I have worked on a scenario of actually going out with £1 each day-for one person-assuming nothing in the house-assuming only £1 each day can be acquired.
It will be tough going for the first few days as there won’t be much variety. If there is money left from one day it will be carried forward to the next day.
I am going to just have to pick one shop so it is going to be Aldi. However, it is advisable to pop to Lidl for porridge.
There is no way of doing this for every shop-we all have different facilities in our area. It will be full-priced foods only as nobody can guarantee a yellow sticker.
I will put the ideas on this thread. Here is a 14-day plan. Things would be easier after this time as a little stock would have built up.
Day 1
Buy
- Bread 36p
- Baked beans 23p
- Savoury rice 25p
- Banana 12p
Total cost: 96p
Breakfast: Banana squished on toast or banana sandwiches using 2 to 4 slices of bread.
- Lunch: Savoury rice.
- Dinner: Half of the beans on 2 slices of toast or the whole tin if needed.
Approx 14 slices of bread remain and 4p
Day 2
Buy
- Spaghetti dried 20p
- Tinned tomatoes 29p
- Soft cheese 49p
- You have 6 pence remaining
- Breakfast: Bread/toast with a scraping of soft cheese (approx 1/10 of a tub)
- Lunch: Spaghetti with soft cheese stirred through. Leave half a tub of the cheese for another day. (100g dry weight spaghetti)
- Dinner: Spaghetti with tomatoes. Use half a tin. Keep the remainder for another day. (100g dry weight spaghetti)
You now have remaining approx 10 slices of bread, half a tub of cheese, half a tin of tomatoes, 300g of spaghetti, and 6 pence change…
Day 3
Buy
- 6 eggs 79p
- Baked beans 23p
Total cost: £1.02
- Breakfast: 2 poached or boiled eggs on toast
- Lunch: Spaghetti with 1/4 can of beans and 1/4 can tomatoes stirred through.
- Dinner: Remaining beans on toast.
You now have remaining approx 6 slices of bread, half a tub of cheese, 1/4 can of tomatoes, 4 eggs, 200g of spaghetti and 4p
Day 4
Buy
- Savoury rice 25p
- Breakfast: Toast with cheese spread (leaving 1/4 of a tub)
- Lunch: Cheese stirred through pasta
- Dinner: Remaining tomatoes and savoury rice.
79 pence remaining
Food carried forward is 100g of pasta (more if you eat smaller servings) 4 eggs. Today is a “using up day”
Day 5
Buy
- Tinned potatoes 19p
- Bread 36p
- Sausages pack of 20 frozen 99p
- Baked beans 23p
- £1.77 so 2 pence remains.
Fat drained from cooking sausages can be reserved to spread on bread if you wish.
- Breakfast: 2 eggs on toast. This may have used up your original loaf of bread or you may have a bit left. I will assume it is now gone.
- Lunch: Bread with a couple of sausages
- Dinner: 2 sausages, half a tin of potatoes, 1/3 tin of beans.
You now have remained a whole loaf of bread or approx.
18 slices. Best to freeze half of the loaf for freshness. 16 sausages, 2/3 tin of beans, half a tin of potatoes, 2 eggs, 100g pasta.
2 pence remains
Day 6
Buy
- Banana 12p
- Bag of rice 40p
- Tomato puree 37p
Total cost: 89p
13 pence is remaining
- Breakfast: Squished banana on toast
- Lunch: 100g rice boiled and flavoured with some tomato puree (about 1/5 of a tube). Cook and chop 2 sausages and mix in.
- Dinner: Remaining beans, two sausages and remaining potatoes.
You now have left: 16 slices bread, 900g rice, 12 sausages, 2 eggs, 4/5 tube of puree, 100g pasta and 2 pence remaining
Yes! The remainder is now gradually building up to carry forward to the next day. You can now afford a whole kilo of rice although it lacks flavour. Sugar and fat have yet to be added to anything but that is not a bad thing
Day 7
Buy
- A bag of onions 55p (make the exception and pop into Lidl if possible to buy a bag of porridge 39 pence)
- Breakfast: 40g Porridge made with water
- Lunch: Spread a bit of puree on 2 slices of bread with 2 sausages
- Dinner: Chop an onion, boil it with 100g of rice and stir in some tomato puree for flavour. Add 2 sliced cooked sausages.If you kept the fat from the sausages you can sautee them in it. 96 pence spent 8 pence remains.
You have 14 slices of bread leftover, 800g rice, 8 sausages, 3/4 tube puree, about 850g of onions, 460g porridge. 7 pence change.
Day 8
Buy
- 1 tin beans 23p
- 1 tin kidney beans 30p
- Garlic granules 49p
Total cost: £1.02
You have 17 pence remaining
- Breakfast: Porridge made with water
- Lunch: 2 eggs on 2 slices toast
- Dinner: What should be a chilli but isn’t unless you are lucky and are growing some. However, it will still be nice. If you have sausage fat you can fry off a chopped onion. If not, boil it until soft. Add to it some garlic granules, half a tube of tomato puree, one tin kidney beans and half a tin of baked beans. Serve with up to 100g of rice per portion. This will make 3 servings.freeze or chill remainder.
