A week of dinners made simple (and cheap)
Do you struggle to decide what to cook for dinner each night? Do you end up reaching for the freezer or just chucking spuds in the oven and having them with baked beans from the can? We’re going to bring you a week’s worth of meals on a budget. The only thing you have to promise us is that you’ll go and find yourself a fresh market to get your veggies from. Not only will they be fresher and last longer in your fridge (saving you precious shopping time), they’ll be heaps cheaper too.
We shop once a week. A quick fly around Coles/Woolies/IGA for the essentials such as bread, rice milk, school lunches, cans of beans and frozen peas, on to the Asian deli for tofu of varying kinds and some spices and then to the fresh market for a trolley full of veggies. It’s about 15 mins further to drive to the fresh market rather than just going to our local Coles/Woolies/IGA but the fact that we can shop just once a week and have everything we need (plus the amazingly cheaper prices) makes that extra time totally worth it and still a massive saving when it comes to time AND those precious dollars that we all work so hard to earn.
Do you struggle to decide what to cook for dinner each night? Do you end up reaching for the freezer or just chucking spuds in the oven and having them with baked beans from the can? We’re going to bring you a week’s worth of meals on a budget. The only thing you have to promise us is that you’ll go and find yourself a fresh market to get your veggies from. Not only will they be fresher and last longer in your fridge (saving you precious shopping time), they’ll be heaps cheaper too.
We shop once a week. A quick fly around Coles/Woolies/IGA for the essentials such as bread, rice milk, school lunches, cans of beans and frozen peas, on to the Asian deli for tofu of varying kinds and some spices and then to the fresh market for a trolley full of veggies. It’s about 15 mins further to drive to the fresh market rather than just going to our local Coles/Woolies/IGA but the fact that we can shop just once a week and have everything we need (plus the amazingly cheaper prices) makes that extra time totally worth it and still a massive saving when it comes to time AND those precious dollars that we all work so hard to earn.
Made sure you refresh your memory by re-reading our essential tricks to making that one shop work for you. If you get smart about what you buy and how you use it, you won’t find yourself rushing to the shops every second day to grab an extra ingredient.
You should also be sure to check out the cupboard essentials blog and make sure your cupboard is stocked with all those easy-to-use and flavoursome essentials so you can turn a bunch of veggies into a stir-fry or stew that packs a punch.
So, here is your menu! It’s full of quite hearty meals for the winter (apologies to those of you in the northern hemisphere – we’ll be doing a spring and summer menu soon!) so it should leave you feeling like you’ve had an adequate amount of comfort food.
1.Sweet potato and leek bake with green salad
2.Stir fry with chickpeas, rice and tempeh or tofu
3.Fried rice (using yesterday’s left over rice)
4.Home-made baked beans with whole baked potatoes
5.Sweet potato curry
6.Veggie stew with polenta
7.Polenta pizza
Shopping List
CUPBOARD ESSENTIALS
SUPERMARKET
SUPERMARKET OR ASIAN GROCER
SHOPPING LIST (Fresh market)
(Total approx. $65-70 for the week for a family of 4)
Note: this costs are based on our local stores and are calculated in Australian dollars. Prices will vary depending on where you source your ingredients and how many people you’re cooking for.
You should also be sure to check out the cupboard essentials blog and make sure your cupboard is stocked with all those easy-to-use and flavoursome essentials so you can turn a bunch of veggies into a stir-fry or stew that packs a punch.
So, here is your menu! It’s full of quite hearty meals for the winter (apologies to those of you in the northern hemisphere – we’ll be doing a spring and summer menu soon!) so it should leave you feeling like you’ve had an adequate amount of comfort food.
1.Sweet potato and leek bake with green salad
2.Stir fry with chickpeas, rice and tempeh or tofu
3.Fried rice (using yesterday’s left over rice)
4.Home-made baked beans with whole baked potatoes
5.Sweet potato curry
6.Veggie stew with polenta
7.Polenta pizza
Shopping List
CUPBOARD ESSENTIALS
- Salt and pepper
- Rosemary
- Sesame oil
- Soy Sauce
- Bread or bread crumbs
- Curry powder (or individual spices to make your own)
- Liquid smoke
SUPERMARKET
- Orange lentils ($4.40)
- Vegetable oil ($6.10)
- Brown or white rice ($4.00)
- Canned chickpeas ($0.75)
- Canned black beans ($1.00)
- Canned corn ($0.90)
- Canned tomatoes ($1.90)
- Instant polenta ($2.95)
- Frozen peas ($2.90)
- Frozen broad beans or edamame (soy beans) ($3.29)
- Coconut milk ($1.75)
- Dried cannellini beans ($2.00)
- Tomato paste ($2.50)
SUPERMARKET OR ASIAN GROCER
- Tempeh ($1.79)
- Tofu ($2.79)
SHOPPING LIST (Fresh market)
- Bok choy/Asian greens ($3.00)
- Brocolii ($3.00)
- Onions ($2.00)
- Carrots ($1.00)
- Celery ($1.99)
- Sweet potatoes ($3.45)
- Red capsicums ($3.58)
- Leeks ($4.00)
- Salad greens (lettuce, spinach, rocket) ($2.53)
- Tomatoes ($1.40)
- Cucumber ($1.00)
- Cabbage ($2.00)
- Fresh ginger, chillies and garlic ($2.50)
(Total approx. $65-70 for the week for a family of 4)
Note: this costs are based on our local stores and are calculated in Australian dollars. Prices will vary depending on where you source your ingredients and how many people you’re cooking for.