Ave-Ocado

[zazen999]

All present and correct with �5 knocked off for lateness.

I can do that!!!

Mr Z is very happy - he's got a bagel in the toaster already.

[OverWyreGrower]

HOW do you people manage to use supermarkets so little? I get a veg box, go to farmer's market to buy my weight in apples every week, make bread and grow as much as poss at home, yet still spend loads every single week on my online sainsbugs...Zazen, Ocado is a million times more delicious but I find I spend valuable milk money on bonkers ingredients I can't resist...
is it b/c I have schoolage children and no allotment? and no organic dairy herd or chickens? you have impressed me all no end but now I'm very very envious er I mean politely puzzled

I meal plan fairly extensively, so shop to a specific list. We're also on a fairly tight budget.
I tend to make nearly everything from scratch, so lots of my shopping is 'basics' - tinned toms, beans, herbs/spices, baking ingredients. Meat is stuff like mince (beef, lamb, turkey), chicken thighs, and a few 'easy' meals - fishfingers, oven chips etc.

We do one large online shop a month. I find that I spend much less online than in store - I'm not tempted by offers/deals/non-essentials and can stick to a budget more

[zazen999]

Menu plan, menu plan and again - menu plan.

Plus making lists and sticking to them!

Making meals from scratch - and the use of 10/11p noodles and fresh veg.

And the food from the plot of course, means we try to eat seasonally so build meals around what we have sat there waiting to be eaten.

[Two_Sheds]

HOW do you people manage to use supermarkets so little?

We eat what's ready on the allotment, so this week it's leeks, cabbage, kale mostly, in stir fries, curries & soups. The only extras I buy for myself is porridge, cereal bars & soya milk, really.
I supplement OH's with some meat and make a big batch at one time and freeze into individual portions.

Stuff like coffee, wash powder, loo rolls & beans are bought in bulk when on offer and stored in the garage.

I pick up bits & pieces a couple of times a week when I'm around town, short life stuff like yogurt and whoopsies for the freezer.

We don't have children, if we did I'm sure we'd be doing an online shop once a week

[Florence Fennel]

I shop weekly on line. Can be Sainsburys, Asda or Tesco depending which is the cheapest that week. I have set shopping lists at each store, so it's simple just to add anything that may be on offer, or what I fancy. I work full time, so I have no desire to spend my spare time in a supermarket.

[Alison]

Don't do supermarkets at all if I can help it as I can't stand them although many years ago did get an order off T&sc* where they'd kindly replaced a chicken with a box of biscuits as a substitute - even the driver looked bewildered

[VirginVegGrower]

Zaz - we use Ocado and they are brilliant, especially re bags. We buy little these days but use them as our fortnightly shop. I don't mind cruising the aisles but can see why your time is more productive elsewhere. Wish I had known as I had a free delivery and �20 off first shop for a friend voucher which I threw away only yesterday...damn it. Their cooks range is fantastic quality.

[Creemteez]

So I'm the only grape who actually quite likes doing the weekly food shop, then?
I have done my fair share of on line shopping and found it very good (say I, slapping my back pocket in a jaunty manner) - but I do like mooching round the asiles and to be honest I tend to be an inspired-by-whatever-is-good/value-for-money/on-offer-type shopper.I find trawling backwards and forwards from one screen to the next far more stressful and besides that I like to choose my own bananas......

[zazen999]

I am afraid not CT.

I once [not so long ago] abandoned a trolley mid shop in a very large supermarket. I like small shops but can't stand traipsing around to get to them in the first place.

[Glutton4...]

I'm glad I'm not the only person who has abandoned a part-loaded trolley!

I have never enjoyed shopping, unless we're away somewhere different, and I can mooch around a quaint old town. I like a proper Butcher's and also independent Delicatessen shops.

[taff]

I go now and again to the supermarket to get food, but i tend to go maybe once a week or once every two weeks, get a couple of carrier bags worth, then that's it, anything I'm missing gets either bought on the off-chance, or not at all.
I used to do a proper shop once a week, but i can't be bothered now. The freezer is full of veg, the cupboards are full of dried stuff, meat is only in the equation if it's already in the freezer because I'm not planning on proper shopping till at least november.
I do need some onions though....

[chris]

We've had our shopping delivered for ages.. I personally *hate* shopping, it's certain that if I go, I'll come back in an extremely bad mood and we'll argue. Plus now, with two kids we can use them as an excuse to get it delivered It's a lot easier for us, and we get the bulk of our food delivered from ocado, most recently from tesco to cut down on some bills (more over payment fund that way!), and have our veg/fruit delivered from abel and cole.

Getting fruit/veg delivered from tesco/sainsburys/asda is never good for us, plus staff don't seem to care about subs - so that's why we wanted to get some decent veg in for us (as well as the other benefits of having organic produce too).

[HeyWayne]

I like both, online, and "real" shopping. However, with Bean in tow now, it's a bit of a challenge.

Recently, he's taken to going and helping himself to veg (last week it was a massive carrot that he knawed the whole way round the shop, then gave the checkout lady the knawed (sp?) remains. The week before it was raw broccoli.

Online shopping frees up some time for us to spend with the little dude.

[HeyWayne]

Just a thought - do Ocado give you the list that you can stick on the fridge that tells you what items reach their best before/sell by dates on what days? Very handy.

[Glutton4...]

... I'm not planning on proper shopping till at least november...

What's today's date, Taff?