Jamie Oliver isn't so great........

So Mr Oliver is harping on about feeding a family of four and spending only five pounds to do so. But is that really something so draw dropping that we should all give applause?

I am a fond cook and consumer of almost anything culinary. Over the years I have taught myself to provide nourishing, yet also appealing food for my family, friends and guests.

It is unfortunate to say however, that in these modern times money is getting ever more difficult to earn and easier to spend. This is made even worse by coy retailers trying to lure you in with tantalising offers and deals of the week. The food industry is without doubt one of the worst. After all we all eat, we all need to eat and as a result we can be easily suckered into a variety of money burning offers.

I discovered this due to two major events, a lower form of income and a Scrooge-like tendancy of disdain towards special offers. For several years I have tried to budget wisely for our familys food, and as I am the cook I know what I need and what I don't. As a result I have almost obsessivley sought better value shops and subsequently learnt how to make expensive products myself.

Then came Jamie Oliver and Sainsbury's advert.

I am amazed that such an advert should be released. The intention is to make everyone feel bad about how they shop, and how Jamie can show us the light. So to feed four people on five pounds, we all have to eat meatballs and spaghetti, yes? Luckily, the answer is no. But something you should at first realise is this:

1 meal for 4 = £5.00

7 meals a week = £35.00

4 weeks a month = £140.00

That is on evening meals alone......oh, and all you get is sick to death with meatballs! Well, I would like to show you a far better way to shop than Jamie Oliver's bish bash bosh style. First of all take into account what you get for bulk. You may only need 1kg of rice this month, but you may need another kilo the next one. So if you can pick up 5 kilos for pence more than 1 kilo, take it. You may find you have to look hard though. After all, the retailers want you to buy less and spend more.

The building blocks to meals like rice, pasta and noodles are inexpensive ways of filling bellies for little outlay. Take into account also that even though we all like 'fresh' food, nothing is fresher than a vegetable frozen an hour after being picked. I regularly purchase 750g of frozen, sliced peppers (all colours) for 78 pence. Compare this to 3 medium 'fresh' peppers and without doubt you will be looking at around £1.20 or more for organic.

Forget the fearmongers who announce all food except organic is grown in landfills and full of nastiness. It is on the whole rubbish. I agree that certain products can be dubious but once you learn that 20 value beefburgers are 90% water, you tend to make you own anyway. What was that? Make your own?

Sometimes the excuse of being too busy to cook is used to cover up laziness. If you cannot make time to feed yourself, you are doing something wrong. Cooking is therapy if you make sure you pay attention. Most people who 'cannot cook to save my life' have probably all at one time or another done a jigsaw puzzle. Cooking is like a collection of jigsaw pieces needing to be put together. Sometimes a piece doesn't fit, or sometimes it 'shouldn't fit' but does, and makes the picture even better.

So now, a recipe list which if you remove the basic cupboard essentials which everyone has, will not only feed upto 6 people for less than five pounds, it will provide the basics for a repeat version the next day.

Acapulco Chicken

Value chicken breast, approx 350g = £2.62

Table salt, 750g= £0.32 (probably not needed)

Table pepper, 25g = £0.19 (as above)

Celery, each = £0.68 (Not essential but helps bulk out the meal)

2 Onions = £0.30 (Bulk buy a bag for 78 pence and get 8 - 10)

Tin of value kidney beans, 400g= £0.14

Own brand chicken stock cubes, 10 = £0.19

Cayenne pepper, 48g = £0.68

Tin of value chopped tomatoes, 400g = £0.21

Long grain rice, 1000g = £0.95

Vegetable oil, 1000ml = £1.07 (probably not needed)

Sub Total: £7.35

However, remove the items everyone generally has and the celery which is surplus to requirements and what you spend is:

£5.09

But wait, I hear you all shout: "That's over five pounds!". This is true. If you wished to be pedantic, then 1 stock cube would only cozt £0.019 and the rest are surplus to requirements. Thsi would bring the figure down to £4.919 and really is going a little too far.

All in all anyone can make a meal for five pounds and this one not only will feed 4, but with the outlay of another £2.62, will feed them again tomorrow. Not only is this good, but on two evening meals, Jamie would have spent £10 pounds, we on the other hand will have only spent £7.71.

Next time there will be more money saving tips on shopping, deals to be wary of, and the reduced items shelf.