Sound familiar?
The shops are made for families. You’re one person.
- Half the bag of salad goes in the bin by Friday.
- The big pack is “better value”, until you throw half of it away.
- You know what you spend, and it doesn’t fit the single Age Pension.
- Every video says shop online, use the app, scan the code.
- You cook as though the whole family was still at the table, and then wonder what to do with it.
It isn’t you. The shelves are packed for four. Nobody tells you what to buy when it’s just you.
What you were told, and what works instead
The big pack is always better value.
Only if you eat it. I show you what to buy big and freeze, and what to buy small.
One store is cheapest for everything.
None is. I show you what each store is best for, for one person.
Use the app for the deals.
Most of what you need is on the shelf without one. I show you the specials that need no app and the ones that do.
Cooking for one isn’t worth the bother.
Buying for one is the trick. Get the shop right and the cooking is easy.
Throw it out when the date comes.
Some dates are about safety and some are about quality. I explain them the way Food Standards Australia New Zealand does.
Real pages from the book
Look inside
Swipe to see all 4 pages →
What’s inside A Trolley for One
A Trolley for One gives you 56 store cards, one for each Australian supermarket, with what to buy, freeze and leave when you live alone.
| # | Chapter | Page |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Start Here: The 10-Minute Cupboard Check. Know in ten minutes what’s in your cupboard and freezer, what to use first, and leave with a one-page plan. | 13 |
| 2 | Shop Like the Truck Comes Once a Month. Know what to buy big and freeze and what to buy small, item by item. | 19 |
| 3 | The Store Cards. Walk into Coles, Woolies, Aldi or IGA knowing what to buy there, with notes for Costco and Kmart basics. | 39 |
| 4 | The Store Cupboard for One. Keep a pantry for one that never goes to waste. | 73 |
| 5 | The Freezer for One. Fill the freezer with single portions, labelled, so nothing gets lost. | 91 |
| 6 | Use-By, Best-Before. Understand use-by and best-before the way Food Standards Australia New Zealand explains them. | 107 |
| 7 | Winter Trolley. Keep warm, cheap food in for June to August, and know when to stock up. | 118 |
| 8 | Once a Month. Shop once a month with a small top-up list. | 131 |
| 9 | One Cooked Chook, One Week. Turn one cooked chook into a week of meals for one. | 143 |
| 10 | Shopping When Carrying Is Hard. Shop when carrying is hard: smaller trolleys, nearby stores, delivery basics. | 155 |
| 11 | A Summer Christmas for One. Have a summer Christmas for one without a fridge full of leftovers. | 164 |
| 12 | Val’s Cards. Take the pocket card in your purse and keep your freezer log with a pen. | 176 |
A few things you’ll find out
- The one thing I buy at Aldi and nowhere else
- When the cooked chook is cheaper than a raw one, and when it isn’t
- What to freeze on the day you buy it, and what never to
- The pantry tins I always have in, and how many
- How to read a use-by date the way the food standards people do
- The once-a-month shop that fits in one trolley
- A summer Christmas for one without a week of leftovers
Every price carries its store, the state and the date I read it. No store paid to be in this book.
Who says so
Twenty-two years waiting for the truck
I went out to the stations as a cook in 1972. Twenty years old, twenty shearers to feed, and a supply truck once a month. If you forgot the flour, you went without flour.
Later I cooked in a country hospital for twenty years. Then my marriage ended and the kids grew up, and I found myself in a little unit, shopping for one on the pension, with shops packed for families of five.
So I did what I did on the stations. I worked out what to buy where, what to buy big and freeze, and what to buy small. Seventeen years on, I waste next to nothing and I shop around without shame.
Doreen next door kept asking me what to buy, so I started writing it down. That turned into this book. It’s what I’d tell you over the fence.
Val Murchison
Is this book for you?
It’s for you if
- You live on your own and shop for one.
- You’re on the single Age Pension or a small income and count every cent.
- You’re tired of throwing food away.
- You’d rather have a card in your bag than an app on your phone.
- You shop at more than one Australian supermarket and want to know what each is best for.
It’s not for you if
- You want recipes and meal plans; this book is the shop, not the cooking.
- You want diet or health advice.
- You shop for a big family every week.
What still needs someone else
Diet and health questions go to your doctor. Money, pension, rent and Centrelink questions go to Services Australia or a free financial counsellor.
What this book won’t do
Prices change every week. Every price has its store and date so you can see how fresh it is; check before you buy.
Get A Trolley for One today
A Trolley for One, the complete book
- Start Here: the 10-minute Cupboard Check, so you use what you have first
- The 56 store cards: what to buy, freeze and leave at each Australian supermarket
- The buy-big-freeze-small chart, item by item
- The store cupboard and freezer for one, with how long things keep
- The winter trolley and the once-a-month list
- The pocket card for your purse and the freezer log, to use with a pen
Secure checkout. One payment. Keep the book even if you ask for your money back.
Right after you pay, you get the download link by email, as a PDF and an EPUB. Open Start Here first; the Cupboard Check takes about 10 minutes.
Two short notes from me in the week after, one tip and one question.
The Supply Truck Promise
On the stations, if the order was wrong you waited a month, so I learned to get it right. Here’s my promise: if this book doesn’t help you waste less within 30 days, write to me and you’ll get every cent back. No questions, and you keep the book.
Questions people ask me
Is this a cookbook?
No. It’s the shop: what to buy at each store when it’s just you, what to freeze and what to leave on the shelf.
Did a supermarket pay to be in it?
No store paid for anything. Every price has its store and the date I read it.
I’m not good with computers. Can I print it?
Yes. It comes as a PDF you can print at home, and the cards are made to use with a pen.
Prices change. Won’t it be out of date?
Prices move, but what each store is good for changes slowly. Every price is dated so you can see how fresh it is.
My nearest store isn’t one of yours.
The cupboard, freezer and dates parts work anywhere, and the store cards show you what to look for on any shelf.
Why is there a timer on the price?
The launch price of A$39 runs only while the timer runs for you. After that the book is A$53.
Shop like the truck only comes once a month.
Next time you go to the shops, you’ll know what to buy for one, what to freeze and what to leave on the shelf.
Shop like the truck only comes once a month. Val
P.S. P.S. A Trolley for One gives you 56 store cards for living alone, for A$39 with the 30-day The Supply Truck Promise. If it doesn’t help, every cent comes back.