Menu Planning Tips (merged)

Pink.

Hi xplizit,

This one has been previously recommended on the Old Style board:

Recipe Manager

I'm not sure if it's the kind of thing that you're looking for but there are a number of spreadsheets which have been put together by Old Style members here

Pink

countrymusicfan

There is a mega thread with a hundred ideas, or you could make a list of what you have and google the ingrediets, and add quick cooking. ie. recipe +ingredient +ingredient +"quick cooking" See if that helps

bridget81

i think i need some help in this department,

firstly, i love fish and my OH is allergic to fish and cream.
secondly, OH loves meat and i only eat chicken, prefer quorn or veggie stuff.
thirdly, i have a 2 & 1/2 little lad who will eat anything (still working on green veg though) so i want meals as healthy as possible.
fourthly I CANNOT COOK!! - i could burn water!!!

i find meal planning really difficult because of the difference in our diets. Plus it is something i have never been brought up with, my relationship with mum was never how should be, so only cooking i got taught was by grandma but she lives in spain so wasnt a regular teaching session, and when mum left me and dad just plodded along and he was the same as me, couldnt cook, so we burnt water together!

WEEKENDS

weekends i end up cooking 2 meals, i can make a cottage pie, one withmeat for OH and son and one with quorn mince for me, (this takes me a least an hour and half to make! like i said i'm rubbish at cooking!)

OH works sat till 4pm so lunch tends to be butty, soup, beans on toast (although since discovering how much salt is in a tin of beans i dont really like giving them to my son) quich and salad so sat lunch is sorted (horay!)

sunday is difficult, as lunch we end up going to a fast food place which i hate (what a waste of money) so i am trying to do scrambled egg on toast, or poached egg on toast with mushrooms, something breakfasty so accomodate OH as he gets up late, but to work as a light lunch for my son.

sunday tea is back to cooking 2 meals, again i struggle.

evenings - well, it is whatever can go in an oven with a couple of veg's. this is where i get disheartened as i would like to be able to cook a nice tea, thats cost effective and some nights that we can both eat as it takes its toll after a while cooking 2 meals every day. OH can cook really well, from scratch ( as i call it) too, but he would rather pay for a takeaway £20 than cook. (again this is money that could go towards debt £80 a month!! - he is still in the dark with debts, not debts as we can afford them, so i'm trying to reduce where i can but compromising with a takeaway twice a month, so saving £40, but one is from a BOGOF pizza place)

we both work really hard, i'm up at 6.30am weekdays and get home about 5.45pm, play with my son, bath story and bed, and up about 7am weekends, so i dont have much energy to spend an hour cooking in the kitchen every day! OH gets home from work about 6.30pm ( he has own business so works late and sometimes works 7 days).

Deary me, so sorry for long post!

any help with simple meals even i could cook, or suggestions would be very gratefully accepted

edgarjay

very new to all this so any help appreciated , i recently moved into one of the horrid 'single bloke flat lifes' and have been strugling very badly since sept with debts etc and just filling up the freezer (not too big)once a month (usually payday) with the frozen curries/meals etc from iceland/farmfoods for convenience but usually run out halfway through month, dont eat meals at work anymore or if have some £ (not often) will buy fresh milk and bread an freeze the bread (can live o toast and tea!!), but quite often running out of food altogether and not eating at all.
would like to get togeher a proper shopping plan and menu ideas but could do to only shop monthly.. if leave budget in bank will be swallowed up by payments, if get out of bank will use for other things

any help appreciated, thanks in advance, oh nearly fogot to say can cook a little lol, not too good at pastries etc though

mrsiwannabefree

I need help too!
I have 3 freezers, cupboards & a large American style fridge full of foods but I'm constantly told there's nothing to eat!
I am following WeightWatchers, hubby doesn't eat any veg at all nor pasta or couscous, son eats broccoli but does eat pasta etc. and daughter eats like a sparrow!
How on earth can I plan menus when we're all so different?

