Cooking extra portions gives a Bristol family money and time back

For Chantelle Gillett, batch cooking means a smaller food bill and evenings back. The Bristol mother says her family of eight spends about £110 a week, down from as much as £200.

She learned through Bristol’s Batch Cook Club in November 2025. Beans, vegetables and grains stretch familiar meals; extra portions become another day’s dinner. The club’s programme guide explains that it plans recipes, shops and washes up, while participants cook together and take meals home.

Gillett’s savings are one household’s experience, not a measured average. Ingredients, cooking costs and storage remain barriers.

Seema from the club told Gilbert that limited cold storage is a real obstacle. She recommends a couple of extra portions, planning ingredients for different uses, and reusable silicone freezer bags labelled with the meal and date and frozen flat to save space. The approach should fit each household’s circumstances. Follow the Food Standards Agency’s cooling, freezing and defrosting guidance.

For Gillett, the gain goes beyond money: her children help cook and try new foods, and she gets nights off at the stove.

Sources

• BBC — Chantelle’s experience and practical limitations
• Batch Cook Club — how sessions work; Seema’s reply to Gilbert, 9 October 2026.
• Food Standards Agency — how to chill, freeze and defrost food safely