Desperately need help with my menu planning

Gillyx

What about Quesadillas with salad/rice sides? These can use all the stragglers up, veg, left over meat, stick some cheese in and you've got a meal. Half of one would do I'd say with sides

lostinrates

Tea-and-Cake wrote: »

Thank you for all the tips so far. I will try to work out a 7 day menu plan tonight once the kids all asleep and post it for feedback. Tonight however I have the kievs in the oven, frozen green beans boiling and microwave rice!:( (Should I run for cover).

I often make a note of something I think of through this week for the next week. We don't tend to have roasts, so I don't base my meals round a joint of meat weekly, only occasionally.

It might help in the short term to think of themes. I often work out a fish night first...knowing its something I am prone to ignoring. For those wanting to cut down on red meat scheduling in a white meat day, or two veggy days might help? Also perhaps a 'we have never tried that' night or a 'foreign food' night. Just to keep things changing, and interesting. I personally wouldn't want to eat the same thing week in and week out.

We too eat far less meat than many list on mse, but I think we eat really well. We also tend to eat with an eye to the traditional season of food. It's generally a bit cheaper, but mainly just nicer (and more Eco friendly) to buy things grown closer to home in the right season.

I am always interested to see how many people eat things in summer they also eat in the coldest days of winter. For me it just doesn't feel appetising.

tesuhoha

If you are looking for ideas for next week, I have just made a small organic chicken last 4 days. Day 1, roast chicken, gravy, new potatoes, carrots and peas, Day 2, cold chicken, mashed potatoes, salad with lettuce, cucumber and tomatoes, a squirt of lemon and some olive oil, pickled beetroot, piccalilli, coleslaw, Day 3 same again and Day 4, chicken broth with lentils, onions, potatoes, carrots, and celery.. Surprisingly there was plenty of meat left and we have had 4 very good meals. (Only 2 of us though.) Maybe a few ideas there though.

Sometimes I make a joint of meat last in a similar way, Day 1 traditional roast, Day 2, cold meat mash potatoes, bubble and squeak, salad, coleslaw, pickles. Day 3, the rest of the cold meat, cheese and potato pie, coleslaw.

I also do tuna with shell pasta and a green salad with a garlic, lemon, olive oil dressing. Pork chops with jacket potatoes and cheesey cauliflower. My kids used to love that, also homemade macaroni cheese goes well with chicken goujons or dippers. Fish fingers with new potatoes, baked beans. Cauliflower cheese and brown rice.

MrsE_2

neverdespairgirl wrote: »

Something that does surprise me about the above lists is how much meat is eaten - on a tight budget, personally I'd buy far less meat and far more nice fruit / veg / etc.

We tend to have meat about once a week, fish once or twice, and the rest veggie.

I think I'm spending as much on veg & salad as meat now a days.

I made a lamb tagine yesterday, I had the lamb but I popped into tesco to get an aubergine, courgettes, red onions, butternut squash & peppers.
It cost more than the lamb!!!!!!!

MrsE_2

eskimo26 wrote: »

Good quality sausages with fresh mash and greens are liked, porky whites brand is the only ones we buy.

They are the only ones I like too.
I dont even like the butchers as much as these, & I love the butchers meat.

neverdespairgirl

MrsE wrote: »

I think I'm spending as much on veg & salad as meat now a days.

I made a lamb tagine yesterday, I had the lamb but I popped into tesco to get an aubergine, courgettes, red onions, butternut squash & peppers.
It cost more than the lamb!!!!!!!

That sounds very nice indeed.

Tea-and-Cake_3

This must sound ridiculous to some of you but I still haven't done my menu plan....I am going to make minestrone for dinner tonight (onion, celery, carrot, potato, cabbage, cannellini beans, stock and passata and rice)

I am finding it impossible to start thinking about what I will be cooking tomorrow, sat, sun....? I am so used to getting to near tea time and thinking um what will I make! It seems quite boring too. I'm either very disorganised or lazy?

maman

Tea-and-Cake wrote: »

This must sound ridiculous to some of you but I still haven't done my menu plan....I am going to make minestrone for dinner tonight (onion, celery, carrot, potato, cabbage, cannellini beans, stock and passata and rice)

I am finding it impossible to start thinking about what I will be cooking tomorrow, sat, sun....? I am so used to getting to near tea time and thinking um what will I make! It seems quite boring too. I'm either very disorganised or lazy?

Meal plans don't need to be that regimented. Personally, I buy in plenty of breakfast ingredients (cereal, porage, eggs) and plan my dinners. It's hard to advise on lunches as it depends whether you're at home or not but it's easy to keep stuff in for sandwiches, soups, jackets, things on toast that won't go to waste or it's easy to make extra of an evening and keep a portion for heating up. For my dinners I plan at least 7 things which I can have in whatever order suits me. Some of those meals are from the freezer (batch cook HM ready meals if you can) so if we go out and miss a meal then it's not wasted or it's easy when I'm in a hurry. I tend to eat the fresh veg earlier in the week and then if I run out I fall back on frozen or canned. That's far better than buying too much and throwing it out. I often get several meals out of Sunday's joint but I prefer to freeze the leftovers for another time so we don't end up with the same sort of food several days running. Every week, I check what I have in when I make my meal plan so that I only buy what I need.

I don't think you're disorganised or lazy but the way you eat at the moment can be very expensive. I only shop once a week so I'm determined to get in exactly what I need. The trouble with popping out for a few extras is it never stops there...

lostinrates

Tea-and-Cake wrote: »

This must sound ridiculous to some of you but I still haven't done my menu plan....I am going to make minestrone for dinner tonight (onion, celery, carrot, potato, cabbage, cannellini beans, stock and passata and rice)

I am finding it impossible to start thinking about what I will be cooking tomorrow, sat, sun....? I am so used to getting to near tea time and thinking um what will I make! It seems quite boring too. I'm either very disorganised or lazy?

Not ridiculous. I am an experienced and happy meal planner and I sometimes go blank too.

Things to consider also include what the weather is likely to be and what you are doing.

pukkamum

Going blank happens to me even with a plan and food to go with it, usually its because I either don't fancy eating whatever was planned, I can't be bothered cooking ehat is planned or we are doing something that eve.
In those circumstances the freezer is your friend, I always have oven chips and fish fingers in there just in case, in fact I was quite upset when after a bad day with beast baby I announced it was fish fingers and chips and everyone cheered!
Doesn't say much for my cooking from scratch!