Meal Planning - how do you do it?

maman

We eat almost all the things that LilacPixie and GreenNinja have with exception of some of the thnigs like pizza (I love it but my waistline doesn't).

To add to list we have liver (casserole or with onions and veg) but I realise that not everyone likes that. We have a stir-fry at least once a week (using a tiny amount of meat and loads of veg). I make my own version of jumbalaya which is almost like a sort of savoury rice filled with vegetables and some pieces of (rubber) chicken and a few sliced frankfurters ('cos OH loves them).

Most of my meat is from special offers and the occasional whoopsy and I have definitely cut down on meat portion sizes and made it up with veg. As well as the variations of meals from a rubber chicken, Lidl often have gammon joints on special offer. I slice and freeze that to make a nice meal with cauliflower cheese and wedges. I use gammon scraps (or chopped bacon), with mushrooms and Philly (or similar) and milk to make a pasta sauce. Jackets (large potatoes from the bag not special baking potatoes) with various fillings....

There are loads of good value, healthy meals. Good Luck.

floyd

I do my shopping between supermarket, farmers market, local fruit & veg stall and butchers so I probably pay a litle more for some things like free range meat and less for others like veg and basics. We eat alot of vegetarian meals even though neither of us are veggie. I also stretch alot of meals with cheap veg like celery and carrot which add bulk and flavour but not cost.

We have a 'meal plan' in our Google calender so OH knows what to cook during the week otherwise we'd never eat properly. I try and watch my weight by eating sensible meals, home made fresh wherever possible and smaller portion sizes so OH and I both eat the same food but he has a little more than me.

I freeze leftover cooked chicken and have frozen basics like portions of mashed sweet potato, home made pasta sauce, crumble mix, odds and ends of salvaged fruit for crumbles, chopped spinach and home made chicken stock.

We also both work full time and do long hours so it is possible to do these things if you are organised, plus we don't have children. For example, after work in the evening I will make a batch of chilli and rice for my work lunches or roast some rhubarb for the freezer. It doesn't take long to throw it together and it can be left to its own devices for a while if you have other things to do.

Our last fortnight has been:

Roast vegetable lasagne & salad
Roast chicken (from whole bird) with mashed sweet potato & veg
Chicken burritos, fresh salsa & spicy rice (using leftover brown meat)
5 bean chilli, brown rice & side salad
Spaghetti matriciana & side salad
Chickpea and spinach curry, brown rice & 1/2 naan
Prawn laksa, wholemeal noodles & raw courgette and carrot satay salad
Sausage casserole with steamed veg
Chicken pie (leftover from roast) with bought puff pastry & steamed veg
Veggie burger in wholemeal bun with home-made wedges and baked beans
Steak & ale pie with bought puff pastry or home-made shortcrust & steamed veg
Jacket potatoes with tuna mayo and salad
Corned beef pie & salad
Scouse (stew) and beetroot

iwanttoberich

Thanks for the suggestions. Your menus sound even better than mine. I'll make a serious effort to plan well in advance.

rachbc

I get lots of inspiration from the weekly meal plan thread on here and the cook smethng new challenge.

WE have lots of meals that appear in rotation such as spag bol, jambalaya, chicken pie, pork and noodles, pasta with chilli and bacon, keema and rice, curry, thai green curry, toad in the hole, meatballs, sausage and mash, hm burgers and wedges and then mix it up with new things too.

Trinny

Hi There

For evening meal ( as we both work) it tends to be simple stuff

1. pasta with some kind of sauce
2. Rice with either curry or chilli
3. Pastry topped pie with HM potato wedges
4. HM soup and bread
5. Casserole made in the slow cooker
6. Jacket potato with beans/cheese etc
7. Beefed up omlettes with mushroom, ham etc
8. Noodles
9. Lasagne, canneloni
10. Shepherds pie

All sauces are home made, batch cooked and frozen ready. i defrost what i need the night before. Each Sunday we have a roast, so the left over meat makes the curry, pasta sauce, filling for pie etc - you get the idea.:)

Otherwise - i choose cheap cuts, mince, chicken legs, stewing steak, pork cheeks, offal. I try to cook cheap cuts in the slow cooker, and cook em well - as OH is a fussy eater.

