Budge it

[j4]

I don't know what to do about budgeting for food. sion_a and I have been sharing evening meals, and basically he's been paying for pretty much everything, which is clearly unfair; but when I suggested trying to allocate a set amount for food he was unhappy about the idea & said he'd prefer to go back to the way we used to do it -- on a completely ad hoc basis, buying food roughly once a week but often more, and sort of taking turns to pay. I can understand why he wouldn't want to do that -- there's no reason why he should have to go without everything he wants just because I'm skint -- but I don't think I can cope with that kind of system and still claw my finances back to a sensible point.

On the other hand, I have no idea how to budget for feeding just one person, because more or less ever since I've lived out I've been sponging off one boyfriend or another, and cooking for at least two people. Basically I'm just not used to living a single life, but it's about time I learned.

How much do people think is a sensible amount of money to allocate for a week's food (lunches and evening meals) for one?

For ages I've been eating at the pub on Thursdays with the rest of the crowd -- is it stupid to try to build that into a budget? (The pub food isn't expensive, but it's still eating-out rather than eating-in. Last night's meal cost £3.25, and that's not quite the cheapest option.)


So far this week I have spent the following:

£ 1.19   5 avocados and 2 bananas
£ 0.99   1 bag of new potatoes
£ 3.25   meal at the pub
£ 2.40   1 pint of beer
£15.00   karate lesson

The potatoes and avocados between them have made lots of salads for lunches. I feel like I've been reasonably good about money, but the evening meals have mostly been covered by stuff that sion_a's bought, so really I'm just sponging still. :-(

Bank balance is looking more healthy, but there's still £86 owed to a friend to come out of that -- and no, I can't pay back in instalments, I just want to clear the debt in one go -- and money for a birthday present for somebody else. Salary comes through in less than a week now, but I know I mustn't see that as the point when I can start spending money again!

Food tonight is sorted: I'm working a shift at the pub so I'll have my usual sandwich or bowl of chips. And more money! Hurrah.

Comments

[j4.livejournal.com]

It wasn't my intention to make anybody else feel guilty. Why should you reduce the amount you spend on food? The money's yours to spend as you wish. And there are probably plenty of things that I spend more money on than you -- clothes, for one! ;-)

And you're a fantastic cook, so it's unsurprising that you'd want quality ingredients to work with. I can't cook -- well, I can make things stop being raw and start being edible, but that's it -- so there's no reason for me to spend money on exciting stuff since I won't be able to use it.

[mobbsy.livejournal.com]

Ha! The plan worked, now I simply can set up an endless circle of apologies for apologies and destroy the whole world in a cycle of regret.

Er... anyway. Yes, it's part of it that I like using good stuff to cook with, part of it is I'm just not careful about not being ripped off. Somethings do get significantly better if you buy the more expensive stuff, other things just get a matt-black box with silver ink.

[j4.livejournal.com]

part of it is I'm just not careful about not being ripped off

Well often it's a question of paying for the convenience of not having to go round hundreds of shops comparing pence-per-gramme to make sure you're getting absolutely the best value you possibly could. That sort of thing reduces me to a nervous wreck in next to no time, so if I can afford to pay the extra and save the time I often will. Probably need to be more careful now but I simply don't have time to spend the entire day comparing Sainsburys, Tesco, the Co-op, the market for every single thing I buy; and they do vary a lot as to which is better for what, because of offers and suchlike, & it's impossible to keep track.

Things like eggs and milk and sliced bread I find there's absolutely no discernable difference between the cheap stuff and the more pricey stuff. (With eggs I suppose the difference is that if you buy cheap ones they're less likely to be humanely extracted from the chickens...) Likewise rice, pasta, tinned tomatoes, kidney beans, in fact all the things that make up a student diet. :) Maybe the more discerning shopper/cook/eater would notice the difference, but I don't.

I wonder how long it'll be before I'm back to the eat-spaghetti-in-tomato-sauce-out-of-the-can stage again. Hey, at least it contains vitamins. Maybe.

[juliet]

General rule: market is better for veg, supermarket better for basically everything else. Over a basket of shopping, you are unlikely IME to notice the price difference between the different supermarkets, so it's not worth the hassle for the pennies you're talking about. Steer clear of anything involving packaging beyond the level required to keep it in (tins & tubs of marge OK, shrinkwrapped veg bad, sort of thing).

I seem to recall reading something about economy tinned tomatoes being not worth the saving because you get less tomato & more juice (so it's worth paying an extra 20p for the regular-own-brand, because it will produce more actual food) but I can't remember for certain. Possibly worth experimentation.

I will put in a plea for sticking to free-range eggs rather than factory-farmed - Sainsburys Online says that if you buy a dozen extra-large eggs it's 6p/egg more than 15 economy mixed-weight, 3p/egg more than a dozen regular extra-large, which isn't huge sums, even on a tight budget. But you probably knew I'd say that :-)

Lentils are your friends, generally. Lovely lovely cheap lentils. Fry up onions, tin of tomatoes, (cooked) lentils & (cooked) rice, & some kind of flavouring stuff, mmm. I lived on that for a couple of *very* impoverished weeks during my MPhil.

[imc.livejournal.com]

back to the eat-spaghetti-in-tomato-sauce-out-of-the-can stage again

Spaghetti hoops on toast… there was a time when I ate quite a lot of that.