To ask for your ultimate life hacks/time saving ideas/easiest recipes/money saving tips all in one go.

[shakeituntilyoumakeit]

I’ve been unwell and off work for a money and the combination of getting back on my feet and January and kids and school and washing and ALL OF THE THINGS to be a bit much at the moment and need some ideas on how to make life easier.

I’ve just started making overnight oats for everyone which is very cheap, very quick, vegan, a nice kids activity for them to learn to chop fruit and pick what they want and thought of the time I could have saved over the years. This combined with the fact it’s really healthy and it’s a nice activity to do with the kids made me want to reach out for hive mind collective wisdom.

What am I missing! I’m looking for your smuggest tips!

I've also switched from buying plain black socks to buying socks which have a pattern, which really helps the dreaded task of "pairing the socks" after they've been washed in my house! It is my most hated job, it's tedious and time consuming when they're all the same colour, but different...

@TheDarkPassenger I love my chest freezer, and have a list of what I've made each month on the top of it, everytime something is removed, I score it off the list, so I know at a glance what's available.

so minor but:

stack baked bean tins upside down. So much easier to plop it all out into the saucepan!

If I'm cooking something in the oven, I stick half a dozen jacket potatoes in the bottom. Once they are cool, freeze them then just ping them for 4-5 minutes from frozen as and when.

@ironicname "My hack is to give less of a shit, it's makes almost everything less stressful."

Yes, in an ideal world I would love this, but I have OCD, which is awful despite taking medication, and I'm physically disabled, so I need to be organised incase the latter results in a hospital admission, because it would make the former unbearable if I couldn't know that things were completely out of control at home. Thankfully I have a very understanding and tolerant husband, who knows that things must be done in a certain way, although I'm sure left completely to his own devices, he wouldn't do things the way I need them to be done.

I chuck jacket potatoes in the oven when I'm cooking other stuff (lasagne etc)

I pop each one in a Tupperware pot, cut down the middle and put beans and cheese in. Then into the freezer.

Decent work lunch - just take one out of the freezer the night before and microwave at work

*unbearable if I couldn't know/that things were completely out of control at home.

retro my DS just wears mismatching socks. He's not at all fussed about pairing them.

@Sal1977 ooh yes we do this too!! Youngest DD would eat jacket Potatoes for every meal if she could so it's really handy to have them to hand and quick to cook for a fast lunch or if she doesn't like the evening meal.

@Retroflex

I feel like that has won the hack thread hands down!
Will 100% be doing this!!

I chuck jacket potatoes in the oven when I'm cooking other stuff (lasagne etc)

I pop each one in a Tupperware pot, cut down the middle and put beans and cheese in. Then into the freezer.

Decent work lunch - just take one out of the freezer the night before and microwave at work

that is genius!

I've never heard of jacket potatoes in the freezer - I feel so happy to have read this thread!

Why hasn't anyone ever mentioned this before?

The men in my house have about ten pairs each of the same socks: DH has pain black, DS1 has various dinosaurs on his etc. They just get given their socks; pairing is up to them. DS2’s are black with stealth coloured heels and toes. He wears odd ones every day as a tiny rebellion.

Baked potatoes only take 5 minutes in the microwave anyway. Why would you cook them, freeze them and then put them in the microwave? That’s the complete opposite of a time saver.

@brassbrass my husband makes a point of wearing odd socks! It really bothers me!

I’ve given up on cosmetics bags...I use a plastic zip lock bag-great when travelling ..teeth things in one..make up in another..jewellery in another
When home pop back into drawers..
I even take a bag full of my home made gluten free oat muesli to get us started when we reach our destination. Played a blinder there as i couldn’t get gf oats at nearest supermarket..only health store..kept us going till we got to health store

@TinklyLittleLaugh that's how it starts! Next thing you know he'll be in his 40's,with children of his own doing it to rebel against his wife!

I don't pair socks or gloves. As long as I have one of each then I don't care about pattern/colour. Saves loads of time and means you never have odd socks after laundry (cos they're all odd)

If I have 5 minutes to spare, I do a mug-sweep and wash them (there are always dirty mugs).

Bought a cheap robot hoover and run him whilst I'm tidying - then I have to 'race' to clear up before he reaches where I am.

Fill the kettle and grind coffee beans before bed

@TinklyLittleLaugh basically because if you microwave a spud from raw you get a soggy, soft, wrinkly skin.

If you bake it properly, freeze and reheat you get a lovely crisp tasty skin.

And the skin is the only reason to eat a jacket potato imo 😍

On a different thread someone recommended peeling potatoes (I also now do carrots too) into roasting tray and making crisps.

God some of these are brilliant. Yes please to the jacket potato and beans! Do you put the cheese and beans in though Before you freeze? Does it honestly taste fine?

For the oats I bought six of those glass french yoghurt pots with red lids. 40g oats and 80ml milk. Anything else is too wet, then we’ve been doing a table spoon Of chia seeds too and then either blueberries, strawberries, sultanas and honey, or strawberries, peanut butter, jam and crushed peanuts.

I tried grated apple, dried pear, carrots and cinnamon in various ones but they haven’t been my favourites. I’m going to try purées carrots with brown sugar and cinnamon and nutmeg over the weekend as it apparently tastes like carrot cake but I doubt it will.

honestly it’s been lovely as I’ve taught the little ones how to measure our ingredients

Retroflex YES, I do that except my list is on my iPhone notes. I’ve got two chest freezers in my garage full of home made lasagna, soup, cottage pies, chicken curry, pasta sauce, cheese sauce, fish pies etc etc.

In theory I batch cook once a week but in reality I have a massive cookathon 4-5 times a year 😀

I gave up trying to keep track of socks a long time ago I just put them all in a basket and everyone helps themselves , I sort it out probably once every 2 months.(Doubt that's a time saving hack actually , just that socks disappear in this house 😩)

@TW2013 canned chickpeas, drained and sprinkled with dried herbs/spices, then baked in the oven, make a very delicious treat, not too dissimilar to roasted peanuts.

I do a minimum prep chilli in the slow cooker.

Open slow cooker.
Add two packs mince
Add bag frozen diced onions
Add tin tomato puree
Add 3 tins kidney beans
Add stock cube and spices (paprika, chilli, cinnamon, cumin, garlic)
Stir occasionally, remembering to break up the mince)
Decant into tubs 6 hours later then freeze.

Usually get six or so portions for about three minutes prep. You can serve with rice or put in wraps and bake them, but I just reheat it and add cheese for a nice easy dinner. It's not as nice as doing it "properly", but it's still pretty good and my husband can't actually tell the difference.

Although I might now combine that with the frozen ready to go baked potato. That idea is genius!