To share my domestic goddessness with you all - finally!

[MercedesDeMonteChristo]

Today I have created a spreadsheet on Google with links to recipes that I use and I have now successfully meal planned for 4 months after 15 years of attempting and failing.

For years I've had a fussy husband (he has got over it) and less fussy but still fussy children (they are less fussy these days). Finally, I have about 30 recipes/meals that work for us all and my meal planning is largely working. I've hated cooking for so long and the last few months I feel like I have rediscovered it. I've categorised them too and it feels amazing.

Before anyone asks 'where is DH in all this cooking' - he does cook at least once a week if not twice and usually curry so enough for two days plus freezer.

Which brings me to my next smug moment ... I finally have stuff in the freezer, leftover rice, curry etc so occasionally it is everything out from the freezer and free for all.

Yes I am feeling smug and I want to tell everyone. And yes, I realise this is pretty sad.

Obviously this is less AIBU than just wanting to share my joy.

Freezing rice is fine as long as you cool it quickly and ideally freeze within an hour: www.food.gov.uk/safety-hygiene/home-food-fact-checker#:~:text=You%20can%20freeze%20rice%2C%20but,multiplying%20and%20producing%20a%20toxin.

Link fail

Here's what I was trying to share.

I always freeze rice to be honest. That's not a recommendation more of a confession.

This is alien to me as well. Sounds like a huge effort to go to a spreadsheet every day and find out what I’m having for dinner, let alone to knock up a shopping list with those ingredients on it. I just look in the fridge or cupboard and say, “It’s fish” and then make something.

OP that is massive ! Can see why you are proud ! Well done !

Stuff like this makes a huge difference to your enjoyment of life! Magnified in COVID times!

You'll be healthier, everyone's happier and it's cheaper too 😄
I share your organised joy. Nothing better than a good spreadsheet too 🤪

My daughter started meal planning and it has saved her so much money .

I am currently using a 4-week spreadsheet. It has 20 different meals that everyone likes, 4 Friday night pizzas and 4 Saturday nights where one of us chooses a new recipe to make. My plan at the end of the 4 weeks is to revise and swap a few things out. I did it because we'd got into a rut of eating the same meals each week. I tried to make it mainly healthy and balanced across the week (eg different carbs each night, 1-2 fish meals, 1-2 meat meals, 4 vegetarian). It also makes the most of leftovers, so Sunday's roast always becomes something else on Monday (soup, bubble and squeak, stir fry, pasta sauce, roast veg and feta salad).

@flaviaritt it is only a hassle once (although I am a geek and really enjoyed it), after that it saves time and money as you shop at the start of the week knowing the ingredients to you need. Obviously we do sometimes swap things, but especially for mid-week cooking it is useful when you don't really want to think about it.

Sorry, meant to say well done @MercedesDeMonteChristo! Your spreadsheet sounds way better than mine, I might have to upgrade to add links!

ColouringPencils

Fair enough, it’s just absolutely not for me! I don’t really think about cooking, I just cook. I usually have enough in to make something quickly.

I've done similar OP! I was going to store it in keep notes as links but DH persuaded me to look for an app, and I found Paprika, which fits the bill really well.
You can trial it for 40 recipes then it's a fiver to buy if you want more, I did.

I've uploaded all the recipes in my huge recipe pile, one by one I found their online links and uploaded them, and the app separates them into ingredients and directions.

I cam also add my own tags, so I've got eg meats and vegetables, also a 'vegetarian' tag, a 'gluten free' tag.

And finally the app lets you scale the recipes, and you can build week plans and also shopping lists

It's ace!

In android you can have it on maybe 4 devices, but on iphones I think you can share between family members, this is what would make it even better for me.

No affiliation, just a happy user.

Congrats OP, its a happy new world

Screenshot to emphasise my point

I always meal plan a fortnight at a time and stick it on the fridge. It makes life a whole lot easier as I enjoy cooking but hate having to think of what's for dinner every night. It also minimises the moaning as they can see that it's a balanced spread between their favourites and things they're less fond of.

That app looks great.

I actually usually pin the week on the fridge and the spreadsheet is really for the links and I can access them from my phone/iPad/laptop. I was having to bring the laptop to the kitchen each time and then I wondered what to do if the laptop died forever then my favourites would be gone.

I now shop accordingly but there are always an extra few bits around if we fancy something different.

Well done OP.
We have a less sophisticated system - I have a spare calendar that came free with something that I write meals on for each day. We do it weekly and shop accordingly. I've been doing it so long now that I can't imagine ferreting in the fridge daily and wondering what to cook. So much easier to do it all in one go and then zero thought required at 5pm when the kids are claiming to be fainting from hunger. Especially as my kids refuse most freezer food (nuggets etc) so opening freezer and shoving things in oven not an option.
Once I decided that I wanted to expand thr repertoire so for a while I did 1-2 brand new recipes every week. Result - kids mostly whinged because they contained exotic ingredients like feta and aubergines and I got cross that they didn't appreciate my efforts
Shopping bill doesn't vary much as a result, usually about £70 pw for 2 adults and 2 kids.

Hahah, I hear you with the kids. DS2 who has always refused lasagne at the age of 12 decided to give it another go and now apparently loves it!

I still fail with the aubergines though - and I’m from a place where aubergines rule so they are not exactly exotic in our house.

Feta though, I make in little pastry parcels (I buy it triangular shaped from the Middle Eastern supermarket) a bit of feta, some greenery (traditionally parsley but we normally have coriander in and I’ve used spinach) at the bottom, fold in and roll like a cigrarette. I fry them but you can bake them. At school bake sales they disappear and the kids fight over them at home, even though they are less likely to touch feta normally.

Well done OP, it actually makes me happy just reading this. I know how much of a difference things like this can make, so I'm really pleased for you.

You have also prompted me to start sorting out my own meal planner properly.

I know you can freeze rice @mocktail, it's just a lot of effort to cool and freeze it within an hour to save a few leftovers with the possibility of a side order of food poisoning. It's a lot less effort and less risky to cook the correct amount of rice from fresh every time so there aren't any leftovers IMO

Also, I thought OP might not have known about the risk when she froze her rice, if she is a new domestic goddess Not that I know much about being a domestic goddess too lazy to freeze rice, just microbiology. Your link on how to freeze rice safely is probably more helpful.

I am aware of the rice thing. Though do appreciate the warning as it was highly likely I wouldn’t have been to be honest. I am pretty clueless about most things. It works for us right now though. We also make a lot of rice based dishes (pilau/plov etc) and freezing these is another night not cooking.

We’ve got steak tonight to commemorate my brother’s birthday and duck roast dinner tomorrow. It’s a moorish weekend after jerk chicken last night. Luckily the weekday meals are a bit less heavy and intense.

My husband is setting us a spreadsheet now OP. Thanks for the inspiration.