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I hate Aldi.:
So much of the packaged stuff is made in China.
It tastes funky and cheap. The nappys are crap the Peanut Butter is toxic.
And you can never get everything you need, you still have to drop by one of the chains for a couple of items (cat litter is one that springs to mind) And its not like you have a choice if you dont like one brand of spread/cereal/cheese. They only have the one!
Dont rate it at all.
See I find the opposite, lots of made in Australia stuff (more than Coles/Woolies) and I love the nappies! I also find their Aldi brands are comparable to the expensive name brands in quality but at generic prices. Shopping at Aldi saves me heaps :):
I don't like Aldi either. I think it is the same quality as generic/homebrand at the larger supermarkets.
I love aldi! They have chocolate like the stuff I grew up with and often stock UK goods that the bigger supermarkets charge a fortune for. I rarely shop anywhere else.
Aldi has some great stuff, but some things I don't go much on. That said, I've been told that Lindt makes their chocolate ... could be an urban legend, could be true. All is know is that Aldi chocolate is yum, yum, yum.
We need to reign in our shopping bill too - so I'm watching this thread with interest. I shop online, so it's "easy" to stick to a budget, but my maternity leave pay is about to run out so it's time to look at cost cutting a bit. I agree too with the meal planning being the key.
cleaning product is mainly diluted eucalyptus oil. I'm also diluting the pump soap for hand washing so saving half there.
No veggie garden as yet but something that is on the list :)
Livinthedream - that's a dead set bargain. No Crazy Clarks near us I don't think though.
We're going to a farmers market tomoz so it will be good to compare the prices on fruit/veg to the supermarket.
Yes, their Fair Trade, Organic chocolate is yummo.
And I find the meat pretty good too.
But I still could never manage to get my entire weeks grocerys there.
There was always some vital ingredient they didnt have.
Does my head in. lol
Well, tell us what you really think :ROFL::
I've always liked the Aldi stuff we've bought. We use the nappies - fine, except they don't do pull ups and I prefer those (bad back, saves me lifting DD2). Agree that the chocolate is yummo.
I cook most things from scratch and avoid packaged stuff though so I'm not sure it would make that much difference to my bill and I'd need to factor in the petrol to get there.
Sorry, a PP mentioned going veggo a couple of nights per week. I was veggo for 8 years so I actually should do this more often. The other night I made pumpkin soup (with chicken stock made from BBQ chicken bones) and pan-fried gnocchi in blue cheese sauce. Was yummy. (Though not strictly veggo because of the chicken stock).
My secret for vegetarian chilli (apart from all the usual veggies) is sultanas :)
Veggie risotto is easy too - plus I make put the leftovers into little pastries like pasties and they're good for lunchboxes/snacks.
Slightly embarrassed that this is my third reply to my own thread but for others interested in meal planning, these are the dinners I've decided on this week. If I had more time, I'd properly map out lunches too.
Veggie chilli with tortillas, avocado, sour cream
Lamb roast (we cut in half and freeze half so not too costly)
Sausages & veggie crumble
Chicken and veggie curry in a hurry
Spag bol (from batch already in freezer)
Pumpkin, mushroom and pea risotto
F- your dd is 2- is she showing signs of wanting to toilet train? If not I saw a thread in here for cloth pull ups. Cloth def helps save money in the long run.
My dd is a few months shy of 2 and is happy to tell me when she has pee pee'd and show me the puddle- but she'll go and sit on the potty if she thinks she needs to go (normally the puddle is made about 3 mins after the potty) but shes gettting there :)
Im subbing cause in a few months Im gonna be low income again too :(
I think a big freezer will help- specially with meat purchases, buying on specials and making extra portions. I also freeze leftovers- even just 1 serve, and pull all the 1 serves out on days when Im not feeling great etc. The kids love being able to choose- we make it into a restaurant style game for them :)
I done shopping today and spent $132 and took 5 kids with me meal plan didn't included Nappies buying no name brands most of it was for fresh fruit and veg cause I don't like frozen but when we get towards end of the weekend veggies are looking a little sorry I grate them all up and make a veggie slice during summer ( kids love it cold) and throw them in the slow cooker during winter
OK, last week's meal plan went really well.
