What's the cheapest you could feed a family of four...
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xylaria
Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
This is about right. I have lived on a diet not disimerlar, I became aneamic until I subsidised with foraged food. I was pregnant [3rd trimester] and getting blood tests very regularly. Adding simple foods like nettles boost the nutritional content of the diet a lot.
When eating with very little money becomes something that isnt hypothical, eating the same thing every day really isnt difficult. I still feel it is an important survival skill to be able to eat with little of no money in your pocket and stay well nourished. Most of the last thousand years, europeans ate not much more than pottage and porridge without moaning too much.
I found I needed sauces. Nothing fancy...basic onion sauce makes a rice based dish far more palatable. By sauces I mean gravy type pouring sauces....just slugging down boiled pasta, mashed spuds or boiled rice is gag inducing, but gravy over mash, pesto or something on pasta or any flavoured roux on rice works wonders. If I was really cutting back and given the paramaters (no growing) I would include cornflour, onions, garlic, Bisto and the cheapest tinned toms I could lay hands on. Add in some cheap bulk chilli powder as well and you have the basis for many great meals. We used to "minesweep" markets back in the day. Trays of soft toms, wrinkled peppers, bruised onions, sprouting garlic was all grist to the mill. A carrier bag of veg on a Saturday evening that would never make it to Monday could be had for a quid. Many a chilli, pasta or "sweet and sour" dish was made in bulk. Nice it was too!
robin wood
Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
if you live near a supermarket and can pop in regularly half an hour before closing and have a freezer you can live for a whole lot less. Loaves of bread for 9p, Dickinson and Morris pork pies for 50p etc. I have a dozen 50p pork pies in the freezer, serve half a pie hot with a can of 18p mushy peas is a great meal for 43p. I find offal incredibly good value liver and onions with mash is one of my fave meals and enough lambs liver for an adult meal is 50p, add an onion a potato and a carrot and you have a great meal.
xylaria
Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
i got 5 1/2 litres of double cream on sunday on sale by date, for 30p per 600ml. I now have at least a months worth of butter and about 3 soda bread loaves worth of buttermilk for £2.70. I got a leg of pork [5kgs] before christmas for a fiver because it was on date and make porkpies with it.
If you can cook proper food, it isn't that hard to live on very little. Onions from farmfoods are 50p for a large bag and thier spuds arent bad either value, saying that most of shop is really manky grub.
I know people here [rural wales] that get a years worth of frozen carrots by buying the pony carrots sack and freezing and grinding feed wheat.
If you can cook proper food, it isn't that hard to live on very little. Onions from farmfoods are 50p for a large bag and thier spuds arent bad either value, saying that most of shop is really manky grub.
I know people here [rural wales] that get a years worth of frozen carrots by buying the pony carrots sack and freezing and grinding feed wheat.
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We have a fruit and veg place close to where we live that do misshapen veg very cheap, box's of fruit and veg for a quid, most of the time you have to sort through the box's to get rid of the rotten stuff but normally we get a good couple of kilos per box of decent food, when my friend and i were tipi living we were averaging about £5 a week each for food we did have a limited but healthy diet and did tend to stretch meals what began as soup three days later it was a curry.
The dole would probably make it easier. If you dont work you can feed a family of 8 for nothing and have enough left over for alcohol abuse, 20 a day and have enough change for a full sky package.
Cynical....moi
No mate that's Politicians your thinking of. Milking the public purse for their mortgage, Ipad, furniture, travel, Mars bars, booze, etc.....
I'm 'on the dole' and can't afford 20 a day, Sky package, booze or 6 kids.
Annual job-seekers allowance is about £3276. Most Politicians claim that for scratching the nether bits.
The average 'Dole sponger' gets by on maybe 4-6 thousand a year.
The average Politician gets 50k - the sky's the limit. For what?
Are you a Daily Mail reader by any chance?
I wish that's all they got over here. Although I suppose if you count local politicians into the average it might go that low. Or maybe not. The Okaloosa County sheriff makes almost double that.
I think that the "no repeating" rule should be applied only to midday and evening meals, not to breakfast... Most people I know don't object to eating the same (or almost) every morning.
It's an interesting exercise, though.
It's an interesting exercise, though.
I don't mind eating the same meals for breakfast or lunch every day. Main meal of the day, I will quite happily eat a meal, then leftovers for the next two days running.
The none-repeating rule would seriously limit somebody who was desperately trying to make ends meet. I haven't worked out the annual cost, dread to think what it actually does cost - even though we also grow our own. But my idea of luxury is my families idea of necessity. Take the chap above who likes sauces on his pasta for example. Sauces cost money and merely offer a flavour, often mostly salt and sugar based. If money is tight, scrap the sauce and just add salt and pepper.
