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Post by meeko77 on Aug 27, 2014 23:36:34 GMT
Yeah, I know, super exciting topic, but this chic seriously has got to start cooking at home more often. So, having said that, I am looking to make menu planning easier by having "themes" to make it easier to decide what to cook. So far I have made these:
Grill night
Meatless night
Soup, salad, or wrap night
"Pizza or pasta" night (including low carb or gluten free types)
Mexican night
(because I could eat Mexican every day)
Casserole, crockpot, or oven meal night
Leftovers, take out, or date night
Does anyone else have any ideas? I am seriously struggling here.
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marianne
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Post by marianne on Aug 27, 2014 23:49:02 GMT
Do you ever have breakfast for dinner? Any combination of pancakes, waffles, bacon, sausage, eggs, home fries, french toast... makes for an easy meal.
eta: or oriental/Asian night - stir fry, fried rice, sweet & sour chicken or pork...
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Post by meeko77 on Aug 28, 2014 0:04:32 GMT
Thanks. Those are both great ideas as well.
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Post by pmm on Aug 28, 2014 0:47:22 GMT
When I was an avid menu planner I did Sunday-beef; Monday-pork; Tuesday-chicken; Wednesday-beef; Thursday-chicken; Friday-pizza/pasta/soup/salad; Saturday-chicken.
It worked for me and I had a paper calendar that I used to plan the whole month out at a time. This way I could see if I was having something to frequently.
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LeaP
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Post by LeaP on Aug 28, 2014 1:09:31 GMT
My latest idea is to do an ethnicity for five days in a row. I like to cook all types of food but the vegetables are a challenge because what you use for one cuisine does not necessarily match another. So I am thinking of Italian, American, Mexican, Asian (without ketchup ; ). Doing it this way, I can shop for the cooking block and then spend the week using the perishables.
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johnnysmom
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Post by johnnysmom on Aug 28, 2014 1:16:59 GMT
I don't now (though I really should get back on that bandwagon), but I have before. Can't remember then all, but I had a "big meal" (usually Sunday), "crockpot" (ball practice night), leftovers (another ball practice night), soup/salad/sandwiches (usually Friday) and my favorite....out to eat night  |
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Post by freecharlie on Aug 28, 2014 1:55:15 GMT
I've never done themes. I look at what is in our freezer (we buy a side of beef and half pig at a time) and make a menu from it. If we are low on meat, I check and see what is on sale.
Honestly, all the extracurriculars and DH's schedule sometimes makes it near impossible to cook.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 28, 2014 1:57:32 GMT
We do themes for extended family getogethers. Recently we did crockpot night and before that baseball park food night. And comfort food night.
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Post by AussieMeg on Aug 28, 2014 5:05:49 GMT
I think it's a great idea to do themes. My menu planning is just making sure I don't have chicken or pasta or red meat 2 nights in a row. Other than that there is no real theme as such. Oh, and one of my favorite themes would definitely be Breakfast for Dinner!  |
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Post by magentapea on Aug 28, 2014 11:24:20 GMT
I did for a while and am going to start up again next week. Our themes are:
Meatless Monday
Travel the World Tuesday (some type of ethnic foods)
Wacky Wednesday (we try a new recipe - could be a main dish, side, or dessert)
Slow Cooker Thursday
Family Favorites Friday (a tried and true recipe)
Anything goes Saturday and Sunday (leftovers, sandwiches, going out to eat, cereal, lasagna, whatever)
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Post by Linda on Aug 28, 2014 13:12:42 GMT
I have a rough theme but not super specific.
Saturday - crockpot if it's a busy weekend or a recipe with a bit more prep than usual if not
Sunday - UK food - either a Sunday roast or cottage pie or something else that takes 2-3 hours of prep/cook time - last week it was beef and ale pie.
Monday - chicken
Tuesday - sausage
Wednesday - varies -it might be a new recipe, it might be breakfast for dinner, it might be something tried and true
Thursday - my son cooks
Friday - fish
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Post by shevy on Aug 28, 2014 13:16:40 GMT
I'd be happy to do a week of a certain kind of food; DH on the other hand gets bored with the same flavors.
