Money-saving mum who can cook 50 meals for 72p a person shares her delicious secrets
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A young mum dubbed the 'meal prep queen' has revealed her incredible kitchen secrets that feed her family for less than £1 a head.
Kaitie Purssell, a 27 year old from Sydney, Australia, shocked mums around the world when she revealed her bulk cooking sessions - that work out at just 72p ($1) a person.
And they're super healthy too - with the mum of two having shed 21 kilograms on her money-saving mission.
She's now a Healthy Mummy ambassador and has shared her secrets to saving time, money and waste in the kitchen.
'A busy mum on a tight budget'
(Image: FACEBOOK)
(Image: FACEBOOK)
"Meal prepping has helped so much in my weight loss journey. I am a busy mum of two on a tight budget, and always having a freezer full of meals and snacks saves me from skipping meals or grabbing takeaway," Kaitie said.
She bases her meals on seasonal produce, which she claims is not just cheaper, but tastier, and always buys in bulk. Her meals include everything from Mexican chili to chicken soup and pumpkin and pine nut pasta.
(Image: FACEBOOK)
Her top tip is to buy plenty of vegetables - these are cheap and can bulk out meat dishes, which are often expensive.
Lentils and grated vegetables are both healthier and filling, and always use the slow cooker, she added.
Perhaps surprisingly, online shopping is one of her biggest tips - as it blocks distractions and stops her impulse buying at the checkout.
Once her groceries are in, she prepares her meal plans - then cuts up all of her vegetables to save time in the evenings.
"It makes my life so much easier"
If you want to learn from her habits, you'll need to 'start small' and free up your freezer, she said.
"Make double, triple or quadruple amounts of the dinner you're making each night and freeze it. That's how I started. If I was making one banana bread, I'd make two, cut one up and freeze it.
"I find most mince dishes, slow cooked meals and stews freeze the best,'" Kaitie said.
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"I love having meal prep ready to go, as it makes my life so much easier. Less dishes, more time with the kids and more time for me to squeeze in my Challenge exercises.
"It's so much cheaper to make most things from scratch, it doesn't take much longer and you are cutting out a lot of sugar and other nasties by doing so," she added.
She also freezes leftover ingredients - from curry paste and tomato paste to pasta and liquid stock.
"Pop them in ice cube trays and transfer into labelled ziplock bags for the freezer to reduce wastage," she explained.
"I often spend less than an hour in the kitchen preparing a whole week of food for my family. It's doesn't have to be hard or take all day," she said.
Kaitie's 50 winter warming meals for just £90 (72p a head)
(Image: FACEBOOK)
(Image: FACEBOOK)
A prep in Kaitie's kitchen would include five servings of beef san choy bow, eight hazelnut and sultana chocolate snacks and 14 weetbix balls.
That's in addition to 20 bliss balls and four black pepper and capsicum dips with veggie sticks. All of which will then be frozen for indulging in later.
Each of her recipes are low in calories - the highest being the san choy bow at 390 calories per serve.
"It also helps to shift the tummy fat as well as keeping you nice and full when you are following a weight loss plan," she explained.
Kaitie's winter recipes 5x Slow Cooker Ragu 9x Hidden Veggie Bolognese 4x Beef and Sweet Potato Curry 6x Mexican Style Chilli Con Carne 6x Chicken & Corn Soup 5x Chicken & Chorizo Enchiladas 5x Spanish Rice with Chorizo 4x Pumpkin & Pine Nut Pasta 6x Chicken Pad Thai
(Image: FACEBOOK)
Her 50 winter warming recipes cost just under £90 ($125) - and average out at around £1.80 per meal, or 72p a head.
It included five slow cooked ragus, nine serves of spaghetti bolognese and four servings of beef and sweet potato curry.
She also made six servings of chilli con carne, six chicken and corn soups, five chicken and chorizo enchiladas, five servings of Spanish rice with chorizo, four serves of pumpkin and pine nut pasta and six chicken Pad Thais.
She urges everyone to try meal prepping and insists it makes things both easier and cheaper in the long run.
"For me, food has 90% contributed to my weight loss. I love food, I always have but I'm very slowly starting to love me too."