The none-repeating rule would seriously limit somebody who was desperately trying to make ends meet. I haven't worked out the annual cost, dread to think what it actually does cost - even though we also grow our own. But my idea of luxury is my families idea of necessity. Take the chap above who likes sauces on his pasta for example. Sauces cost money and merely offer a flavour, often mostly salt and sugar based. If money is tight, scrap the sauce and just add salt and pepper.
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Red is right, you need something to liven up food, if nothing else a sauce/gravy makes food easier to eat and can cost pennies. The cost of food is going up but as to costs at the moment? At the moment we are a family of three adults and typically use Tesco for groceries, a local butcher and Lidl for fresh fruit and veg and we are spending around £200 a week (no booze in that) but suspect I could 'get by' on £30-£50 a week but would not be happy.
For me this is not a hypothetical question, by careful shopping and bargain hunting I provide all the food, and extras for a family of three (plus cat) for the princely sum of £45 per week So that would work out as roughly £60 per week for a family of 4 (+1 and 1/4 cats)
The extras include detergents, washing powders, shampoos, soaps, toothpastes, feminine hygiene products, food for packed lunches (nine meals) as well as extras like small amounts of alcohol and chocolate, season supplies (like seeds for the garden/allotment or bar-be-que charcoal for the summer, and occasional gifts,
The extras include detergents, washing powders, shampoos, soaps, toothpastes, feminine hygiene products, food for packed lunches (nine meals) as well as extras like small amounts of alcohol and chocolate, season supplies (like seeds for the garden/allotment or bar-be-que charcoal for the summer, and occasional gifts,
TurboGirl
Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
I completely agree with Xylaria and when you grow a few herbs etc, buying outdated food for pence and making up your own sauces, gravies etc... we live like kings tbh on a budget of £45 for 4 for the week and that covers everything- feminine hygene, shampoo (make my own soap), clothes are included in that too... I've not had an income above the breadline since I was a student, its a challenge which if you can enjoy it, it becomes a way of life
resnikov
Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
I think what makes it hard to do is the pace we live at. My normal day:
Take my wife to the station for 07:50
Drop the kids at before school club for 08:10
Walk to the other station for my train at 08:30 to get to work for 09:00 (ish)
Get to the school to pick my kids up if I'm lucky for 17:00 or if I'm not for 18:00
The make their tea
Pick wife up from her train at 18:30
Play with kids for a bit
Kids to bed for between 19:30 and 20:00
Then collapse on the sofa.
I would love to be able to shop around and get the bargains on cheap fruit, veg and meats but just don't have the time to. My wife does like to cook ahead so she normally makes up vats of something yummy at the weekend, but then we have to have the ingredients in and cannot take the risk the shops may or may not have them on reduction.
That being said for Christmas this year we are going to do our food shopping for the main Christmas meal on Christmas Eve and see what savings can be made. The meal might be a bit pot luck but I think it could be a lot of fun doing it this way. No idea what we will be having and if it all goes tits up, I always have a few spare 24hr ration packs in the garage
Take my wife to the station for 07:50
Drop the kids at before school club for 08:10
Walk to the other station for my train at 08:30 to get to work for 09:00 (ish)
Get to the school to pick my kids up if I'm lucky for 17:00 or if I'm not for 18:00
The make their tea
Pick wife up from her train at 18:30
Play with kids for a bit
Kids to bed for between 19:30 and 20:00
Then collapse on the sofa.
I would love to be able to shop around and get the bargains on cheap fruit, veg and meats but just don't have the time to. My wife does like to cook ahead so she normally makes up vats of something yummy at the weekend, but then we have to have the ingredients in and cannot take the risk the shops may or may not have them on reduction.
That being said for Christmas this year we are going to do our food shopping for the main Christmas meal on Christmas Eve and see what savings can be made. The meal might be a bit pot luck but I think it could be a lot of fun doing it this way. No idea what we will be having and if it all goes tits up, I always have a few spare 24hr ration packs in the garage
If I simplify breakfast to cereal (cold ot hot cereal as I described earlier) and have an all-you-can-eat buffet for lunch and a simple soup or chili for supper I can manage on less than $10 per day alone.
-Multiply that times 2 for the adults it becomes $20 per day.
-Now add another 16 per day for the kids (discount for their age at the buffet if they're under 12) That brings the total to $36 per day.
-Multiply that times 7 days = $252 per week X 52 weeks = $13,104 per year (or about 8,346 pounds per year) including eating one mealout per day.
-Multiply that times 2 for the adults it becomes $20 per day.
-Now add another 16 per day for the kids (discount for their age at the buffet if they're under 12) That brings the total to $36 per day.
-Multiply that times 7 days = $252 per week X 52 weeks = $13,104 per year (or about 8,346 pounds per year) including eating one mealout per day.
This is very very true.
