to wonder how working parents feed their families?

[Bonnie152]

Just interested in what others do really.

I went back to work in April and since then have really struggled with evening meals. My DC are 1 and 3 and by the time we get home at 5:30 they are very tired and hungry. It's a case of drop bags and make food. DH and I are starting to reach for the same old meals which aren't as fresh and nutritionally balanced as we would like (think pasta and pesto, egg and beans or grabbing chips on the way home from work, etc).

We like to sit down and eat with them as we've all been out of the house since around 7am and it's the only bit of time we get with them until bedtime routine at about 7 (and yes I do feel hugely guilty but that's another story!)

The main problems are having to feed them as soon as we get home and not having a bank of quick, tasty and healthy meals. How do other working parents manage with such young DC? I welcome any advice, recipes and tips for how you have smooth meal times on work days!

[Forgetmenotblue]

I just use Tupperware style containers and freeze in portions for two people. I can get out one or two boxes as needed in the morning and then boil the spag when I get in from work.

I don't cook all weekend but every time I am 'at the cooker' eg making Sunday lunch, I make another meal at the same time, usually mince-based (lasagne freezes really well, chop up into portions before you freeze it in separate plastic bags or boxes), or roasting vegetables to blitz to go on pasta.

It works out that when I do Sunday lunch, I also cook for Mon and Tuesday, bag it up and freeze it. On Wednesday I do the same for Thursday and Friday. Saturday is variable possibly a take away or freezer tea (frozen fish, chips, beans).

[nonicknameseemsavailable]

I only work part time but we spend a lot of our after school time out at activities so have problems with preparing dinner. We invariably on the 3 days a week we do that have jacket potatoes which I put in on the oven timer (electric oven so can set start and finish times) and usually a roast (chicken/pork/beef) or casserole as I can put them on for the same amount of time in the oven and the potatoes don't end up TOO overcooked. Now I am lucky in that I can put this all in the oven about 3:30 during the dash home from school before going out so it isn't sat in the oven/out of the fridge all day, only for about 40mins so safe to do. In your position I think I would investigate slow cookers. You could prepare the veg or whatever the night before and then just put the meat in and turn it on or whatever you do with a slow cooker in the morning before you go out. when you come in it should then just be a case of serving it.

[JuanTime]

Don't recognise the description of batch cooking stealing the weekend precious time.not if done properly.i cook 1 a month,enough meals for the month.i haven't felt I lost time or felt I sacrificed weekend to batch cooking. As a system it works for us as a family.
In an hour and half I have cooked lasagne,chilli.mash,sausage,pasta sauce
Essentially same core veg to be chopped but each meal seasoned accordingly eg add cumin and kidney beans it's chilli, or basil and tomato it's spag Bol
Compared to 20-30 min start from scratch when I get home

[Dontyoulovecalpol]

Juan how do you book 20 meals (for 4 people?) in 1.5 hours?!

I batch cooked when pregnant. It was a whole morning and that was to get about 10 meals, mainly "sloppy" meals like spag Bol or curry. I was fed up with slop after a week

[rosy71]

Mine always had a hot meal a midday & tea at nursery at that age. They then had toast, fruit & milk when then got in. Now they have a cooked dinner at school, a sandwich or something similar at after-school club & then pizza/chicken nuggets/sausages & pasta when they get in.

[rosy71]

Mine always had a hot meal a midday & tea at nursery at that age. They then had toast, fruit & milk when then got in. Now they have a cooked dinner at school, a sandwich or something similar at after-school club & then pizza/chicken nuggets/sausages & pasta when they get in.

[JuanTime]

4ring hob for the pot dinners and lasagne in oven, sausages in a dish,add batter to make toad in hole. steam the mash above a boiling pot. Steam veg over the other boiling pots
Line up bags or tubs,portion up.when cool pop on freezer
It all cooks,simmers,steams and lasagne and sausage is in oven

So loads on go at one time,but Seriously,I'm done in 90min

[Dontyoulovecalpol]

But you've missed out the entire process of ie making the lasagne

[JuanTime]

I forgot to add, salmon or any fish cooked in foil in oven dish or in foil to steam in oven
Tortilla baked in oven

[justwondering72]

Instead of all the batch cooking / freezing / etc, you could change your routine..here in France working families rarely get home before 7pm and don't eat until 8pm. The key difference is that all children aged up to 5yrs are expected to nap in the afternoon and have a substantial snack around 4pm. Which sees them through till bedtime at 9pm - ish.

