THE UK'S CHEAPEST MEAL

lookitsme

I was reading that the toast sandwich is the uk's cheapest meal. It is one slice of pan bread toasted and put between two un-toasted slices of bread. The meal costs 7.5p and contains 330 calories

What are your cheapest meals

The Hill Billy

to be honest, 3 slices of bread is not a meal in my book.

emeraldstar

Those slices of bread would need a whole tin of beans thrown over them – at the very least – to bring them even anywhere slightly close to qualifying in the 'being a meal' stakes. In my opinion.

BengaLover

Eggy bread.. Protein, carbs, what more do ya need!

stmol32

1 can red kidney beans from aldi = 18 cents

Lots of protein and hardly any fat.

If you like there is literally hundreds of things you can add to make it to a bigger meal but on it's own is a cheap and nutritious meal.

(Including three slices of bread or maybe toast)

Loopy

Aldi bag of spuds.
Aldi bread.
Aldi salt & vinegar.

Industrial sized chip sambo's.
Cheap meal and would fill a sumo wrestler.

stmol32

I actually forgot about spuds.
They're insanely cheap.

kylith

A tin of beans. Probably a bit high in sugar, but protein, carbs, fibre, and darn tasty.

wmpdd3

A tortilla wrap, a tin of kidney beans blitzed with chopped onion, heated and put in the wrap, with atiny bit of cheese if you have it. Must be less than 50c?

Sparks

Cheapest meal you could actually eat and not die from malnutrition?
Probably going to center around legumes or tofu. Toast sandwiches... that's not a meal. that's just carbs.

But in the middle of an economic depression, this is a bloody good idea for a thread. I'm pretty sure "how to cook food that you can eat on a really tight budget" isn't on the home ec. leaving cert syllabus and it ought to be...

(Also, are we talking cheap to make in total, or cheap per portion once made?)

lookitsme

Cheap per portion. I wouldn't call 3 bits of bread a meal myself but apparently some scientists do. Here is a version of the story,

http://www.lovemoney.com/news/travel-food-and-lifestyle/food/13531/the-uks-cheapest-ever-meal

they were offering a 200pound reward for a cheaper "meal" thats over 1800 toast sambo's worth

vibe666

how cheap the meal is depends on how much time you have and where you live.

if you're on the coast, there's a plethora of shellfish that could be harvested for free at low tide and made into a lovely meal, or likewise if you live near a wooded area and wanted to pick local stuff growing wild.

but for really cheap, you really can't beat lidl and aldi, they have some great stuff at very competitive prices.

i'm a big fan of their mediterranean wraps and they're a great lighter alternative to pittas or regular tortilla type wraps and can be used for loads of things.

we've made them into pizzas, used them for fajita's and in place of just about any bread products (even as burger buns) and they're great value at 99c for 5.

rubadub

lookitsme wrote: »

The meal costs 7.5p and contains 330 calories

7.5p is about 9.3cent. Tesco 'everyday' peanut butter is 45cent for 340g, which is 2125kcal, or 7cent per 330calories.

Recipie for 'Peanut Butter Surprise'.
Get 2 tablespoons of peanut butter and mix clockwise, get 2 more in another bowl and mix anticlockwise, combine the 2 and there you have it, a meal as ridiculous as a toast sandwich...

Reindeer

I still like the ole peanut butter and jam sammich. Reminds me of my childhood back in Texas. You need to use the cheap-o Tesco PB that states it is made with peanut oil. It has less salt and sugar than the American style, but it's still quite good and creamy. Any jam works, really. I am partial to grape and strawberry. Add a glass of milk and ya got yourself plenty of calories and nutrients on the cheap.

For savory, I go with a tuna salad sammy. Sliced gurkins, and or touch of celery, touch of apple cider vinegar, mayo, spinkle of pepper, tuna from the can in oil(or add a tsp of olive oil), and bread. Cheap and not bad for ya. A tuna melt is also lovely. Add your choice of cheese, load the bread with your salad or plain tuna, butter it on the outside and grill till golden.

I am also quite fond of the bacon sammy. But that's no terribly cheap. Still, good value.

mathepac

Reindeer wrote: »

... a tuna salad sammy. Sliced gurkins, and or touch of celery, touch of apple cider vinegar, mayo, spinkle of pepper, tuna from the can in oil(or add a tsp of olive oil), and bread. Cheap and not bad for ya. A tuna melt is also lovely. Add your choice of cheese, load the bread with your salad or plain tuna, butter it on the outside and grill till golden....

Ah yes mercury sambos. Where would we be without them and all the dolphins and whales that died to fill the tins.

Personally I think cheap food here has to revolve around spuds, porridge and our own (Irish) veggies & fruits.

New spuds just washed, not peeled, and steamed. Served with a knob of butter, & a sprinkle of salt, heaven. Cabbages, onions, carrots, turnips, rhubarb, kale, scallions, lettuce etc are cheap and plentiful in season.

Tomatoes, apples and pears are also relatively cheap local fruits.

I bought a cheap cut of beef on Friday, got it diced by the butcher and put it with usual stew ingredients in a slow-cooker and added two (free) diced pig's kidneys for the last hour or so. Super stuff. If I was doing the casserole version of this in the oven I'd stab a few washed spuds and put them in the oven for the last hour.

I clean out casseroles dishes etc of their stew gravy with the heels of sliced pans and toast them under the grill for a night-time snack.

The Hill Billy

@macthepac - If you have an issue with the provenance of tinned tuna start another thread. Do not drag this one off-topic.

tHB

Frisbee

Doing the whole backpacking thing: Ketchup sandwiches have been eaten many times when money was scarce. Pretty much exactly as it sounds. Ketchup and bread.

Aside from that I was eating pretty much noting but Pasta. I was able to do 8 meals for $4. 2x Own brand pasta, own brand tomato sauce and 2x own brand kidney beans.

prettyrestless

mathepac wrote: »

I bought a cheap cut of beef on Friday, got it diced by the butcher and put it with usual stew ingredients in a slow-cooker and added two (free) diced pig's kidneys for the last hour or so. Super stuff.

What does kidney taste like? I'd imagine it'd be tough and chewy

Seaneh

prettyrestless wrote: »

What does kidney taste like? I'd imagine it'd be tough and chewy

the opposite is true.

mathepac

Seaneh wrote: »

the opposite is true.

+1. Deep rich flavour. Just make sure the tough outer membrane and the core tubing / connective tissue are removed .