The key to saving money on food …
. . . is not to follow a recipe
It might sound strange from someone who once wrote a book on frugal eating (The Frugal Cook. Back in 2008, believe it or not!) but cookbooks are not necessarily the best way to cut your household budget.
For inspiration and getting you out of a rut, yes. If you like to collect cookbooks (which I do), for sure. But actually saving you money? Only if you use them the right way. Which is not to strictly follow the recipes.
Easier said than done maybe if you’re not a competent/confident cook but hear me out
I’ve just been sent a review copy of a book called Wasted from an Irish publisher called Blasta Books. Beautiful little book. Inspiring recipes. Gorgeous illustrations (below). Lots of great advice about not letting ingredients go to waste BUT you could still spend more than you need if you follow the recipes to the letter.
I decided to tackle a pasta dish with mushrooms, kosho and parmesan rind (see end result at the top of this post) because who doesn’t love parmesan rind and the idea of using a Japanese condiment on top of that really appealed.
As the author Conor Spacey points out you can make kosho with lemons rather than yuzu although you need rather more of them than he suggests (I only made half the quantity and still managed to get through 8 pieces of citrus). But the main thing is not to use fresh pasta if you don’t happen to have it in the fridge. Use dried as I did.
You can find the recipe here along with my comments and alterations. Which doesn’t mean my version is an improvement simply adapted to what I had in my kitchen. You should do the same - maybe you already do?
There’s also loads of inspiration for cutting your food bills online now. If you want to have a bit of a fridge purge I suggest you follow my friend Elly Pear’s Rollover leftover reels on instagram.
Claire Thomson - 5 oclock apron’s - appeal is more about simple family cooking but it’s based on seasonal produce and frugal by default
Food writer and cookery teacher Jenny Chandler posts amazing meals based on one pot of pulses which she stretches over several meals.
I also love Rosie Kellett’s insta account which catalogues her life with 6 other housemates living on a budget of £25 a head a week. One of them cooks for the others each night (or most nights. Obviously they’re not all there all the time but they’ve worked out a way to handle that. See her Q & As). It’s a fun account and useful for any of you who have friends or kids going to uni this autumn.
So my message would be - and this isn’t the first time I’ve written on the subject - don’t be afraid to go off-piste!
Fiona
PS Do share your own money-saving tips!
Great advice. :) Van life has meant that basically all of our recipes are riffed, one or two pot wonders. It feels good to "use the larder" and mitigate waste. Leftovers are usually used for lunch the next day, combined with rice or some other whole grain. And I'm proud that we haven't embraced too many "convenience foods" as a result (exceptions being the garlic and herb flatbread from the co-op which has become a major guilty pleasure, and a reasonably good substitute for a homemade pizza base!).
Great advice, Fiona. One famous US TV cook let slip during the worst of COVID that you really don't need to angst over buying the pricier ingredients in her recipes, especially if it's not the center of the dish: Sour cream instead of creme fraiche, ordinary salt instead of fine sea salt, etc. For a long time, it's been really striking to me when I return to the UK how many Brits claim they "can't" cook, and live on horrific "ready meals". Good grief, people, it's not calculus! YouTube is at your service! Alas, I suspect that as British food has grown more sophisticated, it's also become more daunting to the home cook. Thanks for helping address that!