You might have heard of batch cooking, especially if you have googled ways to cut food waste or how to save on a low income. Truth be told batch cooking isn’t just for people on a low income. Batch cooking is for anyone who likes to be organized ahead of time or wants to avoid food waste.
What is batch cooking?
Batch cooking is cooking meals ahead of time. Cooking larger portions or cooking multiple meals at once to be eaten in the future.
What are the benefits?
Batch cooking saves you time, money and electricity.
Time
Days that you don’t have time to cook you can take a batch cooked meal out to defrost and have a delicious and healthy meal ready to reheat at dinner time.
Electricity
Batch cooking allows you to optimize your cooking to save electricity.
Cooking lager portions in the slow cooker is a wonderful way to save electricity. Running your slow cooker is said to be one of the cheapest ways to cook as the energy consumption is so low.
You can cook multiple meals at once in the oven to maximize the savings on electricity. If you are running the oven anyway you might as well get the most value for money.
Money
Instead of buying expensive and frankly unhealthy take-away meals you have a cost effective and delicious meal prepped ahead of time for days you don’t have time or interest to cook.
Not only are you avoiding buying expensive take-aways but you are also avoiding food waste. Food waste is incredibly expensive. Consider you have paid for travel to and from the store, bought the food, paid to store it and now you’re possibly going to pay to dispose of it? It doesn’t make sense. That’s how batch cooking saves you money. You aren’t wasting food.
Methods
There are two ways you can batch cook to save time in the future. You can cook double portion sizes and freeze half for another day. Alternatively you can take an afternoon to batch cook multiple meals and freeze them for another time.
What do I need to start batch cooking?
Ingredients
Recipes you like
Pots, pans and cooking utensils
Fridge and/or freezer
Suitable containers for the fridge or freezer
Permanent marker or labels and pen to name and date your cooking
Slow cooker (optional)
What can I batch cook?
Plenty of meals freeze well and can be cooked ahead of time.
Breakfast
Dinner
Treats and snacks
Smoothie portions
Stew
Soup
Pancakes
Casserole
Sandwiches
Breakfast muffins
Curry
Biscuits
Sausage rolls
Shepard’s pie
Buns and cakes
Banana bread
Cottage pie
Bread
Pasta Sauce
Home-made pizza
Further reading
If you found this blog post interesting you might also be interested in
It is possible to save money on a low income. It won’t be easy but it is possible. There is no reason you can’t implement a few small and simple changes in your life to save a few euro.
10 ways to save money on a low income
Write a realistic budget and stick to it.
Cancel any subscriptions you aren’t getting value for money with.
Shop around for the best price for your utilities when your contract is up.
Aim for zero food waste.
Low cost or free entertainment like hiking and reading.
Save an emergency fund.
Avoid adding to any debt and try to pay off any current debt.
Batch cook.
Consider buying new to you.
Start sinking funds.
Write a realistic budget and stick to it
A budget is vital for your personal finances health. It is the key to getting good with money and keeping your head above water. Think of it as swimming lessons. If you fell into deep water you’d like to know you had enough ability to survive at the very least.
Start by tracking your spending and figure out your realistic numbers. The more honest you are with yourself the better. This is going to be your guide when something inevitably crops up.
If it’s not in the budget and it’s not urgent consider other ways to achieve the same goal like gifting your time instead of a present or baking a treat instead of buying one.
Cancel any subscriptions you aren’t getting value for money with
You do not need Netflix, Disney+, Amazon prime and YouTube Premium etc. If you are getting value for money and getting use out of a subscription then keep it in the budget. However if you hardly use it or forgot you have it then cancel that subscription.
Again with the swimming analogy, getting rid of unnecessary subscriptions is like emptying your pockets of whatever is weighing you down.
A great way to cut subscription costs would be alternate between them. NowTv this month and Hayu next month.
Shop around for the best price for your utilities when your contract is up
Figure out when you’re contract is up and make a note of it. Coming up to renewal time start shopping around to find the best price. You do not need to be spending more money for the same service. A simple google search for the best price or a few phone calls could save you a few hundred a year.
