this post was submitted on 03 Jul 2023
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Itโ€™s taco Tuesday! Hope you get to eat some tacos today. Have an amazing day ๐ŸŒฎ๐ŸŒฎ๐ŸŒฎ

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[โ€“] CEOofmyhouse56@aussie.zone 17 points 2 years ago (16 children)

After posting my dinner I realised I may have been insensitive to the fact that some people might be struggling right now. My apologies if I have caused any discomfort. So thought I might share some of my cost saving secrets because I like you guys. We are on a one low income so I know how it feels. Here we go.

We have never ordered ubereats. If we get take away my husband goes and gets it. We eat from local take away or we get specials from fast food. We have cut this down from once a week to once a fortnight. We eat out on special occasions.

I go to the local butchers for my meat. If I don't eat red meat I feel fainty due to low blood pressure so I spread my meat consumption of the week. Most meat I buy is the cheaper cuts plus one special lamb product (that's why we had ribs tonight). Sometimes I'll see a two for deal at Coles like sausages or hamburgers and I'll freeze them. Every 6 months I have to defrost my little freezer so we live off whatever is in there, defrost it, fill it back up.

The vegetables I have in my freezer all the time are peas, beans, broccoli and corn on the cob when it's available. Everything else I get fresh from the market when in season.

The things that I have in my pantry all the time are pasta, rice, cous cous, chickpeas, canned tomatoes, baked beans, tuna, corn.

I check for half price specials every week. I only buy them if I need them. No point having 6 bottles of shampoo in my cupboard. Also on shampoo and conditioner, I buy pump packs when they're $6 each. It's shampoo and conditioner it's all the same.

I try to make the evening meal serve 4 so my husband has lunch the next day or I'll make enough for 6 meals so we can have leftovers for dinner the next night.

I freeze bread. You can't beat toast. Ever.

I can't think of anything else right now but if you want me to answer any questions I'll be happy to answer them.

[โ€“] cuavas@aussie.zone 4 points 2 years ago (2 children)

Also, grow your own herbs. Herbs are easy to grow, but fresh herbs are expensive. If you live in an apartment, see if there's a nearby community garden where you can rent a plot. It's usually no more than $30/year, so it pays off really quickly. You can specialise in what you grow, and swap excess with people growing other things.

[โ€“] CEOofmyhouse56@aussie.zone 3 points 2 years ago

That's a really good idea. I'm going to set up a little cat proof hot house because I have wandering neighbourhood cats and I don't want my herbs being pissed on.

[โ€“] just_kitten@aussie.zone 1 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

Perennial herbs are generally the #1 category of edible plant I recommend people grow in terms of value for money/effort. With a balcony that gets decent sun you can grow heaps in pots. Rosemary is a no brainer, thyme and oregano are strong contenders too. As is mint, in a cooler spot.

As for annuals and biannuals, I'm a big fan of parsley and chives as being very easy to grow. Coriander more so in the cooler months.

And basil in summer - extra delicious, cheap, plentiful and great for making excess pesto to freeze and use over winter.

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