Getting dinner on the table seems to stress out a lot of folks. With either no plan at all or way too much planning, I find folks stuck in panic mode. It doesn’t have to be that way.
Meal planning, prep, cooking, and even plating can be much simpler if we just take a few minutes to think about what we want to do. Beyond, of course, the work. 🙂
Meal planning itself is a useful process but one size does not fit all. So, if you are not a by the list cook (i.e.: Monday’s Dinner is THIS.) rather than set up a rigid menu, why not set up a flexible pantry that will lead you to a more flexible dinner?
Take a few minutes to write down the meals you and your family enjoy. Create a shopping list that includes all the ingredients for those meals. Have those items in your pantry, freezer, and fridge. Now you can choose what you want to eat without being chained to a menu you aren’t in the mood for or don’t have time for.
When you put together your list of meals, look for ways to do some batch cooking. Are you having chicken more than once? Can you cook what you need for those meals and put the extra in the fridge or freezer until you are ready for it? If you, you’ve just saved yourself some work later in the week. Give yourself a High Five!
While this trick is great for proteins, it works well with fruits or veg, too.
Do you have a free day on your schedule and feel like playing in the kitchen? Why not create a batch cook list and set yourself up for more time savers later in the month?
I’ve been known to grab some ground beef (5 or 10 pounds worth), chop enough onions and garlic to go with it, haul out my large stock pot, dutch oven or slow cooker and get them started cooking that meat. I might make a simple beef, garlic, onion, salt and pepper mixture that can go into casseroles or I might combine some of the beef, etc., into patties and get them browned and ready for the freezer.
I love family packs of chicken and have tossed the lot into my slow cooker or roasting pan for the oven and let them roast until done. I will then have enough to package up for all sorts of meals.
I can prepare several casseroles up to the point of getting them packaged and then tuck them into the freezer. This is a great way to have dinner mostly done on those days when you just aren’t feeling it.
Free Ranging Foodie recently posted some great ideas on how she sets herself up for success. Click HERE to check it out.
It is easy to get stuck in that rut where dinner becomes just one more hurdle. Sometimes all it takes to avoid that rut is to think outside the box (or bag) and find ways to get things ready before we even know we need it.
Happy Cooking!