lbudgetting tips please

[sue-ball]

Next year we will need to live on a very strict budget.Can anyone give me sving tips ,minly for food and cleaning

.Only two of us in

Need to live on a lot less money next year.What is a good list of groceries to buy to start making cheap,meals in bulk that can be frozen and are versatile.Justhusband and i to feedThank you .

[just_me_karen]

Grow your own veggies and herbs, sue, you'll save a motza 🙂

You can regrow veggies too, like spring onions. Buy a bunch, chop off all but an inch above the root, plant and watch it regrow,,,then, when you want to et them, chop off to ground level ad they'll just keep growing. It's magic 😄

[izabsmiling]

Hi Sue , 

one thing I do which is a better option for the environment,our finances and our septic tanks too lol is use vinegar and bi carb for cleaning .I buy earth's choice dishwashing detergent and washing liquid at around $2 each .I find them good as well as economical .I add some bi carb and sometimes a small amount of vinegar as well if the wash is extra dirty .

[k0llectable5]

Bolognese is a great one to freeze and make in bulk.  Mince is cheap and so are tinned tomatoes and tomato based sauces like passata as well as onions. Pasta is also cheap especially at aldi, lasagne sheets, penne, spirals, fettuccini, spaghetti, gnocchi. 

If you buy a bag of onions a bag of carrots and a celery you have the basis of all stocks and soups, stews and casseroles etc.  You can make a massive pot of veggie soup by adding whatever extra seaonal vegetables you like (beans, corn, broccoli, zucchini, kidney beans, soup mix is very cheap and you only need a little bit per pot it lasts for ages.  You can use the stock as a base for casseroles and stews (keeping in mind to use the cuts of meat that are on special) Stick to the veggies that are in season, they will always be cheaper) Pumpkin soup is another one that will freeze down.

NQR (if you live near one) has some really BAD food for super cheap but they do usually have really cheap dairy like cheeses yoghurts and dips and cream,  that will save you big time compared to say Coles and Safeway. 

Keep your eye on the catalogue specials I sometimes save a hundred backs a shop by going to aldi, Coles, Safeway and NQR and just getting the specials. It is a little more time consuming, yes but for me it's worth it as where I live all these stores are in the vacinity of each other. 

[sandypas]

You can buy the cheaper cuts of meat and make casseroles - add whatever vegies are cheap and serve on rice or mashed potato.  Pasta is good but you need vegies & protein to stay healthy.

[purple_haize]

Use 1/2 cup of white vinegar to your washing instead of softener, makes clothes soft and also cleans washing machine as well......you dont smell the vinegar on the washing.

For stains on clothes, use cheap hairspray..........my granddaughter had *fire engine red* texta on a brand new dress..........sprayed/soaked with hair spray left for 1 minute, then put item in lukewarm, more on cold side water for 2 minutes.......my granddaughters dress came out without a trace of texta.

Works on any stain. Cheap can hairspray cheaper than washing stain remover sprays.

[sue-ball]

thanks for all ideas ,is it economical to get a breadmaker,and what are cheapes but nourishing brekky and lunch (not soup as very hot in summer)

[*crikey*mate*]

Hi Sue, a lot will depend on which part of the state you live in,

but foodwise there are heaps of options,

places like "super butcher" often have whole rumps for $4.99 kg, whole rib fillets $10.99 kg

buy in bulk, and you can make everything from them from roasts to mince to stir fry to steaks etc.... (rumps especially)

buy the dry food staples such as flour, rice, sugar etc in bulk places like Bidvest and make everything from scratch.

can buy Chinkies and Crocketts really cheaply from alpha packaging for portion ciontrol and freezing and storage,

Biggest hint, if your food budget is say $100 a week. Spemd $80 and put the other $20 aside to restock on the bulk stuff as it runs out

Biggest variable is fruit and veg, so either grow your own as suggested, or there are plenty of markets around.

If you're on the Gold Coast or nearish, I've even found a couple of super cheap grocery stores. They have boxes of 12 Magnums for $5 LOL But they have 1000's of food lines of "normal" name brands. Dry goods and frozen.

We do a family of 5 (3 "men", and 2 of us into all the healthy fandangled stuff which makes things a bit harder) on max $150 a week. But I make just about EVERYTHING from scratch from pasta, to mince to sausages, kiddie snacks and cakes, biscuits etc)

[k0llectable5]

I wouldn't go for a bread maker personally.  They bags of flour and yeast are well over 12 dollars plus the power you would use running it. The loaves are an awkward shape and size IMO and cutting them evenly can be a pain from my experience with the bread.  Dont get me wrong the bread is lovely straight outta the "oven" smell and taste etc, but for the price of making it vs the price of bread at bakeries and supermarkets I never found it to be all that economical.

Crumpets are cheap and a versatile brunch.  You can go savoury or sweet and the topping ideas are endless.  French loaves are also cheap at safeway, they can be sliced up and toasted and topped with all sorts of things aswell.  when making dinner the night before be mindful to make a little extra for leftovers for lunch the next day.  Warm salads are not to costly, a small amount of marinated meet on top of a big bowl of your favourite lettuce mix, tomato, cucumber, redonion, shaved carrot etc. 

[polksaladallie]

Don't buy food that someone else has made.  Shop from the perimeter of the supermarket, not in the middle.  Much cheaper.