I make kids' dinners for 50p and have 120 home-cooked meals ready in my freezer

• Jenna Dupay, 37, is a batch-cooking champion
• She says batch cooking is healthier, cheaper and saves her loads of time
• Jenna’s kids portions cost as little as 50p, with adult portions costing as little as £2

Many of us struggle to keep the costs down when it comes to cooking for a family.

But one savvy mum has revealed how she makes her kids dinner for as little as 50p a portion.

Jenna Dupay, 37, a hairdresser and mum of two from Essex, does her shopping affordably at Aldi or Lidl, then batch cooks up to 20 portions at once.

She stays super organised, writing a detailed shopping list and then stashing her freezer with up to 120 meals at a time.

“We have a very busy household,” Jenna told money-saving community LatestDeals.co.uk. “We have two kids, two dogs, friends that come over a few times a week and we are currently having building work done on our house so I’m always feeding the odd tradesman also.

"I also work till 9pm three times a week.

"Batch cooking is a way to be prepared but have good sized and healthier portions at a good price.

"All the adult dinner meals I make are £2 to £3 a meal, and the kids portions are 50p to £1 a meal. I love cooking also so this makes all the difference.

"I tend to buy my food from Aldi or Lidl when I batch cook because these places are cheaper.

"Freezing the food is the only way to make it last for me as I tend to cook 10 to 20 portions at one time."

Jenna shares her cookings skills on here instagram: @mrsdupay_aka_mrsbatch

“We have three sizes of Tupperware all with matching lids. They all get stored in a tall freezer.

"This can fit 120 meals in, with up to seven choices at a time.

“To plan what I’m going to batch cook, we pull up a recipe we fancy.

"I like Joe Wicks, Hairy Bikers and Jamie Oliver.

"I calculate the recipe to make around 16 portions and I put extra vegetables in it all. It makes up to 24 portions when I do this.

"There is no waste as if it says three carrots and it’s a bag of six I put them all in.

"With the help of my husband, we go through the recipe, write down the list and I go to the shop or do an online shop.

“Batch cooking saves so much money - there’s no food waste at all as it all gets frozen.

“The adult meals cost between £2 and £3 a portion, and the children’s portions are between 50p and £1.

"We get what we want out in the morning - if you had a fussy family, they could all be different meals and it wouldn’t matter.

"That night you just microwave it or heat it in a saucepan and it’s done.

"Each batch takes between one and three hours to do depending on what you cook. Then you have up to 20 meals that you just heat up when you need them.

"The time saved is worth it alone.

“In terms of what I make, I make a pasta dish for the week, which is great for snacks or lunch.

"I make a pesto chicken pasta dish on a Monday, which covers six adult lunches and six snacks over three days. It costs around £10 to make and I freeze the leftovers.

"I also make the kids and adults overnight oats on a Monday that lasts three days. These are so quick and cheap to make with rolled oats, almond milk and flavoured protein powder.

"We currently have vanilla, chocolate and a chocolate orange - it’s quick, easy, super tasty and cheap. They work out at 90p a portion including fruit.

“Typical dishes I cook include chilli con carne, sweet potato cottage pie, spaghetti bolognese and chicken curry.

“All our family meals are full of veg and goodness.

"Dinners from HelloFresh are around £4 or £5 a portion and they are half the size.

"So we're nearly half the price, and also for most people my portion sizes are too big so they could even half it!

"Batch cooking clears my mind, helps my soul and on top of this I have more time, money and a healthier lifestyle.

"Batch cooking brings the family together as we all get involved - so not only are we eating better but we have more family time too!”

Tom Church, co-founder of LatestDeals.co.uk, comments: “Batch cooking has long been one of my favourite ways of preparing food.

“It makes so much sense and ticks so many boxes. It saves money as there’s no food waste, saves time as you only have to cook once a week, and is healthier too, as you know exactly what’s going into each portion.

“Jenna’s method of batch cooking is super organised, and she’s got budgeting down to a fine art.

“The fact that her kids’ portions can cost as little as 50p or £1 without compromising on their healthiness and size just shows the benefits of being organised and prepared in the kitchen.”