How do you all do this meal plan thing?

[Giraffe]

OK - not the greatest thread title, but I didn't get much sleep last night so not all my neurotransmitters are firing this morning (sick DD, sick me, we have sleep issues anyway - subject of another thread for another day).

 

Dinner (and all meals) have always been a "spur of the moment" thing around here. For years I would realize the time, rush into the kitchen, and try to throw together something decent and quick in time for dinner. DH hated it, I was sick of being stressed, and it just wasn't working anymore. My excuse? I married late in life, lived alone for decades and was used to not having to really plan an evening (or any other) meal - just ate cereal most nights, honestly.

 

So I did a meal plan, wrote it out, shopped for it. And discovered why I've always thought meal plans won't work for us. I planned Monday - Sunday:

 

Monday - ate on plan

Tuesday - MIL took us all out to dinner - meal never got cooked

Wednesday - main dish on plan, side dish from Tuesday's plan

Thursday - DH worked late, ate out. DD & I ate Wednesday leftovers.

Friday - today. I'll make the planned meal, we'll see what happens.

Saturday - programmed leftovers

Sunday - lunch out (family tradition), dinner - pizza night

 

I have a fridge full of ingredients that never got made into meals. Yes, I can make them this week what's coming and shuffle the plan, but that's annoying me somehow. I need a plan so that I know what I'm doing and am not rushing around at the last minute - but somehow this doesn't seem to be working.

 

I read on other threads the concept of cooking out of the pantry, which is what I was doing, essentially, previously. Do pantry people make a meal plan in advance also? Is that how that works?

 

What do you all do???? Am I just domestically dysfunctional???

[LidiyaDawn]

I have the same problem! I *want* to make meal plans (supposedly it's better for money too?) but when I try -- it all gets messed up. People decide they don't like things, they get invited to eat at a friend's house, the dish makes more than I thought it would (or people eat less) and a lot of leftovers get tossed because people don't want to eat the same thing for three meals in a row, etc etc...it's always something.

 

I tried to follow plans from a website one time and goodness - it was expensive (many ingredients I didn't have), confusing (unfamiliar foods and ingredients), very time consuming, and the kids and dh wouldn't eat most of the stuff. Grrrr.

[Chris in VA]

We make our shopping list on an envelope turned sideways--food on the left side, non-food on the right, meals at the bottom. We have a master list of the meals we normally eat--about 25-30 on the list, and we know all the ingredients for each meal (not rocket science around here--we're pretty much meat/starch/salad/veggie people, with the occasional soup, chicken enchilada/casserole type meal thrown in there). We shop the loss leaders and sales, and I don't really refer to the list anymore. If I want to try something new, then I try to eat it earlier in the week.

 

We rip off the bottom of the envelope and stick it on the fridge, and then I choose from it each night (well, around 3 pm, so there's time to defrost or whatever). Low tech, eh? :D

 

It allows some flexibility because all of the food will last all week--with the exception of salad stuff and fresh veggies, but these are just sides, and I don't really plan those, except what goes "naturally" with something (pasta seems to call for salad, so I might try to eat that earlier in the week).

[Ferdie]

Maybe you should be planning less meals - like 3 or 4 a week. That will allow off days when you dh works late or you get invited out. I think you are in a season of life where you just don't need to be cooking everyday. It is pretty easy to feed a 3 year old without cooking a full meal.

 

I use a meal planning service that plans for 7 meals. I use them all since I have three older children that need food. Plus our family budget allows eating out once a month :( Since I have to cook everyday, I start my meal prep the night before for thawing meat or soaking beans. I also try to prep the veggies in the morning while I have energy.

[CalicoKat]

And how do you plan for the unexpected teen wanna be children eating key ingredients for the meals that have been planned and shopped and pay day is 10 days away?

 

For meal planning I rely on others -- I use these cookbooks that tell me what to cook, how to cook and what to buy for each week. I can still have flexibility by cooking which ever meal on when I feel like it, but I don't shop until after all the meals planned for are used.

