The Thrifty Family Kitchen – Week 1

The Thrifty Family Kitchen

Week 1: Building Our Budget Kitchen

Seven breakfasts, seven lunches and seven evening meals for a family of four—with a shopping list that starts stocking the cupboard for the weeks ahead.

Welcome to Week 1. This week’s shop is slightly bigger because we are starting with an almost empty kitchen. As well as buying the fresh food needed for our meals, we are buying useful basics such as flour, rice, oats, oil, herbs and stock cubes.

We will not use all of these ingredients this week. Anything left will be recorded at the bottom of the post and carried into Week 2.

£60–£64 Estimated first shop
84 Main family servings
£15+ Food left for future weeks

Before we start

Prices are approximate and will vary between shops and locations. The guide assumes that you have access to tap water and ordinary cooking equipment.

Children’s appetites also vary. Serve smaller portions first and let everyone ask for more rather than putting food on plates that may be wasted.

This week’s meal plan

Day Breakfast Lunch Evening meal
Monday Banana porridge Egg mayonnaise sandwiches and carrot sticks Sausage, mash, peas and gravy
Tuesday Scrambled egg on toast Tuna mayonnaise sandwiches Tomato and lentil pasta
Wednesday Apple and raisin porridge Leftover tomato and lentil pasta Chicken and vegetable fried rice
Thursday Wheat biscuits with milk and banana Beans on toast Jacket potatoes with beans and cheese
Friday Peanut butter toast and sliced apple Cheese sandwiches and carrot sticks Homemade family pizzas
Saturday Homemade pancakes with banana Homemade vegetable and lentil soup with toast Hidden-vegetable cottage pie
Sunday Apple and raisin porridge Cheese toasties Roasted chicken thighs, potatoes, carrots and peas

The Week 1 shopping list

Breakfast, bread and dairy

  • 1kg porridge oats – approximately £1.25
  • 24 own-brand wheat biscuits – approximately £1.90
  • 3 loaves of sliced bread – approximately £2.55
  • 8 pints of milk – approximately £4.80
  • 15 eggs – approximately £3.00
  • 1 jar of peanut butter – approximately £1.50
  • 500g block of mature cheddar – approximately £3.50
  • 12 small yoghurts – approximately £2.15

Fruit and vegetables

  • 5kg potatoes – approximately £3.50
  • 1.5kg carrots – approximately 95p
  • 1kg onions – approximately £1
  • 8 bananas – approximately £1.25
  • 6 apples – approximately £1.70
  • 1kg frozen peas – approximately £1.45
  • 1kg frozen mixed vegetables – approximately £1.45

Meat and tinned food

  • 8 sausages – approximately £2
  • 1kg chicken thighs – approximately £3.25
  • 500g beef mince – approximately £3.50
  • 4 tins of baked beans – approximately £1.80
  • 3 tins of tuna – approximately £2.50
  • 4 tins of chopped tomatoes – approximately £1.75
  • 1 jar of mayonnaise – approximately 90p

Store-cupboard ingredients

  • 1kg dried pasta – approximately £1.30
  • 1kg long-grain rice – approximately £1.25
  • 500g dried red lentils – approximately £1.15
  • 1.5kg plain flour – approximately 80p
  • 1 packet of dried yeast – approximately 85p
  • 500g raisins – approximately £1.70
  • 500g passata – approximately 55p
  • 1 tube or tin of tomato purée – approximately 60p
  • 1 packet of stock cubes – approximately 75p
  • 1 tub or packet of gravy granules – approximately £1
  • 1 litre vegetable oil – approximately £1.85
  • 1kg sugar – approximately £1.10
  • 1 jar mixed dried herbs – approximately 85p
  • 1 packet of salt – approximately 65p

Estimated total: £60–£64

This is not the true cost of the food eaten during Week 1. A good portion of the shop—including flour, rice, oats, cereal, lentils, raisins, oil and seasonings—will still be available for Week 2.

Buy supermarket-own versions and compare the shelf price per kilogram rather than assuming the largest packet is always the best value.

Before the week begins

Spending 30–40 minutes getting organised will make the plan much easier to follow.

  1. Freeze one loaf of bread immediately. Sliced bread can be toasted straight from frozen.
  2. Divide the chicken thighs into two 500g portions. Keep the first portion in the fridge and freeze the portion for Sunday.
  3. Keep the mince and sausages in the fridge only if their use-by dates cover the days you intend to cook them. Otherwise, freeze them.
  4. Put the oldest fruit where it can be seen and eaten first.
  5. Write the week’s meals on a piece of paper and place it on the fridge.
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