Meal Planning Help/Ideas

kurtisbakke

What is everybody's process when planning meals for the week?

I spend way too much time in the kitchen every night. I usually make all my meals for the next day in one sitting so I spend ...eh ..about 1 1/2 hr every night cooking.

On top of that my meals are very boring (or gross) most of the time. Sometimes I swear I'm eating cat food.

Where do you get your recipes from. What is your order of operations when you plan for your week.

usmcmp

I work really long days (12 hours plus 1.5 hour commute), so I have to meal prep. I typically do this on Saturday.

Batch cooking is your friend. I weigh out my chicken for the meals I want to prep then boil it with some seasoning. After about 20 minutes I either chop or shred the chicken and add it to a salad or beans or vegetables and rice. That's lunch for an entire week made in 30 minutes. I pre-portion my meats into bags and freeze them then put a portion in the fridge each night for the following night. Breakfast I keep simple with a protein bar, granola bar, protein shake, or something else I can eat on the way to work.

stephieleee

I will usually meal prep on Sundays, or I'll eat salads which only take about 10-15 minutes to prepare. My favourite place to get ideas for meal prep is from Bobby Parrish on flavcity.com He covers all the nutrition information in his recipes as well as reheating and storage instructions and time frames which is awesome. All the recipes I've tried from there have actually been delicious - My favourite is probably the chinese five spice chicken and quinoa fried rice. Didn't think I liked quinoa till I tried that recipe!

DaintyWhisper

I meal prep, but not in the sense of cooking all of my meals for the week in one day. I'm iffy about cooking meat/rice/pasta and keeping it in the fridge for a whole week. I prefer to eat it within a few days of cooking, even though most foods are technically safe for a week when stored right. When I get home from the store, I separate my meat into smaller portions in zip-lock bags and refrigerate/freeze it. That way it's already portioned out for when I need it. I cut certain veggies so they are ready to go. (Cucumber, onions, peppers, etc) I don't like some veggies sitting in the fridge too long, so I cut those when needed. (tomatoes, garlic) I boil my eggs to keep on hand for snacks and for salads. I shred my cheese.. I try to get all of the big prep stuff out of the way so when I'm ready to eat I just need to cook instead of prep and cook.

What kind of foods do you like to eat? It shouldn't taste thaaat bad! I typically eat pasta in meat sauce, tacos in lettuce wraps, chicken and rice, chicken quesadillas and chicken salads. I try to plan out my meals so I have to cook the time consuming parts less often. For instance, I'll cook three or four portions of chicken and keep it in the fridge. I'll also make a couple portions of rice. Then I'll use it for chicken salad tonight, chicken quesadillas tomorrow at lunch, and maybe chicken and rice burrito for dinner. I'll use the remaining rice for chicken and rice the following day. That way I don't need to cook raw chicken every time. Or make rice twice in 24 hours. It just needs reheating. I usually reheat in a skillet as opposed to a microwave. It's easier to add back flavor with a bit of butter/cooking spray and seasonings. This is what works for me. You just kind of have to get a feel and find what works for you.

Lounmoun

kurtisbakke wrote: »

What is everybody's process when planning meals for the week?

I spend way too much time in the kitchen every night. I usually make all my meals for the next day in one sitting so I spend ...eh ..about 1 1/2 hr every night cooking.

On top of that my meals are very boring (or gross) most of the time. Sometimes I swear I'm eating cat food.

Where do you get your recipes from. What is your order of operations when you plan for your week.

I generally plan 28 dinners at a time.
I make a list of meals on paper and separate it into 4 groups of 7. It can be helpful to have themes like soup, Asian food, slow cooker and then just find 4 things from each theme category to plug into each week. I have some examples in my blog here that I posted a couple of years ago. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/Lounmoun
I pick a set of meals for the week and cross them off as I have them.

I find food ideas on Pinterest a lot.
http://www.budgetbytes.com
http://www.skinnytaste.com
http://www.allrecipes.com
http://www.kalynskitchen.com/
http://www.ayearofslowcooking.com/

I cook every night but will use dinner leftovers for lunches.

Typically I eat things like this:
Breakfast- low prep foods like Greek yogurt, granola bars, cereal with milk, sandwich, dinner leftovers, fruit, cottage cheese (100-300 calories)
Lunch- things like sandwich, salad, or dinner leftovers (about 400 calories)
Dinner- something different every night of the month. Pretty ordinary stuff like soups, stir fry, casseroles, burgers, pasta most of the time but never gross. (about 500-600 calories)
Snacks- things like fruit, chips, popcorn, pretzels, chocolate, cookies, granola bar, carrots, celery, broccoli, trail mix, deviled eggs, pickles, cottage cheese (100-300 calories)

hroderick

we just signed up with platejoy.com. i think it will solve the problems you describe for us. but it is not free.

kommodevaran

My meal planning routines look pretty complicated written out like this, but in reality, it's easy and intuitive and works pretty much like clockwork, and its complexity has grown over time, without making it more difficult.

