5 Family Meals for £25 - Tesco

I set myself a little challenge this week… 5 meals for £25 from Tesco.

And I just managed it — total came to £24.94 🙌 (we love a just-under-budget moment).

If you’ve been here a while, you’ll know this is exactly how I try to shop and create a budget meal plan. I plan a few solid meals, reuse ingredients where I can, and keep things realistic... nothing fancy and insta worthy... just food my family will actually eat. Because let’s be honest… there is no point planning meals no one touches!

The budget weekly shop

This shop is very much based around what works for us as a family. This weekly shop is based on prices at tesco at the current time I am writing this.

Jesse has allergies to dairy, soya and egg, so I’ve swapped in dairy-free options where I needed to. It does make things a bit trickier (and sometimes slightly more expensive), but it’s just part of how we shop now. You can of course adapt the shopping list as you please.

I also haven’t included cupboard staples like stock cubes, oil or seasonings because these aren't things you need to buy every week. Especially seasonings... we recently found some spices from 1995 in my grandma's kitchen cupboard (older than me!)... which is proof these things don't need purchasing often (and the reason why i will be declining dinner at grandma's going forward 😂)

🍽️ The Meal Plan

Here’s what we got out of this shop:

Chicken Curry & Homemade 2 Ingredient Naan
This one always feels like a fakeaway. The naan is so easy and keeps it cheap, and I love meals like this that feel like a treat but aren’t. You could add some rice too, but just the curry and naan is definitely enough on its own too.

Sausage Pasta Bake
One of those meals I know everyone will eat (which is half the battle). Easy, filling and great for leftovers too (obviously Jesse's was minus the cheese!)

Sausage, Mash, Carrots & Broccoli
Simple, quick, and easy... the perfect family dinner in my opinion! I added some onion to mine and Adam's sausages too. I always use Maris Piper potatoes to do mash, I just find they come out the best!

Jacket Potato with Beans & Cheese
This is one of my go-to “can’t be bothered” meals. Cheap, filling and always gets eaten. You can't beat a jacky p!

💡 Why This Works

The biggest thing for me when doing these shops is reusing ingredients. I always plan to use multiple ingredients. For example, if we are having sausages, mash and veg... where else can we use these ingredients across other meals?

It’s exactly how I keep our food shop down, and it makes planning so much easier.

Also, I only ever plan about 5 meals a week, because life happens. Plans change, we have lazy dinners, or just don’t fancy what’s on the plan. If I plan 7 meals, I find we ALWAYS end up wasting food that goes out of date. If the kids have clubs, playdates etc then our plans change. By meal planning 5 meals instead of 7 is perfect for our busy family life.

❤️ Final Thoughts

I’m not trying to make perfect meals or Instagram-worthy dinners.

I’m just trying to feed my family, stay within budget, and not lose my mind doing it.

If you’re trying to cut your food shop down at the moment, start small. Even planning a few meals like this can make such a difference.

And if your pie comes out looking a bit anaemic… same 😂

Love,
Soph x