Food and Nutrition Guidelines - Barnsley Council Online

Fast food on a budget
We all love a takeaway or a ready meal
sometimes. But make the same meal at
home and it can be lower in calories, and
cheaper too.
Perfect pasta
An average ready-meal lasagne can
cost £3.99 at the supermarket, and
one portion can contain up to 632
calories. Add a cheesy garlic bread and
a bottle of coke, and the cost rises
to £6.36. But the total cost of this
convenience meal may be as bad for
your waistline as your wallet, clocking
up around 967 calories.
If you swap your microwave meal for a
home-cooked alternative, you can save
in calories and cash.
Method
For a low-cost meal for one, fry 100g
of lean beef mince with half an onion,
one garlic clove and a grated carrot.
Stir in a tin of tomatoes and 100g of
cooked pasta, sprinkle 30g of cheese
on top and bake for 20 minutes.
For just £4.28 you can buy enough
ingredients to feed four people, at just
over £1 per person, and the calorie
content per portion is just 703.
You save:
£5.29 and 264 calories
Instant Indian
Everyone enjoys a night in with an
Indian takeaway, but a korma with
rice and naan bread can amount to as
many as 815 calories per portion. Buy
it ready-made from a supermarket and
you’ll pay around £5.13. Order it from a
restaurant, and the price could be £8
to £10.
Making your own version is quick and
easy, and at around £4.50 for four
people, or £1.13 per person, it’s also far
cheaper.
Method
Fry some diced chicken breast pieces
in as little oil as possible until golden
brown. When it comes to the sauce, try
a tomato-based sauce rather than one
that is cream based and higher in fat.
You can buy jars of ready-made sauce
in supermarkets. Serve with 70g of
basmati rice and a plain naan bread.
One portion then adds up to just 576
calories.
You save:
£4 and 239 calories
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