Tuesday Tips & Tricks - Meal Planning

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One of the biggest mistakes that students make when it comes to food (and uni work) is that they don’t plan.  This can take a massive drain on your finances and your time if you’re shopping from meal to meal rather than buying a week’s worth of shopping.  Today, I’m going to be talking you through how to effectively plan a week’s worth of meals so that you only need to go to the shops once a week, thus saving you both time and money.

An example of a 2-week meal plan.

Using a template such as the one above, you can easily plan out each week’s meals (either electronically or on a printout).  That way you can buy exactly what you need at the start of the week and you can be more focused in the shop. 

What you need to do to save money 

• If you actually want to save money then you need to be quite strict when you go to the shop.  That means making a list of everything that you need for that week’s meals.  This will stop you prospectively buying stuff that you won’t use and would end up throwing in the bin. 

• Checking your freezer for anything that you’ve bought reduced in previous weeks will help you save money.  You should buy reduced food at the supermarket and use it in the following week's plan to save even more money!

• Make sure that you can re-use some items.  If you’re buying food that comes in larger packages (ie; mushrooms, carrots etc) make sure that you can use them in 2/3 meals that week.  This will stop you from wasting food that’s going out of date.  You can see from my example how this works.

• Don't be afraid to stray away from your meal plan if other things get in the way (eg, if a friend asks you out for dinner).  Just don't make a habit out of it if you want to save money.

Tuesday Tips and Tricks - Reduced Food

Welcome to the first Tuesday Tips & Tricks on this blog.  A segment looking at things we can do to save money on our weekly shops.  This week I’m going to talk about a relatively well-known tip but I’m going to explain how to really make the most of the savings.  

You may be wondering: How do I get the most out of reduced food from the supermarkets?  And to answer that I’ve put together a handy checklist that you can use while you’re out and about at the shops. 

1. 1. Is it freezer-ready? 

1. This is one of the most important things to think about when buying reduced food.  Most of the time, you’re not going to be eating the stuff that you’re buying that day, so you need to make sure that you can keep it fresh until you actually want to use it. 

2. 2. Have I already got this in my freezer? 

1. This is something that I forget about at least once a month.  You don’t want to be buying too much of the same thing if you’re not going to eat it.  

3. 3. Will I actually cook this? 

1. This links back to point 2.  Don’t buy food just because it’s cheap. If you can’t think of a use for it, don’t put it in your basket. 

4. 4. Is it a good deal? 

1. Not everything that has been branded yellow is a good deal.  Sometimes the savings are so small that it isn’t worthwhile, especially on name-brand items.  For example, a block of cathedral city cheddar may be reduced by 50p, but the own brand cheese is £1 cheaper.  Always check other products first. 

5. 5. Is it the right time? 

1.  Try to find out what time your local supermarket starts to reduce its products.  That way you’ll be able to get the best choice of the deals, so you can save the most money.