Meal Planning novice and lacking inspiration.... please help!

xx_Jo_xx

Hi guys,

Im hoping some of you with far more practise at this than me, will be able to cast an eye over my fridge/freezer/cupboard contents and..... well, help me really! We end up eating the same things over and over and already Im find Im looking at lists of food and immediately seeking out the same things again to make the same meals!

If I post my lists, can you please give me an idea of how you would put them together to form a meal plan?

In my house there is 1 adult and 1 child, but my sister is here more often than not, so Im probably best to evening meal plan for 2 adults and one 9 year old boy. Me and little one both take packed lunch/flasks to work/school and breakfast is mostly cereal, fruit and yogurt for LO and Toast/cereal for me. Sister is fed lunch by her work...

I work full time, so dont have lots of time to cook lenghty evening meals each night - but I work till 6pm on a monday and manage to finish at 3pm Tues-Fri. I dont work at the weekends, so I can batch cook etc then. I have a slow cooker and a steamer as well as hob/oven etc.

On monday night, I try to have something microwaved from the freezer for quickness or from the slow cooker. Tuesday to Friday though I have more time to actually cook.

I hope that all helps make sense of what Im trying to plan and thanks in advance for any ideas you can give me.

Jo xx


Freezer

3 packets of 24 cocktail sausages
1 roll of sausage meat
1 bag of white fish
1 bag cooked prawns
1 bag of penne pasta
1/2 bag of penne carabonara
2 cod and feta fishcakes
500g extra lean steak mince (x3)
6 pancetta and parmesan sausages
1 Thai green chicken curry ready meal
2 tubs of soup
2 tubs of vegetable curry
roll of filo pastry
packet of chilean mussels
1 chicken breast
slow roast shoulder joint of Beef
3 tubs of chilli
1 tubs of mince (cooked with gravy)
2 bags of quorn chicken style pieces
1 tub of cooked chicken

1 tub of mash potatoes
1/4 bag of cheesy mash
1/2 bag of small corn on the cob
1 bag of stir fry veg
10 samosa selection pack
1 bag of hash browns
1 bag of creamy mash
1/2 bag of sweetcorn
1/4 bag of cauliflower
1/2 bag of yorkshire puddings
1/2 bag of green beans
1 bag of brocolli
12 potato waffles
3/4 bag of garden peas
14 fish fingers

4 garlic and coriander naans
mini ciabatta bread and garlic butter
1 cheese and garlic pizza bread
potato scones
1 garlic baguette

1 bag of mixed berries
1 bag of fruit salad

There is also loads of ice cream and a few desserts...

Cupboard

There are lots of herbs, spices, oils, stock cubes in every flavour, stock-pots - too many to list, but the chances are Ill have it..

I also have lots of baking stuff, so am happy to bake at the weekends...

I also have rice, pasta (in many shapes and forms including lasange) noodles, including vermicelli

Pizza base mix x 2
Paxo
Quinoa
2 x batter mix
2 cheese sauce sachets
2 x chicken casserole sachets
1 x bread sauce
2 x fajita seasoning
1 x onion and chive sauce
1 x tuna pasta bake sachet mix
1 x szechaun tomato stir fry sauce
lots of chopped tomatoes
3 x kidney beans
chickpeas
6 tins of soup (assorted)
tin of peas
sweetcorn
beans
spaghetti
ratatouille x 2
tuna
hoi sin sauce
coconut milk
pesto - red and green
Thai green chilli paste
Tomato and chilli pasta sauce x 2
Tomato puree

tinned fruits
dried fruits
custard
Strawberry angel delight

I also have lots of sauces: ketchup, brown, reggae, mayo, salad cream, mustard, horseradish, tartar, sweet chilli, seafood..

Thank you in advance

xx

HariboJunkie

OK, I started posting to give you some ideas but you actually have loads of ready prepared meals there (chilli, mince in gravy, curries etc) so I'm not really sure what it is you need help with. Do you want ideas for what goes with what? Am happy to help if you explain.

xx_Jo_xx

sorry - I meant to say - the whole point of my post and need for inspiration... - I have fresh chicken which has been roasted, a pack of fresh sausages (20) and about 3 fresh packs of bacon.

Rather than just bung them in the freezer, i was looking to use them with what I have.

I probably shouldnt have listed the batch cooked meals - but I was on auto pilot and typed out the whole list sorry

Chicken, I end up having it on sandwiches or in some risotto and boil the carcass, but am not sure what else to do with it, with what I have.

Sausages end up in toad in the hole - always...

Hopefully this makes more sense

HariboJunkie

xx_Jo_xx wrote: »

sorry - I meant to say - the whole point of my post and need for inspiration... - I have fresh chicken which has been roasted, a pack of fresh sausages (20) and about 3 fresh packs of bacon.

Rather than just bung them in the freezer, i was looking to use them with what I have.

I probably shouldnt have listed the batch cooked meals - but I was on auto pilot and typed out the whole list sorry

Chicken, I end up having it on sandwiches or in some risotto and boil the carcass, but am not sure what else to do with it, with what I have.

Sausages end up in toad in the hole - always...

Hopefully this makes more sense

Chicken and bacon salad with croutons.
Coronation chicken baked potato.
Chicken, mayo and sweetcorn baked potato.
Sausage casserole.
Sausage pasta bake.
Sausage fritatta.
Sausage and bacon cassoulet.
Bacon and mushroom carbonara.

HTH.