mrsiwannabefree

nikki2002

I thought I would put my menu plan on here:

Wk1
mon- Chilli con carne and rice
Tue- Lasange and garlic bread
Wed- Fish pie and peas
thu- cottage pie (either with carrots or peas in) use half the mince from the chilli and made on monday and frozen.
fri- fish curry and rice again half of the cooked fish from wednesday
sat- belly pork, potatoes and carrots
sun- roast chicken, potatoes, and carrot & peas

wk2
Mon- lemon pepper chicken and rice chicken from sunday
tue- corn beef hash and carrots
wed- pork curry and rice half the belly pork from sat
thu- macoroni cheese and chicken the chicken from sun
fri- chilli salmon and noodles
sat- chicken stir fry chicken from sun
sun- salmon fish cakes, potatoes and peas

As you can see I get a lot of meals from one chicken but if you cook it whole and strip it down to the bone there is a lot of hidden meat. I always think if you paying for the food may as well use every last bit of it. I use the bones to make stock for soup with and veg thats getting a bit old and freeze it in lunch size portions. Ideal for me and my little girl on a cold day.

I also cut down my bill by going fruit picking in the hedge rows there are loads of places down country lanes and I've even been berry picking near glasgow city centre, with "free food" and no-one much seems to take advantage of it really. I try to get 5 carriers bags every summer I then make jam which is great for breakfast and puddings as well as free presents for people. The rest I freeze and use it for pies and crumbles throughout the year.

Me and my little girl also go mushroom hunting she loves walking for miles looking for them, it wears her out and she has so much fun.

Last year I grew food on my small balony I was growing tomatoes, strawberries, sunflowers (my daughter loves them roasted as a snack) and lettuces. It's only a small space but I grew loads of food and didn't cost me much at all. I've put up flower boxes over the edge this year so hoping for a bumper crop!!

Try making elderflower champagne as well for a free drink or again presents. All my family were delighted with their home made presents and it's so easy and more importantly saves money. They have started asking if they are getting the same this christmas and its only june :rotfl: ordering early or what!!!

I spend about £25 a week there are always way to get free food. Nature can give you loads.

I know this isn't quite a food tip but I make bath bombs too they are so simple to make and are a lot cheaper than shop bought ones and you get the scent and colours you want.

A frugal life-style is fun and what you make of it.

cookie334

Hi everyone

I'm new to this thread. I've just read through the posts and am really looking forward to trying out some of the meals on here. Thank you all for sharing.

I'm (obviously) very interested in the money saving behind all of this. We are a family of 5 - although the youngest is only 9 months so doesn't really add much cost to the weekly shop.

I was just wondering how much you budget/spend for a weeks worth of shopping for your families?

At the moment, we are spending around £60-£80 per week and we usually top up a few times here and there as well, so I'm certain we could cut that down by quite a bit.

SuziQ

Cookie make sure you head over to the shopping challenge as well re cuttung your monthly spend down. My first month I will have spent £175 this month for me and three children,2 cats plus I have fed my ex a few times when he's been desperate! I am ending the month with a full freezer,storecupboard and fridge and reckon I could miss out a big shop this week and only replace milk and bread.

countrymusicfan

nikki2002 wrote: »

I thought I would put my menu plan on here:

I know this isn't quite a food tip but I make bath bombs too they are so simple to make and are a lot cheaper than shop bought ones and you get the scent and colours you want.

A frugal life-style is fun and what you make of it.

I know this isn't food related but how do you make your bath bombs. I got some for Christmas and loved them. I just gave some to some dear friends who got married amongst other things, but nearly died when I saw the price. For the price of a bomb, I could buy 2 and a half bottles of bath foam and it would last a lot longer. If I could make them cheaply......

nikki2002

there are lots of recipes on this web site and it shows you picture by picture how do make them:
https://www.teachsoap.com/bombs.html

Hope this helps they work about 20p each when you make them yourself.