portions out of your recipes. You are only saving 70c ish. Obviously saving is saving but I think you'd be better off going to your butcher and getting whatever is on special there (I am assuming you are not vegetarian) and then looking for recipes based around your meat.

Or learning how to use cheaper cuts through long slow cooking and putting the other stuff with it. If you had say stewing beef, you will always use the mushrooms and onions with it.

Am I making sense?

whiteandlight

Yes and I do have a slow cooker, and buy the stuff on offer in the butchers. I just thought it might be a help in having a focus for the week as well as obviously saving a few cent.

homemadecider

Sit down on a Saturday and write out what you will have for every meal for the next 7 days. Include snacks.

Write out a shopping list for everything you need.

Then only buy what's on the list.

We do this every week and you should see our fridge on Fridays - it's almost bare. We don't waste anything and we keep costs right down.

whiteandlight

I know what I should do, it's probably motivation that's part of it! I loved baking/preserving for all of December because I had a focus-Christmas presents.

Anyways thanks for suggestions everyone. Today I made chicken and mushroom casserole with

Onions 20c
Tin of chickpeas ~1
Mushroom 49c
Some Cauliflower ~1
Condensed soup 70c
Left over cooked chicken from carcass ~2.50
Pasta 20c

Total cost worked out at about 6e and there's enough for at least 5 servings so happy out with that one!

Edit: Actually had more like 8 servings in it. A lot of food!

whiteandlight

Oh and picture (it was too much pasta, left a load on plate!)

Edit:wrong picture

Animord

Another thing you could do with some of those offers is buy lots of them and, if you have freezer space, blanch them and then freeze them. For instance tomatoes will freeze fine if they are skinned. You can't use them for salads but they are fine for cooking.

chinacup

Musicmental85 wrote: »

Does anyone else set up their meals around the special offers on veg? How has it worked? Is it worth it? We are tying to cut costs while improving our dinners both cots/health wise so I'm curious as to how it works for others

This week
Sweet potato 39c
Onion 39c
Red apple 39c
Tomato 39c aldi
Courgette 39c
Kale 39c

Mushroom 49c lidl
Lettuce 49c lidl
Tomato (Cheaper in aldi)
Kiwi 69c

With some research on recipes I'm looking at these thus far:
1. Sweet potato soup using a variation of
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/sweet-potato-and-ginger-soup-10000000522520/

2. Chicken and mushroom casserole with breadcrumbs. Mums recipe


I'd appreciate any help/advice/recipes to try. I've gotten much better at baking, time to tackle our meal times!
With the low cost of the offers I'm hoping to save!

Using the sweet potato, onion, tomato and kale you could make a curry? Fry the onion and tomato with some spices, boil sweet potato, drain, add fried mix to the pot with a pint of water + some veg stock.

Boil for 15mins /until reduced, add kale + some form of protein too (I use chickpeas in the last 5mins as I'm vegetarian but you can add meat before) until the kale is wilted and bobs your uncle.

Also if you have it- add garlic and ginger with the fried mix. For spices I use 1tsp each of turmeric, garam masala and chili for 4 people. Hope that's given you some ideas at least! Good luck

chinacup

homemadecider wrote: »

Sit down on a Saturday and write out what you will have for every meal for the next 7 days. Include snacks.

Write out a shopping list for everything you need.

Then only buy what's on the list.

We do this every week and you should see our fridge on Fridays - it's almost bare. We don't waste anything and we keep costs right down.

I do this too sometimes but it doesn't always work out exact if your on a budget e.g. the store doesn't have what u need or u have to buy what u need in a pack of 4 so your not really saving money in the end. Sometimes its easier to work around the deals and just freeze the rest. I guess its much of a muchness really though.

Op try the supercook website you can add in all your kitchen ingredients and it brings up 1000s of recipes using what you've entered pretty handy if your stuck for ideas.

whiteandlight

Thanks for the suggestions guys.

I made sweet potato soup earlier which was fab

2 large (they're massive) sweet potatoes
A couple of small leftover roosters
2 onions
2 cloves garlic
Chilli Powder
Salt/Pepper to taste

Gorgeous!

Toast4532

Generally I don't base my meals around what's on offer, I tend to go by what I actually need, but lately I've become more frugal and this week myself and my boyfriend decided to to bulk cooking (well we did the shopping, I did the cooking :pac:).

We spent about €80 between us and got a lot of stuff and will have enough food for the next few weeks.

I'll post the recipes and cost for everything I made and give the quantities I got from each recipe.

I made cottage pie, however I made a balls of it and its not nice (though will still be eaten). I normally use this recipe and get 10-12 servings from it.

I don't freeze the potatoes though I just freeze the mince mixture and cook potatoes when I'm having the pie.

Chicken and veg soup - Cost about €7 - I got almost 20 portions (some big, some small so it can be alternated between dinner and lunch).

2.5 packs of celery
Chicken thighs (€2 in Dunnes)
1 bag of carrots
3 handfuls pearl barley
1 bag baby potatoes
3 peppers
1 pack of tenderstem broccoli (don't usually use this but had it and it needed to be used up)
2-3 handfulls mushrooms
2-2.5 onions
4-5 garlic cloves
1/2 tea spoon of Chicken stock (I use this, a tub lasts for ages)

1) Chop everything and lightly fry onion and garlic in real butter for a minute until soft.
2) Add chicken and fry for another few minutes until lightly browns
3) Add rest of vegetable and pearl barely and add 1 pint of chicken stock and let simmer for 2-2.5 hours (until chicken is cooked)
4) Put it in the blender (you'll need to do it in batches)

After it is blended let it go cold and when it is cold you can divide it into portions and freeze it for up two three months.

You don't need to blend it, but I prefer it blended and by blending it I would get about 20-30 portions from it.

Its very filling so you won't eat a huge amount per serving.

Mushroom soup - Cost about €7 - 7 portions

I used this recipe. Have made it plenty of times and it never lets me down and it always devoured.

500g / 1lb 1oz mushrooms
90g / 3oz butter (see Cook's Notes above)
2 medium onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons plain flour
1 litre / 1.8 pints hot chicken stock (or vegetable stock for vegetarians) (3 stock cubes)
1 bay leaf
½ cup / 4 tablespoons single cream
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instead of onions I used a pack of shallots, three garlic cloves and one pint of chicken stock. I also used about 800g mushrooms to get more portions.

Also when I put the soup in the blender I put the cream in then and just blend it together. It freezes well and is very filling too.

Lamb stew - Cost about €13 - 8 portions

1lb diced lamb (to cut costs you could get other cuts of lamb and dice them yourself)
1 pack celery
1 pack carrots
3/4 bag baby potatoes
4-5 garlic cloves
2 onions
3 handfuls mushrooms
2-3 handful pearl barley
1 knorr beef stock pot (you could use a cube you wanted).
1-1.5 glasses port (optional) - I use this one and can get months out of a bottle

1) Put a drop of olive oil in a large saucepan and when its hot add garlic and onions when onions/garlic are soft add meat and brown it, then when its browned add the port in.

2) Add the rest of the veg and barley.

3) Add the boiling stock and let simmer for 2-3 hours and when its cooked let it cool and then divide into portions and freeze. Can be frozen for up to 3 months.

I got a bacon joint in Dunnes a few months ago and cut it into 5-6 pieces and sometimes I boil it for bacon and cabbage dinner or sometimes I will dice it up and use in a pasta dish.

I have some other recipes if anyone wants them I can post them Not all can be frozen, but they can be reheated for the following days lunch/dinner