 

:D There isn't enough energy in my day to do it all. :D

[Whereneverever]

What about freezer cooking? Sounds like it might be a better fit. Freeze main courses, soups, and sides, then just reheat before supper.

[twacademy2010]

For dinner, I use e-mealz [dot] com and for the other meals, I usually just do sandwiches and oatmeal and cereal and fruit and stuff. I try to keep it as simple as possible.

[Jen in PA]

If we don't get to something I have planned, I usually go ahead and cook it when time allows, and then pop it into the freezer. That kills two birds with one stone -- no wasted food, and a meal ready for a busy night down the road. I tend to make lots of soups and stews, and having those frozen in small portions means that if I end up home on a night I thought I would be out, I still have something ready relatively quickly.

[Harriet Vane]

I consider the meal plan to be less a plan and more a List of Options.

 

If it helps, don't assign your listed meals to specific days. When it's time to cook, pick a meal from the list and do it.

[happyhomemaker25]

I can relate to all of that. What I struggle with the most is when I have a meal plan I spend twice as much at the grocery store. I try to shop sales and skip the meal plan but then I get home and find I don't really have enough ingredients to make anything. LOL

 

So for us it's been best to plan out about 3-4 meals. It leaves room for those nights when it's just not happening. I always cook a lot so if a night pops up when I don't have anything planned we can always have leftovers.

I do not plan side dishes. I keep my freezer stocked with frozen veggies and we always have pasta, rice and potatoes in the house.

I don't plan breakfast or lunch either for the most part.

Breakfast is oatmeal, peanut butter wraps, eggs, or cold cereal whatever I feel like making. Sometimes we have french toast or pancakes if I have the ingredients.

Lunch is sandwhiches, leftovers, or mac n cheese.

I try to keep on hand ingredients for at least a couple of dinner type meals at all times. For example, we love yellow rice, grilled chicken and brocolli so I make sure I always have that available. Also BBQ chicken baked potatoes only need a few ingredients so I always have that. Of course we always have the ingredients for spaghetti.

I can throw those into our meal plan at any time.

I buy all of our meat in bulk at Costco about every two months or so. I then divide it up and freeze it. Some of the meat I cook and some I leave alone for meals like meatloaf, grilled chicken, hamburgers..

It's been a lot of trial and error and I am still seeing areas I can improve.

Sometimes do end up with food that I think, "What did I buy that for again?" When that happens I hit Allrecipes and find a recipe to use it in.

[Cricket]

I really, really like this website: Plan To Eat. Someone else on here posted this a while back. It is like your own cookbook online. You can upload recipes from the web or type in your own favorites. There is a calendar where you just click and drag recipes into it. It will even make a printable shopping list. You can also click on which ingredients you have in your pantry. There is a feature where you can ask it to pull up recipes for the ingredients you already have on hand. I use it a lot! It makes planning easy because all the recipes and ideas are right there. And since it is stuff you have uploaded or put in yourself, you know your family already likes it! There is a cost to use it. It's $39 per year. You can get a 30-day free trial though and see if it useful to you.

[Giraffe]

And how do you plan for the unexpected teen wanna be children eating key ingredients for the meals that have been planned and shopped and pay day is 10 days away?

 

That would be DH here!

 

For meal planning I rely on others -- I use these cookbooks that tell me what to cook, how to cook and what to buy for each week. I can still have flexibility by cooking which ever meal on when I feel like it, but I don't shop until after all the meals planned for are used.

 

Got that book from the library - I like the concept but many of the meals don't work for us so I have to pick and choose - can't take a whole week at once. One reason? We don't eat pork. Another - picky eaters.

 

What about freezer cooking? Sounds like it might be a better fit. Freeze main courses, soups, and sides, then just reheat before supper.

 

I've tried this, and need to get better at it. And do it when DH isn't looking - he hates the concept, even though he rarely notices when I do it (or doesn't comment, at least).

 

Yes, it's probably a season, but it's frustrating DH and me too. I need to find a solution. Maybe I should just plan 3 or 4 meals.

