Mum shares Aldi shopping list which helped her batch cook 26 meals for her family for just £20
A THRIFTY mum has shared the Aldi shopping list she used which helped her make a whopping 26 meals for just £20.
Mum-of-three Cheryl Anderson wanted to help out her partner's grandparents, aged 83 and 81, after learning they were forking out for ready meals.
Cheryl, from Huddersfield, said the elderly couple had welcomed her three children, from a previous relationship, into the family, so she wanted to help them out during the lockdown.
The 39-year-old told : “I have been with my partner Darren for seven years and have three children with my previous partner.
"My current partner's grandparents have never missed their birthday or Christmas and included them straight away - no questions, we all became part of their family.
"I cook a lot for family gatherings and I wanted to make sure that they knew I valued them, so decided to make them some food they could freeze.”
The pensioners have been adjusting to life in the lockdown, with Cheryl explaining the pair previously enjoyed a busy schedule.
She said: "They are quite independent and active and used to have day trips to the markets and with Covid-19 they obviously haven’t been.
"His grandma is 83 and his granddad is 81 and still drives, so this lockdown is hard for them.”
Cheryl decided to make classic dishes she knew they liked and were easy to freeze, including shepherds pie, spaghetti bolognese, sausage and mash, stew and dumplings, chicken casserole and chicken curry.
Cheryl explained: "I know they like those things, and they are easy dishes to make and can be bulked out to make cheaply.”
She headed off to the supermarket to get ingredients for her mammoth cooking session, grabbing some food tubs from Home Bargains as well.
Cheryl shared her shopping list, saying: "I bought frozen chicken breasts, fresh mince, sausages and then ‘wonky’ veg that takes a bit more time to prepare, but is still decent quality.
"I shop at Aldi and bulk my meals out with plenty of vegetables.
"I spent around £20 and it was all for my partner's grandparents so I imagine it saved them a fortune.
"I think they were buying two meals for £5 and I made 26 for £20.
“My main advice to those looking to do the same is to plan and look at what’s on offer and what’s cheap.
"Buy the ‘wonky’ veg, it might take longer to prep, but it’s all good food.
"Food shopping isn’t an issue though, as I have lots of meals prepped and well stocked freezers!”
Darren dropped off the food while the rest of the family stayed in the car, adding: “They both came to the front door to shout thank you!”
Tom Church, co-founder of , comments: “Many of us are struggling to keep the price of our weekly shop down.
“Cheryl’s 26 meals for £20 is really inspiring and shows that as long as you plan meals carefully and shop for only the ingredients you need, you can feed the whole family for less.”
Most read in Fabulous
Elsewhere, a man shared a recipe to make McDonald’s apple pies at home using just five ingredients.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
We also shared one woman's recipe for a Drumstick Squashies cocktail - and fans couldn't wait to try.
And Amazon is selling Aperol for a tenner, but only while stocks last.