Lowest Amount Of Money You Have Ever Spent Per Week On Food

Supercell

I remember in my uni days having to survive one week on a a FIVER..and thats with NOTHING in the fridge and cuboards..a fiver..that was it..beans and toast for the week it was

In those days living on £20 - £30 was normal (for a poor student), wondering whats the lowest you have lived on /currently living on !

I'm currently saving for a mortgage deposit and having to really tighten the belt up on my spending and tbh have no idea what's doable these days and would like to set realistic goals.

So ..students and others saving up..what you reckon is a good weekly target to set for the food budget thats healthy!

MissRibena

I'm a lurker but I'm as tight as tuppence and bored at work, so thought I'd let you in on how I do my shopping. I bought my first house five years ago at 22 and went from buying tons of stuff I didn't need to not having a shilling in about 2 weeks. Now that I've gotten over the worst of it, I just can't seem to over-spend without thinking it's really wasteful and feeling guilty (don't worry, I'm working on it).

I spend about €30 on food for a week. That covers all meals and lunches I take to work, also food for my kitty and the odd bit of cleaning stuff. My boyf stays over at my house some weekends and then it might go up by €20 cos I buy all the stuff I think it's pointless to buy when it's just me; real coffee, chicken and veg to roast, salami, cheeses, bottle of vino etc.

The €30 (ish - sometimes it's €40) is mostly spent in Aldi. I buy the following staples; fruit (apples, oranges, bananas and a melon) and lettuce, scallions, toms, carrots/parsnips/leeks/onions, tins of tuna/tomatos/kidney beans/chickpeas, mince, chicken, tortillas, breakfast bars, cereals, yoghurts (fromage frais & low fat bio), dried apricots, lemons & limes, milk, bottled water. Sometimes I buy bread rolls, sliced chicken, pizza, oven chips and other miscellaneous processed stuff but I usually try and stay away. And of course, I have to buy flour, oil, spices etc every now and then. Even so, a
"luxury" week (incl feeding himself at the weekend) would still not go over €60.

I do all the stuff that people recommend; make big curries, chillis, curries, chicken piri piris etc and have them in the freezer. Great for meals with rice or whatever, but also in wraps with salad. I make my own stock and soups and have them in the freezer too. Freezing and defrosting is not as good as fresh but it's a hell of a lot better, cheaper and handier than anything else especially when you combine it with freshly cooked stuff.

I'm sure people will question the quality of Aldi's food; fruit, veg and meat wise, but I've never had a problem and I just don't buy that the organic thing is really worth the money. I'm moving to a new house soon and will have my own garden so I plan to grow some stuff myself then.

Rebecca

Supercell

Wow , nice post MissRibena, I didnt think 30-40€ was remotely possible tbh, currently am spending many multiples of that higher, but a lot of thats preprepared junk and ordering over the phone.
You have certainly given me some useful tips there and a goal to aim at

catho_monster

wow, i thought 30-40 euro was a lot!

usually if i head into aldi and buy all around me, everything that takes my fancy it'll never be more than 50euro and that'll keep me going for the month...except for veg and perishables like milk etc....

tbh, if you want to save money, make everything yourself. i found myself saving a fortune by making my own bread and soups. cheap as chips and healthy too. the key, as rebecca said is freezing the day of making/baking...

MissRibena

How do you manage with Fruit and Veg Catho? It's these perishables that really cost.

Of my weekly spend of €30 or €40, I reckon about half goes on fresh fruit and veg. Generally, I buy:
6 apples,
net of oranges,
bunch of bananas,
melon (or strawberries.plums etc depending on mood)
lemons,
a lime,
an avocado or 2,
tub of cherry toms on vine,
6 reg tomatoes,
head of lettuce,
rocket leaves/baby leaf salad
scallions,
mushrooms,
half cucumber,
mixed veg bag (onions, carrots, parsnips),
spuds (€4 bag roosters and bag of baby salad every fortnight),
onions (red and regular),
bit of ginger,
bulb or 2 of garlic.

I eat an apple, orange, banana, lemon and a salad every day. I didn't think I was over-doing it until I see the list, which is suprisingly long and I throw nothing out! If there's extra veg, I make a soup and freeze it.

I've tried going to fruit and veg shops, but when I do that, I tend to buy a whole load of extra "adventurous" stuff and it ends up costing me a lot more.

Rebecca

I am MAN

haha that's insane.
I don't even pay for food at home and I spend over 100 euro a week on the stuff.

catho_monster

ribena,
in answer to your question
i buy in bulk, cook and freeze.
i always have about 4 different types of soup frozen at the one time,
about 5 cartons of mash frozen and then stuff like carrot and parnip mash in the freezer as well. i dunno...if i crave a certain type of veg or need a certain type to put in a recipe i go out and buy it, but that's about it. i cant eat fruit so that takes that out of the equation. i will only spend a lot of money on veg if i can manage to get to a farmers market on a saturday (like the one in naas, or in temple bar), but i hate eating the crap they sell as veg in supermarkets, so i dont go adventurous with it.