• The first principle to make this work, is to plan meals I like, food I actually want to eat.
• This means that I shop for ingredients I have a plan for, instead of shopping with good intentions, only to throw it out two weeks later.
• This leads to reduced cost, waste and guilt, and it increases my confidence and appreciation for good food.
• I don't use a lot of recipes. When I need a recipe, I google that specific recipe; when I need tips or inspiration, I google ingredient+meal.
• Most of my dinners are pretty basic - protein, starch, veg, but always balanced and delicious (taste, color, nutrition).
• I rotate my dinners through the week, by themes - M: soup or casserole, T: white meat, W: leftovers, T: fish, F: anything, S: fun, S: red meat. Every week is different.
• Breakfast and lunch is usually 2 crispbread with spread, milk, fresh fruit and munching vegetable. Sometimes porridge, or omelet, or salad, or noodles, or yogurt, or smoothie, or rye bread, or pita, or pie. Or anything. I like most foods.
• I plan my meals in a spreadsheet. How detailed and far in advance, depends on the situation; sometimes I just plan dinners, but three weeks ahead, sometimes I log part of breakfast and lunch for the upcoming week, sometimes I just jot down a preliminary idea, sometimes I'm specific.
• I'm flexible, so I use a range of approaches - what I want to eat, what I have on hand, what needs to be eaten, what's on sale, what was actually available in the store.
• I keep a running inventory of fridge, freezer and pantry. When I'm running out of or low on an essential, I write it down in my "watch list". When I stumble upon a great deal for a non-perishable staple, I stock up.
• I schedule grocery shopping; my main shopping days are usually Monday and Friday.
• I write down what I need for all the meals I'm going to make/eat until next shopping trip.
• For fresh foods: Whenever possible, I buy just the amount I can eat before next shopping trip, or when I have to buy a bigger item/pack, make sure I can eat it before it spoils.
• I alternate and rotate things like fresh fruit, munching vegetables and sandwich spreads.
• I look at my meal plan before I go to bed, and if necessary, make preps: soak grains or take out meat/fish/vegs to thaw in the fridge.

Cheesy567

1- inventory fridge and freezer to see what I have on hand and what to use up.

2- block in my schedule for the week- include “meals away from home” vs special fun meals out. Most of these are “meals away from home” and will need to fit in my macro goals. Some may be in restaurants, some may be foods I carry along. Looking at the schedule helps see if there are potentially stressful days that will be more likely to trigger hunger or unplanned eating— plan for your favorite, tastiest, easy meals those days.

3- look over my list of *favorite* recipes and meals to see what sounds good and fits with what I have on hand for the week. Pick something from the “recipes to try” list. Usually just one a week, keep it simple, right?

4- fill in which meals I want which days. However, they always end up tossed around by the end of the week. That’s how life goes.

5- build my shopping list as I look over recipes and plug in meals. Look for time- and energy-saving shortcuts that fit in the budget, like pre-chopped veggies and meats etc. Keep in mind frozen veggies are often pre-cut and can be subbed in most recipes.

Consider prepping and cooking twice the recipe and freezing it for a future meal. Same amount of work, if you pick the right recipe. Your future self will thank you.

mic1018

I do my meal planning in about an hour each week....I plan what to have for breakfast, lunch and dinner....although lunch is usually simple stuff like soup (make one big pot each week and keep in fridge)...or tuna salad with celery sticks, etc. For breakfast, and dinner, I only cook twice a week. For breakfast, our favorite is one large bag of thawed California Blend Veggies (Broccoli/Cauli/Carrots) sauteed in a bit of butter til hot. Add a handful of fresh greens (Spinach/Kale/Whatever). Saute a bit longer til greens are slightly wilted. Add 12 beaten eggs and scramble all together til eggs are almost set, but still slightly loose. Portion into 6 containers. Each day, add a bit of cheese if desired and microwave for 1-2 minutes til hot. (This cooking time will finish cooking the eggs so they do not become rubbery.) I like to add salsa or Sriracha before I eat mine. You can also add whatever spices you like...Italian, Greek, Mexican, etc. Takes about 10-15 minutes and you have 6 days of breakfast.

mic1018

For dinners, I usually make two different meals, and we eat each one for three days...but not in a row. I cook one meal on Monday night, and we eat it, then store the remainder in sectioned plates with lids for Wed and Fri. On Tuesday, I cook a different meal, which we eat and then store the remainder for Thur and Sat. Works great, and you only have to cook twice a week. I also make a large pot of soup each Monday and we eat that for lunches, snacks, etc. I use a lot of sheet pan recipes for our proteins, and I also roast a lot of fresh veggies by tossing them i a bit of olive oil and S&P. These reheat well and add variety. Also, use frozen veggies, but dress them up with cheese or spice blends for added flavor. Some of our recent dinners....Lemon Garlic Salmon with roasted asparagus and frozen veggie blend......Oven baked Italian Sausages(for my hubby who won't eat fish) with roasted asparagus and frozen veggie blend......Spicy Baked Chicken Legs with frozen broccoli and frozen green beans......Creamy Tuscan Garlic Shrimp with cauliflower rice and frozen broccoli