Family of 5 - our meals have just got too complicated!

sushistar · 27 April 2016 at 9:59PM

Sooo, I think I need to figure out how to simplify things a bit, use up some stashed food (the freezer really needs defrosting!) and save some cash.

There are 5 of us - me, DH, and 3 DCs.

Me, DH, and 1 DC are veggie. The youngest is not officially veggie but isn't keen on meat, except ham. The oldest loves meat.

DH prefers to avoid dairy (but will eat it if I cook - but he likes to have oat milk etc). The rest if us have dairy.

All the DCs are quite fussy. They have a handful of meals they like, but are suspicious of new meals. They all like different things.

They all have packed lunches, and we end up buying various prepackaged over priced lunchbox treats for them.

We do an online Tesco order and have a veg box from a local farm. Coming up with meals everyone likes is tricky - there are a few, but they are getting boring! DH and I are happy to try new things, but don't have tons of time. Usually we end up either cooking a quick boring meal that everyone will eat (pasta) or having to cook 3 different variations to suit everyone.

In an ideal world I want to simplify things. I want a range of nice veggie meals that will use our veg box, be good value, and perhaps just put my foot down and and say to the children that's what's for dinner (will be hard though - as they would rather go hungry at dinner, and eat tons of cereal at breakfast!). How do others with several DCs get organised and do meals that meet everyone's needs?

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cheel · 27 April 2016 at 10:22PM

Hi sushistar,

I dont have much advice, except that I grew up in a large family with little money. I still know exactly what id have been eating on any day of the week! Tea was tea like it or lump it. I lumped some nights and liked others. And I think that mum had to settle for pleasing all of the people some of the time, rather than driving herself mad trying to please all of the people all of the time .

Good luck. I will follow with interest. Xx

Marktheshark · 27 April 2016 at 10:31PM

Oh what a thread and I thought it was just us that lived in a pick your own menu freehouse.
For once I am all ears on this one, we need a soultion as well I am sure someone has one.

jackyann · 27 April 2016 at 10:34PM

This was our trick:

During the week everyone gets to write down (piece of paper on the fridge) the meal that they would like next week.
Shopping is planned around this (within seasonal variations, budget etc.)

If you fuss about others' choices, you don't get your choice the following week.

Serve everything with bread (or jacket / new potatoes) and salad (cole slaw in the winter). If you can afford it, free choice of cheese & fruit for afters. This means that you only have to take a smallish portion of the main meal.

At holiday times, get them involved with cooking - and definitely get them involved in planning their packed lunches - one area where they can be individual. Plan ahead - for years I never cooked the right amount of sausages - always extra for eating cold. Make one of their household chores making up packed lunches - like dicing up & wrapping cheese portions.

I don't have time to list all the mix and match veggie friendly meals I did, but there are lost of ideas on the forum. One of my favourites is to cook gammon at the weekend (slice thinly!) serve with a variety of veggie-friendly sides like variations on ratatouille etc. It can then go into sandwiches, and be served with jacket potatoes & salads etc. as another meal. Finally when it's down to the last raggedy pieces, make some sort of huevos rancheros for the veggies and stir in the last bits of ham for the carnivores.

cuddlymarm · 27 April 2016 at 10:37PM

Hi Sushistar

I was vegetarian for a long time and cooked veggie with a piece of meat on the side for the carnivores. My kids either ate what was given or did without.
There were some things that they really wouldn't eat and I didn't force those. But if they didn't eat the meal they weren't allowed to raid the fridge.
If they are old enough to pick and choose then are they old enough to explain to about the cost of feeding them and how hard it is to do all separate meals?
Once they were old enough both my boys took turns cooking, they preferred cooking cos the cook didn't wash up.

This won't work for everyone but it worked ok for us.

Cuddles

sushistar · 27 April 2016 at 10:41PM

So glad to know that at least I'm not the only one with this issue!

I have decided to reintroduce risotto to the meal plan, and just make a few very plain ones to get the kids used to the idea. They all love plain rice, so hopefully it's not too big a stretch.

Cheel, I know that many people would have just been given what they were given! And maybe we've ended up being too flexible with the kids. They have to eat healthy food, (we don't let them just eat pizza!) but in wanting them to have a healthy diet maybe we're sometimes too willing to just fit their preferences.

I quite like cooking, but I've just started to feel overwhelmed by trying to sort out a reasonably priced meal that everyone enjoys and doesn't take forever to cook. If it were just me - or me and one other person with a dietary preference - it'd be so easy!

pigpen · 27 April 2016 at 10:41PM

sushistar wrote: »

Sooo, I think I need to figure out how to simplify things a bit, use up some stashed food (the freezer really needs defrosting!) and save some cash.

