Food prices are putting additional pressure on household budgets, particularly for Australians on the lowest incomes.

To save money on your weekly grocery shop, add these five staple foods to your shopping basket: eggs, oats, carrots, long-life milk and apples. These foods score highly on the Nutrient Food Index and Price Index, meaning they offer good value for money when it comes to buying nutritious food.

Stocking up on these foods will help you eliminate more expensive and less nutritious foods from your shopping cart. Having a supply at home will also save you extra trips to the store, which in turn will save gas and time.

1. Eggs

At around 6 Australian dollars per dozen (50 cents per egg), the eggs are extremely inexpensive.

Prices for meat, chicken and fish vary depending on the cut or type, from $12 per kilo for ground beef, $12–20 per kilo for chicken, and $20–50 per kilo for steak and fish. The cheapest cuts still cost $2–3 per portion, compared to two eggs for $1.

Swapping a red meat dish for one with eggs can save you a lot of money. Try our egg recipes on the No Money No Time website, from fritters to omelets to fried rice. These recipes will also help you use up other things you have in the pantry, fridge and crisper.

Eggs are a good source of protein and also contain choline, lutein and zeaxanthin, vitamins A, B2, B12, D, E and folic acid, as well as the minerals iron, zinc, iodine and selenium.

People who worry that eggs raise cholesterol levels have been reassured by a recent analysis of scientific evidence that eating up to one egg a day is unlikely to have any negative impact on overall disease risk.

2. Oatmeal

Prices for oatmeal vary widely, ranging from about $2 per kilogram for the “house brand” to $9 for premium varieties.

Oats are really versatile. For breakfast you can make porridge, overnight oats, DIY muesli or granola.

Rolled oats can be used as a dough substitute for a quick and easy quiche base. Or grind them in a food processor and use them as a breadcrumb substitute.

For dessert, you can use it to garnish a delicious apple crumble.

Oats are a whole grain, which means they contain all the components of the original grain – germ, bran and outer layers – and therefore more fiber and nutrients.

Oats are rich in beta-glucan, a soluble fiber that helps lower blood cholesterol by binding to bile acids in the intestines, preventing it from being converted into LDL (bad cholesterol).

They also contain the B vitamins thiamine (B1), riboflavin (B2), niacin (B3), pyridoxine (B6), pantothenic acid (B5) and folic acid (B9) as well as vitamin E and the minerals iron, zinc, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium.

3. Carrots

There are few things better than a bag of carrots for about $2.50 a kilo. They last forever in the fridge and can be eaten raw, as carrot sticks or with carrot dip, or baked to make carrot-vegetable “chips.”

Try grating carrots as an extra on a lettuce bun or burger, or mixing them with shredded cheese to enhance the flavor of tacos, pasta or pizza, or even a dish like mac and cheese.

Other versatile uses include soups, carrot puree, roasted carrots or, for a sweet treat, carrot muffins or bliss balls.

Carrots are rich in the carotenoids alpha-carotene and beta-carotene, which are converted into vitamin A in the body and used in antibody production and to maintain the healthy function of the eyes, skin, lungs and intestines.

4. UHT skimmed milk

UHT skim milk costs about $1.60 per liter.

While some fresh varieties cost about the same, the advantage of UHT milk is that you can keep a supply in the cupboard so the milk never runs out and has a long shelf life.

Milk makes great smoothies and is a key ingredient in dishes ranging from quiche to cheesy cauliflower to delicious lemon pudding.

Milk contains protein, calcium, magnesium, zinc, potassium and vitamins A, B2 and B12.

Studies show that regular milk consumption is associated with a lower risk of osteoporosis, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and colon cancer.

5. Apples

A bag of apples costs about $4, or 60 cents per apple, and $4-5 for a large can of apple compote.

Apples are a portable snack. Add them to porridge, serve with pork, in coleslaw, or in apple crumble.

Apples contain fiber and pectin, vitamins B6 and C as well as the minerals potassium, calcium, nitrogen, magnesium and traces of zinc, iron and copper.

Observational studies have shown that people who ate more apples had a lower risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and all-cause death.

For easy, delicious and inexpensive meals that are quick and easy to prepare, as well as our grocery budgeting tips, visit our team’s No Money No Time website.