Meal Planning - how do you do it?

vanoonoo

angeleyes wrote: »

can you freeze corn beef hash??

dont see why not unless any of the ingredients have already been frozen?

darkblue_2

Hi All,

We all know that planning ahead for meals saves money.

So I found some free software for all, which allows you to plan ahead, breakfast, lunch and dinner. (option for snack).

I hope it serves you well!

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/TC010183031033.aspx

This software uses Excel top open. If you do not have Excel, you can download a free similar version called OpenOffice. This will include everything you would get with Microsoft, only - it's free!

http://www.openoffice.org/

redmel1621

Hi All

i have tried in the past to make and stick with mealplans, The first part is easy, I just never seem to be able to stick with them....

Do you generally make your weekly plan before shopping or after? Now I know that may seem like a silly question but the reason I ask is I shop depending what offers are on
For example last week R ended up with Turkey breasts and sausages because they were on offer, other weeks I end up with loads of tuna, or chicken... It all depends on the offers. Therefore I don't know until i've done my shopping what kind of food i'm going to have in...I always end up buying too much 'just in case'.

So please share, how do you do it

Mel x

Skint_Catt

I plan for the week - go shopping then most of my 'special' offers go into the freezer for the weeks following. If they can't be frozen then I change the odd meal to use it. HTH

Penelope_Penguin

We've had discussions before on how people plan. I'll add your question to them and you'll get more ideas.

I write a plan for the week, but if I get a bargain, a better offer of a night out, or we fancy something different, I'm happy to be flexible

You might like to read thriftlady's thread - saving money by not menu planning.

Penny. x

Confused_Newbie

Hi All

Well Im very new to all this but one place I am really struggling is with the good old menu planning. Sounds simple but everytime I sit down to try my mind goes blank and I end up going to the supermarket, buying a whole load of stuff and coming home only to realise I have no clue what to do with them!

Im not the most experienced cook but am willing to give just about anything a try! Has anyone any suggestions or ideas how I can sort this out. Think its costing me a small fortune cause I have no idea what Im making!

CN xoxox

Nomad25

Check out the OS weekly meal plan threads, that should give you loads of ideas. HTH.

Confused_Newbie

Ahhhhhhh thank you!

sandra_nz

Hi!

One way I plan my meals is to start in the freezer. Well, not literally in the freezer, that would be silly. And cold.

Anyway, I look at what meat I have currently in the freezer and work out what meals I can make with the meat, then see what ingredients I need to make up those meals.

I then add up the number of meals and work out how many more meals are needed for the week. I look at what I've already planned and come up with some meals that will provide balance, e.g. if I haven't got any red meat meals planned yet, then I'll go for steak or lamb chops.

Sometimes I won't have any meat in the freezer at all, so I'll start in the pantry and see what ingredients I have in there, and what I can make with them.

I make a list of all the meals I've planned, and order them with meals requiring the freshest ingredients first.

The nice thing about this is that it means I can still impulse buy stuff at the supermarket to use the following week!

Hope that helps!

newlywed

Hi,
I started off writing down meals I knew I could make. Then ones I thought I could make (but put new recipes down for days when I had a bit more time and wouldn't be rushed).

I now have a list of all the meals I make regularly and when I come to meal plan, I look down the list and see what I haven't cooked in a while