General Chat

IThere was a programme on the television last night about poverty and, watching it, it occurred to me that people really have never been shown how to handle money.

A woman, struggling to feed several children, was saying that she doesn't use her oven as cooking a roast costs £3.50 in electricity.Immediately my tight little mind was thinking what else you could cook for the week while the oven was hot. Plan round it, have a couple of days run up and you could have ready two or three pies,a couple of cakes, some buns for the children's lunch boxes and a pan of mash to make the leftovers into a shepherd's pie.
I doubt she had ever thought that way or even been shown that way of thinking.My saviour was a very good friend who makes me look like I burn money.She showed me the ropes so why is nobody showing them to those living in poverty? Maybe this recession is the wake-up call that we all needed.

Totally agree with you Sharron. But do you mean thrift instead of the word meaness.
That is rather expensive electricity she is paying for, I think.
If my oven is on, it is stuffed to the gills with other things, such as you have mentioned. I am all for the thrift.

Julia in Derbyshire

It's only recently I've had to adopt that kind of mind set Sharron and I do wish I had been better equipped for it. I quite agree it would be a worthwhile life tool for children to learn x

we often cook tomorrows dinner if we are using the oven
or my butler cooks us stews or soups
that last more than one day and very yummy

Thankfully my new oven has got two shelves, my old one, provided by the landlord, only had one shelf...that was a lot of fun when cooking a Christmas dinner.

Common sense is what I would call it, as well as thrift. The oven's on...cook in it.

I hear of lots of people who don't actually use leftovers now. They roast a chicken, and only use the breast meat and just throw the rest away...yet there's loads of lovely moist meat on the legs and thighs which can all be put in a curry, or a pie. Cook up the bones and make a soup, etc. A chicken will last two of us until Wednesday.

My Gran taught me all I need to know about thrift and cooking. She was a country Rector's wife through the rationing in WW2, and there's nobody knew more about stretching food, making it go furthest, preserving, baking, and so on.

My partner is useless with money, as are his family. Where I am always aware that there is disaster around every corner, he believes that something will turn up.

Many people seem to think that the something that will turn up is another loan. The woman in question was falling deeper into debt as she was now using a money lender.

I just can't believe how generous our benefits are, especially now I have found out that we are entitled to a rent rebate as well. I paid the rent without claiming it for three years and more, didn't think we were entitled.

I would't go as far as saying that benefits are generous, but you can just about get by on them. It's still a huge decision to give up work to look after a disabled person and thus to have your income cut by 2/3.

But you have to shop around, stop buying convenience foods because not only are they expensive and a false economy but are loaded with salt and sugar and goodness knows what else. My local butcher does a butchers pack, which is 1lb mince 1lb sausages 1lb shin beef and 1lb boned chicken thighs. Thats 8 meals for us AND some in the freezer. I can make 3 shepherds pies out of the mince, the sausages do us for two meals, the shin is two days of yummy stew (it's the best thing in the world for a beef stew or casserole, so much flavour and melts), and the chicken thighs will make lots of different things, from enchiladas to pies, to stews to fried chicken. All that for just £6.99! Add a fivers worth of veggies from the market and that's the main meals sorted for a week.

If people would only stop wasting food we'd all be better off.

i always shop around, altho dad complains what i save in money on offers, he spends in petrol taking me there lol,

i find if ya nip the local supermarket later on, they have lots of meats reduced, which will freeze lovely, to be takign out ont he morning of needing them :-D

but like TW, our butchers do a fab, 3 for a fiver offer, on trays of, chickenn legs in arious flavours, sausages, steaks, burger, chops, n bacon,

and each tray can be split to do 3 or 4 meals, :-D

There's never a chicken comes in this house, that goes out again except the bones. There is only two of us also, so it will get roasted first. Then the meat is stripped off, and the carcass goes in the soup pot. The meat is divided up in various ways eg, sandwiches, pieces for the freezer then made into many different things.
I extol the virtues of a Ham Hock from M****sons at £1.74. This I boil for the stock, to be used in Pea and Ham Soup. The meat is stripped off also, and made into many different things. If I have some chicken bits in thr freezer, I put some ham bit with it and make Chicken and Ham pie with a leek. You can also put the bits ontop of a homemade Pizza. The possibilities are endless.
I endorse fully Teresa W use of Shin. As she says, it by far the tastiest, for stewing.

Julia in Derbyshire

Planning and preparation is all that is required mixed with a little common sense,

I am that tight i squeak when i walk.

