Save money on supermarket shopping by buying in bulk and then defrosting it

Chicken breasts/pork chops/steak
You can save a lot of money when doing your weekly food shop by buying in bulk. For example you can buy 4 chicken breasts rather than just the 1 and save around 30% than if you bought them separately. Then you have the problem of using 4 chicken breasts before the use by date. Unless you fancy chicken for 4 nights straight why not put each breast in a freezer bag, put one in the fridge and the remaining 3 in the freezer. By separating them out at this point it’s easier than having to separate the other 3 when they’re frozen (trust me it’s not easy!). You can then take one out at a time every time you need one.

So how to defrost them - the easiest way is to use a microwave. You need to set the microwave to a defrost or low power setting, and then defrost for around 2-3 minutes. Keep taking the chicken out every 30 seconds to check it’s not starting to cook in the microwave. Use a sharp knife to check it’s defrosted the whole way through and turn the breast over every 30 seconds to ensure it defrosts evenly.

If you don’t have a microwave then take the chicken breast out of the freezer around 10 hours before you plan to cook it and leave it in the fridge. It will then defrost thoroughly in the fridge before you’re ready to use it. If you don’t have the time, put the chicken breast (still in the freezer bag) into a bowl of warm water for around 30 minutes and this will do the job. You’ll probably have to put in some more warm water after 15 minutes as the water will start to go pretty cold.

Mince
When you buy the mince during your shop make sure you don’t buy the budget stuff as it’s really poor quality and has loads of fat in it. You can normally get a decent portion of the good stuff for around £3 which will do a couple of meals. Make sure you separate it out into freezer bags when you get back from the supermarket and it’s then easy for you to just defrost the amount you need.
To defrost the easiest way is to either leave it out on the counter top for a few hours, or to place the sealed freezer bag with the mince in it in a bowl of warm water. If you do use the microwave make sure you use a low setting and check the mince every 30 seconds. You should find that the outside starts to defrost pretty quickly, as soon as it has put it in a separate bowl. You should then be able to start to be able to separate the mince out a bit and spread it more evenly over the microwave dish. By doing this the mince will end up defrosting more evenly rather than you ending up with a block of mince which is brown on the outside and still frozen in the middle. You should take the mince out before it starts to go brown as this means it’s cooking in the microwave!
As soon as all of the mince is soft (but still pink) it’s ready for you to cook with.

Milk
Milk is one of the easiest things to freeze - if you end up buying two cartons of milk and know you’ll only finish one just put the other one in the freezer so that it doesn’t go past the use-by date. To defrost it just leave it out on the counter top for about 6 hours or in the fridge for around 18 hours.

Cheese
Supermarkets always have special offers on cheese - usually cheddar! You can either save some money on your weekly student supermarket shop by buying a huge block or by buying 3 packs for the price of 2 etc. Cheese has a relatively long use by date but it can still be worth splitting it up and putting some in the freezer. Either put a couple of packs in or cut a decent portion off the large block and put it into a freezer bag before putting it in the freezer.
To defrost just put it in the fridge for around 24 hours and you’ll never know the difference!

Ham
It sounds quite random freezing ham but it’s a great idea for saving cash on your student shop. Why? - well you will often find 3 for 2 deals on ham at supermarkets but not that many students will want to eat 3 packs of ham in a week. All you need to do is put a couple of packs in the freezer and take out as and when you need.
To defrost just put the pack of ham in the fridge for around 24hours and it should be fully defrosted.