Back to that swimming analogy! Ok so now you’re threading water and you’ve shed unnecessary weight. Now you are giving yourself a bit of wiggle room. A bit of breathing space so you can relax.
Aim for zero food waste
If you want to save money on a low income the food budget is a very simple but effective place to do it. Reducing the amount of food and therefore money that you bin is a fabulous way to cut costs.
A meal plan is a sure fire way to guarantee you cut your food waste and save some money. Look at what food you already have on hand and decide on meals for the coming week based around those ingredients. Prioritize fresh food that needs to be eaten before it spoils. From your meal plan you can then make a list of what you actually need in the grocery shopping.
Low cost or free entertainment like hiking and reading
Getting out into nature or borrowing a book from the library are free or very low cost forms of entertainment. You can reduce your entertainment costs significantly by thinking outside the box.
Date nights don’t have to be super expensive. A walk on the beach and a fake-away at home can be just as much fun. Board games can make for some friendly competition and a great laugh.
A relaxing bath or shower with your favourite music playing can make wonderful self care.
Save an emergency fund
Its time to don the life jacket.
An emergency fund is the best decision you will make after you decide to get on a budget. It is inevitable that at some point you will have an emergency come up. It’s not if it happens but when it happens. To prevent getting into or further into debt you need an emergency fund.
Save an amount to cover a basic emergency at first. You can increase the emergency fund as you go along.
Avoid adding to any debt and try to pay off any current debt
**Disclaimer!! I am not a financial expert and this is not financial advise. Speak to a qualified financial advisor about your own situation and make an informed decision.**
Debt is stealing from your future to pay for your past. It can cost a significant amount of interest to go into debt. That is money you could be putting towards your own goals.
Paying down debt will can take some time and dedication. It’s not a whole lot of fun. However paying off high interest loans in particular can free up some money to save for your wants and needs.
Batch cook
Batch cooking is amazing. It saves you time, money and electricity.
Have you ever been out of the house longer than you anticipated and when you get home can’t face cooking. You end up buying expensive takeaway food. Batch cooking means you always have a delicious, healthy meal on hand.
The great thing here is you aren’t out the cost of a takeaway and no fresh food is going to waste. Double money savings!
Using the cooker to its full potential while batch cooking saves you on electricity. You could potentially be cooking a lasagna, a casserole and a whole chicken all at the same time.
Consider buying new to you
Second hand items are a wonderful way to keep your spending to a minimum. Vintage clothing and furniture can be bought at very reasonable prices. Oftentimes new to you items will have had very little use and be in great condition.
Bonus tip- Shop smart! Just because something is cheap doesn’t mean you need to buy it. Stick to buying items you will get full use out of.
Start sinking funds
If an emergency fund is a life jacket then sinking funds are the speed boat taking you to dry land.
Sinking funds are when you set aside a small sum of money regularly for a short term savings goal. An example of a sinking fund would be your car tax. You know when it’s due and how much you need to pay. You save a few euro a week or a month to be able to pay your car tax when it’s due.
Further reading
If you found this post helpful you might also be interested in
How to cut food costs is on everyone’s mind right now. Inflation is driving every day items up in price. Butter went €1.19 to €1.49 and lactose free milk went €0.99 to €1.19 over night.
How to cut food costs
10 ways to cut food costs
Look at swapping to store brand products.
Shop around.
Make a meal plan.
Make a shopping list.
Reduce meat consumption.
Use your freezer like a pantry.
Check out reduced to clear food items.
Never grocery shop while hungry.
Batch cook.
Bulk buy when on offer.
Swap to store brand products
Own brand products are substantially cheaper than brand named products in most cases. Not only are they usually cheaper they usually contain less sugar. Better for your pocket and for your health!
In recent years with stores such as Aldi and Lidl becoming so popular there has been a mindset shift when it comes to own brand products. For the most part these lower cost products are great quality and packaged beautifully.
Shop around
Unless you’ve got a gift card that needs using for a specific store you do not need to be loyal to any grocery store. Shop around and compare prices. You will see that while some retailers sell the same products the price can vary massively. In my post – Price per unit – you will see that the same product can be priced very differently by each retailer.
