Caitríona Redmond: Meals in a hurry — including speedy pasta and slow-cooker Chipotle  chicken

Pic: iStock

Time is the biggest thief of my grocery budget in this house. All of my best-laid meal plans come to nothing if I am stuck for time and have to resort to convenience food or even takeout to meet the needs of the family. This is not ideal when you are living on less.

For me, there are two types of time-sensitive meals. The first is the meal that has to slot into a window between school runs or activities, feed the whole family, and be easy to assemble and clean up.