Take the mentioned sauces. If you have the time to simmer down onions, herbs, veg trimmings (eg potato peelings), then you can make stock for pence. If you don't have the time? Well, even using stock cubes isn't that expensive. One stock cube is about 10p and that's not much extra on a meal.
Nobody has mentioned sprouting yet. Alfalfa, whole lentils, mung beans are pretty cheap (if you avoid organic ones). Half a cupful sprouts to enough salad for a meal for 4. Cook some lentils in tomato sauce, a stock cube and pasta. That's not a bad meal, nutrition-wise.
I reckon it's doable for £2.50 + energy cost of cooking.
robin wood
Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
I think what makes it hard to do is the pace we live at. My normal day:
Take my wife to the station for 07:50
Drop the kids at before school club for 08:10
Walk to the other station for my train at 08:30 to get to work for 09:00 (ish)
Get to the school to pick my kids up if I'm lucky for 17:00 or if I'm not for 18:00
The make their tea
Pick wife up from her train at 18:30
Play with kids for a bit
Kids to bed for between 19:30 and 20:00
Then collapse on the sofa.
I would love to be able to shop around and get the bargains on cheap fruit, veg and meats but just don't have the time to. My wife does like to cook ahead so she normally makes up vats of something yummy at the weekend, but then we have to have the ingredients in and cannot take the risk the shops may or may not have them on reduction.
That being said for Christmas this year we are going to do our food shopping for the main Christmas meal on Christmas Eve and see what savings can be made. The meal might be a bit pot luck but I think it could be a lot of fun doing it this way. No idea what we will be having and if it all goes tits up, I always have a few spare 24hr ration packs in the garage
Two of my favourite meals cost less than £1 per head and take total 5 minutes to cook start to finish.
meal 1 liver and onions, fry onion very hot 2 mins ad liver 1 minute each side, remove liver add flour stir then deglaze pan with half cup water to make gravy. Serve with bread and frozen peas or mash if you have time.
meal 2 mussels in cider and cream. fry garlic clove 1 minute, add half pack (per person) frozen mussels (morrisons £1 per pack) cook 1 minute, add 1/3 tin cider, drink rest, bubble 1 minute add splash cream stir and serve with bread and salad.
As a few have said on here me and swmbo manage on about £50 per week which includes food, cleaning and household items and the odd treat (DVD's, books etc...)
We get a good choice and selection though I will admit at times (for convenience) it's not the healthiest of diets.
I know this is slightly off topic but thought I'd throw in a bit about other expenditures that might be relevant.
I should add that swmbo doesn't drink and I only have the odd dram of whiskey or brandy.
We both smoke though, I spend about £50 a month as I'm on rollies however swmbo smokes premades and is shelling out about £120 per month.
Pet food comes in about £20 a month.
As I understand the op this is an exercise in how to cut costs, presumably due to financial hardships, I suppose I could do some significant cost cutting if required. I could do away with tv package, landline, treats and other non essentials.
Food wise I would not be adversed to swapping to budget brands (in fact we already do on some things though I maintain that if I can afford it Heinz baked beans, for example, do taste significantly better than asda or tesco own brand.
I was in some pretty dire financial straights a few years back and managed to exist on a diet mainly of rice/pasta, bread with chicken and bacon thrown in now and then and used sparingly to make it last.
I can wholeheartedly agree with all the posts advocating the use of sauces and the like.
I'm luckily in that group who not only enjoys cooking but also is reasonably good at it and e addition of a few jars of herbs and spices (quite cheap when you consider they generally last a couple of months with regular use) can make all the difference and can transform a bland repetitive meal into something quite tasty.
We get a good choice and selection though I will admit at times (for convenience) it's not the healthiest of diets.
I know this is slightly off topic but thought I'd throw in a bit about other expenditures that might be relevant.
I should add that swmbo doesn't drink and I only have the odd dram of whiskey or brandy.
We both smoke though, I spend about £50 a month as I'm on rollies however swmbo smokes premades and is shelling out about £120 per month.
Pet food comes in about £20 a month.
As I understand the op this is an exercise in how to cut costs, presumably due to financial hardships, I suppose I could do some significant cost cutting if required. I could do away with tv package, landline, treats and other non essentials.
Food wise I would not be adversed to swapping to budget brands (in fact we already do on some things though I maintain that if I can afford it Heinz baked beans, for example, do taste significantly better than asda or tesco own brand.
I was in some pretty dire financial straights a few years back and managed to exist on a diet mainly of rice/pasta, bread with chicken and bacon thrown in now and then and used sparingly to make it last.
I can wholeheartedly agree with all the posts advocating the use of sauces and the like.
I'm luckily in that group who not only enjoys cooking but also is reasonably good at it and e addition of a few jars of herbs and spices (quite cheap when you consider they generally last a couple of months with regular use) can make all the difference and can transform a bland repetitive meal into something quite tasty.
