It is 6:45 PM on a rainy Tuesday, and you have just walked in from a grueling commute.
Your energy level is zero, and the fridge contains half a bottle of oat milk, a bruised apple, and a shriveled lime.
A food delivery app seems like a last resort, but then you realize it doesn’t have a meal under £5.
Meal prepping sounds great until you realize you don’t have energy for it.
Batch cooking does not have to mean boring meal repetition or massive grocery bills. You can focus for a 90-minute session in the kitchen and spend £15 in the supermarket.
You can easily make 5 meals under £5 and save money on takeouts. Here’s how.
The 5 Budget-Friendly Batch Meals
This menu yields 14 to 15 total individual portions, giving you complete dinners for the workweek plus freezer backup for busy nights ahead.
1. 50/50 Red Lentil & Beef Bolognese (3–4 Portions)
Extending minced meat with red lentils is the ultimate budget hack. The lentils absorb the savory beef stock and tomato sauce, doubling the volume without sacrificing texture or protein.
How to make it: Brown 250g minced beef with diced onions and carrots. Stir in 100g rinsed red lentils, 2 tins of chopped tomatoes, 1 beef stock cube dissolved in 300ml water, garlic, and dried herbs. Simmer low for 25 minutes until lentils are soft.
How to serve: Ladle over freshly boiled penne or layer into an easy midweek pasta bake topped with a pinch of grated cheese.
2. Smoky Sausage & Butter Bean Stew
Sausages provide high-impact seasoning to an entire pot for a fraction of the cost of prime cuts.
How to make it: Squeeze the meat out of 4 sausages into a hot pan to make mini meatball bites. Brown thoroughly, then add sliced onions, diced carrots, 1 tin of butter beans (drained), 1 tin of chopped tomatoes, and a splash of vegetable stock. Simmer for 20 minutes until thick and rich.
How to serve: Serve hot over a buttery jacket potato or with crusty bread for dipping.
3. Creamy Coconut & Chickpea Spinach Curry
A naturally plant-based dinner that tastes like a luxury takeaway but costs under £1.00 per bowl.
How to make it: Soften onion and garlic in a pot with a tablespoon of mild curry powder. Pour in 1 tin of drained chickpeas, 1 tin of coconut milk, 200g of frozen spinach, and half a vegetable stock cube. Simmer for 15 minutes until the spinach melts and the sauce turns silky.
How to serve: Pair with fluffy boiled rice or warm pitta bread.
4. Lentil & Root Veg “Shepherd’s Style” Pie
Comfort food at its finest. This hearty dish uses the remaining red lentils and root veg beneath a blanket of golden mashed potato.
How to make it: Simmer 150g red lentils, diced carrots, onions, 1 tbsp tomato purée (or chopped tomatoes), and vegetable stock for 20 minutes, until thick. Transfer to an ovenproof dish, top with mashed potatoes (boiled potatoes mashed with a splash of milk and pepper), and bake at 200°C for 20 minutes until browned.
How to serve: Eat straight from the dish with a side of steamed frozen peas.
5. Tuscan Tomato, Garlic & White Bean Pasta Bake
A quick-assembly vegetarian bake that relies on crispy baked pasta edges and garlic-infused tomato sauce.
How to make it: Par-boil penne pasta for 6 minutes. Mix in a bowl with 1 tin of chopped tomatoes, 1 tin of drained butter beans or chickpeas, 200g thawed frozen spinach, 2 minced garlic cloves, and stock. Pour into a baking tray and bake at 190°C for 25 minutes.
How to serve: Serve hot with a dusting of black pepper and extra garlic oil.
Read more: 10 Omega-3 Foods Everyone In The UK Must Consume
The 90-Minute Sunday Prep Plan
Cooking five meals under £5 one by one takes hours. Cooking them simultaneously using a shared prep sequence takes 90 minutes.
1. Prep the Veggie Base (Minutes 0–15): Get all slicing out of the way upfront.
Peel and chop the entire bag of onions, carrots, and garlic bulbs at once. Divide them into three main bowls on your counter: Base A (Bolognese & Shepherd’s Pie), Base B (Sausage Stew & Pasta Bake), Base C (Curry).
2. Start the Long-Simmer Pots (Minutes 15–45): Let the hobs do the heavy lifting.
Place three large pots or pans on the hob:
Pot 1: Brown minced beef, add Base A veg, lentils, tomatoes, and stock for the Bolognese.
Pot 2: Squeeze sausage meat, brown, add Base B veg, butter beans, tomatoes for the Sausage Stew.
Pot 3: Boil potatoes for the mash.
3. Assemble Curry & Bakes (Minutes 45–70): Incorporate oven dishes.
While the hobs simmer, build the Chickpea Curry in a skillet (15-minute cook time). Drain the boiled potatoes, mash them, and assemble the Lentil Shepherd’s Pie in a baking dish. Assemble the Tuscan Pasta Bake in a second dish.
4. Cool, Portion, and Pack (Minutes 70–90): Safety first before freezing
Clear the hobs, let the dishes cool on heat-safe mats, and portion them into individual containers. Label each container with the dish name and date.
Read More: 10 Low-effort Healthy Meals for Exhausting Work Week
FAQs
Is it really possible to buy all this for under £15 at UK supermarkets?
Yes. By utilizing budget supermarket ranges (such as Aldi’s Everyday Essentials or Tesco’s Everyday Value) and buying store-brand tinned goods, this basket consistently totals between £13.50 and £14.50.
How do I stop batch-cooked pasta from getting soggy when reheated?
Undercook your pasta by 2 to 3 minutes during the initial prep session. The pasta will finish cooking and absorb the excess tomato sauce when you reheat the meal in the microwave or oven.
Can I freeze cooked potatoes safely?
Mashed potatoes freeze exceptionally well because the added milk or fat protects the structure. Plain boiled or roasted potatoes can turn watery when frozen, so stick to mashed potato toppings for freezer-bound cottage pies.
Wrap-Up
Saving money on food in the UK does not require sacrificing flavor or spending your entire Sunday stuck in the kitchen. With one focused £14 basket and 90 minutes of prep, you take complete control of your weeknight dinners, save over £50 in potential takeaway costs, and eat delicious homemade food every single night.
Pick a 90-minute window this Sunday, grab the basket list, and give your weeknight self the gift of instant, home-cooked dinners.
