caretaker

Really heavy (I'm not going into the garbage for this). They usually cost this much at Wholesale Club but it's what they cost at No Frills when they have a sale because of close due dates - this is good until late March. I think No Frills normally wants $10 more for the fresh stock. Ham and beans, goes together like hard liquor and handguns.

paw339

The biggest money saver as far as food is concerned for us has turned out to be my daughters Vitamix. Any leftover food ends up being dumped into it to make great soups which we now eat 4-5 times a week with nothing wasted. If we get any fruit that is going off it can be dumped into to vitamix to make a smoothie or into the breadmaker to make jam!

not2old

that works, as does buying 'in bulk/club packs', 'what's on special' or 'flyer price matching' to cut down on the crocery bill

never ever discard food away, ever.

We always do some of the above as well as make two or more meals at the time of cooking for meals within the same week.

Since we three people eating, we cook for six, then save the extra for the next meal. It saves /work/effort, money, utilities etc

Shard

Shard

Would a normal blender do? I just looked up Vitamix and they seem fairly expensive units.

My attempts at homemade soups have been hit and miss. So much so that I have stopped attempting. Fresh soups are only £1.50 on sale and are pretty good IMO. Even Baxters canned soups are pretty good.

scrubbedexpat091

While not as fancy at the Vitamix, Ninja makes poor man versions that can do the basic stuff better then a normal blender. We have the little version of a Ninja and it can turn ice and vegetables into a liquid smoothie in seconds with very little if any solids left, where a normal blender always seems to leave big chunks of vegetable matter...

We paid $80 for it, but it doesn't do all the fancy stuff, just basic stuff so not a direct competitor or comparison.


We very rarely have left over food from meals, I only make enough for each meal, usually a protein source (chicken usually) and 2 cups of vegetables for a dinner, 1 cup of veggies for each of us.




For 2 people and limited freezer space, just not feasible to cook multiple meals at once, and I only make enough to eat for each meal, so never any left overs to fuss with.

not2old

on special this week at No Frills is Campbells soups, 2 cans for $0.88 - varieties of Vegetable, Chicken noodle, Mushroom.

As a base soup, with one can condensed vegetable soup (with equal amount of water) + one chicken leg in a pot (add herbs, spices or other ingredients), simmer for two hours, feast of the table.

Remove chicken leg, take off the bone, cut up the chicken, back into the pot. Serve in two bowls with a slice a bread each.

Repeat the recipe with the other soups... chicken & mushroom, or with the chicken noodle by adding extra chicken pieces

BristolUK

Two hours?

Why not keep back some already cooked chicken and then just add it to the soup and heat, saving two hours?

I doubt not cooking a chicken leg in the soup and herbs etc will make a huge difference to such a small part of it - the herbs and stuff will still be in the soup. But the chicken that you keep back could be herbed etc anyway from when it was cooked first.

not2old

Are you winding me up when I'm trying to be serious about frugal, without going the 'frozen ready prepared meals' which many have to resort to?

Starting from scratch, no leftovers, its a simple peasant meal, not your average expensive prime rib roast beef,lamb, chicken breast, that most seem to have all kinds of money to buy - excluding the alcohol booze & spirits.

The two hours on simmer with a raw chicken leg is essential

Try it.

Add in lumps of potato, or some other veg going soft in your fridge, even a zucchini from the seconds produce shelf $0.35 tops worth of added ingredients.

Then there's the cabbage soup, with mixed beans, veggies from the marked down produce shelf etc - throw in $1.00 worth of meat scrap ends from the deli, even the chicken carcasses or meat bones from the ethnic store (if there is one of them around) - lots of meat on them

This may end up as three meals for two people

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paw339

Unfortunately "normal" blenders aren't really powerful enough to make the really smooth fully blended soups that a vitamix type blender (the difference really is amazing) makes. One thing I really like is that they are so powerful that they heat the soup up in the blender by friction. There are a few other professional type blenders around including blendtec that work. Refurbished blenders from the manufacturer are cheaper and still come with a longish warranty (5 years?). Judging by how long our old normal blenders lasted 2 years or less (with a lot less use) and the expected life of the Vitamix 10 years plus (7 year warranty with free both way return shipping) the real cost difference shrinks.

BristolUK

Nope.

I'm just questioning the need for it to be raw.

What's wrong with, for example, buying a chicken when they're $1.99 a lb or buying some other chicken portion when on 'special' or something approaching its date and then cooking that for one or two meals but keeping back a bit of it for the soup later?

A two hour cook time seems excessive for a chicken leg that could be "made ready" during the process of other meals.

Sorry.




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not2old

sure, whatever it takes in the individual cooking style or kitchen. I mentioned from scratch, no leftover chicken. Maybe two cans of soup, two chicken legs, anything goes.

No different than making batches of preserves or multiple meals.

Then, as discussed on BE previously, that folks buy [quick & easy] dried pasta instead of making it from scratch with one egg & a cup or so of flour.

Or buying packs of dried beans & soaking them overnight instead of beans out of a can.

This past week I bought 10 lbs of chicken legs on special at the local ethnic store for $0.79/lb. Will go a very long way into several different dishes.

To each their own way of grocery living & meals.

Then there are folks that will buy all kinds of junk, prepared foods, ranging from soda pop, snacks, chips, cookies & all kinds of unhealthy crap & whinge they don't have enough money for proper food

caretaker

My Prussian heritage dictates that I put sausage in with the vegetables in my cabbage soup. When I made cabbage rolls I only wanted to make a half dozen or so large ones so I parboiled the cabbage and when I was done froze the bulk of it. Now even though it's frozen I can take it out and slice off as much as I need easily.

not2old

along those lines, that works also.

Could it be the British way being brought up to eat prepared foods, foods out of packets or cans, crap snacks, down to it must be 'roast beef, sausage, pork anything with spuds & peas' or fish & chips or a pork pie - anything else or other methods of cooking doesn't look right.

Do most British folks not indulge in fresh anything natural foods?

BristolUK

My mother in law does that. She adds a bit of pork belly to it for her own baked beans as well.

79c a lb? Maybe I should move to your neck of the woods. Are you near Cobourg?