We do Grocery challenge too - with variable results, but it does help you to focus on your target spend. ( i now spend £50 less per month on food)

Best Wishes

Trin

HoneyBee83

Evening,

I really try and meal plan but doesnt always go to plan! Its just me and my daughter whos 4-she goes through spells of eating all day and then existing on toast and apple for days.Plus she can be a fussy little so and so sometimes.
I do however keep a well stocked freezer which helps keep cost down.
I do a big shop 1 month where i spend £80-£90 :eek: i know this sounds alot but just wait....this includes meats,milk,cheese,butter etc and store cupboard staples-i take full advantage of b1g1f,2 for 1,halfprice etc etc
I then have a day of batch cooking! I make cottage pies,lasagnes,bologneses,pasta sauces,fish pies,meat and veg pies and anything else i fancy making. I freeze most of the butter,milk,bread etc i grate half the cheese i brought and freeze that for topping dishes before cooking. I split the packs of sausages and freeze in twos and do the same with chicken breasts...this saves having to defrost and eat for 2 days straight or going to waste!
Then for the next 2 months i'll spend £30 a month (if that!!) on top ups of fresh fruit and veg,yogurts and anything different we might fancy! This also leaves cash to enjoy a nice bottle of wine guilt-free!! :beer:

ralloctiger

I have been meal planning for ages. It helps keep the buget in control! I personally plan for 7 days ahead dep on whats left in cupboard / freezer. I always try to include the bsics for baking so I can knock up puds/luchbox treats etc. I try to have diff meals and now I have found weezl's weblog I wil be trying a few of her recipes.
The meal dep on what we ( the girls) have going on after school. Tues have been named Brown Dinner Day cos the girls cook ( i go out for an hour to gym class after work) and it is usually something frozen with beans. yuk but they can do it without too much fuss. Friday is always something on toast cos they eat hot meal at school again I try to leave them to sort themselves out. ( can be messy) Other meals are always from scratch and often made eve before or put in the slow cooker. Have to be practical. Then being flexible is good cos life doesnt run smoothly so I often swicth meals around and or hang the week out so the budget goes evenfurther be prepared for it to go wrong and it will be alright.:D
xx

EllieA_3

Hey there, you guys where so great the other day so I wanted to say a big huge thanks and hugs.

However it seems our financial situation isn’t likely to get any easier next month so im looking ahead and trying to work out a meal plan in advance. Problem is I’ve done meal plan’s in the past and I never manage to stick to them I always find I don’t fancy what I planned to eat and end up making something different. Wasting ingredients in the process.

Any tips on how to plan/budget your food money and actually sticking to it? Also how much is a realistic amount of money to budget for a month, for a family of 4, assuming there is very little in the cupboards to start with?

Pink.

Hi Ellie,

The way I meal plan is to buy ingredients for five meals out of seven. I don't have set days for the meals, so I can pick and choose what I want to make that day from the plan. The other two days are store cupboard or leftover meals, again allowing me to choose what we are going to eat on the day.

These threads have lots of advice on how other Old Stylers plan their meals and stick to them:

Meal Planning - how do you do it?

meal planning - where do i start?

Regarding your budget, perhaps if you were to spend a week keeping a note of every penny you spend, then attempt to cut it back a little week by week? I'm afraid that nobody can advise you on how much your budget should be for your family as all our needs/wants are different. However this thread should give you an idea of what others budgets are:

Grocery Shopping budget thread

I'll add your thread to the first link later, once you've had some more replies to keep the meal planning suggestions together.

Good luck,

Pink

flipperOSN

FWIW here's my weekly plan. It's got rotating meals to stop me and the family getting bored.

Saturday: "Fun" night e.g. burgers, chicken wings, potato wedges or hm savoury rice. Occasionally a naughty takeaway!
Sunday: Roast dinner
Monday: Fish night - usually with mash and beans/veg
Tuesday: Leftover roast - usually curry, but depends on roasted meat
Weds: Spag bol/chilli/fajitas/stir fry
Thurs: Casserole of some kind or plain old meat and two veg
Friday: Midweek leftovers and/or pasta bake

I'll often make a fruit pie or crumble on Sunday which will last a few days for puddings for the kids. We'll often have a brunch on saturday of eggs, sausages etc. too.

It's simple enough that I have an easy set of staples to buy (carrots, celery, onions, potatoes, tomatoes, pasta, rice, mince) but changes enough for some variety. I often make up soup for my lunches with some of the leftovers too, but that might have to change as I'll be moving to an office with no microwave Perhaps a thermos instead?