How many different meals do you cook?

[meredithgrey1]

Not sure whether DH and I are unusual in this respect or not.
We have about 10 meals we rotate through but realistically probably 4 of those aren't done regularly so we generally eat the same six meals, with perhaps slight alterations.
This seems like a really low number to me - 6 regular meals, 4 less regular and a few very occasional meals that are done quite rarely. They are all home cooked which makes me feel a bit better but DD is 8 months and I'd like to have a bit more variety as she grows up. I am a decent cook, just can't be arsed thinking up different things so tend to revert to the same ones.
How many meals do other people cook on a regular basis?

Oh god ours will be really low as DP is incredibly picky so no fish, no veg that isn’t broccoli or green beans, nothing too exotic etc etc etc. He also eats pasta every day for his lunch so I try not to repeat it at dinner. To be fair to him he will try things if I convince him he’ll like it but it’s often more effort than it’s worth. I blame his mother for bringing him up on a diet of nuggets and chips.

Fajitas
Spaghetti bolognaise
Shepherds pie
Chicken curry
Meatball curry
Steak
Pizza
Roast

You’ve all inspired me to try harder and be more adventurous this week.

I make new one off recipes pretty regularly, but have maybe 20-odd that I repeat regularly. I love to cook though, and also get a weekly veg box with random stuff in that I have to find ways to use up!

Weekly meals -
Sphag Bol/pasta and mince
Roast (or bbq in summer)
Oven chips and something

More regular meals
Stir fry
Shepherd pie
Toad in hole
Pastie or pie
Pizza
Hot dogs
Chicken - cooked in oven
Stew
Chicken casserole
Sausage and mash
Jacket potato

Less regular
Steak
Chops
Paella/risotto
Chinese takeaway

Actually,, not a lot either

Probably About10 and I hate them all. Only half joking

I never make the exact same thing twice. I always change things slightly, if the kids request a specific repeat, then I usually add a different sauce or side dish, or at a push even just a condiment! I get so bored cooking the same kinds of things that I find myself tweaking things. I have never made the same Bolognese twice, for instance. One week I might use beef mince, another beef and pork mince, the next turkey mince. I'll use red onions sometimes, white onions others. Add some tiny bits of streaky bacon, or some celery and carrots, or some peppers and mushrooms, extra garlic, some fresh tomatoes, some Worcester sauce, some red wine. I taste it as I go and add extra bits, some basil perhaps or black pepper, a little bit of sugar or salt, a pinch of chilli powder maybe or some balsamic vinegar. Then the next time I'll chose to follow a recipe exactly to see how that comes out. Even if I use a jar sauce like Dolmio I usually add things. I am definitely not one of those people who is a creature of habit though. I am creative and curious and excitable and innovative, but also get bored easily and am prone to anxiety, insomnia and overthinking. Sometimes I wish I could just find a pattern that works instead of changing things all the time, I thought that continuity like that might reduce my food bills or make my kids more routine orientated people, so I am always trying to fight that part of my nature. To form patterns and routines and improve my self discipline, instead of always going off piste, but ultimately it is who I am and my personality, so that comes out in my food. We dip into a variety of cultures, and eat all manor of healthy and unhealthy creations, most of which are delicious with the occasional Oops (that's more with baking than general cooking though). I would love to be one of those people who always wears a certain perfume, or shade of lipstick, cooks an amazing Coq Au Vin and always drinks Gin and Tonic, but I'm not made that way. I'm the one trying out the new styles and new flavours and experimenting. I always want the limited edition shiny whatever. I'm like a magpie to newness. A capitalists dream, no Matter how much I try not to be!

We don't often eat the same thing twice. I am always trying new recipes but I really enjoy cooking and experimenting with different flavours. My DH also tries new recipes a lot.

hmm if I just think about the past month, we had the same meal once or twice I think? I love to try out new things.

This was us, until I decided enough was enough.
I spent a lovely afternoon going through all my cookbooks, writing down recipes that looked good and fairly simple. Then I use that list to write out 2 weeks of meal plans at a time, at least one fish dish,one veggie dish, one slower cooker dish every week.

We haven't had a repeat meal since Jan 1st.

Not everything had gone down well but it's been fun.

Well let's have a go:
Spag bol
Carbonara
Pasta bake
Lasagne
Meatballs and pasta
Chickeny cheese pasta bake
Macaroni cheese
Pasta, chick, wine, sun droedntoms, basil, creme fraiche
Pasta, roast toms, olives, mozz, basil

Roast chicken
Lemony curried chick with spinach
Curried cold chicken
Chicken salad with tarragon and grapes
Chick thighs with garlic, lemon and paprika
Chicken with tom, olives, wine, herbs
Chicken breasts stuffed with mozz, basil leaf and wrapped in proscuitto
Chicken cass with carrots, mush, etc
Chicken kievs
Chicken with mush, wh wine and cheese with a little cream
Chicken one pot with green olives, chorizo and rice
Chick breasts with chi ky gravy, shallot, cranberry and a few mushrooms

I haven't even started on beef, pork, lamb, mince, fish and veggie dishes

What are the 10 op?