[JuanTime]

Make lasagne,I open a packet of dried stuff?im not that worthy

[JuanTime]

I want the kids fed in bed by 8 so I can have a semblance of conversation and Netflix.no late teas for us

[Mycraneisfixed]

From all the info on here the secret is to be very organised. It gets easier with practise. So long as they're fed and don't feel hungry going to bed you're doing fine. Nothing wrong with the occasional frozen ready meal.

[JuanTime]

Completely agree!
Do what works,it's food prep not boot camp

[Dixiechickonhols]

slow cooked wonders group on facebook is good for ideas

[kateandme]

big batch of mince on sunday.put half in fridge half in freezer.then for the week you can top with potatos.mashed or sliced.top with garlic bread and oven bake.bolognase.nachos.mince on toast.tacos.buritos.mix through chilli or not.lasagne.
do you have oven cooker with timer.in the moring prep some salmon in some foil with veggies and a pour over dressing or glaze.set oven to turn on?or is still quick for if you get home.put some fish in baking paper with liced sweet potato.and slection of veg wrap en papiotte style.microwave for 11 minutes.serve with a sauce.
sunday roast chicken.by two. then you've got bits for a pasta meal. chicken and ham in white sauce and rice.curry.intersperce this with the batch mince.

[GlindatheFairy]

"Batch cook at the weekend". Enough of the weekend involves food preparation as it is, aaargh!

When mine were little they got quite a lot of Little Dish meals, with some extra veg on the side. They would eat at the childminder's but she didn't provide the food so they would have what we had the previous evening or Little Dish.

[JuanTime]

What is little dish meal?is that you serving a small portion

[GlindatheFairy]

Something like salmon steak, jacket potato and veg is very quick too.

[FeelingSmurfy]

Quick and easy meals for us are

Quesadillas - top a tortilla with cheese and any other random things you want, top with another tortilla and put in a dry frying pan. Put a plate or something on top to weigh it down, turn after a few minutes. Serve cut into triangles with cucumber, tomato etc

Omelette - cheese Omelette with onion/mushrooms/tomato whatever is in the fridge thrown in

When I do beans I always cut a tomato up and warm in pan for 1 minute first, add the beans and cook through. Makes them that little bit healthier and it's cheaper too because

Make your own tortilla night (probably best to do it yourself though considering ages) where tortillas, cheese, salad, dips etc are put out and everyone helps themselves and makes their own. Goes down well because everyone tailors it to their own taste

Muffin pizzas - cut muffins in half, bit of tomato puree then cheese and sweetcorn/tomato/spring onion/pineapple etc and stick in oven for 5 minutes, serve with carrot sticks, cucumber etc

Plus the normal beans on toast, egg on toast, tin of soup etc

[GlindatheFairy]

It's a brand of ready meal for kids. DDs favourites were pasta with cheese and broccolli trees and there was a chicken "pie" one with a mashed potato top if I remember correctly.

[Lurkedforever1]

I only ever batch cooked stuff I was making anyway, rather than several different meals at once. There's only a handful of meals I think taste just as good after freezing, and I never fancied the idea of adding batch cooking to a list of weekly tasks. What I always did was just prep the next days dinner the night before when dd was in bed. Gives you far more variety too. Still do the same now just because I generally don't fancy walking in through the door and immediately starting cooking.

[Dontyoulovecalpol]

Little dish are child's microwave meals but they are only made from the same ingredient you'd cook from scratch with- like the fish pie is just fish milk flour potato cheese.

Juan- by make the lasagne I meant make the white sauce and the tomato sauce. That's the time consuming bit, not dried pasta and frying mince!

[JuanTime]

Thanks,never heard of brand I just goggled it.i already make that type of stuff for the kids and reheat in microwave when I get in.