Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Weekday dinners

124 replies

1stmonkey · 29/12/2020 21:23

AIBU to ask what you usually eat Monday-Friday?

I've googled til my eyes have gone square but am struggling to find anything quick, easy (ideally freezable) and family friendly that isn't a stew, curry, bolognese or chilli?!

I feel like i rotate the same meals (or very similar variations) over and over and quite frankly i'm so bored!

Aiming to cook more (to eat more healthy food, and save some pennies) so would love any inspiration you care to share.

OP posts:
TolstoyAteMyHamster · 29/12/2020 21:40

Urgh. Hate weekday dinners.
We have, on some kind of rotation:

Omelettes
Stir fries
Chicken salad
Pasta with various sauces
Tortillas
Baked potatoes with fillings
Sausages
Baked salmon

speakout · 29/12/2020 21:43

Tray bakes
tacos
BBQ pulled pork,
fajitas,
koftas and flat breads,
cassoulet
stir fries

JaceLancs · 29/12/2020 21:48

Tonight we had paella
Tomorrow is burritos
Once a week we have a breakfast fry up
Fish pie
Risotto
Fajitas
Some nights just grilled meat or chicken with veg or salad
Curry
Chinese (both home made)

lastqueenofscotland · 29/12/2020 21:57

Risottos
Pasta/gnocci with home made pesto (takes seconds)
Veggie sausage stew and mash
White bean stew and crusty bread
Various curries
Various stir fried noodle dishes
Fajitas
Chilli with tortilla chips
Lentil cottage pie
Lentil bolognese
Soup and bread
Salad with pitta and hummus

Baileyscoffeeandcampfires · 29/12/2020 22:01

Lasagne ( make 2 , freeze one)
Chicken breasts wrapped in bacon and jacket potatoes
Sausage and mash
Teriyaki salmon and rice
Gammon, egg and sweet potato wedges
Toad in the hole
Pasta and sauces (tomato, pesto, Alfredo) with garlic bread
Chicken Kiev and jackets
Breaded fish and oven chips

I add at least one green veg ( peas, spinach, broccoli) to most of the above plus carrots/ sweet corn etc

helloxhristmas · 29/12/2020 22:09

One pot stuff
Tray bakes
Spaghetti Bol
Chilli
Stir fry
Noodles
Quick pasta Dishes - carbonara, chorizo pasta, Ragu etc
Sausage and mash
Freezer food

I get so bloody bored thinking about it.

ForTheLoveOfCatFood · 29/12/2020 22:12

Veggie here we have these kind of things on rotation -
Veggie Lasagne
Lentil bolognese
Chilli with rice (either mixed bean or sometimes fake mince)
Halloumi and bean stew
Risotto (mushroom or mixed green veg)
Quesadilla with various fillings
Butternut squash dhal with Naan and rice
Cauldron sausages, mash and veg
Macaroni cheese with cauliflower, broccoli and leeks added in
Aubergine and sundries tomato pasta
Chickpea and spinach pasta
Veg moussaka
Veg stew and dumplings
Pasta bake
Mixed bean burritos & sour cream
Home made pizza with sweet potato wedges (either home made based or ready made puff pasty rolled out with fillings on top)

Sweet potato and coconut curry
Aubergine and courgette bake (basically a lasagne using aubergine and courgette rather than pasta)
Mushroom stroganoff
Ricotta and spinach lasagne/ stuffed pasta
Omelette
Jacket spuds with various toppings
Toad in the hole with veg
Halloumi and roasted veg with new potatoes

Sparklesocks · 29/12/2020 22:13

I do a lot from the roasting tin books - they’re tasty and I like that you can just chuck everything in together and leave it to cook - www.amazon.co.uk/Roasting-Tin-Simple-Dish-Dinners/dp/1910931519?tag=mumsnetforu03-21

Stir fry
Chicken in a bag (Maggi packets etc) with veg

SingingSands · 29/12/2020 22:13

Some typical dinners for us (2 adults, 2 teens):

Pasta bakes - I do a Bolognese with veggie "mince" that goes a long way - always leftovers for the freezer or lunch next day. Kids will have garlic bread with theirs.