 

I'll stick it out another week, see what happens. Part of this is financial - running to the store every other day for this or that ingredient was getting expensive because neither DH nor I can get "just" this or that. I made a meal plan, shopped for it, and committed to not going to the grocery store for ANYTHING this week. I've stuck to it, even though we're out of bananas and cooking oil and almost out of olive oil. We've saved money over our usual haphazard method - assuming I can cook everything before it goes bad!

[Truscifi]

I have the same issue, but shuffling it to the next week doesn't bother me. I just look at as a break - part of my meal plan for next week is already done, yay! I shop the sales for the week and buy the dairy and fresh produce I need to go with meals for the week. I plan the meals that need fresh produce early in the week, and if they don't happen on the planned day I move them to the next day so there is less risk of spoilage. I also cook large meals that I know will leave leftovers - we eat them for lunch and plan a 'clean out the fridge' night each week.

[Giraffe]

If we don't get to something I have planned, I usually go ahead and cook it when time allows, and then pop it into the freezer. That kills two birds with one stone -- no wasted food, and a meal ready for a busy night down the road. I tend to make lots of soups and stews, and having those frozen in small portions means that if I end up home on a night I thought I would be out, I still have something ready relatively quickly.

:svengo: Doh! Why didn't I think of that?! Seriously - thank you! I know what I'll be doing today! :)

 

 

I really, really like this website: Plan To Eat. Someone else on here posted this a while back. It is like your own cookbook online. You can upload recipes from the web or type in your own favorites. There is a calendar where you just click and drag recipes into it. It will even make a printable shopping list. You can also click on which ingredients you have in your pantry. There is a feature where you can ask it to pull up recipes for the ingredients you already have on hand. I use it a lot! It makes planning easy because all the recipes and ideas are right there. And since it is stuff you have uploaded or put in yourself, you know your family already likes it! There is a cost to use it. It's $39 per year. You can get a 30-day free trial though and see if it useful to you.

 

I saw that too, but forgot about it. Thanks, I think I will try it.

 

Everyone, thank you. I don't feel quite so dysfunctional. Maybe I will post on the sleep issues now and get some help there (I need it today!).

[JeneralMom]

I have to have a menu plan because of our budget. I plan all b-fasts, lunch, snacks and dinners, as well as the one dessert we eat per week. I have a "skeleton plan" and I fill this out for a month at a time - we have a meat dish for Sunday dinner, pasta on Monday, soup on Tuesday, Leftovers on Wednesday because I go to work so early, rice dish on Thursdays, bean-based dish on Friday, and pizza/quesadillas/tacos (easy) on Saturdays. We only eat meat once per week. (beef, chicken, pork/ham, coldcuts), make stock from the bones 3 out of 4 weeks.

I go to Costco and Whole Foods and sometimes the Asian/Indian grocery every two weeks, get produce and things from grocery store once per week. The farmer's market I love is every Weds so I will pop in there when the budget allows. I also order bulk/group through a Real Foods co-op I belong to.

 

Then I just fill in and plan ahead. So, on week one we had a roast chicken. I make stock from those bones and freeze it for soup in week two. The week we have cold cuts I obviously don't have bones for stock, so I make veggie stock.

 

B-fasts are the same from week to week, and so are lunches. So, lunch on Monday is Mac and Cheese, on Wednesdays it is Nutbutter and Jelly or Honey.

 

I keep a list of soups, stews, main dishes, etc. that we like and pick from those. I organize them so that they use alot of the same ingredients so that I can buy in bulk (i.e I know alot of my recipes in my two-week span use potatoes, so I will buy the bulk bag at Costco and know that they will be used up and not go to waste.

 

Sorry that was long winded, but I had to figure out how to feed 6 people, 2 giant-breed dogs, 3 cats, fish/snails on about $120 per week and so I have to be very strict. I do work in going out once per pay period (every two weeks) but right now DH and I challenged ourselves not to eat out for 3 months just to see if we could do it.

[dcjlkplus3]

When I planned this time I made a list of 14-15 lunch and dinner plans on a spreadsheet and printed it out. I also printed a blank calendar for January. I sat with the kids and my list and we planned lunch for a week. If they got put on the calender, they got marked off my list. As for dinner, I just check off of the list when I make something from it. All the ingredients are there, salad stuff and milk won't last 2 weeks so I have to plan another trip for that kind of thing.