Meal plan
One of the most important steps to cutting food costs has to be meal planning. You don’t need to be paying for food that’s never going to be eaten. Buy what you will use. Check what you already have in your home and make a meal plan around those items.
Make a shopping list
Once your meal plan is made it will be simple to make a shopping list. If you only need one ingredient for a meal that’s the only ingredient for that meal that goes on the list. No fluff or filler. Only buy what you have on that list.
Reduce meat consumption
Meat is expensive. There is no debating that. A simple way to cut food costs is to reduce the amount of meat consumed. Meals can be bulked out with beans or alternative protein sources can be used instead of meat altogether.
Use your freezer like a pantry
Think of your freezer as the plug in the hole. When it’s used right money wont be leaking from your food budget. Label, date and rotate everything in your freezer. You want to know what’s in your freezer and use it before it gets spoiled.
Check out reduced to clear food items
Short dated food items can be reduced by as much as 90percent. A saving that would go a long way to cutting your food bill. Look for produce that has no visible sign of spoiling such as bruising, mold or bulging packaging.
**Disclaimer!!** Check safe food practice and follow the guidelines. Make an informed decision based on your own research.
Never grocery shop when hungry
When you shop while you’re hungry you will inevitably buy high sugar and processed foods. The biscuit aisle will be calling your name from the carpark. Eat a light meal before shopping so that you can concentrate on sticking to your shopping list. Avoid eating a heavy meal as it will make you sleepy and you won’t be able to focus on your task.
Batch cook
Batch cook is one of the greatest ways to cut food costs. It is easier to say no to fast food if you have a delicious meal on hand that just needs to be reheated. Batch cooking will save you time and money as you are using your cooker as efficiently as possible and avoiding food waste.
Bulk buy when on offer
This tip will only save you money if you use the produce up before it spoils. Buying canned goods or long life cupboard staples on offer is a great way to lower the grocery budget. It makes sense to buy produce at the best possible price in order to save money. Food such as onions and garlic freeze remarkably well. They are worth stocking up on when on special offer. Bonus tip – check out the freezer aisle for inspiration on what foods you can freeze.
Further reading
If you found this post useful you might also like 10 tips to save money on your food shopping written by Claire. She shares some clever tips to cut food costs and has an interesting series on her blog dedicated to frugal living.
I also have a number of posts that you might find useful, such as..
With the cost of living soaring towards the stars I thought we could look at the price per unit as a method to get the best value while shopping. I was all out of laundry detergent yesterday and I asked on my Instagram stories if anyone had come across Fairy laundry detergent at a good price. Plenty of offers were messaged to me but I realized it was hard to figure out what was best value for money.
I ended up buying the 57 washes for €12 in Dunnes Stores simply because I was overwhelmed by choice and picked the easiest one to find. But was it the best price per unit? Lets have a look.
So what are the offers?
Prices and links are accurate at time of publication in Ireland. Local stores may not stock everything listed.
So it is clear to see that the bigger pack is not always the best value and by making a snap decision to buy the bigger packet I lost the opportunity to make a saving on my laundry costs. It’s a small saving but these things add up really quickly!
I’m feeling a little bit sassy, so this weeks post is focusing on the things nobody told me and maybe they should have or at least could have tried.
Chin hairs!
Why are we taught about Pythagorus’s theorem but not that when you hit thirty chin hairs will start to sprout. No one warned me about the prickly little divils. I assumed it was an old lady thing. How wrong was I.
Breast black heads!
Ok so as prepubescents we learn about the changes the body goes through. The rounding of hips and stretch marks that go along with that are to be expected. Why wasn’t black heads on breasts mentioned? Also since we are talking boobs why did no one mention the random hairs that occasionally appear?
Having a car loan could make mortgage approval harder!
Not strictly true for everyone and you should check with a professional regarding your own circumstances. Now I’ve said that let me tell you this was very much the case in my situation. A car loan meant no lender would take us serious. In fairness we are on a small income and the bank has to follow certain rules BUT no body warned us.
Making friends as an adult is a nightmare!
Nobody told me making friends as an adult is like looking for a needle in a haystack. It’s hard. Maintaining a friendship is difficult but forging a new one is a mammoth task.