Just spent $133 on this week's meal plan including breakfast, lunches and toiletries. No nappies this week.
Some of these dinners are pretty simple cos not sure if DP will be home for dinner:
Chicken and veggie Sesame/peanut (and veggie) noodle salad
Pork rissoles with potato salad and leftover veggie crumble
Risotto parcels with baked beans
Tuna Pasta bake
Fish tacos
Hawaian pizzas
Sounds like you're doing pretty well, fionas.
Do you have an IGA near you? We often get a whole rump on special for $5 or $6 a kilo. They call it budget rump but we've found the quality to be generally very good to excellent. We cut it up ourselves however we want - steak, stirfry, roast, mince. Saves a fortune. We've also bought other bulk meats from there when we see them on special in their catalogues.
Not in our town but in the two next closest towns we do. I'll keep my eye out but I'm not sure it would be worth it for me and the girls - they don't eat steak and I don't have a mincer. If we ate a lot of red meat though, would be worth it for sure!!!
Sounds like you're doing a great job! I love all the ideas here. I need to get tighter on my budgeting again, my maternity leave kicks in this week meaning my pay is about to drop for the next year!
I've gone from a budget of £150-200 per month to a budget of less than £300 a month (so my budget is less than half). It is do-able and makes my life easier.
Admittedly, some of my tips won't help you. Such as "you are shopping for food, not clothes, music or other knick-knacks." But a few cloth nappies (just for at night, given the ages of your DDs) and using a warm, damp flannel for a wipe will help. We had a few flannels that were used as wipes when changing nappies.
I go to the big shops once a month. I get in bread, milk and the veggies my menu requires on a weekly basis, but I buy little, walk to the shops instead of drive so that limits what I buy.
I know what I can scrimp on (I still buy brie and smoked salmon, only I buy brie made in this country from the saver range, and smoked salmon trimmings, which is the salmon that they would normally throw away after making a cut - but it's still nice smoked salmon, only really cheap cos it isn't a whole slice itms). I know what I can't (baked beans: too much salt and sugar in the cheap ones so they taste foul). I know what I need to buy the brand names for (very, very, little: mostly cleaning products).
I make a menu list for the whole month. I make sure that if we have stew on Tuesday, we make soup from the leftovers on Wednesday (or Thursday). If I'm opening bacon on Monday, it will all be eaten by Weds-Thurs. A big chicken to roast on Sunday? Chicken curry on Monday. I also plan lunches: I know where I can get quiches on 2-for-1, so we can have one this week and freeze one for another week. I rarely buy sandwich spreads (unless they're on a good offer), but instead buy cans of tuna, sweetcorn and a pot of mayo and make my own. I do bulk cook and freeze down: I cook fresh at the start of the month and eat what I've frozen at the end of the month.
We eat a lot of vegetarian food: it's cheaper than meat. Including the meat-replacement mycoprotein mince. It doesn't taste nasty either, like mince does.
When I see something on offer that will last, I buy big. So I bought a year's supply of dishwasher tablets (will last us longer if I spend more time at home as we use it less) while they were 70% off. Things like that.
When something is on offer, check it is cheaper than your usual brand. Get that calculator out if you can't do it in your head (I like the mental maths challenge, most don't). Sometimes buying half-price Pringles is still more expensive than your normal snacks. When junk food is gone, it's gone. I buy in more than enough for a month of not gorging on crisps/chocolate (ie 30 packets crisps in multibuy, what is on offer): we may have a completely junk-free last week of the month. Or we may not.
Cookbooks are your friend. For inspiration. You don't need the expensive ingredients, you can do just as well with cheaper ones. I have to substitute as DS can't have dairy and I don't like the taste of many meats, so I chop and change recipes a lot. "Buy the best you can get here" means "well, the best I can get is the saver range" and it tastes just as good as when I cook it chez parents and they buy the post name-brand stuff. If not better.
Cut down on alcohol. I do buy wine and spirits on offer, such as a favourite on 70% off, or when there's a good meal deal that comes with wine. DH does get some beers. But we're down to one bottle of wine a week. Sharing. Admittedly, depending on where I'm working, the spirits can go down a bit. But at least I'm drinking under 5% of my earnings.
HTH and best of luck to you.