Meal-Planning: For those short on time, money, and energy
alybran
Posts: 199 Member
Talk about your ideas for meal planning and meal prep!
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Replies
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I prefer to cook all of my meals myself. Going out can be a chore, and outside of my budget!
I don't go so far as to do extensive meal-prep, but you bet your butt I plan all of my meals! I use my Pinterest to keep track of recipes. I plan each dinner and create a grocery list based on that. I spend, on average, $80-85 per week for 4-5 people. I usually take leftovers for lunch the next day, and have an apple with peanut butter for breakfast in the morning, and yogurt with granola in the afternoon0 -
I like to go to the banana box, and outlet stores to find good deals on vegetarian meats, produce, and grains. It really helps me be able to put a decent meal on the table. I went shopping on Saturday, and I cut up all my produce on Sunday for the week. We will be eating oven fajitas, "meat" loaf, and spaghetti with "meat" sauce this week. My homemade rolls are almost gone, so tomorrow I will make some homemade bread in the bread maker for meatloaf sandwiches, and peanut butter and jelly.1
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purebredpolly wrote: »I like to go to the banana box, and outlet stores to find good deals on vegetarian meats, produce, and grains. It really helps me be able to put a decent meal on the table. I went shopping on Saturday, and I cut up all my produce on Sunday for the week. We will be eating oven fajitas, "meat" loaf, and spaghetti with "meat" sauce this week. My homemade rolls are almost gone, so tomorrow I will make some homemade bread in the bread maker for meatloaf sandwiches, and peanut butter and jelly.
I LOVE "meat"loaf with my veggie gravy. I do a version of this recipe:
http://www.food.com/recipe/really-good-vegetarian-meatloaf-really-33921
(Honestly I never follow recipes, they're more like guidelines.) Usually I use a mixture of lentils, black beans, and mushrooms to try to get the texture right!
I gotta start cutting up my produce on the weekend after shopping... it'll save me so much on prep during the week. Sometimes, I wake up just a few minutes early to prep my veggies in the morning before I leave for work. It's also nice and quiet then, so I don't have my family or boyfriend running around distracting me and I can get it done quickly.1 -
I prefer to cook all of my meals myself. Going out can be a chore, and outside of my budget!
I don't go so far as to do extensive meal-prep, but you bet your butt I plan all of my meals! I use my Pinterest to keep track of recipes. I plan each dinner and create a grocery list based on that. I spend, on average, $80-85 per week for 4-5 people. I usually take leftovers for lunch the next day, and have an apple with peanut butter for breakfast in the morning, and yogurt with granola in the afternoon
It's refreshing to see someone else with a smaller grocery budget like I have-so many times in the grocery themed threads in the main forum area, people share what they spend on groceries and it's like double-triple what I spend (which is a bit depressing lol). Family of 5 here on a $100 a week grocery budget
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purebredpolly wrote: »I like to go to the banana box, and outlet stores to find good deals on vegetarian meats, produce, and grains. It really helps me be able to put a decent meal on the table. I went shopping on Saturday, and I cut up all my produce on Sunday for the week. We will be eating oven fajitas, "meat" loaf, and spaghetti with "meat" sauce this week. My homemade rolls are almost gone, so tomorrow I will make some homemade bread in the bread maker for meatloaf sandwiches, and peanut butter and jelly.
I LOVE "meat"loaf with my veggie gravy. I do a version of this recipe:
http://www.food.com/recipe/really-good-vegetarian-meatloaf-really-33921
(Honestly I never follow recipes, they're more like guidelines.) Usually I use a mixture of lentils, black beans, and mushrooms to try to get the texture right!
I gotta start cutting up my produce on the weekend after shopping... it'll save me so much on prep during the week. Sometimes, I wake up just a few minutes early to prep my veggies in the morning before I leave for work. It's also nice and quiet then, so I don't have my family or boyfriend running around distracting me and I can get it done quickly.
Oh wow! Thanks for the recipes. I can't wait to try them!
Best thing I did for myself this week was wash, and slice up all my produce. It was such a chore, but it has made this week so much easier.2 -
purebredpolly wrote: »purebredpolly wrote: »I like to go to the banana box, and outlet stores to find good deals on vegetarian meats, produce, and grains. It really helps me be able to put a decent meal on the table. I went shopping on Saturday, and I cut up all my produce on Sunday for the week. We will be eating oven fajitas, "meat" loaf, and spaghetti with "meat" sauce this week. My homemade rolls are almost gone, so tomorrow I will make some homemade bread in the bread maker for meatloaf sandwiches, and peanut butter and jelly.
I LOVE "meat"loaf with my veggie gravy. I do a version of this recipe:
http://www.food.com/recipe/really-good-vegetarian-meatloaf-really-33921
(Honestly I never follow recipes, they're more like guidelines.) Usually I use a mixture of lentils, black beans, and mushrooms to try to get the texture right!
