Student nurse spends $80 a week on groceries for two — here's how

A week’s groceries for two for just $80? Yeah, right, cynical minds might say.

For many New Zealand households, a large chunk of weekly wages goes towards grocery shopping, especially during a cost of living crisis. Cheap groceries feel like a pipe dream from a bygone era.

It is possible, though, to prepare tasty meals on a shoestring budget. The proof of the pudding is in the eating. Well, only if the pudding is made from cheap ingredients, which meal-planning queen Jordyn Hammond knows a thing or two about.

Hammond is a 21-year-old student from Christchurch who manages to keep her and her boyfriend's grocery spending under $80 most weeks.

She explained to Seven Sharp how she does it.

Hammond keeps a tidy ship when it comes to her fridge and pantry.

"I keep things pretty organised. I don't like accumulating lots of food because it just goes to waste."

You won't find fancy canned foods in Hammond's spartan pantry: "No, only the budget stuff. I refuse to buy anything expensive," she said.

Once Hammond has done a stocktake of the ingredients she already has, she hops online to plan her meals and hunt down the deals.

"I'll look to see what's cheap — what's on special — and then base my meal plans around that."

Her online shopping trip starts in the fruit and vegetables section of a supermarket's website. She then hunts for the best deals and tailors search results according to price by selecting the "Price low to high" option.

"Just because something's on special doesn't mean it's the cheapest option," she said. "There's normally a cheaper option."

When Seven Sharp visited Hammond, avocados were on special — 99 cents each.

A quick search for avocado recipes online and Hammond's meal-planning was well underway.

"Creamy avocado pasta. I've got some sun-dried tomato in the fridge, so I'll add that for some acidity, and that's one of my meals done.”

Meat is on the menu for Hammond, but she also cooks many vegetarian meals.

"Meat is quite pricey. If I cook with meat, I'll bulk it up with lentils or chickpeas."

Hammond’s culinary knowledge came from her mother and was also born of necessity.

"My mum taught me everything I needed to know about cooking. I left home at 17 and moved into a flat with three boys. I started meal planning and, as students, we don't have a lot of money lying around."

Creativity is key in Hammond’s meal planning. She pushes the boundaries of what she can use by substituting cheap alternatives for recipe staples.

“I've got a bit creative in the past with French onion soup. Instead of using wine, I've used Vegemite because it's acidic and dry. It actually worked pretty well.”

Armed with her shopping list (which she didn't stray from), Hammond hit the supermarket with a determination and precision akin to carrying out a thoroughly-planned heist. She was in and out in under 20 minutes, with a total spend of $82.44. Not bad.

She used the ingredients to create several meals during the week and then had leftovers for lunch and basics from the pantry like oats for breakfast. You can read her meal plan here.

Hammond's penny-pinching is impressive, but she is frugal for good reason. She puts the money she saves aside for fun — even the occasional takeaway.

"I choose to live like this, so I have money left over to spend on whatever I want."