- You have left over: 12 slices bread, 800g rice, 8 sausages, 420g porridge, approx. 700g onions, 1/4 tube of puree and half a tin of beans. Garlic granules.Two frozen meals 17 pence remaining
Day 9
Today is a NO SPEND DAY
- Breakfast: Porridge
- Lunch: Boil up one sliced onion and cook 3 sausages. Use the fat the sausages cooked in to spread on the 3 slices of bread. Add a squidge of tomato puree for flavour.
- Dinner: Chopped up an onion and add to 100g of rice and boil. Stir through the rest of the tomato puree for flavour. Stir in the remaining baked beans from day 8.
- You have left over: 9 slices of bread, 700g rice, 550g onions, 5 sausages, 380g porridge. Garlic granules. Two frozen meal .You have £1.06 remaining. You will feel rich tomorrow with £2.06 in your pocket!!!
Day 10
Buy
- A jar of jam 28p
- Tin of tuna 69p
- Tomato puree 37p
Total cost: £1.34
- Breakfast: Porridge with jam.
- Lunch: 2 slices bread with half a tin of tuna. 2 slices of bread and jam.
- Dinner: One of the “should have been a chilli” meals prepared and frozen from day 8.
You have leftover: 7 slices of bread, 700g rice, 550g onions, 5 sausages, 340g porridge and one frozen meal.
Garlic granules nearly full jar of jam and one frozen meal
You have 72 pence remaining.
Day 11
NO SPEND DAY
- Breakfast: Porridge with jam.
- Lunch: Tuna sandwich. And a Jam sandwich.
- Dinner: The last of the meals you made on day 8. You have left over: 7 slices of bread, 700g rice, 550g onions, 5 sausages, 340g porridge. Garlic granules nearly full jar of jam. You have £1..72 remaining.
Day 12
Buy
- Eggs 79p
- Cooking bacon 59p
- Baked beans 23p
Total cost: £1.61
Let’s have brunch!
- Bacon 100g
- 2 eggs half a can of beans (jeep any bacon fat for frying)
- Snack Bread and jam.
- Dinner: The last of the spaghetti with the onion some tomato puree stirred through it. One onion diced and sautéed in bacon fat and a slice or two of bacon chopped up and cooked with the onion. Stir this into the spaghetti.
You have remaining: 4 eggs, 400g bacon, 700g rice, 400g onions, 5 sausages, 340g porridge, half a tin of beans, garlic granules, jam, £1.10 pence left.
Day 13
Buy
- Bread 36p
- Tub of olive spread 79p
Total cost: £1.15
You have 95 pence left
- Breakfast: Porridge with jam
- Lunch: Bacon sandwiches using 100g bacon and 4 slices bread.
- Dinner: Egg fried rice using one egg, 100g rice, spread to fry onion. Some garlic granules to flavour. 2 sausages cooked and sliced, mixed in with cooked rice.
You have the remaining food to carry forward: 3 eggs, Bread 16 slices, 300g bacon, 600g rice, 300g onions, 1 sausage, half a tin of beans, 300g porridge, garlic granules, jam
Day 14
Buy
- Bag of frozen mixed veg 85p
- Packet of stock cubes 36p
Total cost: £1.21
You have 74 pence remaining.
- Breakfast: Porridge with jam.
- Lunch: 80g bacon, half tin of beans, 4 slices toast.
- Dinner: Remaining sausage and a little bacon (about 30g chopped and fried). 100g mixed vegetables. One onion diced and sautéed. Garlic powder and stock cube to add flavour. Cook this as a risotto adding water as needed. Try half a stock cube (a whole one could be too much)
You have the following food remaining: 3 eggs, 12 slices bread, 190g bacon, 200g onions, garlic, stock cubes, jam, olive spread, 200g porridge 500g rice. 74 pence left cash.
Day 15
Today is a NO SPEND DAY You have£1.74 available.
- Breakfast: Porridge with jam
- Lunch: Bacon sandwiches using half of the bacon (about 90g)
- Dinner: Risotto using 100g rice, stock cube, an onion, garlic, 100g veg, remainder of the bacon diced.
You have the following remaining: 3 eggs, 8 slices bread, an onion (or two) garlic, stock cubes, jam, olive spread, 100g porridge, 400g rice.
As a result of not spending, day 16 you would have £1.74 available so choices could be made for something different.
Hopefully, you see how everything is “rationed” and even on £1 a day, a small stock cupboard is building up.
If you see any errors in calculations please let me know as it was a bit of a hard slog to do this today.
That’s it from me!
At this point, it gets easier.
I am not actually doing this myself but I hope it is useful to someone.
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A brilliant post Pat and interesting how the store cupboard builds up so the following weeks will be easier. Is there a vegetarian version of this? Thanks.
That was brilliant, amazing what you can do for a £1, keep it up pat, your amazing
I could have gone on and extended that post for as long as you like. The important part though to me is people seeing how the stock cupboard builds up over time. this is how I staarted when I first left home really. not daily shopping, but that gradual build up of ingredients.
This is going to be invaluable to so many people Pat. Thank you so much.
Brilliant thank you much appreciated xx
It’s been interesting but somewhat sobering to look back on this meal plan and note how the prices have risen over the end of 2022 and the start of 2023. I guess it’s only to be expected, but sad nonetheless.
Yes it is always interesting to look back on real prices rather than what is posted in the media. The foods listed in the meal plans are what the average family buys and are a better reflection of prices I think.