Where do I start?!

inspiremetosave

Okay,
I am a disorganized person in my personal life - I always feel like I have lots to do in a short amount of time, and my biggest problem is that I can't be bothered (yes I am lazy) Well, I need to change and have come here for advice. There are several aspects I need some advise with, I think I will try one thing at a time :

Food :
I have tried meal planning but never know what food to plan! I am inexperienced when it comes to cooking, and I have tried looking at recipes etc for inspiration. I think the main problem is that there seems to be too many ingredients that I dont have! I would like to plan all my meals out but my partner and my own eating habits / requirements are so different. We both work different shift patterns so rarely eat together, and whilst I am trying to lose weight (following Weight Watchers) he is trying to put it on! I have a slow cooker (which I think I've only used once!) but it doesnt feel very inspiring. Our food shopping patterns are random, which I know I need to plan better, and then when we do the shopping, there is nothing there for tea! I dread to think how much we are spending a month on food, but I would like it to drop to a realistic £120 per month for me, partner (including food for work - partner works 12 hour night shift so needs a substantial amount) 2 cats and a tortoise.

Help!

boo81

Have you tried shopping online instead? Sounds like a good option if your habits are random. I found mine were the same and now I belong to an organic box scheme and I work my plans around them, I rarely need to find time to visit the supermarket now-works great!

The best basic cookbooks are probably the student ones, they tell you how to cook good meals with minimum ingredients.

As a staple in the cupboard/fridge I have:
olive oil
salt and pepper
garlic
stock cubes
worcestershire sauce
soy sauce
red and white wine
nutmeg
cinamon
parsley
mixed herbs
curry powder
tomato puree
tinned tomatoes
tinned fish
pasta
rice
flour (plain and self/raising)
sugar
cooking chocolate
butter
milk
dried yeast
eggs
cheese
onions
peppers
bacon
mince
frozen veg

Thats pretty much the basics of everything round my kitchen. If you start with a few things you will find the ingredients gradually build and you learn how to use it. If you buy a new herb do a search to find what you can use it for!

Hope that helps

MRSMCAWBER

Hi there inspireme to save

Do you have the WW books..eating out at home and winning recipes? only i am having a clear out (managed to pass on several items so far through here) well if i cant use them and they can help someone else why not?
so if you would like them drop me your address via the private message thingy and i will send them you - most WW recipes dont have many ingredients and are quick to do....
Do you or your hubby have access to a micro at work ? only there are only 2 of us and so i serve up 2 extra meals into 2 micro proof containers and then hubby takes 1 for lunch and the other freezes for another day...he loves it and his mates dont think its for money saving reasons, well that and the fact that i know he isnt eating garbage...but they are just envious that he gets to sit with a hot meal whilst they all have to trudge to the naffi for sandwiches... and to be honest all i do is cook a bit of extra veg to stretch it...as at 1 time i would have just dished it up between us and we were both eating too much...
once you start you will soon start to spot little ways that you can stretch things..
good luck

inspiremetosave

Thank you - it is very kind of you.

Ytaya

What have you got in your cupboards at the moment? That might be a good place to start. Tell us what's in your cupboards, fridge and freezer and we might be able to invent some dinners using the bits you already have. I know it can be overwhelming, and sometimes fresh eyes can give you the spark you need

vivw_2

If you are having a problem with general motivation you may find the following thread helpful:
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=419650

RAS

Hi

What sort of facilities does partner have at work? Are you in Thermos terrritory or can he microwave stuff?

lil_me

Sending you some info. Copied from a PM I was sent with WW ideas etc.

Handbag59

Hi

I am also doing WW I use the cook books to help me meal plan and make extras for the freezer. I then make a list of all the ingredients that are needed for each recpie and for the other meals I have planned such as porridge for breakfast = milk & oats, cross off the the things I already have in which leaves me with what I need to buy. I juggle ingredients so that I don't spend too much but still stick to the points value of the recpie and if I need to buy something a bit unusual I look for another recpie that uses the same/similar type of thing so that it doesn't go to waste.

My OH works shifts and has a nasty habit of buying ready meals, I am in the process of batch cooking meals for him (non WW) so that he can have those.

troll35

Try making a list of all the meals you can cook without resorting to a recipe book. It's amazing how many things you will be able to think of. When I started meal planning I made an initial a list of over 30 meals that I could cook from scratch ..things like spag bol, shepherds pie, various casseroles, hotpot, stew, toad in the hole etc etc.
Now if I'm a little stuck for what to plan/write on my shopping list I have a quick look down the list for something we haven't had for a while.

vivw_2

Here's my list of basic meals most of which don't need anything too specific:

Basic meals

Mince
Spaghetti Bolognese
Lasagna
Shepherds pie/cottage pie
Pasta shapes and sauce
Tagatelle and sauce
Curry
Chilli con carne
Mousaka


Sausages
Toad in the hole
Sausage casserole
Sausage and chips
Sausage and mash
Sausage meat pastie/plait



Chicken
Roast chicken
Chicken curry
Spanish chicken
Chicken and mushroom casserole
Chicken pepper casserole
Chicken and wine casserole
Chicken risotto
Chicken pie

Fish
Salmon and hollandaise sauce
Tuna with tomato sauce
Grilled trout
Prawn salad
Smoked mackerel salad
Fish pie
Fish and chips


Beef/Pork/Lamb
Stew
Roast
Casserole
Steak and chips
Stir fry – also chicken
Gammon steak and pineapple
Chops

Vegetarian
Mushroom Risotto
Cheese and onion pie/pasties
Quiche – but can include meat
Macaroni cheese
Stuffed pancakes
Stuffed peppers
Cheese, onion and potato pie
Pizza – but can include meat

Side dishes
Potato wedges
Coucous salad
Rice salad
Coleslaw
Pasta salad
Potato salad


Snacks
Cheese and ham toasties
Egg and chips
Soup
Omelette – mushroom, Spanish, cheese
Kippers
Cheese on toast
Beans on toast
Egg on toast
Jacket potato – variety of fillings
Sardines on toast