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6 o'clock scramble good on a budget?
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Anonymous
| I am really in need of some structure and more ideas for dinners. I've heard good things here and other places about the 6 o'clock scramble. If you use the service -- and shopping list -- about how much does food cost you per week or month? |
Anonymous
| For our family of four, and we do bulk buying of things like chicken breasts, ground turkey and fish at Costco, our weekly grocery shopping using sixoclock scramble for 3-4 meals a week, ranged between $90 - $160 each week this month. I think it went something like $160, 90, 92, and we haven't done gone grocery shopping yet for this last week. It can be done more cheaply. I have a penchant for organic/local which costs more, and we also buy quite a few frozen entrees to bring to work to eat for lunch (instead of making a large portion of 6oclock scramble, which we should do...) |
Anonymous
|
It depends on what you already eat and the size of your family.
The first week I did it, I tried it exactly (did the 5-meals as sent) and spent twice as much money as normal AND had way too much food. The meals were too large (even using leftovers for lunch) and sometimes they include one or two ingredients that break the bank (example - have a red pepper when red peppers are $5 each). So after that I learned to look for recipes that could be parred down, and had cheaper ingredients (or left out expensive ingredients). Even then I didn't feel it saved me money, because I had already been pre-planning meals. But if right now you are eating out a lot, or using take-out, or just not planning so you wasted food, it should save you money. |
Anonymous
| Yes, it saves me money. But I cook regularly and I'm not a novice when it comes to the grocery store. |
Anonymous
|
OK, I just signed up and had a look at the menus. They do seem to be for a large family -- 6 to 8 servings. I took a recipe last night and cut it in half, and still had leftovers.
I'd really prefer to not have to cut recipes in half, though -- the whole benefit of the shopping list is to not to have to think about it. I guess I could buy the ingredients, make half the recipe and freeze the ingredients (a la "Let's dish, maybe?) for another week? |
Anonymous
Avia (sp? the owner) tends to vary the recipes so some are for 4 and some are more for 6-8. What I ended up doing was using the Scramble for 2-3 meals (and sometimes having to search for a recipe that catered to smaller familes) and then using 1 or 2 meals from my own source. And I gave up on the shopping list they provided. Nice idea in theory, but I just found I had to make another one for all my breakfast and lunch stuff. Some things do freeze well. For things like lasagna, I make two smaller ones and freeze one (before it is cooked). Soups freeze well. Things like stirfry - not so much. But most marinated meat - you can freeze the meat in the marinade. |
Anonymous
|
We have been using the 6 o'clock scramble for a few years now, and have noticed a dramatic savings, not only in money but in food. We make our menu, buy allthe ingredients, and cook every night. We noticed that we were saving about $60-80 every shopping trip because we were sticking to our shoppin glist and not buying anything that looked "good" or on sale at the store. We also noticed that we were using up all the vegetables, breads, pasta etc at the end of the week. Before planning our menus out, we would end up throwing away lots of rotten vegetables, fruits and breads.
Planning out our meals also reduced our stress levels because we had all the ingredients, and knew what to make every night. It was truly brainless and brilliant! good luck! |
Anonymous
I have to agree. I think it does work and it doesn't take much effort. |
Anonymous
| We're a family of 4 (kids are 4 and 6) using the cookbook, and we don't find the meals to be excessively large. We've always tended to have a "leftover night" for dinner at least once in the week, though. After 2-3 nights of dinners with some leftovers, everyone gets to pick their favorites to reheat. |
Anonymous
| What about this system? https://www.relishrelish.com/ |
Anonymous
| OP here. I signed up for 6') Clock scramble and have made three of the meals. THey aren't as much food as I had thought, and they have all been well recieved, so I am happy! I spent about $40 at the store for stuff to make all 5 meals but I do have a fairly full pantry at home. I think this'll work out fine. |
Anonymous
| I am glad it worked out for you, OP! |
Anonymous
| We also have the cookbook, it's seasonal which I like, we just go through the recipes sequentially. Kids are 2 and 6 and almost all meals have been well received. Some are so-so, but I think it's a matter of tastes, many have been requested on "off" nights. We have saved a ton of money and it's such a relief to just follow the steps. The cookbook has been such a hit that my picky 6 year old will ask if it is a "scramble" recipe and if I say yes he is more likely to try it. Highly recommend it. If we had the extra $ I'd sign up for the service, it would be so nice to have the shopping list. I really recommend the recipes, makes life so much easier! |
Anonymous
| PP here, forgot to mention that she also recommends veggies, fruits and sides to go with the meals, truly brainless cooking and we are eating a much bigger variety. Not nearly as much greasy take out or wasted food. |
Anonymous
|
OP again -- She gave me a recipe for "caramelized cabbbage" as a side to a fish dish. I often buy cabbage b/c it's cheap, and kind of sautee it, but no one eats very much of it. This recipe was basically the same as what I do, but she had me adding a bit of balsamic vinegar a bit, and caramalizing the cabbage for 5 minutes first -- and it was quite good.
I also just learned that there is an option to change each recipe from 6 or 8 servings to 2 or four servings. Many of the dinners last week were vegetarian, fish or bean recipes which also helps the budget. |