Shopping

Or more specifically, grocery shopping.

Do you love it, or hate it? When do you go? Where do you go?

I love it. I go on the weekend because, like everyone else, it’s the only time I have and my favourite place to shop is the Coventry markets.

This place has pretty much anything you can think of. Want to try that bizarre eastern european dish? Go for it. Need a really strange cut of meat? Just ask! Want to find those odd vegetables that are only in season for about a week? You’ll find them. Probably next to the cheap asparagus.

Today, for example, I wanted lamb shanks. The butcher didn’t have any out on display. It’s not like the big chains where, if it’s not to be seen, they don’t have it. Nope, all I had to do was ask and voila, four enormous lamb shanks are in my trolley, cut fresh off the carcas! (doesn’t that sound delightful?)

The best thing is, I don’t feel like I have to scrimp and scrounge money and ‘make it stretch’. It’s stretchy all on it’s own. To show you what I mean, I’ll give you our meal plan for this week and show you what we bought.

Breakfasts: eggs on toast + cheese, coffee

Lunches: chicken wraps, salads or left overs

Dinners: roast tomato & capsicum soup (+meatballs), slow roasted lamb shanks with mash, pea and ham soup (minus the peas, plus veges), ribs and salad and crusted, baked fish and salad.

Here’s what we bought:

Meat/Protein
4 lamb shanks $19.10
12 eggs $3.00
5 free range chicken boobs $20.25
1kg premium mince $8.35
Pork hock $4.25
12 chicken frames (for the dog) $5.95
Total : $60.90

Fruit & Vegetables
2 lettuces $1.20
1.1kg red capsicum $4.67
0.3kg celery $1.16
0.3kg lemons $1.04
A leek $1.99
1.4kg tomatoes $5.26
Tropical juice $1.99
Cucumber $1.99
Total : $19.28

Dairy
1kg mature cheddar $7.99
2L milk $1.99
0.6kg Romano $13.00
Chorizo $3.15
0.5kg bacon $8.00
Total : $34.13

Lebanese flat bread $1.00

Grand total: $115.31

There is enough food there for at least ALL of this week’s meals plus extra. Meals like soups and slow roasts are great for making large quantities. It means you don’t have to plan lunch or you can pop it in the freezer for those nights that you really don’t feel like cooking! You’ll notice we didn’t get fish or ribs but do you think we’ll need it? Me either.

We also decided to get more than enough of some things and just freeze it. At $8/kg, I may as well buy a whole kilo of mince. Yes, we spent over $20 on two kinds of cheese but trust me, we’ll get through it. Tip: grated Romano and Parmesan cheeses keep perfectly in the freezer! Plus it means I don’t have to worry about running out for a while. We’re going to eat really delicious meals this week and I don’t have to feel the slightest bit guilty about it!

Can you tell I’m really chuffed about this week’s shop?