There are 5 of us - me, DH, and 3 DCs.
Me, DH, and 1 DC are veggie. The youngest is not officially veggie but isn't keen on meat, except ham. The oldest loves meat.. buy and cook and freeze in portions.
* DH prefers to avoid dairy (but will eat it if I cook - but he likes to have oat milk etc). The rest if us have dairy. .. we all have to make sacrifices! .. I'm sure most meals don't contain dairy anyway.
*All the DCs are quite fussy. They have a handful of meals they like, but are suspicious of new meals. They all like different things... tough
*They all have packed lunches, and we end up buying various prepackaged over priced lunchbox treats for them. so don't.. look at other more nutritious/healthy options. there are dozens of threads on this exact thing on here.

We do an online Tesco order and have a veg box from a local farm. Coming up with meals everyone likes is tricky - there are a few, but they are getting boring! DH and I are happy to try new things, but don't have tons of time. Usually we end up either cooking a quick boring meal that everyone will eat (pasta) or having?? to cook 3 different variations to suit everyone. As the adults you don't HAVE to do anything.

In an ideal world I want to simplify things. I want a range of nice veggie meals that will use our veg box, be good value, and perhaps just put my foot down and and say to the children that's what's for dinner (will be hard though - as they would rather go hungry at dinner, and eat tons of cereal at breakfast!). How do others with several DCs get organised and do meals that meet everyone's needs?

my 5 y/o refused to eat dinner yesterday.. she went to bed on bread and jam and a yoghurt.. today, she ate every last scrap. I had actually cooked 2 different meals yesterday.. for the simple reason I had 2 lots of meat in the fridge cooked and needed using..

sushistar · 27 April 2016 at 10:47PM

To go to bed on bread, jam and yoghurt would be my kid's idea of heaven! (Except the one who doesn't like jam

)

Thanks, everyone, some good ideas here. I like the idea of everyone choosing a meal, don't know what the 3yo would choose but the older ones would like that.

sushistar · 27 April 2016 at 10:55PM

I do, occasionally, cook meat for the 1 dc who likes meat. I did a spaghetti bolognaise for him the other day, and froze the remains in bits. Next dc had the plain spaghetti, grated cheese, and broccoli. 3rd dc had spaghetti, no cheese, no mince, refused the broccoli, was bribed with yoghurt to eat 1 stalk. I had spaghetti, with broccoli, leftover veggies and cheese - would have liked a sauce but ran out of time to make one. DH didn't want the cheese, so had an avacado sandwich (he made that himself, I didn't make it for him). And that's EVERY NIGHT - it's just the planning, what can X have, what will Y eat, having to constantly adapt every meal to suit everyone!

pigpen · 27 April 2016 at 11:07PM

sushistar wrote: »

To go to bed on bread, jam and yoghurt would be my kid's idea of heaven! (Except the one who doesn't like jam )

Thanks, everyone, some good ideas here. I like the idea of everyone choosing a meal, don't know what the 3yo would choose but the older ones would like that.

well it doesnt kill them!.. I often had bread and jam as a child.

.. she has a cooked lunch at school so had had a decent meal so I had no guilt.

And what if they choose something YOU don't like?? .. your meat loving child wants beef stew with suet dumplings.. then what?? You cook something different for yourself or you have cereal or bread and jam?? How is that any different? What does that teach anyone? We will pander to your wants so long as it holds with what we want?? You may as well do as you want in the first place and tell them to like it or lump it!

My 4 y/o would have sausages, waffles and beans every single day given the opportunity.. My 2 y/o would eat a whole plate of meat and nothing else and my 17 y/o would have bacon sandwiches or chocolate weetabix.. but thats not good for them so they have evil old me to force feed them veggies and a wide range of other food.. they all know I will allow so much .. they choose their own clothes, shoes, hair styles, etc .. but stuff that is for their benefit.. batheing, food, school.. thats not optional.. I call those shots, it is my job.

Each to their own of course which is fine, I just don't see how that could possibly work for you... I can see 1 child tucking into their stew and the rest of you with cornflakes lol..

sushistar · 27 April 2016 at 11:14PM

:rotfl: Ha, I'm imagining putting some limits on the choices pigpen, or you're right we'd have coco pops for dinner! But I limit my choices too - it'd be unfair to choose a really spicy curry, for example, with little ones not used to it. We will have to collaborate

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Family of 5 - our meals have just got too complicated!

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