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Weekday dinner planning - how do you do it?
So, for the umpteenth time we forgot to take something out of the freezer for tonight's dinner. We are always doing this. It's the third time this week and we're on day four of the week... Yes, one day I remembered to take out some soup and by the time I was leaving work (10.5 hours later!) I had forgotten and was asking dh what was for dinner (he thought it was a trick question... ha!)
This week so far we have ended up having: spicy meatballs with tagliatelle (just hadn't frozen them), Soup (which I had remembered to take out) and pepper & leek pork burgers (also not frozen from the weekend shopping) (though I had to get burger buns for them). Tonight is going to be canned/packet soup and sandwiches (because nothing left unfrozen in the fridge!)
It's not like we don't have things in - we have chicken breasts, mince beef, a whole chicken, steak, pork steak, meatballs, bacon and god knows what else in the actual freezer but can't be cooked from frozen.
How do you plan your week's meals?
Re: Weekday dinner planning - how do you do it?
Good question. I'm interested to see responses since I've just started full time work this week.
I'm a big list maker, so maybe having a reminder note on the kitchen counter in the morning so you don't forget?
I'm also a big proponent of keeping canned and frozen things that can be cooked right away, i.e. a jar of pesto or canned baby clams for a quick pasta, or a frozen quiche or pizza that should be cooked from frozen. Add a salad and you're good! Then you always have an emergency dinner when you forgot to defrost the meat.
So I've fallen a little behind in my planning, but I try to plan a month of meals in advance (alloting for things like leftovers, going out, takeaway, etc).
So I plan for the whole month, and then usually within the week, I can move things around as needed. I can't help with the defrosting part since we don't cook with meat at home, and we normally use beans, lentils and pasta as our dinner. Maybe it'd help to have a back up veggie dinner once a week in case you forget to defrost the meat!
I also do the crock pot at least once a week for chili, soups, etc, and that is good for leftovers. If you'd like a sample of my monthly meal calendar or need some recipe ideas (mostly veggie), let me know :-)
Dave & Jennifer 10.18.08
My Doha Adventures
I'd like a sample! Do you usually save leftovers for a few days later or eat them the following days until they're gone? Are there planning sites online for this? I too am struggling with meal planning.
When I plan, I only plan for the week. I sit down, figure out how many meals I need to account for (Breakfast/lunch/dinner for two) and then plan out a menu including how many servings each recipe makes. Lunch is usually leftovers from the night before. I can never have food frozen. If it's frozen, I eat out, the food gets freezer burn and I find it two years later.
H is in for a big shake up next week, as we have both recently stepped on the scale, so the recipes will be portioned out with leftovers going into the fridge before we even eat.
I usually plan for 1 day of leftovers, but if they last longer, even better :-)
Depending on what it is depends on how long it will last - chili, soup, and pasta tend to last a few days, so it might be lunch and leftover for dinner.
I'm sure there are online tools - a quick google search brought up these:
Daily Meal Planner
Office Templates
Hmmm, it is a Powerpoint file so I am thinking it might be easiest to send the calendar via email.
My email is: jennybee1018 at gmail dot com
Dave & Jennifer 10.18.08
My Doha Adventures
I actually get fresh stuff every week and not that much gets frozen. Only things that can be quickly cooked from frozen end up in the freezer and those get eaten last. If you buy your meat directly from a butcher (which I do) depending on what it is, it'll be okay in the fridge for a week since it's super fresh. I know which meats tend to keep better than others and the ones that have the shortest shelf live get eaten first.
Really no system there, sorry!
My food blog
What I'm looking forward to in 2012:
Eating our way through (northern) Italy on vacation
<a href="http://www.thenest.com/?utm_source=ticker&utm_medium=HTML&utm_campaign=tickers" title="Home DThanks Jenny, I think the templates might be a starting point for me... something is better than what we have now! Lunches during the week don't come into play - I get fed in work and dh does whatever (won't bring in something)
I have found that leftovers don't work for us really. So if I am making something like a lasagne I will make it in a couple of dishes that are good for 2 people and then freeze some of it. DH just won't eat leftovers from the fridge... (don't ask why, its just that way and I end up throwing it out a few days later!)
We do have jars of sauce (which is why we could have the meatballs on Monday easily) and I always have veg in the fridge. We generally have bread, sliced ham and cheese too. Emergency pizza is in the freezer but I'm trying to stay away from it during the week.
Also in our house, a meal without meat is not a meal... it's a snack... he's not really into pasta or rice... Yes, he's Irish, potatoes make a meal complete! (not always, but it would be his starch of choice)
When I was doing more meal planning, I'd start by looking at what I already had in the freezer/pantry, look at grocery sales ads and write a menu for the week based on those things and what I was in the mood to cook. My schedule for the week also played a part with busier days having quick-to-make meals or take our or whatever. I'd go grocery shopping and that was basically it.
I think it helps to keep the menu out so that you know that you have everything you need to make those meals. Then, every morning look at the meals and take out the food you need. I don't have to stick to the days I planned the meals, but it really does help to see the list. I think it probably helps to put the items you need to have prepared (taken out of the freezer, for example) next to menu items so that you know you have to do that. Make sure you do that when you write the menu for the week, or when you come home and decide to put things in the freezer. Make your menu plan something that you don't just write out once and put away, but make notes on it throughout the week.
Now that I do meal planning less, when I do buy specifics for a meal I won't have right away, I keep all the pantry items together so that I don't forget about it and I'l usually just put them somewhere on the counter.
Here's a good planner from Real Simple:
http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/your-weekly-dinner-planner-00000000049091/index.html
The pdf file is highlighted in the article.