Is there a Schole for meal planning too? Eating from rest?

[RosieCotton]

We are loving teaching from rest.

 

Is there a Schole for meal planning and prep too? LOL

 

If only we could skip meal prep and meal making during days when we get busy. Oh shoot we didn't get to eat dinner tonight, oh well we'll try to make that happen tomorrow LOL.

Or if someone would magically appear in my kitchen to prep and make the meals.

 

All kidding aside, we love to eat here.

 

Suggestions welcome for simplifying meal prep and kitchen times for during the school week? 

 

I made tacos with home made salsa this week and it seemed like it just took way to long. I had two kinds of meat ( a chipotle chicken and then the regular beef). The meat was easy but the chopping of all the stuff we needed, just took SOOOOO long. Then the warming of the shells individually. An hour and twenty min.

 

We make everything from fresh or scratch. Not sure if I want to look at taking a day per month and prepping and freezing things or what we should do.

 

Breakfast and lunch I have simplified during the week.

 

I can see how I could make 2 batches a spaghetti sauce at a time and freeze one.

 

Thoughts??

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Emba]

I love my slow cooker.  That's really the best thing I have to offer.  That way I can prep earlier in the day or the night before, when i have more time.  I've experimented with freezing things ahead, but my freezer is small and I'm TERRIBLE about remembering to take things out far enough ahead of time.  Some people really make it work, though. 

[Ms.Ivy]

Perhaps you can make a list of three or four of your favorite low-prep meals, and just eat those on all school days. Save your tacos for the weekend. Make weekend cooking for "feast days" separate in your mind from "ordinary" days. I like to think of my cooking as "humble" cooking and "feast" cooking. Every day can't be a feast day.

 

When I had twins a few years ago, we ate the same dinner every day for weeks.

 

It was a bag of mixed salad greens and dressing ($3),

A loaf of whole wheat sourdough bread ($1), and

Cheese ($4)

 

And that fed 2 adults and 4 small kids, for $8 per night.

 

We had soup for lunch and eggs or oatmeal for breakfast.

 

Nowadays, I have more time to cook, but I still keep things very simple. Like, we eat cabbage almost every day. We usually only do one animal protein a day. Lots of beans. You can make beans once a week and have it as a side all the time. Stuff like that.

 

I did once a month cooking for a while and it was great when I could do it. Circumstances are such that I can't right now, but if you can set aside a couple of days a month, you might like to try it.

[cintinative]

the time for meal prep is hard. 

 

The actual meal planning I find to be restful.  Planning the meals, buying the ingredients, stocking my freezer with meats needed.  It's the actual day of when I have to chop veggies and cook something--that's when it can get tough.

 

I meal plan for a month which sounds crazy until you realize you don't have to meal plan again for another three weeks! It rocks. It's hard to do at first but it was helpful once I got into the habit of it. 

 

The only thing that has helped me is to keep weekdays to short prep meals (less than 45 minutes to prep and cook) or leftovers. I try to make twice as much as we will eat in one meal and so we get two out of every meal. Some things don't reheat well so I avoid making those.  The other thing I will do is to make extra of soup, chili, etc.  and put that in the freezer.  One more thing: emergency meatballs.  For when you don't feel like cooking. Make ahead (fully cooked), throw in freezer, and when you need them, put them in the sauce (still frozen) and reheat.  I don't make my own sauce though--I guess you could make your own sauce ahead. 

[RosieCotton]

I love my slow cooker.  That's really the best thing I have to offer.  That way I can prep earlier in the day or the night before, when i have more time.  I've experimented with freezing things ahead, but my freezer is small and I'm TERRIBLE about remembering to take things out far enough ahead of time.  Some people really make it work, though. 

I should probably buy another one, mine broke and I've gotten away from it thanks for the reminder.

I'm so so at remember what's in my freezer, but if I post it up on the side of the fridge that works well on a side calendar. Ex : take pulled pork out on this date etc.

 

Perhaps you can make a list of three or four of your favorite low-prep meals, and just eat those on all school days. Save your tacos for the weekend. Make weekend cooking for "feast days" separate in your mind from "ordinary" days. I like to think of my cooking as "humble" cooking and "feast" cooking. Every day can't be a feast day.

 

 

I did once a month cooking for a while and it was great when I could do it. Circumstances are such that I can't right now, but if you can set aside a couple of days a month, you might like to try it.

This first thing is a good idea thanks so much. I'll put together a list of those asap.

 

I don't think I have the stamina for once a month cooking days. I just have so many other things to do on weekends it wouldn't work for me. But thanks for the suggestion!

 

the time for meal prep is hard. 

 

The actual meal planning I find to be restful.  Planning the meals, buying the ingredients, stocking my freezer with meats needed.  It's the actual day of when I have to chop veggies and cook something--that's when it can get tough.

 

I meal plan for a month which sounds crazy until you realize you don't have to meal plan again for another three weeks! It rocks. It's hard to do at first but it was helpful once I got into the habit of it. 

 

The only thing that has helped me is to keep weekdays to short prep meals (less than 45 minutes to prep and cook) or leftovers. I try to make twice as much as we will eat in one meal and so we get two out of every meal. Some things don't reheat well so I avoid making those.  The other thing I will do is to make extra of soup, chili, etc.  and put that in the freezer.  One more thing: emergency meatballs.  For when you don't feel like cooking. Make ahead (fully cooked), throw in freezer, and when you need them, put them in the sauce (still frozen) and reheat.  I don't make my own sauce though--I guess you could make your own sauce ahead. 