I gotta start cutting up my produce on the weekend after shopping... it'll save me so much on prep during the week. Sometimes, I wake up just a few minutes early to prep my veggies in the morning before I leave for work. It's also nice and quiet then, so I don't have my family or boyfriend running around distracting me and I can get it done quickly.
Oh wow! Thanks for the recipes. I can't wait to try them!
Best thing I did for myself this week was wash, and slice up all my produce. It was such a chore, but it has made this week so much easier.
I've started doing this as well and it makes the rest of the week go so much smoother!1 -
I prefer to cook all of my meals myself.
Same here. I live with my parents, but I like to cook my own meals so I can control my calorie intake.
I like to make big portions of stew, mexi-lasagne, soup, etc, then freeze single serves. This allows me to do all the planning, weighing and cooking when I have time, so I don't have to worry when I don't have time. Studying full-time and working part-time means I'm not a fan of spending 30-60 minutes per evening cooking dinner when I can prepare 2+ weeks worth of dinners and lunches in one afternoon.0 -
crazyycatlady1 wrote: »I prefer to cook all of my meals myself. Going out can be a chore, and outside of my budget!
I don't go so far as to do extensive meal-prep, but you bet your butt I plan all of my meals! I use my Pinterest to keep track of recipes. I plan each dinner and create a grocery list based on that. I spend, on average, $80-85 per week for 4-5 people. I usually take leftovers for lunch the next day, and have an apple with peanut butter for breakfast in the morning, and yogurt with granola in the afternoon
It's refreshing to see someone else with a smaller grocery budget like I have-so many times in the grocery themed threads in the main forum area, people share what they spend on groceries and it's like double-triple what I spend (which is a bit depressing lol). Family of 5 here on a $100 a week grocery budget
I am the same with a budget of $100 a week, I feed mainly 3 people but have to add my adult son (never know when he will grace us with his presence! LOL) But I like all fresh veggies. I tend to hit about 2 - 3 stores on the weekend to complete all my shopping. I also go to the big box store once a month and load up on the meat (I put it up in marinades then freeze, this way I can toss it into the crockpot for the meat eaters) I hate this night since the smell of meat makes me gag, lately I have been making my hubby do the work. after all I don't eat the S - - T!0 -
MsChucktowski wrote: »
I started like that. I was having trouble losing weight because my parents are both disabled (heart condition, chronic pain) so they go for easy stuff. It was constantly fried chicken, pizza, and pasta, with occasional salads. I took over grocery shopping and cooking COMPLETELY last February/March. Since then, I've moved to cooking for the family 4 nights out of the week, and we have "FFY (Fend For Yourself) days 3 days out of the week.
Once I move out (if I ever do, it feels like it'll never happen), I'd love to try meal-prep like you do. Only cooking for 1-2 people, it doesn't seem worth it to spend so much time every night putting your meal together.1 -
I cook for myself and I like to make things I can get two, three even four servings out of so that I can save a bit and splurge a bit more on things like protein bars, energy balls, fruit shots etc as I keep a snack box in my bag at all times to stave off hunger and prevent me from getting junk.
I currently have four boxes of oatmeal I bought for like $3 each and that's 32/a month's worth of breakfasts for $12. Doing stuff like that means I can treat myself to sale croissants for $1, y'know.0 -
You guys are all very inspiring. I'm all over the place always trying to think of what to cook at the last minute and running into the grocery store every other day. It wastes my time and money. I'm definitely going to try some of your ideas!1
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WHEW! HUGE shopping day! I'm just back from the Amish country where I hit a banana box store. I spent $140.38 and I bought a full cart, plus another half a cart full of food, paper products, health and beauty items. I am tuckered out!
I will be hitting an outlet store tomorrow in hopes of being able to round out my meals, because as it stands we are looking at 4 low calorie cool whip pies, a butternut squash casserole, and the fixings for salads. I had a difficult time meal planning this past pay period.0 -
I am not good at meal planning usually. But since I went veg last month I make a big batch of either quinoa or mujaddara (lentils and brown rice dish), rice, and bake a few potatoes for the week. I also prep my dry salad toppings (bell peppers, carrrots, cucumber). I work our meals around those staples.0
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I live with a meat eater, so there are times I must make meat. This is one of those times. I finally have figured out what to make, and prep for this week. I am planning on a lot of vegetarian chicken dishes for myself, so to off set my time in the kitchen, I plan on making a tray of chicken thighs that I can pull out and season the same way I plan on seasoning my vegetarian chicken. I found chicken thighs on sale for $1, and I had them put up in the freezer, the same way I put up in the freezer all the vegetarian meat I find on sale. I know I am not the only one here who is Flexitarian, or has meat eaters in their households. This truly helps keep our food budget down to something manageable.
