Nutritionists upping the recommended daily intake of fruit and veg to 7 a day, when many families feel they can already neither afford manage nor afford 5, is hardly helpful. But when the November 2013 survey reemerged this week that showed that fresh veg and salad make up the largest percentage of food thrown away by families every week (a shocking 19%), the numbers just don’t add up. There must be a way to eat well not wealthy, although it may mean a lifestyle (or retail) change.
I, like many other shoppers for the family, have already decamped to Aldi from Tesco, saving at least £30.00 per week. The fruit and veg is a fraction of the cost and their five 69p deals per week could be one of the 7 a day solutions. Another option is local fruit and veg markets. Where I live, there is a number of fruit and veg markets that have a staggering array of cheap fruit and veg and are, frankly, just more fun to shop in.
Armed with some cheap(er) veg and a free range Aldi chicken (£4.99), I have today cut the legs, breasts and wings off (a skill I am still struggling to master, I admit) and boiled the carcass in a pot with bit of garlic, a veg stock cube, potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots and leek. As there is enough chicken left for at least one meal for my family of five, I reckon that the whole cost of the stew comes in at under a fiver and it is healthy and delicious. Liquidise it and you may even be able to con the veg refusers to give it a go. Even discounting those starchy potatoes, that’s 3 of the 7 a day tackled at lunchtime. You could also add celery and swede, but they’re not everyone’s cup of tea in my house. Just one word of warning – when you remove the carcass, make sure you remove any small bones!
I realise that not everyone feels they have the time to do this all the time (we’re all on school holidays) – and that there are still another 4 fruit or veg to find today. However, if each of us eat an apple and a banana – or substitutes one of these glass of fresh juice, that leaves just two for teatime. It’s worth a try anyway, even if we level off at the previously acceptable 5 a day. Apart from anything, it is not dissimilar to how most people shopped and ate in the days before ubiquitous supermarkets. In fact, with their ready meals, largely pointless BOGOF deals and bagged salads, they’ve a lot to answer for. During my occasional, inevitable “pop” into Tesco, I have already started to see the Aldi effect. Certain things are getting cheaper – and they make sure we know. It’s not enough though, even if “every little (allegedly) helps.” The big supermarkets should do more to help us eat well not wealthy, or watch us all go back to shopping and cooking the way people used to. If only…..
In the meantime, as it’s the school hols, I may treat myself to a Bloody Mary this evening. What with a stick of celery and glass of tomato juice, I reckon I’ll have had my 7 a day today 