While we are on the subject of friends, not a single soul told me the things that made me stand out like a sore thumb as a teenager were the things that as an adult made me normal.
That first number two after labor is more terrifying than labor itself!
Everyone knows that giving birth is painful but not one single soul on this planet warned me about the fear that comes with that first number two. Particularly if you’ve got fresh stitches. Boy oh boy that’s a level of fear not for the faint hearted.
Sugar starts to taste foul!
This secret hurts the most. Nobody told me that sugary things would start to taste nasty. Thankfully it’s not all things but dare I say it some cookies are too sweeet these days. Who even am I?! This should of came up at some point, but nope. Instead I had to discover that there is such a thing as too sweet all by myself.
Heartburn!
Food and beverages that I could once eat like it was going out of fashion now turn me into a raging monster drowning in a sea of burning lava. Nobody told me!! Anti-heartburn products are now my best friends.
Homework is the gift that keeps giving!
Here’s a fun one. Homework is no fun. Not as child doing it and not as the suffering parent trying to convince the child to get it over and done with. I assumed the worst part of parenting would be dirty nappies. I was wrong. It’s the years of arguing with my children to just get their homework done.
Further Reading
If you enjoyed reading this blog post you might also enjoy – This is your year. A blog post about making 2022 and all subsequent years your best year yet.
We have all heard the phrase men are from Mars while women are from Venus. I don’t necessarily agree. What women want isn’t so different from what men want.
We want to be thought of
There’s no denying some people enjoy being the center of attention and there is nothing wrong with that. The opposite is also true. Some people despise having all eyes on them and again there’s nothing wrong with that. One thing that everyone enjoys from the very introverted to the very extroverted is being thought of.
If it’s your mothers birthday and you buy her something at the last minute because it’s convenient it doesn’t mean half so much as picking out or making something special. Spending more money on something doesn’t automatically make it better. The age old saying of -it’s the thought that counts- in my opinion has another meaning. We often use it as a way to console someone who has tried and failed to do something for someone else. But what if it really is the thought that counts? Instead of buying an expensive jumper because it’s the right size and price maybe you might get your mother a new vase because her favourite one broke.
We want a plan B
Have you ever noticed when the proverbial hits the fan it’s usually up to the woman in your life to find the solution? That could be your sister or your wife etc. Most of us tend to look to a woman to figure out plan B.
Lets pretend it’s coming up to your wife’s birthday and you have spent months planning the perfect celebration. You’ve thought about what she likes and what would make her happiest. So far everything is going great. Until it’s not. The restaurant has double booked and now all your plans are ruined. Come up with your own plan B. Do not expect your wife to figure it out or I guarantee she will be fuming that you’ve put the pressure on her to either plan her own birthday or not have one at all.
No matter what the scenario is do not expect the person you are planning for to come up with a plan B if it goes wrong.
What women want is to be valued
No one wants to be solely valued for one attribute. Not one person. It doesn’t matter how smart or attractive they are. They want to be seen and valued for their entire person.
If you are friends with the most beautiful human being on this planet they still want their personality to be of value. That could be their natural good nature, their sense of humor or their wonderful wit.
Imagine your sister is the brains of the family. She did amazing in all of her school exams and has always shined academically. There is more to her than that. She is funny and kind. She has a keen eye for fashion. That’s not saying she doesn’t want her intelligence valued. She simply doesn’t want it to be all she’s valued for.
So are men and women all that different?
To my mind the answer is no. Both men and women want financial security, a loving home and work that fulfils them. No one wants to be the consolation prize or the runner up.
What has all of this got to do with a blog about frugal family living? There is more to me than just running a family home with frugality and sustainability in mind. Just like there is more than one side to you. This post is about giving myself permission to write about anything I want.
Your homework!
Go after something you’ve wanted for the longest time. It doesn’t matter a jot what anyone else thinks once you’re causing no one any harm. Stop letting other people’s perception of you hold you back.
Further reading
If you enjoyed this post you might also enjoy Fat Funny Girl. A post about positive mindset and the use of language about ourselves.
Do you ever think about where your prejudices come from? One that I grew up believing was that only poor people use own brand. But why? So when I was growing up money was an issue. The only time posh brands came out was for birthday parties or Christmas.
