My family doesn’t have a “favorite meal” because we have too many different tastes to contend with. When the kids were younger, this contributed to my dislike of cooking. I already hated it, but it became amplified as a parent.
What I’ve determined that works best for me is meal prepping. The way I handle things now is to decide on 3 or 4 meals that I want to have during the next week. I plan out all the groceries I will need to make these meals and place my online order for the necessities.
After picking up my groceries, I don’t put anything away but start organizing the items according to the meals I’m going to make. For example, if I’m making spaghetti, chicken fried rice and beef enchiladas, I’ll get out 1 onion for each meal, chop all 3 onions at the same time and just portion them off to be used as needed. That way, I’m only having to chop onions one time instead of one time for each meal.
Next, I’ll prep the similar meats at the same time. If multiple meals require ground beef, I’ll brown all the meat at the same time and again, separate it after cooking.
My last step is to put everything together. I separate each meal into individual portions and as each meal I make has 3 or 4 servings, by the time I’m done, I’ll have about 12-16 meals for the week. I love doing this because it prevents the dreaded time of the night when I would have to figure out “What should we eat tonight?” Now – if someone asks “What is for dinner?” I can tell them – you have the choice of this, that or the other thing and they can make the decision on what sounds good for the night.
I should also mention, that when deciding what to make for the week, I put out a poll to any kids living at home, asking them to pick 1 or 2 meals that they would like me to make. Again – this eliminates me having to make the decision on what I’m making each night.
One last favorite meal prep thing I love to do is freezer dump meals. These are meals that you put together and place in the freezer and when you are ready to use them, simply dump the contents in the crock pot and walah – dinner is ready.
I’ve definitely come a long way in my cooking habits. I used to say that I’m not a good cook, but I’ve revised that to say – I’m a good cook, I just don’t like to cook!
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WOW….such organization! When my children were young I use to make many meals when I came home from the store also. Saved a lot of time!
Marilea – I wish I had been this organized when my kids were younger – but with how picky they were – it probably wouldn’t have helped me much! LOL!