[DarcyB]

Our meal plan is made up from meals that I know my family will eat. I plan out about a month ahead, remove for days when I know we aren't going to be home, plan a few days of leftovers and easy fix meals, and shop for what I have left to make. I don't use other sites or anything.

 

I did a whole series on it on my blog at the beginning of the year. It's basically just writing down all the meals my family loves, and using those to form the basis of what my meal plan is for the month. I stick in an occasional new meal I want to try, but I know that what I'm making is something everyone likes. I know, generally, how much to make for the meal, but will also double up many of them to pop in the freezer for unexpected guests or change in plans. I shop only for the ingredients I'll need to make those meals.

 

The key is to be really flexible. If you can't cook the meal for tonight, move it for a night you can move it to or cook it anyway and throw it in the freezer for a night you need to pull something out.

[RoundAbout]

I consider the meal plan to be less a plan and more a List of Options.

 

If it helps, don't assign your listed meals to specific days. When it's time to cook, pick a meal from the list and do it.

 

:iagree:

 

This is what I do.

 

Two other things:

 

1) Make sure at least a few of your weekly meals can be made with all pantry/freezer ingredients. Things like spaghetti or chickpea and tomato curry made from canned ingredients. This way there is nothing fresh to go to waste if you have to skip a meal on the list. It also insures that you always have something on hand to make a meal in emergency.

 

2) On weekends we're so busy that we don't do family sit down meals. Instead on Friday I make a few big things that heat up well like lasagna or a casserole. Then people can heat up leftovers with minimal prep and there's no waste (and enough for unexpected guests). Things like Costco salmon burgers also work well here since they go from frozen to cooked in like 8 minutes.

 

I also keep a big tray of fresh veggies w/ranch dressing in the fridge at all times to round out meals and snacks.

[Tonia]

Here's what I do:

 

Breakfast/lunches/snacks - perpetual shopping list, basically the same shopping list every week.

 

Dinner - I tried a scheduled meal plan and had the same problem as you. Now, the day before grocery shopping (every two weeks) I make a list of 12 meals but don't schedule them to any particular day. That way, if I'm running short on time one day I can do a quick meal and save longer-cooking meals for days that I have more time. Side dishes are easy - pasta and stuff is usually in the pantry; veggies I buy whatever is in season or on sale. Use up the perishable stuff first and save the longer lasting produce for later in the week. Whatever meals we don't get to, for whatever reason, just get added to the next 2-week meal plan.

 

In that 12 meals I try to do various things - if I'm making soup I do a double batch and freeze half. Same with casseroles or pasta sauces that freeze well. I try plan a few meals from what's already in the freezer. Makes those "short on time" days so much easier.

 

If there is a particular meat on sale I stock up on it. If chickens are cheap I'll make a huge pot of chicken stew and freeze in family-sized portions. Then I just need to thaw, heat, make biscuits (I like to roll out the dough and plop right on top of the pot and stick it in the oven - sort of a quick pot pie). Same with ground beef. I'll make big batches of taco meat, meatloaf mix, meatballs, etc. and freeze.

Edited January 14, 2011 by Tonia

[Alicia64]

I was rotten at meals too. ROTTEN.

 

My bread machine got me in the groove. Slowly -- this didn't happen quickly at all -- I found bread recipes, the a pizza crust recipe etc. etc. and around 1 or 2 p.m. (depending) I'd throw the ingredients in the bread machine.

 

My favorite thing in the world is pizza. So the dough would come out at around 5:30, I'd spread out, toss on toppings. Make a healthy smoothie to go with it and my family thought I'd made dinner.

 

For some reason, getting the homemade bread going in the afternoon really helped me get into the groove. But it took time.

 

I'd make french bread (super easy) and pair it w/ spaghetti.

 

I'd make dough and pair it with chicken and veggies (fake chicken b/c I'm a vegetarian).

