When Sydney mum-of-two Sonja Kallstrom sat down and tallied her family’s food spending, she was shocked.
Despite weekly grocery shops, the 45-year-old and her husband found themselves constantly dipping into takeaway, pre-made meals and mid-week impulse buys.
It was costing them more than just cash.
‘By the time you’ve picked the kids up and it’s 5:30pm, everyone’s starving and you just want something quick,’ Sonja told the Daily Mail.
‘You end up buying ready-made meals or ordering in, and before you know it, you’ve blown the budget.’
But last year, the Californian-turned-Sydney local stumbled on a solution that changed everything.
By turning to Saveful, a free Australian app that helps households cook with what they already have, Sonja slashed her weekly food bill by around $150 – which adds up to a staggering $7,800 a year saved.
For Sonja, who works full-time in digital product design while juggling two young kids aged five and seven, weeknights were the hardest.
When Sydney mum-of-two Sonja Kallstrom sat down and tallied her family’s food spending, she was shocked
Despite weekly grocery shops, the 45-year-old and her husband found themselves constantly dipping into takeaway, pre-made meals and mid-week impulse buys
‘You’re tired, the kids are hungry, and there’s pressure to get something on the table fast. But often they’re fussy, so you end up defaulting to mac and cheese or buying sushi or pizza,’ she explained.
She and her husband tried the classic ‘big shop’ on weekends, but it rarely worked.
‘We’d always end up doing extra top-ups midweek – and those ad-hoc trips were the ones that blew out the budget.’
The result: wasted veggies, endless plastic packaging, and a creeping reliance on takeaway.
The biggest change Sonja noticed wasn’t just financial, it was the pressure lifting.
‘With the app, I didn’t feel like a failure if I hadn’t meal-prepped for the week. I could just open it, type in “carrots” or “sweet potatoes”, and suddenly I had options,’ she said.
That simple swap flipped her whole approach.
‘Instead of thinking, “this carrot’s going in the bin”, I’d feel excited to turn it into something the kids would eat. It became a little celebration.’
By turning to Saveful, a free Australian app that helps households cook with what they already have, Sonja slashed her weekly food bill by around $150 – which adds up to a staggering $7,800 a year saved
‘With the app, I didn’t feel like a failure if I hadn’t meal-prepped for the week. I could just open it, type in ‘carrots’ or ‘sweet potatoes’, and suddenly I had options,’ she said
She started using Saveful two to three times a week, finding both new recipes and rediscovering ones her children loved – like a veggie Bolognese that became a household staple.
‘I made it for my son, and I actually liked it so much myself that I went back to make it again,’ she explained.
Even small substitutions felt empowering.
‘I used to think I couldn’t cook without olive oil. But then I found out coconut oil worked just as well in savoury meals. It’s little discoveries like that which make cooking fun again.’
Sonja says the shift has improved her family’s health too.
‘There’s less packaged food, less processed food. It’s more about using what’s fresh, what’s already in the fridge.’
Her kids even get customised meals out of it.
‘One night, I baked sweet potatoes and did different fillings for each child – one cheesy and comforting, one with avocado and corn. They loved it.’
Sonja started using Saveful two to three times a week, finding both new recipes and rediscovering ones her children loved
For other busy parents, Sonja says the best savings come from avoiding impulse buys and packaged foods
Even the green waste bin from her local council, once overflowing, is now barely used.
‘It feels awful to throw out a whole veggie you’ve bought and never touched. Now I’m re-learning how to stretch ingredients and make them last.’
For other busy parents, Sonja said the best savings come from avoiding impulse buys and packaged foods.
‘Don’t take the kids to the store with you if you can avoid it,’ she said, laughing.
‘It’s always the gummies or fruit roll-ups that end up in the trolley. Making snacks like cookies at home is cheaper and healthier.’
She’s also learned to store produce properly.
‘Fresh radishes will go soft in a day if you just throw them in the fridge. But if you trim them and pop them in a bag with a damp paper towel, they stay crisp for a week. Tricks like that give you more chances to use what you’ve bought.’
For Sonja, what started as a way to save money became something bigger: a calmer dinner routine, healthier kids, and the satisfaction of making something delicious out of nothing.
‘It’s not just about recipes,’ she said.
‘It’s about confidence. I feel like I can actually manage mealtimes now without stress, without guilt, and without blowing the budget.’
This article was originally published by a www.dailymail.co.uk . Read the Original article here. .