I even use a flask to put any left over hot water from the kettle so i don't need to boil it again for my next coffee

Roy

Although I use Quorn because I am vege, I need to make it as authentic as possible because the others aren't.

I root through reduced bins.Any old reduced beer makes a bit of mince pretty yummy. A bit of flour when you are frying the onions, then tip in half a tin of beer,doesn't matter if it has gone flat.

There is a place not far from us which specializes in cut price food, he buys it from a food broker and sells it off as three tins for a price or so many packets for a price.
We used to go there every week but one of the staff was so rude that we have never been back and I am very pleased we haven't.
We would come home with three tins of all sorts of strange things because they were on offer which needed to be accommodeated in what we ate.
Now we don't go there I have much more control over what I buy and am not mislead by a seeming bargain.
A trip to Aldi and Lidl is often the only outing I get in the week(cue violins) as it is difficult to arrange things round the old man so I feel that going there is a justifiable expense.
Morrisons have an excellent range of old fart foods like split peas and lentils which are full of protein and very cheap.They pad out a stew well.
Most of all I think I enjoy the challenge of eking things out.

I have to say I'm enjoying the challenge too.

And having just received my bank statement *gulps loudly* it looks like it's going to be a more challenging month than ever !!!.

Going to go to Morrisons to buy some of these different cuts of meat you ladies have been discussing. It's make do and mend for a fortnight in this house for sure lol x

I watch Superscrimpers, series just finished last night. Wouldn't be seen dead in some of their revamped garments, and most of the things in the household line have been my way of life for many years.

Some of my family waste a huge amount of money, and it grieves me to think that they will be struggling on a pension in a few years time.

I think the amount of money young folk spend on clothes and make up is outrageous. Last night two young students - one spent 20K per annum on clothes and make up. That is over twice my income!!

Teresa agree with what you say. A chicken will last my OH and I for 3 days, mince for two. I cannot abide waste, even when I worked and could afford it I was still thrifty, been known to bring home chicken carcass from childrens houses ;-)

My children were brought up on proper food no jars or packets, but must admit my youngest does seem to buy a lot of junk food, perhaps she is rebelling.

Carol

I am so unthrifty you would all descend on me with recipes waving in your hands! The most I do is boil leftover chicken bones to make a good soup. Otherwise I am a failure :-( :-( :-( ;-) <3

Imagine wasting money on a squeak!

When I buy clothes I try to avoid fashion trends. If you wear one of those waterfall front cardigans in two years time you might just as well be wearing a crinolin but one of those boyfriend cardigans with the straight hems will last for years.

My jeans were bought as an offer of three ten years ago.

We have some chapati flour and that saves pounds on takeaways.(Yes we live on them of course!)
Chapatis are two parts flour to one part water. Mix up, roll out, cook on the griddle and save at least a pound per chapati. We have three each so that saves £6 and the more chapati you eat the less curry you need to buy. I make mango chutney and, naturally, I have the leftovers for lunch next day.

The old man eats stale bread rolls. If you make up a cheese roll using a stale one and bung it in the microwave for two minutes it is delicious.Even better with a slice of onion in it.

It's amazing how far one lb of mince will go too, and it's so versatile. Shepherds pie, meat pie, curried mince, spag bol, lasagne, chilli, meatloaf, burgers, pasties, stuffed veg...

I bought a swede in Aldi the other day, it seemed a bit old and soft, and I thought, this is going to be all woody. You know what? It was the best swede I'd had all season! and for 39p!

Shop around, keep out of the supermarkets as much as possible. Don't by bogof veg unless you KNOW you'll get them eaten, and use the markets. Cooking can be done in advance at the weekend if you're working, that way you have your own convenience meals...and you know what's in 'em!

When I make a Shepherds Pie, I put in one of those tins of Mixed Veg that are about 30p in M****sons. Then the first day we have it with veggies to make it a dinner. then the next day we have it with Oven Chips and Peas.
T**co best Mince is £3.60 for 500g. so that works out at a reasonable price for two meals for two days.
I have to have Best Mince because of a bad childhood memory of mince.

Julia in Derbyshire

if we make a spag bol
we turn the left overs into chilli the next day

It may be just the area that serves us but I don't buy fruit and veg in Aldi. Lidl seems to be fresher.

The market is not an option for me but I sometimes get a friend to go in there. I am waiting to get some freezer space, blackberries,apples, leftovers, so I can buy another net of carrots. I can't use them all quickly enough so thought I would freeze half next time.

Managed to buy a net of onions in Lidl but, the onions I use,they won't have time to go off.