We have taken a bit of an income hit due to my partner's illness so have been investigating budget and basic ranges more than we have done in the past.

Some things can't be replaced but some things are just as good, we feel, and we've been overspending for years! So any recommendations?

Budget mozzarella is great for cooking, as is budget cream cheese and blue cheese. Sweetcorn is fine. Peanut butter not too bad.

Not replacable so far are baked beans, Greek yoghurt and coleslaw, as far as we;re concerned.

I use the really cheap tinned chopped tomatoes and I usually keep some tinned carrots and potatoes in the cupboard for emergencies, to bulk up a stew or something.
Supermarket own brand Marmite tastes the same to me. So do most of the cup-a-soups. Preserves are usually ok. Supermarket own brand of Philadelphia cheese is nice.
I also use own brand curry/ bolognaise sauce too.
A lot of cheap biscuits are just the same as the big brands.
The best thing to do is give them a try, sometimes you'll be surprised how nice the cheap stuff is. I also find the reviews on the supermarket website useful too.

Milk.

We switched from Cravendale to Tesco Pure and honestly can't tell the difference!

I do most of my day to day shopping at Sainsbury and it seems that my local store is cutting down on it's Basics range

I used to buy the Basics back bacon but they seem to have stopped selling it.......that was very nice

I buy the Basic multi-packs of Peppers.......usually get 5 in a pack and I use them as the basis of a veg curry. In fact any fruit and veg that comes as Basic will be OK, including the ones in tins. I use the tinned potatoes in curries as well. I generally eat veg in the form of stir fries or curries so I stick any old stuff in.......no point buying really expensive veg then sticking it in a curry

I used to buy the Basic Lasagne which was only about 80p and made a nice hot lunch

I get things like tissues, kitchen roll & vinegar.........but for some reason I'm averse to buying Basics Bog Roll......

Off the top of my head the only thing I tried that I really didn't like was the Basics Cheese which was very rubbery......

Aldi's 'corale' brand baked beans are really good. Lidl's tinned plum tomatoes too. You can sometimes get the 'bigger' name brands cheaply in B&M, Wilko or Home Bargains too Kimi.

Off the top of my head I think the basics sultanas / mixed fruit is great and I also really like the Sainsburys Basics salad cream.

Waitrose basics baked beans are very good. I got them recently and enjoyed eating them.

I've also had a lot from Aldi recently and the only thing I didn't like was their own Greek style yogurt, apart from that everything else I've used was fine. Their feta is my favourite and less than half the price of the supermarkets.

Whenever I do my shopping I always try look at the next price range and use less branded items. If I do t like it I don't buy it again.

That reminded me of this thread
http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2027759

I stand by my Basics Lasagne !

Thnaks, everyone. Good suggestions there! Biscuits and milk are loads cheaper, aren't they?

I'd personally just try everything!

You haven't got much to lose. If you don't like something, you can just switch back.

Greek Yoghurt: Morrisons Greek Yoghurt is almost always on offer and is my personal favourite, even when compared with Fage Total (which is 3 times the price). Morrisons is currently 81p for the large (500g) tub.

Milk: I watched a documentary a couple of years ago in which a woman on a strict budget bought a large (6 pints) very cheap carton of Milk....took it home.....transferred it into 6 x 1 pint cartons.....and then put 5 of them in the freezer. Seems like a great money saving tip?

Sausages: (Huh? Nobody mentioned Sausages). No they didn't. But we recently had a thread about "cheap sausages". IMO the astonishing Supermarket wars have almost killed off "cheap sausages". Asda have a range which might surprise you. Check out the Pork and 3 Chilli. Or many other variants. They were 6 for £3.20 (I think) or 2 packs for £4. Like many supermarkets, Asda seem to be dropping the "buy 2 for less" nonsense. So the price of this item is now £2. Have a look at the reviews.

Toilet rolls:
I have a son who thinks he needs half a roll to clean his glasses daily, and I buy the Nicky toilet rolls.
I pay £3.99 for 18 and it almost lasts me a month.

When I was skint skint I also used to buy whole milk and water it down, no one knew or commented at home! Also the uht basics milk is ok if you don't mind skimmed milk, I find all their varieties taste like skimmed.

Potatoes are a fantastic fillerupper at a low cost, and so versatile.

There also are some great Fb sites like feed yourself for £1 a day and online bloggers like Jack Monroe who make meals out of nothing.

Asda sometimes have vegetables described as "growers choice". On a recent shopping trip 3 supemarkets were showing the following price for a 500g bag of Parsnips.
Morrisons: 83p
Aldi: 73p
Asda Growers Choice: 29p

Of course.....usually it is Aldi that are cheaper. Last week - 1kg of Carrots for 39p.

All the above prices were found on the 3 x Websites. Before Shopping.

You are probably already doing this, no pre-made meals, more expensive than cooking them, no parts of poultry like breasts etc., buying the whole thing is cheaper and you can use it all.

Why is he not using a lint free glasses cloth?

Mostly shop in Morissons, and I buy a lot of their 'Savers' range.

Tinned stuff for spag bol's, soups, chilli's etc.

Their natural yoghurt and cream cheese.

I've a bit of a grubby palate, so I like their cheap sausages, and pate.

I tend to give the savers bread a swerve because it's not much more to buy their regular own brand.

The only ready meals we buy are for the OH's lunch, because she is lazy, and wants something quick and hot, even then we only buy them from the discounted section for a fraction of the price, and freeze them.

I brought home, one time, half a dozen of savers ready meals from the discounted section for 9p each, feeling very pleased.

Put them in the freezer and told the OH there were a selection of lunches in there, and that I had got a bargain.

Next day I got a text from the OH, that read, and I quote "If you ever bring that Sh!t home again you are dead (angry smilie)"

I think that says all you need to know about cheap ready meals

Tesco, tomato ketchup, salad cream, mayonnaise. Their frozen chicken breasts £3.99 a kilo, defrosted can be used to make loads of different dishes. Tesco mature cheddar cheese, corn flakes and porridge oats.

Not food but their toothpaste is pretty good too, and their hair serum just £1 lasts ages.

Most cheap ready meals can be vastly improved by condiments.

Ketchup, chilli sauce, bbq sauce, soy sauce, vinegar etc.

i`ve just discovered la chinata paprika a little goes a long way [unlike others, you don`t need a third of the jar to taste it] and the tin is about two and a half - three times the size of a standard jar.

and it`s lovely and rich.

Tesco dried herbs and spices are pretty good you get far more for less than half the price.

That stuff is amazing. The best paprika ever.

Asda smart price jaffa cakes are brilliant! !

isn`t it, busting with flavour and depth, and so cheap.

edit: the tin is cute too.

I find Tesco Everyday Value ranges have less additives in.