Grocery shopping.

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  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    mamarissy wrote: »
    I do not have the time nor energy to sit down and come up with healthy meals and create grocery lists for them so I know exactly what to buy at the grocery store. Between work and kids, I find is much easier to just grab a frozen pizza and some boxed Mac n cheese. How do you all find the time/motivation to come up with a grocery list and recipes and everything and stick to them?

    you don't need a list of recipes...cooking good healthy meals doesn't necessitate using elaborate recipes. my weekday cooking is pretty basic stuff (not boring or bland though)...usually weekday meals consist of some kind of marinated or rubbed poultry, meat, or fish; some kind of grain or starch or legume; and a veg of some kind either steamed, sauteed, or roasted. I can make most things in under an hour (things like baking a potato or steaming brown rice take some time, but it's not like you have to be sitting there watching the stuff cook). For a quicker meal, I'll just grill up the protein and serve with veg and we always have a big batch of beans or lentils on hand as I cook big batches on the weekends...I can have dinner out in 15 minutes if necessary...no elaborate recipes.

    I save more elaborate cooking and fussing with recipes and whatnot for weekend cooking...I enjoy it, but they're generally not appropriate for weeknights given the time they take and actually having to be over the stove or oven actively chefing it up.

    we really don't plan our shopping around particular meals...we have staple food items in the house and we shop once per week to replenish those things for which we are low or out of plus any additional items that may have been discussed. Our staples:

    Chicken
    Pork Tenderloin
    Ground beef
    Cod
    Salmon
    Shrimp
    Lentils
    Dried legumes
    Brown rice
    Potatoes
    Quinoa
    Pasta
    Oats
    Cereal for the kids
    Onions
    Broccoli
    Green Beans
    Cabbage
    Cucumber
    Greens
    Chicken stock
    Eggs
    Milk
    Cheese
    Deli Meats
    Bacon
    Bread

    and probably more I'm missing here. we also keep a small amount of proper "junk" in the house as well...
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,423 Member
    jgnatca wrote: »
    What sorts of meatless meals do children like? I'd imagine anything with cheese on it. That could be make-your-own pizza night, or baked potatoes with cheese. Kidney or black bean based chili on a bun would be easy and inexpensive. For a busy mom, this might be made with a slow cooker, double batch and freeze.

    I have trouble selling tofu and lentil based meals on children and fussy husbands.

    My dd would not eat tofu but likes these meatless foods-
    Grilled cheese sandwiches
    quesadillas
    minestrone soup
    fassolatha soup
    pasta with a meatless sauce
    cheese manicotti or lasagna
    lentil soup
    veggie burgers
    bean & cheese burritos
    eggs
    pancakes
    french toast
    oatmeal
    baked potatoes
    cheesey rice and broccoli casserole
    baked macaroni and cheese
    pbj
    cereal
    fruit
  • esaucier17
    esaucier17 Posts: 694 Member
    vivmom2014 wrote: »
    jgnatca wrote: »
    What sorts of meatless meals do children like? I'd imagine anything with cheese on it. That could be make-your-own pizza night, or baked potatoes with cheese. Kidney or black bean based chili on a bun would be easy and inexpensive. For a busy mom, this might be made with a slow cooker, double batch and freeze.

    I have trouble selling tofu and lentil based meals on children and fussy husbands.

    Quesadillas, vegetarian chili, breakfast for dinner, tempeh tacos (they don't even notice, I've tried it), stir fried vegetables over rice in a nice sweet/sour sauce... it can be done. You have some good suggestions, too.

    What are tempeh tacos?
  • juggernaut1974
    juggernaut1974 Posts: 6,212 Member
    esaucier17 wrote: »
    vivmom2014 wrote: »
    jgnatca wrote: »
    What sorts of meatless meals do children like? I'd imagine anything with cheese on it. That could be make-your-own pizza night, or baked potatoes with cheese. Kidney or black bean based chili on a bun would be easy and inexpensive. For a busy mom, this might be made with a slow cooker, double batch and freeze.

    I have trouble selling tofu and lentil based meals on children and fussy husbands.

    Quesadillas, vegetarian chili, breakfast for dinner, tempeh tacos (they don't even notice, I've tried it), stir fried vegetables over rice in a nice sweet/sour sauce... it can be done. You have some good suggestions, too.

