Is there a how-to-cook-what-you've-meal-planned thread?

patchwork_cat

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3138448 and this is Mr Bad example who learnt how to cook with the help of this forum https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/273825. Cooking is not hard - pick something that you would like to learn and we will show you. When you say you buy spaghetti bolgnaise in a jar do you mean the sauce and you add mince etc.?

scaredy_cat

http://step-by-step-cook.co.uk/mains/bolognese/

i'd use a tin of chopped toms instead or fresh, omit the chili paste and wine (unless you have some), only 2 cloves of garlic.

i'd just drain the pasta and not faff about with the melted butter.

and grates Parmesan cheese on top!

maz1964

wow everyone

only been away a few hours and superb responces thank you from me too

i will come on later and check in and post anything i find that is of use too


happy cooking everyone

laters maz

iammumtoone

skipsmum wrote: »

A lot of my issue is that if I spend all that time cooking, and he doesn't like it, I a) have to throw food away which I find really hard, and b) hes still hungry which makes me feel like a failure.

I feel for you with this. I am the same there is only myself and my son and I could spend hours cooking something and he just wont eat it, it really annoys me I have gone to all that effort and I hate the waste too so normally end up eating it for my dinner the next day. Don't feel like you are a failure your son is not eating because like mine he is fussy and doesn't like the colour / look / smell etc of the ingredients he is not refusing to eat due to your cooking.

I find the way around this is to work with what he likes, you say he likes rice so I would maybe do frozen fish in batter, mash, frozen veg (just as healthy no faff having to wash and peel and some rice on the plate as well.

I can cook but I don't, with there being just myself and a fussy eater it is not worth the bother so all our meals are very simple. I need to do a meal plan for the next week so when I have I will come back and give you an idea of what we have. Don't get hung up on 'cooking' you can eat fairly healthy and cheaply with out the need to cook complicated dishes.

Emm-in-a-pickle

Reading over what you`ve posted, Skipsmum, I think there are 2 things holding you back.
ONE - lack of self-confidence/getting stressed about cooking. OK, don`t worry about it, as others have already said, start in a small way to build your skills with easier recipes and this will gradually build your confidence and de-stress you as well. This will come naturally if you can sort out the second issue.

TWO - Your DS is a fussy eater....how old is he? Old enough to have friends for tea/justify a takeaway. OK. You rightly don`t want to spend ages cooking stuff he will reject, you rightly don`t want him to be living on toast...and you don`t want to be rushing out for takeaways to keep him & friends happy. And you stress about the evening meal...
Perhaps you are being manipulated here, most kids try it a bit, and the last thing you want is to get into a battle of wills with your son over food. Yet you want him to grow up with good eating habits. I suggest you try a bit of `reverse psychology`.
Pick a meal that you fancy making,(but not with ingredients you know your son hates) Make it just for you & hubby. Make your son something else,boring & simple like sandwiches, do same for his friend if present - something he`ll eat but NOT his favourite and NOT a takeaway. You & Hubby eat what you`ve cooked, and let DS see you`ve enjoyed it - don`t try to get DS to try it, the idea is for him to feel he may be missing something and ASK to try it. And try not to be upset if he doesn`t a few times, this approach may take a few goes, but it`s better than letting him think you`re anxious about what he eats. (Even if you are - especially if you are, in fact!)

cheeswright

I think you might like "foodplanner pro module" which is about £1.50 from google play - if you have a smart phone

although it wont do all the hard work for you you can plan meals
enter ingredients
make up a shopping list
add and take away from your Invenory / store cupboard
and write down recipes all in one interlinked format..

I'm mega busy like most working mums, and so fill it in once a week when I'm "watching" swimming lessons...
it means when you have a recipe you fancy you can write it down somewhere you wont loose it - and work it into your weekly / monthly plan...
I'm not trying to sell this to you ! so dont spam me....I just find life easier if its all together...and a relief to check my phone - I can see whats for tea and know i've got the stuff in..

cheeswright

you shouldnt pressure yourself either theres been lots of good advice here already..
but remember most people eat quite simply - when I'm uninspired - which is most of the winter...also spring ...and..is this reallly summer ? ...this year i just rotate 9 basic meals and mess about with them
eg ; one meal a week will be "stew with rice"
which could be so many things ...but easier to think about than learning to cook everything - some variations on this could be simple and not so intimidating...
mind you this dosnt always work...."leftovers in pie" night got binned as it ended up being the night everybodys friends started comming around...and there are only so many leftovers....what is it about pies ???

AimingForBetter

Hi skipsmum

Perhaps you could ask the rest of the household to help (not sure ages/numbers) as it is easier with their support.

All sit down and have a chat about it. Make a list of some straightforward dishes each person would like to eat, (hopefully you can come up with some everyone will eat) then work through it gradually.

Getting everyone else involved in the meal planning, shopping and the cooking (and washing up!) can make a huge difference as to whether things get eaten and enjoyed plus it also takes the pressure off you doing it all.

I found they soon have favourite things and ask for them often, they also appreciate the time and effort you put in making something for 'them' and they love baking (jam tarts/muffins etc) and being involved.

It's a good learning experience too and would help your son to gain the skills you are now trying to learn.

Best of luck.

AFB

littlegreenparrot

Just wanted to add to the great suggestions from the lovely people

See if you can get Jamie Oliver's 'Ministry of food' from the library. Its very easy to read, has great pictures and is genuinely aimed at total beginners. I never roasted a chicken until I had this book!

Might be worth sitting and looking at while son is around being nosy, if he's on board to help choose would that encourage him to eat it? Pizza's often a winner, and easy to make with children 'helping'.
(for what its worth as children our options were eat what your given, or have a cheese sandwich. I don't think my brother ate much else as a child. He's been in the army and is now a personal trainer, it clearly didn't affect him, so don't beat yourself up).

My other suggestion if your nervous is cooking on a weekend afternoon. More time, leisure, and opportunity to grab something out of the freezer if there is a disaster (although I'm sure there won't be!). It also means there's likely to be leftovers for Monday so you already don't have to cook :T

whitewing

Definitely use the cheap family recipes thread above - very easy and extremely yummy.