New job - how do those of you with busy households manage cooking good homemade meals most days?

[Raerae7]

Hey MNers,

I'm after some tips or tricks from busy people about how they fit in cooking good wholesome meals.

I have just got a new job and I'll be working shifts. This might be days (early, 6am to 2pm or late, 12pm to 8pm), or nights.

At the moment I work only on weekdays and only part time, and DP works weekdays in a 9-5, so me and DP try to make it so cook dinner together (particularly on weekends) or I cook whilst he washes up. We like good homemade food, we might have a supermarket pizza once a week or something, but usually we like to cook from scratch or at least have some components that are homemade and fresh. I have a condition that makes me experience fatigue, sometimes to the point that I sleep all day on a day off, so it's not uncommon for my partner to do the cooking and the washing up.

Now that I'll be working more hours and I won't have set days off like I do now, and since I will be working late shifts often (finishing at 8pm will mean I'll be home about 9pm), I'm going to have to be more organised with cooking meals.

I was thinking on days where I'm working a late shift, I could chuck stuff in the slow cooker before I go out to work, which will then be ready for DP to eat whenever he's ready and I can eat when I get home.

But slow cooker meals get a bit boring after a while so I'm after other ideas on how best to get meals sorted. I wondered if anyone has any ideas? Would be interested to see how busy people manage to fit in the cooking!

Thank you in advance.

Batch cooking at weekends is what makes it work for me. Your freezer is your friend. And sometimes it is beans on toast. It just is, and that is OK.

I plan the meals the week before, order the shopping to be delivered at the weekend and then put the recipe ingredients in it's own tupperware box in the fridge so I can just get home from work and grab one and cook without having to look for stuff.

Normally I either used Sunday roast leftovers to make Mondays dinner or pre make something on Sunday for Monday. Then I'd do one day something easy like pizza, one day slow cooker, one day freezer meal and the last day something quick - omelette, stir fry, beans on toast, just cook range, pasta dish.

Meal planning for the week ahead. I work (when not furloughed) 12 hour shifts followed by 6 hour shifts over the week f/t. So I tend to make enough for left overs on the days I'm working 12 plus hours. That way only veg needs to be cooked. Or we try to marinate and prep veg the night before as much as we can.

Pasta pesto and salad is a quick 15-20 mins meal. Even quicker if you use fresh pasta. Also fresh fish like basa, salmon or bass is very quick to cook and great with butter and herb new potatoes or even just with a salad or green veg. That's about 20-25 mins from raw to table.

Or I make a spag bol one night and turn the left over sauce into chilli by adding beans and seasoning. To be eaten with rice, wraps or in a pitta. Or I spilt the mince and make a small bolognese and use the other half to make a sheppards pie at the same time. Sheppards pie gets put together cooled, refrigerated and then baked the next night or night after. Or I might do honey garlic chicken and do a lasagna at the same time to be baked the following night.

I also do a batch of boiled eggs every couple of days and keep in the fridge so I can have them with a salad and ham.

Slow cooker for beef stews, stroganoff, Korean garlic chicken, curries, pulled pork/beef, sausage and bean casseroles.

Unfortunately, as a family of three I try to rotate the menus as much as poss but it can end up being very samey. I'm not a huge fan of freezing food as I think it's never the same and ends up being watery or rubbery.

I would just cook/prep something when you’re home. If you work 8-2, you have plenty of time in the afternoon, 2nd shift I’d cook dinner either in the morning (to pack to take with you) or use leftovers from night before. Days you aren’t home for dinner your partner sorts himself. You meal plan a week at a time and do some batch cooking.

In normal times, I work 3 long days (out of the house 6am to 7:30/8pm), plus normal hours the other days. Dh does all the school runs, homework and does all meals those days. If you don’t have children, that’s super easy. If you have children under food, you just have to make simpler meals.

I’d also aim to cook meals that last two days, so cook Monday and have the same again on Tuesday and so on.