I did plan for a month, two months in a row then I fell off the wagon.

I at least had an  outline and the shopping was way easier. But I was making complicated things and I think that's why I stopped it.

That and I can't stick with anything it seems.

 

I'll try to keep weekday prep shorter that should help.

 

I always make twice or three times as much food and then freeze. I also serve rice a lot. I make a big batch the first night and then heat it up with eggs (and veggies or what have you) the following nights. I read a book called simplicity parenting that suggested deciding on one meal for everyday of the week. So chicken and veggies on Monday. Rice and beans on Tuesday, Leftovers Wednesday, etc.

 

 

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You are right that makes it much easier. I had a rotating meal schedule I made up and even colored every meal a different color and posted it on the fridge so everyone could check it and see what was coming up.

 

I've just fallen off the wagon I guess. I'm the start and stop gal apparently.

 

I'm just getting burned out cooking all the time I think and the to-go and delivery menus and calling me.

 

I'm going to also schedule in 1 school day a week for takeout. No brainer.

 

Now I know why my Grandma had chairs in the kitchen- in her prep areas!! (OH - AND a TV and that was huge for her time let me tell you. . . . )

[cintinative]

I always make twice or three times as much food and then freeze. I also serve rice a lot. I make a big batch the first night and then heat it up with eggs (and veggies or what have you) the following nights. I read a book called simplicity parenting that suggested deciding on one meal for everyday of the week. So chicken and veggies on Monday. Rice and beans on Tuesday, Leftovers Wednesday, etc.

 

 

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There are a set of cookbooks named like this--I have some of them that I bought from Half Price books and they are actually pretty good.  They are by Time Life and for whatever reason I have the most success with their cookbooks.

 

Monday is Meatloaf (beef, etc.)

Tuesday is Chicken

Wednesday is for Spaghetti

Thursday is Pot Luck

Friday is Fish

 

ETA: Weekdays are for Quick Meals (mostly under 30 min prep)

 

FYI. I do have Rachel Ray's 30 Minute meals cookbook and respectfully I would have to disagree you can make those in 30 minutes.  Maybe if you can chop vegetables REALLY fast. =)

 

Edited May 20, 2016 by cintinative

[reign]

My solution is having my kids help. I'm lucky because my youngest has wanted to be a chef/baker since she was 3. She is very good at chopping vegetables, she gets them looking more uniform than I do. Since we only cook vegetarian this is a big help! Her sisters help out as well if needed. Besides the chopping most of our food is very easy and quick. Sauces are made ahead of time and kept frozen in baggies.

[happypamama]

I feel your pain.

 

DH's birthday was recently.  He opted not to go out, so I made a nice dinner.  Nothing super fancy, but one of his favorites, and a fancier meal than normal weeknight fare.  But, just for dinner (not including dessert), I spent two solid hours in the kitchen, chopping, sauteeing, etc.  I wish I had time to cook like that every night, but there's just no way!

[...................]

THE BEST kitchen item I have is my stainless steel rice cooker.  They are 75.00 at amazon and worth every penny.  We use the brown Lundberg rice from Costco which is very filling.  The cheapo rice cookers get scratched and then you have to worry about the carcinogens from the "nonstick" surface.  If you like rice, a stainless steel cooker is a necessity.

 

My other favorite is the pressure cooker.  I make all of our beans, and pot roasts and stews in it. Much better than the crockpot.

 

My other solution is to find stuff I really like to EAT because if I HATE eating it (insert 99 % of crockpot food) then I really really hate cooking it.  I have a bunch of go-tos that everyone likes and I just make them a lot.  I have a 14.5 year old boy swimmer and also a 12 year old so we NEVER have left overs....no matter how much I cook.

 

Chicken thighs and rice and beans (pressure cooker beans.), salad

Hot wings, marinated and then baked, tater tots (yeah I kow they aren't healthy), salad

Rice and beans with sausage boiled into the beans

beef tacos with fixins

chicken tacos with fixins

chile (once in a while, and this is one that is actually good if you cook it on the stove and transfer to the crockpot and usually I have leftovers.)

On Sunday- pressure cooker pot roast with a salad on the side

In summer, we do BBQ chicken thighs on the grill , with sweet potato fries or corn either boiled or on the grill this is cheap and yummy and I buy the 12 packs of chicken thighes so we have leftovers 

 

in winter:

Lentil soup with sausage and veggies 

Stew with veggies - pressure cooker 

chicken soup made from the leftover carcass of a roast chicken

 

 

 

 

In summer we do some stir-fries with a real wok, whenever the stir fry beef is on sale.

 

My family hates frozen veggies, and I think they're less healthy anyway so I hardly ever bother to buy them.

 

whenever I try to do huge bathces of really cheap inexpensive food my family hates, it, so do I, then we get sick of it and end up eating out.  It just doesn't work for us...but as you can see the pressure cooker and rice cooker are a big help here.

 

[Porridge]

Is there a good Instant Pot forum or discussion group? 

My slow cooker died, after 11 years. We just replaced it with an Instant Pot.