It is a pure myth that eating healthy has to cost more - one that we tell ourselves when in the frozen section hovering over the £1 chicken dippers... Well guess what, while they are cheaper than the chicken breast, I can guarantee you'll soon be reaching for snacks, as the lack of nutrition will have left you feeling sapped of energy & craving more - costing your overall night of eating a lot more than the chicken breasts. So here are my top 7 tips for how to eat healthy on a budget...
One of the biggest complaints I hear is how expensive meat & fish can be, to then hear they're shopping in Waitrose... Now Waitrose is great if you can afford it, but if you're on a budget, why not get more food for your money in a cheaper supermarket?! I used to hate being dragged around Lidl as a kid, but now I've discovered how cheap the meat, fish, fruit & veg is there, I love it!
And for anyone who says that the quality is different, it really isn't! You can still find organic, the meat has the red tractor lable on it & the eggs are free range - there's just as much protein in your Lidl's chicken breast as your Waitrose Organic chicken & they taste even better knowing the money you saved! Plus supermarkets like Lidl have really good offers on fresh fruit, veg, fish & meat each week, helping you out even more.
And for anyone who says that the quality is different, it really isn't! You can still find organic, the meat has the red tractor lable on it & the eggs are free range - there's just as much protein in your Lidl's chicken breast as your Waitrose Organic chicken & they taste even better knowing the money you saved! Plus supermarkets like Lidl have really good offers on fresh fruit, veg, fish & meat each week, helping you out even more.
I start by deciding my main meals of the week & plan the rest of my week around it, depending on how many ingredients I had to buy that week for dinner, or if I would have any left over for lunch etc. I then have something cheap but filling for breakfast - like own brand Wheatabix or oats - and something nutritional, cheap & easy for lunch - like soup, nuts & fruit. My snacks will be the last thing I decide depending on my budget, for example a bunch of bananas is a lot cheaper than a pack of Pink Lady apples. Additionally I found meal prepping helps too, where I cook & eat the same dinners for 5 times that week, to save money. However you may find this a little boring, that if fine, you can always freeze the meals for another week! I will be posting my beginner's guide to meal prep soon, so stay tuned!
Look out for bulk offers or quite often buying the bigger size is cheaper per kg/ml - but always check, as sometimes they like to trick you. Also if you know anyone with a Costco card, take advantage of that too! Finally if you eat something often, like cereal or soup or frozen veg, buy it in bulk if its on offer at a good price - this only applies to non-perishables though.
They're honestly 99% of the time just as good as the real brand. I was comparing Sainsburys own & Weetabix the other day to find they have the exact same ingredients & nutritional values in, the only difference was the brand - no brainer really? In fact some of the time the food is even produced in the same place. As far as Tesco Value or Sainsburys Basics etc brands go, about 60% of the time they're as good as the real thing, especially with pastas, frozen veg, potatoes & other foods that really can't be much different. I currently buy about 10% branded food now, purely because of cost!
Look out for non uniformed diced chicken (still red tractor but a lot cheaper than evenly diced chicken), smoked salmon pieces (rather than slices), potatoes, carrots, eggs & even chocolate (oops, not exactly healthy)! You can often find these in the Value & Basics brands, the only reason they're cheaper is because they aren't all similar sizes or weights.
Especially with fruit, veg & nuts, buying them in season will be a lot cheaper, so try to tailor your meals to the cheap seasonal options, for example summer fruit salad in the summer & root vegetable dishes, such as caserols & stews, in the winter. This information is easy to find online & easy to predict instore by the prices.
What I mean by this is you are better off buying chicken breast packed with protein or a sweet potato packed with energy in the form of carbs (don't worry carbs are not the devil, especially when in natural foods - they are a primary provider of energy) or green tea for it's slow release energy than you are buying their comparisons such as a chicken sandwich, new potatoes or a latte - all off which are lower in essential nutrients & cost around the same, plus you'll gain more long lasting energy from the previous three, keeping you fuller for longer & meaning you will consume less food in a week. So stock up on natural foods (such as fruit, veg, meat & fish) high in carbs, protein & a good amount of calories to keep you going all day - but equally don't over eat, get to know the macros you should be eating each day, so you can calculate what you should eat per meal.
An example of what I eat each week & how much it actually costs me... Please note I usually shop at Lidl, but to get the correct prices this shop will be calculated with a Tesco online shop, all Tesco brand food unless specified!
Breakfast
1 Weetabix with sugar & milk (with weetabix & sugar lasting 4 weeks) Costing £0.22/meal
24 Pack Tesco Wheatabix £1.49 1KG Granulated Sugar £0.59 4Pt Skimmed Milk £1.00
Lunch
Soup, slice of bread, small handful raisins & almonds, 2 squares dark chocolate (with almonds & raisins lasting 2 weeks) Costing £0.96/meal
Cream of Tomato Soup 400g £0.39 x 7 £2.73 Hovis Original Wheatgerm Bread 400g £0.60
Whole Almonds 200g £2.29 Wholefoods Raisins 500g £2.50
85% Cocoa Plain Chocolate Bar 100g £1.00
Dinner
Chilli con Carne x 5 meals Costing £2.20/meal
Turkey Breast Mince 2% Fat 500g £3.00 (higher in protein, lower in fat than beef mince & cheaper!)
Loose Brown Onion £0.12 Loose Red Onion £0.14 (1/4 Also used in salad & 1/4 with sweet potato)
Mixed Peppers 3 Pack £0.85 (1/2 Pepper also used in salad & 1/2 with sweet potato)
Flourette Crispy Salad £1.00 x 2 £2.00 (1/4 Bag also used in salad & 1/4 with sweet potato)
Greek Feta 100g £1.00 (1/7 Also used in salad & 1/7 with sweet potato)
Value Chopped Tomatoes 400g £0.31 Value Dark Red Kidney Beans 400g £0.30
Easy Cook Brown Rice 1kg £1.75 Colman's Chilli Con Carne Recipe Mix 50g £0.75
Value Sweetcorn 325g £0.35 (1/7 Also used in salad & 1/7 with sweet potato)
Smoked Mackerel Salad with 2 Eggs (with eggs, beetroot & mackeral lasting 2 meals) Costing £3.17
Chilled Smoked Mackerel Fillets 210g £2.00 Cooked Beetroot Vacuum Packed 300g £0.49
Free Range Eggs Medium Box of 6 £0.89 Light Mayonnaise 240ml £0.50 (Also use with seat potato)
Tuna & Sweet Potato Costing £1.68
Loose Sweet Potato £0.31 Tuna Chunks in Spring Water 160g £0.75
Snacks
Banana/Apple tbsp Peanut Butter, 30g Proper Corn, 100g Greek Yoghurt & tbsp Honey
5 Pack Bananas £0.80 Rosedene Farm 6 Pack Sweet Apples £0.89
Value Crunchy Peanut Butter £0.62 Proper Corn Sweet & Salty 90g £1.00
Low Fat Greek Style Yoghurt 500g £1.00 Value Clear Honey 340g £0.99
And the Grand Total... £33.01 with food left over for the next month! Even cheaper if at Lidl!
And my final tip for shopping on a budget, slowly collect spices, condiments & flavours that you can use to make a dish really tasty - my favourites are paprika, chilli, cinnamon, basil, garlic, pepper, ginger, soy source, coconut oil, lemon & salad cream.
A lot of information, I know, but I really hope this helps you all stick to a budget, eat healthier & above all enjoy what you're cooking!
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