    What are tempeh tacos?

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tempeh
  • fishshark
    fishshark Posts: 1,886 Member
    I buy a lot in bulk... our freezer is always stocked with frozen meat fruits veggies... I always have rice and pastas stocked and will just pick up a little here and there like dairy and produce.
  • WBB55
    WBB55 Posts: 4,131 Member
    I <3 tempeh
  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,649 Member
    esaucier17 wrote: »
    vivmom2014 wrote: »
    jgnatca wrote: »
    What sorts of meatless meals do children like? I'd imagine anything with cheese on it. That could be make-your-own pizza night, or baked potatoes with cheese. Kidney or black bean based chili on a bun would be easy and inexpensive. For a busy mom, this might be made with a slow cooker, double batch and freeze.

    I have trouble selling tofu and lentil based meals on children and fussy husbands.

    Quesadillas, vegetarian chili, breakfast for dinner, tempeh tacos (they don't even notice, I've tried it), stir fried vegetables over rice in a nice sweet/sour sauce... it can be done. You have some good suggestions, too.

    What are tempeh tacos?

    Since I stopped eating meat I've had fun trying some of the "meat analogues" (mmm, sounds so appetizing!) and I have liked all of them so far. My husband is on board, my 14 year old son? Not so much. I have no objection to them eating meat if they want to - have at it - but I've yet to see my son leap into the kitchen to start cooking. So he's pretty much stuck with some of the protein alternatives I serve (not every night) - and he's coming around. They can all taste quite good with spices, sautéing, etc.



  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
    mamarissy wrote: »
    Thank you to everyone who responded with such positive and helpful comments! I appreciate it! As for everyone else who has negativity to add, thank you too! You're all right, I'm making excuses. No more excuses. Time to just shut my mouth & do what I KNOW I NEED to do to be healthy and happy for me and my family! Thank you everyone!

    Good for you. Sometimes a bit of tough love and some practical suggestions are the ticket. Best of luck.
  • DisneyDude85
    DisneyDude85 Posts: 428 Member
    One of my favorite meals is quick red beans and rice with smoked sausage. Sautee some onion and garlic with the sausage, then throw in a can of kidney beans (rinse first) with a cup of rice and 2 cups water with some tomato bullion. cooks in about 30 mins :) veggies in the microwave steamer bags are a lifesaver, generally take about 6-7 minutes, depending on altitude. Cooking is as easy or as hard as you make it! And get the kids involved! I find that if they help make it, they are more inclined to eat it. :)
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    beachhouse758 wrote: »
    I think this is symptomatic. Are we getting totally helpless? So many new "services" offer "dinner tips" and this. How difficult can it be to transfer the ingredients from a recipe to a shopping list? How can anyone not know what they want to have for dinner?

    Why such "anger"...

    Someone is asking for help and (most) people are offering helpful tips. There's no need to ridicule or derogate someone for asking for help, just because *you* find the task in question second nature.

    If don't want to contribute something helpful, you don't have to reply just to make the OP feel inadequate.

    If you want to contribute, why not just post a link to your meal planning site?
  • CrabNebula
    CrabNebula Posts: 1,119 Member
    I tend to batch cook. I can take 2-3lbs of chickpeas and make 5-6 dinners worth easy of falafel balls, patties, or burgers. They freeze extremely well. Then you just take them out, pop them in the oven to reheat, get out some pita bread and fixings and off you go. I make two pans of enchiladas or cannelloni at once and they feed my family for 3-4 days straight (I will be the first to admit that we do not care about variety and can happily eat the same food for days at a time). I make several pizzas or stromboli at once and then freeze the excess for days when I am super lazy and can't deal with even boiling water.

    You can do so much with shredded meat. Take a cut of meat, put it in the pressure or slow cooker for the appropriate amount of time, shred it and freeze it. You can put it in tacos, chili, enchiladas, pulled pork/chicken/beef, use to top salad or pizzas, use it in soups and stews, etc, etc.

    I bought an Instant Pot and it is one of the best things I have ever bought for the kitchen. It is a pressure cooker, rice cooker, slow cooker, you can saute in it, you can make yogurt (mindbogglingly easy and takes NO TIME on your part) and cheese with it, the list goes on.

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