Family cook Christmas dinner from yellow sticker bargains – and it costs just £17
At full price, these items would have cost £33.65, which means Katy Ward and her family saved half the price at £15.96
ONE family of five has managed to cook their entire Christmas meal from yellow-sticker bargains, paying just £17 in total - or £3.40 a person.
When Katy Ward, 36, from Hull in Yorkshire was tasked with the role of preparing Christmas dinner for herself and four family members she wasn't best pleased.
She wrote for : "Perhaps somewhat curmudgeonly, I didn't relish the notion of preparing a feast for four fussy diners.
"Especially with the average household spending £216 on food over Christmas, according to campaign group Love Food Hate Waste," she said.
So to cut costs, the journalist tasked herself with digging out reduced items in her local supermarket, known as yellow-sticker hunting.
She said: "Venturing into my local supermarket, I approached a teenage shelf stacker and asked the time at which the store started to slash its prices.
"Sniggering - he clearly had me pegged as a massive miser or supremely skint - but nevertheless suggested I could bag discounts of up to 75 per cent after 7pm."
And that's just what Katy did, sourcing starters, mains and desserts from her local Asda, Co-op, and Tesco supermarkets for a total of £17.69.
At full price, these items would have cost £33.65, which means Katy saved half the price at £15.96.
Plus, she said her family "all cleared their plates".
For starters, Katy made pâté on toast with an avocado salad. She spent a total of £2.55, saving £3.80 on the full price cost of £6.35.
The only items she didn't get as yellow-sticker bargains were two tubs of pate, but she bought Tesco own-brand to save on costs.
Katy's starters
HERE'S what Katy bought for starters and how much she saved:
- Two bags of bread rolls (Asda): 10p a bag (original price £1 a bag)
- Three avocados (Tesco): 25p a fruit (original price 85p a fruit)
- Bag of salad (Tesco): 36p a bag (original price £1)
- Half cucumber (Tesco): 18p (original price 35p)
- Bag of coriander (Asda): 26p (original price 55p)
- Two tubs of pâté (Tesco): 45p a tub
Total: £2.55 (saved £3.80)
When it came to the main course, Katy made honey-cured gammon with all the trimmings.
On this course, every item was a yellow-sticker discount. Katy spent £8.23 in total, less than half the full price of £17.35, saving her £9.12.
But Katy points out that while saving money, she did compromise on taste as the veg "definitely lacked the crunch you'd find with fresher produce".
Katy's main course
HERE'S what Katy spend on her main course:
- Honey-cured gammon joint (Tesco): £3.60 (original price £7.50)
- Two bags of sprouts (Tesco): 25p a bag (original price £1 a bag)
- Bag of parsnips (Asda): 21p (original price 36p)
- Bag of ASDA mixed vegetables (Asda): 61p (original price 89p)
- Two bags of Tesco mixed vegetables (Tesco): 38p per bag (original price £1.50 per bag)
- Box of six Bramley apple stuffing stars (Tesco): £1.80 (original price £2.60)
- Bag of potatoes (Tesco): 75p (original price £1)
Total: £8.23 (saved £9.12)
On dessert, Katy says "nobody in my family can stand Christmas pudding, so I decided on trifle as an alternative and luckily, there were plenty of yellow sticker options for this".
Katy found two boxes of jelly and custard for £1 each down from £1.60, while also snapping up some Christmas cupcakes and mince pies, which were had been reduced.
In total, Katy spent £6.91 on dessert saving herself £3.04 on the full priced cost of £9.95.
Katy's desserts
HERE are the yellow-sticker bargains Katy snapped up for desserts:
- Box of six mince pies (Asda): 41p (original price 75p)
- 12 Christmas cupcakes (Co-op): £4.50 (original price £6)
- Two boxes of jelly and custard deserts (Tesco): £1.00 (original price £1.60)
Total: £6.91 (saved £3.04)
And Katy reckons she could have saved more by shopping later in the evening.
"I'm pretty sure I could have saved even more if I'd waited until later in the day to do my shopping", she said.
Katy's top tip for others hoping to do the same: "If you can't make it to the supermarket at midnight to hunt down yellow sticker goodies, websites such as Approved Food specialise in items either nearing or just passed their best-before date."
More on food
We reveal the secret to getting best yellow sticker discounts at supermarkets, according to science.
But if you're having turkey this Christmas, we've rounded-up our traditional Christmas dinner recipe kit.
As well as how to cook Christmas dinner on a budget.
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