LIFE The store cupboard basics no budget cook can live without

We've all had Old Mother Hubbard moments where, with empty cupboards and hungry children, we end up blowing the budget on an emergency shopping trip to the (overpriced) corner shop - or worse, splurging on an unhealthy, not-very-nice takeaway!

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Sadly, when it comes to feeding your family on a shoestring, it pays to be organised. With a well-stocked kitchen, you can always knock up a cheap and healthy meal, even if you're running low on fresh ingredients.

So, to help, we asked budget cook Lorna Cooper of Feed your Family for £20 a Week for her list of the store cupboard essentials that no thrifty mum should be without.

Once you've stocked the pantry, you can use these weekly shopping lists to feed the family for £20 (more or less...).

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Plain flour: use for baking biscuits, making pastry for pies, pasties, tarts and quiches, and in sauces as a thickener.

Self-raising flour: the key ingredient for most cakes, so you can bake your own rather than splashing out on ready-made ones.

Honey: a healthier alternative to sugar for sweetening desserts, cakes and biscuits, smoothies and yoghurt, and it can also be used as a marinade or glaze for meat.

Sugar: needed for lots of home-baking recipes - and therefore essential for keeping the kids happy.

Vanilla essence: another useful baking ingredient, and cheaper than its posher relative, vanilla extract.

Cooking essentials

Garlic: cheap as chips and great for adding flavour to savoury dishes, which means you can cut back on salt.

Ginger: it may seem a bit pricey, but a little goes a very long way and it can be used in sweet and savoury dishes.

Mixed herbs: dried herbs are cheaper than fresh ones and last forever (unlike that wilted basil plant on your windowsill!)

Paprika: a mild spice that'll add warmth and colour to stews and casseroles.

Chinese 5 spice: this potent blend of spices packs a real punch in Eastern cuisine. Buy it from a Chinese grocer or supermarket when you see it.

Chilli powder: for chilli (obviously), curries, Mexican dishes, potato wedges... Buy the hot version and just use less if you're cooking a recipe that calls for mild chilli powder.

Soy sauce: a real multi-tasking product that you can use in stir-fries, noodle and rice dishes, stews, as a marinade and as a dipping sauce.

Vegetable oil: MUCH cheaper than olive oil, and a must-have not just for frying, but also for baking your own bread and pizza bases.

Lemon juice: buying a bottle is far more economical than buying fresh lemons to squeeze.

Cornflour: a flavourless flour that will thicken gravy, sauces, stews and casseroles, and can also be used to make a batter for homemade fish fingers or nuggets.

Stock cubes: they cost about 3p each but have about 3,000 uses, from flavouring bolognese to forming the base for soups.

Tins and cartons

Tomato purée: a bargain ingredient that's a must for Italian cooking, as well as for giving stews and casseroles extra flavour or acting as an impromptu pizza topping.

Tinned tomatoes: four tins ring in at around £1 and will make three litres of freezable sauce, which can be used for pasta, pizza, soup... The list goes on.

Passata: cartons of sieved tomatoes are a great cheat's ingredient if you need a quick and easy pasta sauce or casserole base.

Packets

Pasta: the staple of every budget cook's regime (and one that the kids will actually eat - hurrah!)

Rice: use it as an accompaniment for Asian and South American dishes, and also for risottos, rice pudding and to bulk out soup. Buy huge 5kg bags at bargain prices from Oriental supermarkets.

Noodles: another one to bulk-buy from Asian supermarkets - great for stir-fries and homemade chow mein - who needs a takeaway?

Cous cous: it's filling, fast, cheap and healthy and doesn't even need cooking - just rehydrating with hot water.

Spaghetti: at 20p for a pack that will feed the whole family, what's not to like?

Porridge oats: they're the basis for a great value breakfast, plus you can use them in flapjacks, muffins, as a crumble topping and even to bulk out mince dishes like Shepherd's pie.

Vegetables

Potatoes: don't waste money on oven chips or wedges when you can easily and cheaply make your own. You can buy a 15kg sack of spuds for under a fiver from your local market; they'll keep for about 12 weeks in a paper sack in a dark cupboard.

​Onions: these can also be bought in bulk (10kg for about £2) and kept for three months, but store them separately otherwise they'll make the potatoes sprout faster.

Carrots: a great child-friendly vegetable that also stores well and can be grated into dishes like pasta sauce and stews to add bulk and nutrition.