Baked salmon with green veg and rice or giant couscous with feta and chilli.

Pan fried Mushroom, chicken and tarragon with rice and broccoli.

Baked chicken thighs with sweet potato mash and spicy peas.

Chicken fried rice, or chicken with noodles

Veggie burger with salad

Giant Yorkshire pudding with sausages, roast potatoes, peas, carrots and gravy

Homemade curry or daal - usually with paneer for DH and me.

Fridge veg in tomato sauce - I chop up what's left in the fridge, add a chopped onion and pan fry in garlic and tomato with herbs and spices and serve with rice or pasta or crusty bread - like a ratatouille.

Spaghetti with prawns in chilli and tomato sauce

Fajitas

Egg and chips

MsSquiz · 29/12/2020 22:16

Homemade chicken Kiev (Gousto recipe)
Homemade Burgers - sausage, pork and apple, pork and sage, turkey, beef
Tuna pasta bake (Philadelphia cheese recipe)
Macaroni cheese with pulled chicken, pancetta & fried leeks layered like a lasagna
Bolognese - either with pasta, jacket potatoes or piled on top of chips
Sausage and mash
Toad in the hole
Mince and dumplings
Gnocchi hash (fried gnocchi with crispy bacon, fried leeks, grated cheese and chopped up chicken breast)
Fish fingers and potato waffles with beans
Slimming world Diet Coke chicken with rice
Jacket potatoes with various fillings

peachcherries · 29/12/2020 22:20

Some great inspo here! This will help me plan next weeks dinners..thank you all!

missyB1 · 29/12/2020 22:23

Stir frys - add prawns or chicken / lots of crunchy veg and noodles or rice.
Fajitas.
Pasta bakes.
Home made cod goujons with wedges
Prawn spaghetti

MrsClatterbuck · 29/12/2020 22:24

Sausage casserole
Bbq Pulled pork served in brioche buns
Pasta with tomato sauce and roasted Mediterranean vegetables

justlonelystars · 29/12/2020 22:26

Try Gousto. Honestly changed my life. Hello fresh and mindful chef are also good. They really help to get you out of a cooking rut and I rarely repeat dinners nowadays.

OoohTheStatsDontLie · 29/12/2020 22:27

Get a massive ham and boil it for a few hours. Can glaze it if you like.
Roast dinner at the weekend.
Soup - veg and lentil and then add some ham stock and shredded ham
Cut thick slices and freeze them and use them individually, we have them in pasta, ham and egg salad, wraps or sandwiches, and my daughter favourite baked gnocchi with ham broccoli peas and a creme fraiche gruyere and grainy mustard sauce, or ham egg and chips
I also make and freeze curries to reheat in the week
We have pizza a fair bit, get one of those big rectangular ones and chuck on a few different toppings and serve in small slices with veg so it's not too unhealthy
Nachos
Sushi salad (sushi rice with a sweet chilli dressing and whatever salad veg we have)
Raclette if you have space for a machine it's really quick
We buy big packs of the KFC style chicken thighs and drumsticks, they're nice in buns (deboned) and chopped hot in a salad with a creamy dressing, as well as just served with veg
I've also discovered roast potatoes reheat really well in 15 min so always do extra and have them with any bung in the oven type thing
Also started having bao buns, buy the buns pre made and can chuck loads of different things in there, ready in a few minutes. I do big batches of korean stew and grilled char siu pork.
Stir fried rice, add cooked chorizo and chicken, prawns, thai curry paste etc to mix it up

Seaair2 · 29/12/2020 22:28

Following for inspiration!

positivity123 · 29/12/2020 22:29

Here are 3 meals that I do that are quick, easy and always a winner

Chicken breast, flattened them coated in breadcrumbs with paprika (use mayo as cheat way to coast with crumbs) and fried.
Serve with new potatoes and homemade coleslaw (finely slice red cabbage, carrots and red onions then stir in mayo, yogurt and Dijon mustard). Put jalapenos on the side for some spice.