What's worked for us, is that I have on hand enough for 6 meals a week. I list the meals on the board in the kitchen and when it comes time to cook we decide what to have that night. I try to mix it up for one meatless meal, one beef meal, one fish meal, one chicken meal and one pasta meal.
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Post by Miss Ang on Aug 28, 2014 14:10:57 GMT
I don't do themes. I plan around what I have in my pantry and try to avoid making two similar meals back to back or even in the same week. For example, I don't make lasagna and spaghetti in the same week.
Sometimes we have breakfast for dinner, but not because it's a theme and we don't do it on the same day each week, it's just whatever fits in the schedule.
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Post by meeko77 on Aug 28, 2014 15:23:59 GMT
Thanks everyone. As far as the breakfast for dinner theme, I wish I was good at making omelets. I always end up messing them up.
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LeaP
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Post by LeaP on Aug 28, 2014 15:43:41 GMT
Thanks everyone. As far as the breakfast for dinner theme, I wish I was good at making omelets. I always end up messing them up. Try a scramble: brown onions, add peppers and sauté for a minute, then add ham. Lower the burner's temperature, add the eggs and scramble gently. Top with cheese if you like. |
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Post by stampbooker on Aug 28, 2014 16:45:24 GMT
My latest idea is to do an ethnicity for five days in a row. I like to cook all types of food but the vegetables are a challenge because what you use for one cuisine does not necessarily match another. So I am thinking of Italian, American, Mexican, Asian (without ketchup ; ). Doing it this way, I can shop for the cooking block and then spend the week using the perishables. "Who eats Chines food 2 days in a row?" "One billion Chinese people." That's a quote from the show "Mad About You". Haha |
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Post by Miss Ang on Aug 28, 2014 16:46:37 GMT
My latest idea is to do an ethnicity for five days in a row. I like to cook all types of food but the vegetables are a challenge because what you use for one cuisine does not necessarily match another. So I am thinking of Italian, American, Mexican, Asian (without ketchup ; ). Doing it this way, I can shop for the cooking block and then spend the week using the perishables. "Who eats Chines food 2 days in a row?" "One billion Chinese people." That's a quote from the show "Mad About You". Haha Man, I love that show!  |
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basketdiva
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Post by basketdiva on Aug 28, 2014 17:01:29 GMT
When I was an avid menu planner I did Sunday-beef; Monday-pork; Tuesday-chicken; Wednesday-beef; Thursday-chicken; Friday-pizza/pasta/soup/salad; Saturday-chicken. It worked for me and I had a paper calendar that I used to plan the whole month out at a time. This way I could see if I was having something to frequently. My husband's Mom used to meal plan that way too. As a newly-wed, I was nicely asked not to serve chicken on Thursday since that's what he had every Thursday growing up. Now it doesn't matter since we eat a lot more chicken than beef. |
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Post by Annie on Aug 28, 2014 19:31:01 GMT
I'm trying to. Still trying to tweak it though. After reading the thread about international food, I've realized I need to add a night for that on the line up. So I've got Fajitas, beans and rice, soup, international, and salad. I'm gone weekends, so having 5 theme nights should be more than plenty for me
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Post by SabrinaM on Aug 28, 2014 20:35:27 GMT
I don't do themes. I look at the store ads and stock up on what is on sale and plan meals around that.
We cooked on the grill 4-5 nights a week this summer. I'm ready to start making soups this fall! I'm also planning to get a pressure cooker. There are tons of PC recipes on Pinterest.
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Post by Dori~Mama~Bear on Aug 28, 2014 21:07:22 GMT
We do this all the time.
We have
Pizza night where we get dough from a local pizza place bring it home and make our own pizzas.
Mexican night where we will start off with chips and salsa before dinner and then go for the tacos or taco salad. Tonight we are doing nacho night. We will warm up the taco meat we made the other night, heat some refried beans, put all the topping on the counter and we will each make a plate the way we want to.
Pasta night Usually is a pasta dish with salad and bread (I have gotten tot he point I really don't enjoy the bread as much any more)
Left over night Where we each pick a left over to eat. if it is pasta, tacos, salad, or what ever else is in the fridge. This is my daughters favorite night.
We do steak night, usually steak is grilled, salad, veggie or potatos
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