How to put on an affordable Australia Day barbecue

The classic Australia Day barbecue is not extinct – yet – but it will require some savvy shopping to keep it alive. Read the expert’s tips to a cost-effective celebration

The classic Australia Day barbecue won’t fall victim to the cost of living crisis if you shop smart.

Beef and veal prices have risen 15 per cent since September 2020, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, while lamb has jumped just one per cent during the same time, and snags and burgers are still a best buy for a budget barbie.

Which means a classic Australia Day feast can be enjoyed without breaking the bank by being careful what your select to sizzle.

Finder analysed the cost of an Australia Day barbecue in Woolworths and Coles and there wasn’t a huge difference in prices between the two, with the total price for a basket of 11 goods to feed a family of four being $103.43 at Coles and $101.93 at Woolworths.

Finder personal finance expert Sarah Megginson said “even the most basic backyard shindig can be surprisingly expensive”.

“To keep costs down, be a savvy shopper.,” says Finder personal finance expert Sarah Megginson. Picture: Supplied

“To keep costs down, be a savvy shopper. Compare prices at different supermarkets where the best deals are on offer,” Ms Megginson said.

She recommends local butchers as a way to save.

“Butchers specialise in higher-quality cuts, which can be more expensive, but they also offer great deals on bulk buys, so it’s not always cheaper or more expensive to go to the butcher,” she said.

Mary, Cristal, Des, Matt, Jensen, Sas and Tamelia are ready for Australia Day at Orchard Hills. Picture: Ted Lamb

For Orchard Hills mum Cristal Anshaw, who has a family of four, shopping at an independent butcher has been a game-changer for the barbecue budget.

“All the prices have gone up on everything so you have to think about that when you are planning it. Buying in bulk is good. Buying a few kilos of snags and a big piece of meat the butcher will cut up for you will minimise the cost a little bit,” Ms Anshaw said.

“I always do sausages and maybe a big piece of marinated lamb I can chop up.”

Emu Heights butcher Bill McDeed, who owns Gourmet Meat Company, said that bulk deals have become a crucial part of their Australia Day ­offering.

People have become budget conscious but there are ways to still have an Australia Day barbecue and not break the bank. Picture: iStock

“We find more and more people looking to buy bulk. Mums and parents come in and they are very budget conscious.

“They come in midweek and are looking for cuts, or sausages and rissoles, that are going to feed the family for a lesser dollar value. They come in again on the weekends, and you can see they have budgeted all week, and they go ‘All right we are going to have a steak but its going to be a good quality one and the kids are still having sausage or rissoles’.”

He said business has been booming, with an increasing number of Australians ditching the supermarket for the local butcher.

“If you had of asked me 20 years ago I would have said we are going out of business but now it seems the confidence is back in the corner store, the butcher, the ­greengrocer,” he said.

“Lamb prices have been steady, but sausages, rissoles and kebabs are affordable items that are going to feed the family without blowing the budget.

“Lamb cutlets are a more expensive item to feed many, as opposed to a few. Steaks and things are probably going to be the most affordable as far as volume goes. Chicken is a slightly cheaper alternative to lamb and beef.

“I have put a pack together for Australia Day that includes six rump steak medallions, six lamb loin chops, 2kg of sausages, some barbecue rissoles, some beef burger patties and some chicken mini drums, and that costs $150.

“It’s trying to cater for the family that needs to feed many mouths but also give them something that is nutritious and value at the same time.”

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Originally published as How to put on an affordable Australia Day barbecue