 

Slowly I started searching for recipes I loved like stuffed shells, Thai Curry etc.

 

Over time, I started knowing my way around the kitchen and doing a better job.

 

Miracles happen.

 

But, if I think back, it all started with my willingness to use the bread machine and start it around 1 or 2. 3 at the latest.

 

Good luck. It's hard. Erma Bombeck said, "I spent the first half of my life wondering who I'd marry and the second half of my life wondering what I'd cook for dinner."

 

Alley

[AngelBee]

Taking notes...

[AngelBee]

Me too.

 

I do plan out my meals, but plans get tossed out the door way too often!

That is our problem too. We live with others as well and sure enough....ingredients will be missing to make what we had planned. Or they will eat the leftovers that were for lunch! :lol:

[HS Mom in NC]

I do planning for two weeks at a time. I used to do once a month cooking, but the budget doesn't allow for such a large trip anymore.

 

1. Don't schedule your meals for a certain day-plan them for a certain order.

 

Plan your meals so that the most perishable items are used earlier and more durable ones are used later. Pay attention to "use by" dates and plan accordingly. Freeze any meats that won't be used in the next 2-3 days. Keep in mind how often you actually eat out and consider that cost in your meal planning. Keep a few quick meals on hand for each week. Your planned activities for each day should be taken into consideration first when deciding which meal to have for dinner and when.

 

2. Dinner is for the family.

 

My children are required to be home for dinner unless they're sleeping over. Exceptions are rare. When we have people over for dinner, it's their entire family so that we can all be together.

 

3. Don't eat out often.

 

If I have to choose between eating out and cooking a full meal for less than the whole family, I eat usually cook the meal and have leftovers. It's cheaper than the cost of buying all the ingredients for the meal and eating out, or if it can wait, I add it to the next two week's meal plan and shop for one less meal then.

 

4. My fridge is not open range.

 

My kids know not to just grab whatever they see. There are obvious snack foods they can have. If it's something that could go into a meal they know to ask, "Mom, do you have plans for this/these______________________?" before they eat it.

 

5. Tried and true vs. Try it out

 

When I plan meals, the vast majority are meals most everyone really likes. Once a week we try something new. I am unsentimental about it-if most of us don't like it, they don't like it and I'll try something else next week.

 

6. Keep the list posted.

 

I have the list of meals I planned and shopped for on the fridge and cross them out when I cook them. That way I have a good idea what's in stock in my pantry, fridge, and freezer. IT's also helpful when unexpected things pop up and I need to have a meal that is easier and faster to prepare.

 

7. Plan dinner by lunchtime at the latest.

 

Generally, it's a good idea to know what activities are planned for tomorrow and choose meals that compliment your time schedule just before bed. That way if anything needs thawing, you can pull it out of the freezer the night before. You can also get a crockpot meal started in the morning. BUT, you should know what will be for dinner before you start lunch so you can do quicker thaws in the sink or microwave in time to have dinner on the table without being stressed. As you have time after lunch or even in the morning you can do food prep as time allows throughout the day.

[MamaT]

We make our shopping list on an envelope turned sideways--food on the left side, non-food on the right, meals at the bottom. We have a master list of the meals we normally eat--about 25-30 on the list, and we know all the ingredients for each meal (not rocket science around here--we're pretty much meat/starch/salad/veggie people, with the occasional soup, chicken enchilada/casserole type meal thrown in there). We shop the loss leaders and sales, and I don't really refer to the list anymore. If I want to try something new, then I try to eat it earlier in the week.

 

We rip off the bottom of the envelope and stick it on the fridge, and then I choose from it each night (well, around 3 pm, so there's time to defrost or whatever). Low tech, eh? :D

 

It allows some flexibility because all of the food will last all week--with the exception of salad stuff and fresh veggies, but these are just sides, and I don't really plan those, except what goes "naturally" with something (pasta seems to call for salad, so I might try to eat that earlier in the week).

 

This is almost exactly how I do it, except I use a piece of paper instead of an envelope. :001_smile:

[Giraffe]

Thank you! Thank you! Taking notes - any more suggestions?