Quick meals in week. I do 2 days, dh does 2 days, Friday is usually pasta and cheese or something quick. We have quick meals - spag bol, chilli, pork chops and wedges, chicken chorizo and rice, fajitas. Basically anything that can be done in less than an hr and chuck loads of veg (from freezer) in it or on the side

We don't really meal plan but cook double portions of dishes such as curry, sauce bolognese or dhal that can go in the fridge for a few days. That means that often there is something ready to eat that can be heated in the microwave if there is no time to cook. If that's not the case we make quick meals such as omelette or fried egg with green salad or tomato salad.

Mew plan and batch cooking. Some of the time we have on the weekends is spent in the kitchen and it’s quite enjoyable mostly to cook together and pack it away. You can also divide chores like cooking and hoovering as per preferences. I just make sure we are both putting in same hours into household work at roughly the same efficiency, because it’s recipe for resentment otherwise.

You need the Batch Lady!

Love her family recipes.

Preparation and a lot of freezer space. I don't spend hours batch cooking, but whenever I cook anything that can be frozen or used differently the next day, I make excess. So eg if we have mash with a roast, I do enough for topping a casserole or pie the next day, possibly potato cakes the day after. Or if I do chicken I might marinate, cook and freeze a load more so it can be pulled out and thrown in a naan or tortilla another day. As well as all the usual things like chilli, stews, sauces etc that freeze well.
We do occasionally use ready made sauces etc, and not averse to eating junk or buying preprepared occasionally. But the shortcuts I generally find quickest are things like frozen chopped onions and peppers, crushed garlic, ready made marinades etc.
I'd also advise finding the time of day you are most motivated to prepare food. We've got horses as well, so if I left it till dinner time I'd just want to throw a pizza in the oven, so I tend to prep as much as possible the night before or in the morning.

Thank you so much all, some brilliant suggestions here!

I don't have the freezer space for meal prepping, nor a working oven (loving living in rentals). I WFH and have shifts either 8am-6pm or 10am-8pm with one day off per week. My day off is taken up by a full cleaning of the house, laundry, other household bits etc, so I end up just cooking in the evening after work and make sure there's enough left for the next day. Not ideal but it's all I can do atm with a clingy 11 month old that hates sleeping!

Meal planning and batch cooking.

I always have something really easy for at least one evening a week - for example - jacket potatoes, beans on toast, pizza or omelette

Some evenings when I'm cooking I'll prep the veg for the next evening which means I can come home and cook straight away.

I'm a big fan of The Quick Roasting Tin recipe book - fast and easy meals cooked in one tin - what's not to like!

We don't mind eating the same thing two nights running so things like chicken pie/beef casserole/macaroni cheese will do two evenings - perhaps with different veg to ring the changes.

Do a Sunday roast and then Monday is strips of left over meat in a stir fry or risotto.
Batch cook and freeze some portions of tomato/onion/pepper sauce to use in chillis, pomodoros, arrabiatas, spag bol, pasta bake, pizza topping etc – it is so versatile.
Batch cook some curries too.
Do some very quick prep dinners a few times a week like sausages with roasted baby potatoes, roast carrots and steamed or boiled peas or broccoli. Or omelettes with sweet potato fries and salad. Or pasta with smoked salmon, herby cream cheese and peas.
Slow cooker dinner - curry or ghoulash or stew once a week or once a fortnight.
Do a tray bake once a week - chicken portions with skin on, rubbed with herbs or spices and roasted with chunks of veg, sometimes with a cup of wine or cider in the tray. Serve with crusty bread. You can get the veg pre chopped in the freezer section of the supermarket if you are really short on time or tired. Then you just have to toss it in a bit of garlic paste and oil, sprinkle with herbs or spice or seeds and the prep of the whole dinner takes about 5 minutes. You can get on with bath time or unwind while it cooks. I avoid things that need loads of faff and attention at the last minute.

Yes how are you off for freezer space? Just three of us as I’m widowed; if I make bolognese I make six weeks’ worth and 5 takeaway tubs go in the freezer. Freezer also contains home made cottage pies, chicken curry, lasagna, cheese sauce (to go wit steamed salmon), fish pies and a sauce I make to go on pizza dough. So homecooked meals all week but only one night/day where it takes more than 30 mins. Baked potatoes (started off in the microwave), omelette and fish and chips feature too