What’s the craic with own brands?
Own brands can be hit and miss taste and texture wise. In all fairness so too can the brand name products.
Oftentimes there is less sugar in store own brand products. Sugar is an expensive ingredient and so you can understand why it gets the old heave-ho. Look at children’s yoghurts for an example. The brand name yoghurt is in a beautiful packaging and tastes good. But it’s full of sugar. Now look at an own brand version, there is less sugar but most of the other ingredients are the same. So the own brand is cheaper and healthier. The packaging can be less attractive but how much does that matter?
People will think I’m poor!
I can’t remember where I heard this but what other people think of you is none of your business. That’s not to be harsh. It’s simply the truth. The only opinion that matters here is your own. If you want or need to use own brand products that does not mean you are poor.
It’s interesting that our self worth can be tied to something so abstract. For years I would only send the kids with brand named products for lunch. I didn’t want them to be the subject of scrutiny. In my mind the teachers would be secretly judging me for sending in cheaper yoghurt. As if the teachers gave a second thought to what was in my children’s lunch boxes once it was somewhat healthy.
How to get started with own brands
It might be tempting to go whole hog and try everything store brand labelled at once. I would caution against it. If you don’t like the generic food you could end up with a press full of foods you don’t like and be faced with the choice to choke them down or bin them.
Instead I suggest trying maximum 3 new things per week and never buy more than one of each of them. If you enjoy them it’s easy to buy more. If you hate them you only have to get through one and never buy them again. It’s a simple plan to avoid wasted food and money.
Further reading
Cathriona from @myfamilynutrition touched on this topic this week. Her post about brand name and generic food discusses the fact that many store brand products are made in the same factory as brand named products. That’s not to say they are exactly the same product because different recipes and quantities of ingredients may well be used. But it is interesting that we think foods are wildly different depending on the label.
If you enjoyed this weeks blog post you might also like Clutter and Hoarding. It’s a post about the possible connection between hoarding things and frugal living.
A few ladies from the Irish debt free community challenged each other to find the best bargains for under €5. So Emer from @onefootinthesave on Instagram created the hashtag Follow the Yellow Sticker Road.
What is Follow the Yellow Sticker Road?
The idea is to document and share stories of reduced food items. Oftentimes reduced food will have a yellow price sticker to draw the shoppers eye.
Pros and cons of buying yellow stickers..
Pros
Saves you money. Depending on how close to the sell by date food items can be reduced by as much as 90 percent!
Reduces waste and has a positive effect on the environment. The less food wasted and sent to landfill the better.
May inspire batch cooking and save you even more money.
Cons
Less convenient. When you buy long dated food items you don’t have to prepare them as promptly. You can safely store them when you get home until they need to be used.
Reduced food safe to eat?
**Disclaimer!!** I am not a food safety expert and do not have any relevant qualifications. Please do your own research and make an informed decision.
I have been using yellow sticker food items for years. When I’m buying reduced meat I check to make sure there is no visible changes to the food that would concern me and I check the date on it. If it has started to spoil or the container (if it’s meat) has started to swell I will not buy or consume it.
What to do with meat that’s close to it’s use by date?
Firstly if the meat has started to spoil then bin it. If in doubt throw it out.
Secondly check if the food item is suitable for home freezing.
You have two options regarding raw meat..
Cook it straight away. Once cooked you can let it cool and put it in the fridge or freezer. Label it clearly with the date and what it is.
Portion it up for the freezer in it’s raw form. Again make sure to label and date it properly. When you want to cook it you will need to follow safe defrosting procedure before cooking it.
What about vegetables and other food items?
Never buy dented or rusted cans. Bacteria can get in through a pin whole and cause food poisoning. It doesn’t matter how cheap it is. It is not worth endangering yourself for a yellow sticker.
While shopping for yellow sticker fruit or vegetables look at the overall condition of the produce. If one apple in a packet of 6 is bruised but the rest are perfect. Now consider the price compared to a full price packet. Is the reduction in price sufficient?
Don’t be wasteful!
The main point of follow the yellow sticker road is to avoid waste. Waste of food and waste of money. Don’t buy food you won’t eat. If it won’t be used it is counterproductive.
