Reverse Meal Planning

joedenise

Have got a cauliflower which needs using up so cauliflower cheese is on the menu for tonight!  Hadn't actually planned to buy cauliflower but saw this one for a really good price so had to buy it!  As it happens it's turned out well as the duck I got out of the freezer at the weekend stunk to high heaven so ended up being binned - what a waste!  It's the reason I don't often buy YS meat.

Of course not having any LO duck to use it means I've had to rearrange the plan for this week using what I have in the fridge, cupboard and freezer!

ruby_eskimo

Morning all!  Ended up having a quick pasta meal last night instead of the planned dhal so that will be tomorrow's dinner instead.  Today I'm making another big batch of mushroom risotto to get those used up which will also make a portion for me to take into the office for lunch on Thursday.  Will probably grate the last two courgette's into the mix too.

EssexHebridean

Risotto is on our list for tomorrow - Fennel & squash in our case, if I remember rightly. 

Tonight is leftover lamb from sunday with roast squash (this is still the giant Crown Prince Squash from the veg box a fortnight ago!) couscous and some other veg - the squash is already prepped too which makes life far easier/quicker. 

After the problems with panic buying etc over the last 18 months in particular I can have some sympathies for the "keep things stocked up" approach I must admit - but it can mean that things get missed, pushed to the back etc and then end up being older than we feel comfortable eating when we finally dig them out, so it can add to waste if a certain degree of watchfulness isn't brought into the mix, I think! 

rtandon27

EssexHebridean said:

...After the problems with panic buying etc over the last 18 months in particular I can have some sympathies for the "keep things stocked up" approach I must admit - but it can mean that things get missed, pushed to the back etc and then end up being older than we feel comfortable eating when we finally dig them out, so it can add to waste if a certain degree of watchfulness isn't brought into the mix, I think! 

EH - you are absolutely correct! 

Case in point, the stir-through artichoke sauce we used with our pasta last night.  We bought it during the scarcity days in early 2020, being the only sauce available for pasta.  It sat on the shelf being pushed to the back in favour of creamy mushroom or cheese ones instead, which we already had several of.  When we moved, I vowed not to have more than one of anything in the stores, unless we actually consume it on a weekly basis (chopped tomatoes, tetra-pak houmous, coconut milk & herby olives for example).  We both enjoyed the artichoke sauce, but it's not one we would hurry to replace!  Will work on getting our creamy sauces down to just one & then replace with our favourite as a store-cupboard staple.

Lunch this week (for me) will end up being from the sandwich shop down the road, as the extra commuting time means no morning trip to the c0-0p - not really a fail given the circumstances - it is after all why the default is to count the pennies!

Dinner tonight will be a ready-made posh fish pie stored in the freezer & bought at 50% off, which made it affordable!  Some steamed carrots from last week's veg box will round it off nicely.  Should not take more than 15 minutes of effort so time efficient as planned.

Role on next week when the trains are back in service & OH can ditch the chauffeur hat for the chef's whites

Suffolk_lass

I had my flu jab yesterday and fell asleep this afternoon. Meanwhile DH washed the motorhome, cleared up some stuff in the veg garden and is currently doing supper. Grilled chicken with mash, gravy and cabbage. I am lucky!

Herbyme

Made a wicked combo of cauliflower cheese and pommes dauphinoise - sort of - basically CC with sliced potatoes on top. On BBC Food website ( not BBC Good food which annoys me with all the click bait). It was a winner with sausages.

Tonight was another BBC recipe, slow cooker chick pea tagine, really good on baked potatoes. Ald1 don’t sell harissa so improvised that. The only thing I bought specially was a bag of dried apricots which say eat within 7 days - can I just ignore that or can I freeze them in portions?

@rtandon27 - hummus in a tetrapak? What a good idea! Where do you get it?

joedenise

@carolinerunner  I keep semi dried apricots in the fridge, certainly don't use the within 7 days!  The last lot I bought must have been in there at least a month.  They're still edible but a bit dry but they still work well in a tagine as they get plumped back up.

rtandon27

@carolinerunner - the longlife houmous is available on 0cad0 and on amaz0n - about 135g in each pack - I believe it's lebanese in origin, very smooth texture & lots of tahini - it is shelf stable for months but doesn't last that long in our house! - we usually swirl in a bowl and top with olive oil, a sprinkle of smoked paprika and some finely chopped or dried parsley

ruby_eskimo

I totally agree @EssexHebridean and have been guilty of just pushing things to the back of the cupboard and ignoring them in the past but when we started our Brexit prep, I separated out the stocks by their use by date and put each year into a separate crate.  That way I could pick up a crate at the start of the year and rotate that into our kitchen knowing that I had to use it up at some point that year.  Seems to be working quite well and I think I just have a tin of rhubarb and another of cherries to use up this year so they'll be made into crumbles probably over the next few weeks.

Risotto went down very well last night and have a portion sitting there waiting for lunch tomorrow.  Finally making my carrot dhal this evening, and may even make some bombay potatoes to go on the side rather than rice, just so I can use something else up from the cupboard.

rtandon27

Last night's 'affordable' posh fish pie was just not to my taste - overly smokey - definitely won't be getting that one again!  The side of carrots & brussels were truly delicious though - both from last week's veg box.  Reducing our frequency to bi-weekly seems to be working so far.

Tonight's dinner will be a soft taco kit with pork mince from the depths of the freezer & using up all the salady bits and last of the sour cream from the fridge for toppings.  We may also have some salsa in the stores & pickled jalapenos in the fridge, will have to have a little rummage & see what the results are.

@ruby_eskimo - your rotation system is great!  Do you then replace the items used back in the stores or are you aiming to use them up? - Our stores are nowhere near what they used to be, but I may pilfer this idea and rearrange our extra items by date, to make sure they get used up first.