I wrote a list of 28 receipts that I know and broke them down to 4 weeks trying to vary the types of meals and something a bit more time consuming etc for each weekend as I was sick to the back teeth of eating the same things over and over again.

Now I have a 4 week rotation so I rarely eat the same thing twice in a month, I don't need to worry about what's for dinner that night. I know exactly what I'm getting from the supermarket and if I don't fancy something particular that night I can swap it about with something else that week

We get those recipe boxes from Gousto so, loads - whatever comes in that.

-Veggie curry - various recipes and various veg/pulses
-Fish curry
-Paneer tikka thingy with veggies and rice

• Veggie fajitas

-Salmon fillets, parsley sauce, mash and veg (or same with fishcakes) -Veggie sausage casserole - the Tesco recipe that was on an advert recently, it’s so nice

• Veggie sausages with mash, onion gravy and veg

-Lentil cottage pie - Mary Berry recipe -Various homemade soups, occasionally with homemade bread rolls -Veggie pasta bake (sometimes veggie lasagne but essentially the same I guess) -Another pasta thing with roasted veg and feta

• Seafood pasta - though gone off this since being pregnant so not had for a while

-Poached cod with tomato and saffron - usually serve with rice -Flatbreads and salad with some combination of falafel, hummus, tzatziki, haloumi, avocado etc - not so much a recipe as bunging stuff together - occasionally I make the hummus myself but not always

• Risotto - made with whatever we have in/needs using
• Stir-fry/ fried rice - various
• Spanish omelette or frittata of some kind
• Cheese and onion pie, either with chips and peas or roast potatoes and veg
• Fish done in foil parcel with soy, ginger, chilli, lime - served with rice or noodles and stir fry veg
• Courgette and tomato bake
• Homemade pizzas
• Veggie burgers, wedges and salad

Lots of less regular ones and one offs and do try to try something new most weeks - usually at the weekend.

That’s all interspersed with some very basic ones like jacket potatoes with some filling, or fishfingers which have been a bit of a pregnancy craving of mine. Im not against egg or beans on toast for a quick easy dinner some nights either, and I’m not particularly precious about everything being homemade so I quite like a higgidy quiche or supermarket curry when needs must.

@meredithgrey1 some people say that ordering recipe boxes (like hello fresh, gousto, etc) helped them break the usual routine. You can just go for one box from each company, they all offer decent discounts on your first box.

I do a new recipe at least once a week....I don't use recipe books, just online...usually BBC good food, olive and Delicious. I have a core of about 30 favourites. 90% veggie.

Simply Cook definitely is an easy way to get out of a rut. Their meals are easy but high flavour.

We have a lot of variety as all 3 of us cook and we all tend to make different things. We usually make a couple of new recipes each week and the best ones make it into the recipe file for future use.

I'm liking the Leon one pot book, their curry book and the Roasting tin books at the moment.

I get fed up if there is a lot of repetition of meals and we all enjoy trying new recipes.

Me and DH are vegetarian. We have quite a lot of different recipes, never counted them.

Off the top of my head this is the ones I can think of:

Veggie toad in the hole
Sausage, mash and onions
Sausage casserole
Sausage and bean bake (like shepherds pie)
Egg and lentil curry
Egg and chips
Shakshuka
Omelette and jacket potato
Vegetable chilli
Black bean and sweet potato chilli
Lentil chilli
Lentil bolognaise
Vegetable lasagne
Lentil lasagne
Mushroom and spinach lasagne
Stir fry and noodles
Stew
Chickpea and spinach curry
Cauliflower curry
Potato and spinach curry
Paneer curry
Aubergine and coconut curry
Mushroom curry
Paneer tikka
Vegetable pies
Spicy chickpea pasties
Quiche
Lentil and courgette fritters
Cauliflower souffle
Cheese souffle
Bolognaise pasta bake
Leek and mushroom pasta bake
Cauliflower cheese
Cauliflower and brocolli cheese
Macaroni cheese
Pizza
Goats cheese and caramelised red onion tarts
Nut roast
Nut burgers
Black bean burgers
Chickpea burgers
Meatballs and spaghetti
Vegetable and lentil shepherds pie
Ratatouille
Mushroom stroganoff
Mushroom risotto
Asparagus and pea risotto
Beetroot risotto
Beetroot and goats cheese tarts
Onion tart
Potato cakes with poached eggs (either ordinary potatoes or sweet)
Mushroom wellington
Fajitas
Enchilada pie
Fried halloumi and chips
Vegetable skewers and rice
Spicy black bean tacos

Very rarely have the same meal twice.

