A SUPER saver mum has revealed how she is able to feed her family for around £4 a day when sticking to a tight budget with clever meal planning and online shopping.
Charlotte, 29, a part time cleaner and mum-of-two, has shared her secrets for savvy shopping so that you can do it too.
The mum is known for her saving tips, food hauls and cleaning motivation which she shares on her YouTube channel where she boasts nearly 2,000 subscribers.
She said when shopping on a budget, the cheapest she can feed her whole family of four is for just £4 a day.
But on average – in a normal week – she roughly spends around £75 per week on food shopping – including food, snacks, cleaning supplies and other household essentials.
She said: “I make family meals for cheap by using own brand items, looking for deals and trying to keep things simple.
“When I’m looking for meal inspiration, I search online for cheap, easy family meal ideas too.
“I always do my food shopping online so that way, I can see how much I’m spending and I don’t get tempted by what I see on the shelves.
“I check what deals they have first. I always make a meal plan and write a shopping list before I do my food shop so I know exactly what I need.”
Charlotte, who is mum to four-year-old Mila and two-year-old Jack, said her last Morrison’s food shop cost her £65.34 – and she managed to buy food her whole family love.
She purchased a whole food shop including meat, butter, eggs, vegetables, fruit, cereal, juices, sauces, pizza bases, rice, oat milk and other snacks.
She added: “When I write down everything we eat in a typical day, it can work out to around £4 a day. But some days, it obviously works out more than that.
“On average, the shopping costs us £300 a month.”
The savvy mum said looking in the deals section online – before starting her shopping – is one of her best tips for food shipping for a family on a budget.
She also tries to purchase own brand food items where possible.
Charlotte particularly loves shopping at Morrisons’ – and finds the supermarket ‘really affordable’ and ‘great quality’.
She said: “I love that you can buy Morrison’s food from Amazon Prime and get same day or next day delivery.
“I also love that a lot of their own brand items are really affordable and of great quality.
“Morrison’s fruit and veg is always really good value and the quality is great. I usually can get a 1kg bag of carrots for just 35p.”
The clever shopper, who also shares her life on Instagram, believes shopping for a family on a budget is easy, if you follow some simple steps.
Her top tips include checking what you have in the cupboards, fridge and freezer to see what you can use up before going out shopping and buying more.
She also insisted that having a meal plan is super important – and encouraged fellow mums and shoppers to write a list before online purchasing or heading to the supermarket.
To make her shop more cost effective, Charlotte suggests setting a budget – and shopping online – are super important.
Charlotte added: “At Morrisons, I like the price and quality of the food and I like that it is available on Amazon Prime for free same day or next day delivery if you spend over £40.
“I also have some go-to recipes that are super effective at home for families.
“I love making meals like pasta bakes, so I can have leftovers for lunch the next day!”
Her go-to recipes at home include her cauliflower pasta bake. She makes her own cheese sauce using flour, butter, milk and cheese – which are staple items she always has in stock.
She added: “The cauliflower is 89 and pasta is only 55p a bag; the sauce ingredients use essential items I always have so it’s a really cheap meal.
“Plus, there’s normally leftovers for lunch! I also make a great toad-in-the-hole on a budget.”
Charlotte explained that she buys whatever sausages are on offer and then she always has the ingredients to make homemade batter ready to go.
CHARLOTTE’S TOP TIPS
- Meal plan
- shop online
- Set a budget
- Keep a loaf in the freezer to make toast with and one in the bread bin for sandwiches
- Always keep frozen fruit and vegetables so when you run out of fresh, you don’t need to do a ‘top-up shop’
- Avoid ‘top-up shops’ – you’ll find that you’ll end up overspending
All she has to do is cook some frozen vegetables from the freezer and add the gravy – voila!
She also loves to make pitta bread pizzas on a budget.
The pitta bread costs 39p, the passata costs 35p – and she simply adds cheese and any toppings that need using up.
The mum said: "This is so easy and cheap to make – plus the whole family can get involved. Who doesn’t love pizza!”
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