Mackerel (just stuff from supermarket), with saag aloo on the side and an Indian carrot salad.

Mexican beans with eggs.
Fry chopped onion and peppers with paprika. Add a tin of chopped toms and some sugar. Add a tin of taco beans in Tom sauce. Then poach some eggs in the mixture, serve with flatbread, avocado and yogurt.

I agree that week day meals are the worst. I'm going to do Hello Fresh in the new year to break up the constant planning.

1stmonkey · 29/12/2020 22:30

Some lovely ideas here, thank you.

And jacket pots?? How did i forget that jacket pots exist??

OP posts:
Nosenseofhumour · 29/12/2020 22:31

@ForTheLoveOfCatFood halloumi and bean stew sounds amazing, what's the recipe please if you don't mind sharing?

FrenchBoule · 29/12/2020 22:32

Chicken,leek and mushroom pasta with creamy sauce
Fish and chips (breaded fish) with sweetcorn.
Turkey meatballs in tomato sauce served with spaghetti
Lasagne

That’s above is the things everybody in the house will eat.
I’m the goat,will eat anything. One DC has ASD and doesn’t like certain textures plus 2 fussy buggers.

wizzbangfizz · 29/12/2020 22:32

Place-marking for ideas as one of resolutions is to be more organised mid week.

Fallulah · 29/12/2020 22:32

A lot of ours is stew/bologneise/similar based as we use the slow cooker, and take the leftovers to work the following day. OH will cook a roast one week day as he has a week day off as he works a day at the weekend. His daughter doesn’t like spicy so when she is there it’s pasta bakes, lasagne, cottage pie etc. Towards the end of the week I tend to make a curry or ‘stroganoff’ out of whatever is left in the bottom of the fridge!

One of our favourites is making pizzas with portobello mushroom bases - it’s in the Michael Mosley book but is simple to adapt. We have them with salad or BNS wedges.

Fajitas, curries, stir fries. A real comfort food for us is something like poached haddock, crusty white bread and poached egg.

Things that can be done in one tin - chicken thighs or salmon with roasted veg and then cous cous.

Jacket potatoes are under rated I think - done properly in the oven.

Lamb steaks grilled and served with cous cous with apricots, peppers, feta, chilli and apricots run through.

Quite often buy the M&S dine in deal when it’s on and have it on a week day or freeze it for another day.

I got a recipe years ago from the Waitrose website (I think) for sweet potato and chorizo chilli which is really nice on its own.

A simple dahl is really flexible - I often have it if I’m in on my own with some mushrooms and tomatoes and a naan.

It’s easier in the summer because you can just do some form of protein and a salad. In the winter you feel like you want a bit more.

I do WW and it has a good thing in the app where you can put in what you have and it suggests things to cook.

rawlikesushi · 29/12/2020 22:36

Risotto
Glazed Szechuan chicken burgers with wedges
Yakitori chicken skewers with rice
Pistachio salmon
Pulled pork wraps or burgers

theworldhasgoneinsane · 29/12/2020 22:36

We're restricted as I'm on a dairy, soya and egg free diet due to my babies allergies. So all of our meals have to be able to be made with alternatives.

Lasagne
Curry (masala, korma)
Cottage pie
Sausages and mash
Chorizo and asparagus risotto
Bolognaise
Fajitas
Tacos
Pork or lamb chops and veg
Pasta with chicken or bacon
Casserole in slow cooker

I try to do veg with everything if possible. Thinking of meals is a nightmare and when I ask DH for ideas he isn't much help!

UndertheCedartree · 29/12/2020 22:38

Wraps with refried beans, kidney or pinto beans, onions, pepper, sweetcorn and cheese
Pasta with pesto, butter beans, onions, pepper, mushrooms
Stir fry, tofu, noodles
Jacket potatoes with cheese and beans
Vegetable soup and baguette
Scrambled eggs/baked beans on toast
Veggie/bean burgers in buns with corn on the cob and coleslaw
Omelettes or quiche with new potatoes and salad

Swipe left for the next trending thread