Exceptions being the obvious “themes” like roast dinner, lasagne etc. But we still change the details, like the type of roast meat, the type of sauce or gravy, the trimmings and way of cooking the vegetables change each time. And the lasagne can be meaty, veggie, white, served with different salads, green vegetables, and so on.

We just cook! So many things to choose from.

That must be really dull (sorry). I love food, and different tastes, so 6 regular recipes would be terribly boring.

I try 2 or 3 new recipes every week, there are so many online resources available. Never have the same meal in the same month, so probably have 50 or 60 that i make regularly, another 40 or 50 I make every few months.

Curries, spag bol, shepherds pie, sausage and mash, meatballs, chicken alfredo, beef stew, chicken stew, chicken noodle soup, mince stew and dumplings, sweet chilli chicken salad and chips, fry up, chilli con carne, fajitas, chicken pie, steak, pulled pork and nachos, cheesy bacon pasta, lasagne, roast dinners, pork and apple baguettes, Macaroni cheese, burgers and wedges, pork chops and mash, stir fry and pak choi, omelette and chips, chicken and salsa wraps, sausage casserole, pizzas, salmon and veg.

Around 30/35. They are generally the meals I work my way through at the top of my head, some occur more than others. Obviously served with some sort of veg/salad/halloumi etc. I like cooking and try to find new recipes but tbh if it were down to me I probably would rotate the same 5 meals every week.

More than I can count. I don’t keep a tally. But I’m a very adventurous cook and get bored with the same thing repeated too often. I do have a few fall backs for when times are busy.

That must be really dull (sorry).

No need to apologise. Even though I'd say I'm a good cook and I really like baking, DH and I aren't too fussed about food really - as in, we're not big "foodies". So I honestly don't get bored. It's more that it's come to the forefront of my mind while weaning DD and wanting her to have more variety as she grows up.

Place marking for new ideas.

Chicken pathia
Satay chicken
Sweet & sour chicken
Chicken fajitas
Beef burritos
Pulled pork in BBQ sauce with wedges
Hoi sin duck pancakes
Salt n pepper chicken
Lasagne
Spaghetti bolognese
Keema curry
Thai green curry
Thai sweet potato & pineapple curry
Salmon tray bake with lemon & honey
Blackened chicken with cous cous
Fish pie
Pesto cod
Sesame glazed salmon
Sausage & Mash
Pork meatballs & spaghetti
Lemon & broad bean risotto
Tortellini soup
Pea & ham soup
Mixed bean chilli
Spanish omelette
Lentil & potato hash
Lentil and chickpea curry
Lamb tagine
Lamb fakeaway kebab with pitta
Fish goujons and homemade chips
Falafel with flatbead & humous
Vegetable (kidney bean) burgers
Home made burgers & relish
Spaghetti carbonara
Roasted vegetable lasagne
Chicken parmigiano
Chicken & chorizo jambalaya
Dirty rice
Root vegetable casserole
Beef & ale casserole
Salmon & broccoli quiche
Goats cheese & onion tart
Gammon, egg and chips
Paprika pork
Halloumi wraps
Stuffed peppers
Chicken ramen
Chicken pie
Chicken Katsu Curry
Beef Penang Curry
Cheese & potato pasties
Shepherds pie

Just me and DD6 who is only with me just over half the time.
She is quite fussy so prefers things like cottage pie & veg, bolognaise - with pasta or as a lasagne, meat/sausages with mash veg & gravy, jacket potato with tuna & sweet corn or cheesy beans, fish pie, scampi & chips, fish & chips, pizza.
When she isn't with me I cook things that I can get reduced/on offer so use the slow cooker & cheaper cuts of meat and just chuck things together when I can be bothered - otherwise I grab a previously cooked meal from the freezer.
Actually reading that back, I have quite a wide repertoire actually and while I don't often follow recipes per Se, I love looking through cook books for ideas & inspiration.

I just wrote all mine down...more than I thought!

Breakfast
Breakfast wraps
Tofurkey sausage sandwich
Vivera and avo sandwich
Mashed avo on toast with seeds
Scrambled tofu on toast
Mushrooms on toast
Add avo/spicach/tomatos
Porridge with seeds and maple syrup
Overnight oats with fruit

Other
Orzo/broccoli/fennel stew
Vivera butter bean/cabbage/rice
Risotto
Spicey tofu and rice, chickpea pancakes
Green vegetable pasta
Spicey sausage and tomato pasta
Sri lankan curry
Meatless sausages with lemon veg and spicey tomato couscous
Tofu paneer with rice
Home made pizza
Puff pastry pizza
Celaric Steak salsa verde, cous cous
Samosa
Cornish pasty
Roast vegetable salad and crusty bread
Soya chilli/spag bog
Putenesca
Mushroom and ale pie
Veggie salad and wild rice bowl
Vegetable and hummus pita
Veggie fajita