Further reading
You might enjoy some of my other blog posts, such as..
It occurs to me that while I’ve said many times that you need to write a realistic budget that reflects your priorities and I don’t think I’ve explained why. Doing your budget with no regard for your real life spending is a recipe for disaster. If you are wondering why your budget isn’t working it’s because it is not realistic.
What is a realistic budget?
In the Budgeting for Beginners blog post we covered how to budget. In short you gather your real life numbers as accurately as possible and use them to prepare your budget. Your budget shouldn’t necessarily be what you would like to spend but what you can afford to spend.
How does that make any sense?
Say your shopping costs on average €100 per week. It is madness to assume you can afford to spend €30 on food unless you have a lot of food in the house that needs using up. You can not afford a budget of €30. Yes you have the money but no it won’t work because you will not stick to it. You will end up in the shop, many times in the week, picking up one or two things to tide you over but coming home with a bag full each time.
So how do you decide what you can afford?
Picking a random number out of a hat and allocating it to a category will never work. You need to know what your average spend is. If it is a new category to your budget like swimming lessons then you need to do research prior to adding it to your budget.
Is there another reason why your budget isn’t working?
You’re not sticking to it. If the numbers are accurate and the budget still isn’t working then it’s not the budget at fault. Are you emotionally spending? That is spending money based on your emotions. Buying yourself a new jacket because you got a new job and deserve a treat. Buying plane tickets because you’re going through a break up and spending makes you feel better. Learn to recognize your triggers and avoid them as best you can. If you can’t avoid them find a new way to cope with them like going for a walk on the beach.
Another reason why the budget isn’t working is you’re not checking in with it. You made the budget at the beginning of the month and never looked at it since. You’re going on memory and guess work. You need to be checking in with your budget at least once a week.
Homework!
For the next 6 weeks track your spending. See if it aligns with the amount you budget for each category. Check in with your budget at least once per week every week and see for yourself if it’s any easier to stick to your budget.
Safe to say 2020 and 2021 weren’t what any of us expected. From having babies and getting engaged to job loss and sickness. No one could have predicted the last two years. That’s why this is your year. No one knows what’s truly around the corner but we can expect the worst while hoping for the best.
Here is a list of 10 things you can do to make 2022 the best year possible.
Set goals.
Financial goals, health and wellbeing targets or spiritual aspirations set the goal. Dream big, then make a plan on how you will get there. That plan needs to have milestones that you will be able to pinpoint your progress.
Get on a budget.
No matter what life throws at you you need to be on a realistic budget that is a direct reflection of what matters most to you.
Start saving.
Save for the things you need, want and value. For 2022 the gift you’re giving yourself is security. An emergency fund that protects you against whatever crops up.
Find your tribe.
Find the people who inspire and motivate you. Join a running group, a self improvement class or an Instagram group (highly recommend the #irishdebtfreecommunity). Find the people who will keep you accountable to yourself.
This is your year to get organized.
Lists may not be glamorous but they keep you on top of your goals and keep you organized. Think about the tasks you need to accomplish and write them down.
Declutter.
Sort out your cupboards and wardrobe. Know what you have and use what you have. In 2022 wasting money on things you neither want nor need is outdated and doesn’t serve your future.
No more excuses.
This year you are not giving yourself excuses. It’s results you want and with consistent effort you will have them.
Make self care a priority.
Do something at regular intervals that feeds and nourishes your soul. Take the time you need to recharge so that you have the stamina your goals require. Not the bog standard self care that you’re told you need. Real self care. Get out into nature. Read a book. Lie in the shade and listen to the birds.
This is your year to practice self love.
In 2022 you are not putting yourself down. Instead you will talk to yourself with the love and respect you would talk to someone dear to you. Gone are the days of listing your failures or flaws like the alphabet. By the end of the year you will know your good qualities like the back of your hand.
Reflect.
Every so often take a look at how far you’ve come and appreciate the effort you’ve put in.
May 2022 be everything you hope for. Wishing you every success and happiness going into the new year!
If you’re interested in some further reading you might enjoy – Nothing to no one, a post about clearing debt and steps you can take.
Frugal Mama Ireland 