A few things I am planning on is
A thanksgiving style meal
An Japanese style "chicken" salad
A copy cat Bob Evans "chicken" salad
BBQ "chicken" sandwiches0 -
This week's menu
Mo: Fend for Yourself (FFY) [Date night]
Tu: Lentil falafel
We: Grilled veggies over brown rice w/ Gardein Mandarin Orange "Chicken"
Th: FFY [Black bean & lime rice w/ Mourning star "chicken" strips + avocadoo
Fr: Tikka masala
Sa: Veggie pot pies
Su: FFY [Red thai curry]
About to go shopping now 0 -
I am making some vegetable soup to eat throughout the week.
Monday: Gardein Mandarin orange chicken over salad
Tuesday- Vegan Picadillo
Wednesday- Pasta with Cauliflower Alfredo
Thursday - Curry
Friday- My niece's Sweet 16 Party
Saturday - Will depend on how much I eat and drink at the party !2 -
This weeks menu:
Tonight: Vegetable fried rice (mushrooms, bell pepper, green onion, and broccoli)
Monday: Leftovers
Tuesday: Chicken legs, mashed potato casserole, and roasted vegetables (I have asparagus or green beans...)
Wednesday: Leftovers
Thursday: Spaghetti with roasted red pepper sauce, garlic bread, and roasted vegetables (whatever doesn't get made Tuesday)
Friday: Leftovers
Breakfasts will be vegetable egg bake and scrambled eggs with roasted potatoes.
Lunches will be leftovers or tuna salad if needed.
Snacks will be sliced cheese, sliced raw vegetables, or almonds.
So really, only 2 (and maybe 3) days will any meat in any meal. Not too bad!2 -
My week is a bit thrown out this week as I'm donating blood so the scheme of things is off.
Monday - (heavy training day) turkey breast, veg, and coucous.
Tuesday - veggie tortilla pizza! Spinach and sweetcorn topping and a bit of light cream cheese.
Wednesday - Cheese and onion quiche maybe. Big salad and couscous.
Thursday - (HTD) Fish and veggie risotto. More risotto than fish though.
Friday - (MTD) Probably leftover quiche. Couscous. Veg.
Saturday/Sunday - (L/MTD Sat, MTD Sun) veggie curry and wholegrain/quinoa rice. If I eat all the veggie curry I make on Sat I'll make veggie con carne on Sunday.
Generally lunch is some sort of (cheese/faux meat) sandwich because I love bread but I do like butternut squash and carrot soup if it's on offer. I get a couple when it £1 and depending on how hungry I am they can be two or three servings a pot. Breakfast as we all know by now is porridge and nut milk. I am also drinking a ton of protein shakes because I refuse to add more meat than is necessary to my diet and I train like I'm on the tracks.
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Forgot to update.
Week of 5/1/17
Mo: Lentil falafel (didn't make it last week)
Tu: FFY [Black bean & lime rice w/ Morningstar "chicken" strips + avocado]
We: Spicy black bean soup
Th: FFY [Green curry fried rice with baked tofu]
Fr: Creamy sun-dried tomato pasta
Sa: Veggie pot pies w/ mashed potatoes & gravy (again, didn't make it last week lol)
Su: FFY [Eggs baked in puff pastry]
Week of 5/7/17
Mo: Portobello steaks with avocado chimichurri
Tu: FFY [Vegan red thai curry]
We: Dumplings & rice with miso soup
Th: FFY [Lentil meatloaf w/ mashed potatoes & gravy]
Fr: Black bean chilaquiles
Sa: Mujadarra
Su: FFY [Mac & cheese w/ Morningstar "chicken" strips]0 -
I'm currently loving pitta pizzas as a cost/time effective meal. You can get a cheap packet of 6 pittas, a tin of chopped tomatoes, dig out the tomato paste and a bag of spinach and you're good to go for as many as 6 meals, depending on how many pittas you eat. If you have a jar of olives chuck some of them on too.0
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When I encounter myself in that mood, I look the recipes on this youtube channel: CheapLazyVegan for ideas, tho I'm not strict vegetarian. The most recent I eat was Creamy Pumpkin Pasta, so yumi and very easy to cook.
My personal last cheap, easy recipe was brown lentils with chopped potatos and white rice. Excellent carbs and good protein IMHO. 0 -
ZonurciaMar wrote: »When I encounter myself in that mood, I look the recipes on this youtube channel: CheapLazyVegan for ideas, tho I'm not strict vegetarian. The most recent I eat was Creamy Pumpkin Pasta, so yumi and very easy to cook.
My personal last cheap, easy recipe was brown lentils with chopped potatos and white rice. Excellent carbs and good protein IMHO.
How are the recipes in general on there? I generally use Pinterest, but I also follow TastyVegetarian on Facebook and some of the stuff they share is so ridiculous and unappetizing it makes me think, no wonder meat-eaters hate us lmao.
One food blog I find myself using a lot for recipes is BudgetBytes. Cheap and easy meals, and lots of yummy vegetarian options!1 -
BudgetBytes is one of my favorite blogs. I also really like HotforFood and EdgyVeg on youtube. Both are vegan channels, and the recipes I've tried are tasty.0
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