Fans of Martin Lewis have shared some tips on how to save money when cooking family meals.
The Money Saving Expert and his team asked their social media followers for their best tips for people who are struggling with the rising cost of living and have compiled them into a Cost of Living crisis survival kit, reports Hull Live. Though prices have already started to impact families, that's expected to hit harder this April with increased energy bills and National Insurance payments.
Council tax, fuel prices and food are also going up and more people are feeling the pinch. The call out on Martin Lewis's social media channels received thousands of replies from people with clever hacks on how to cut household expenditure, which Martin himself describing the response as "overwhelming and uplifting."
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Introducing his team's tips, Martin wrote: "For some there is sadly no route to cut expenditure below income; that fix will need political intervention. For others, we need a collective endeavour, to work together to take financial pressures off where we can. And that is partly behind this guide."
One of the tips was to invest in a slow cooker to batch cook meals for all the family. They are available from Asda for as little as £12.
The Money Saving Expert team explained that less food waste is create by batch cooking and it reduces the likelihood of spending extra cash on takeaways. One follower who has been using theirs more often lately says that they are 'saving a fortune.'
Sharron Quaile wrote: "A chef was on TV recently telling us all to get a slow cooker, as it costs 23p to cook a meal overnight. Made a cracking chilli the other night, gave my neighbour a portion (she lives on her own) and there's one portion in the freezer."
Another user, posting under the name of Living in Hope, wrote: "I'm using my slow cooker more and more these days to batch cook delicious soups, curries, stews etc then I freeze it in recycled takeaway containers. Saves a fortune all round."
And they added it wasn't a huge investment. They wrote: ""It’s a standard sized one, only cost me about £20 - very simple, no whistles or bells, but does the job."
The MSE guide also says that using a microwave is generally cheaper than an oven. It states a jacket potato would be more than 25 per cent cheaper to cook in the microwave rather than the oven.
Have you changed how you're eating due to the Cost of Living crisis? Let us know in the comments below.
