In an effort to create the ultimate family meal planner can I have your meal ideas please.

[Beccarolloveragain]

I already meal plan and find it great. Shopping much easier and less stress but still, every week when writing the plan Im always stuck for inspiration and end up cooking the same things.

Can you list all of the fave meals in your house?

Im going to build up a big resource so I can see at a glance what I have to choose from.

Any input would be great!

Im not the best cook in the world but willing!! A bit time short most days so anything in the slow cooker would be grand.....

Thanks!

Here are some from my recent plans:

Sweet and sour chicken (prawn for me) with rice
Mushroom, sundried tomato and pamesan rissotto
Fillet steak, roast potatoes & squash, veg
Tuna steaks, rice and salad
Pizza, home made wedges and salad
Cottage pie
Lamp chops, mash and veg
Pasta bolognaise
Pata with pesto, chicken and redpepper
Pasta with roasted vegetable and passatta sauce, with garlic bread
Chicken and leek pie
Veggie pie
Casserole (chicken, veg, beef, etc)
Fish pie
Fajitas
Chicken curry, rice and naan
Sausage, mash and veg

We also have things like fishfingers, eggs, etc. but have tried to avoid too much processed stuff recently.

I like the Dinnerlady cook book for every day type meals.

I have agreat recipe for summer braised chicken. Basically it is chicken braised in a tomato sauce but it is really light, low fat and tastes very yummy. I serve with rice but tried stirring some noodels in the other day and it was just as tasty. It is really easy to make, if you would like the recipe let me know!

Pasta with hidden veg sauce (got the recipe off here/JO, it's based round butternut sqaush so unfortunately many food miles but it's too good to give up)
pasta with ham and peas
pasta with tomato and mushroom sauce
cauliflower cheese with tomatos
sausage and lentil stew
mackerel and courgette lasagne (annabel karmel's tuna and courgette lasagne but no tuna due to endangerment or whatever)
spag bol
baked potatoes with spag bol remains bulked out with a tin of kidney beans (would call it chilli but no chillis)
kedgeree
fruity beef stew (from GI Load diet book by AWT)
corned beef hash (same book)
homemade pizza with tom sauce, sweetcorn and anything else i can find
mushroom omelettes

etc etc...

planning to increase bean/lentil intake as we keep going over budget - AGAIN this week, bother.

lasagne
Chilli
meatballs
shepherd's pie (using lamb mince)
slow roasted belly pork with apples and onions
chcken and broccoli pasta
tuna pasta bake
chicken casserole
braising steak
sausage and mash (2 year old doesn't have sausage - I give her cheesy mash or something)
jacket potatoes with bacon and cheese filling
risotto

I got this from the BBC Good Food magazine and it's become a bit of a favourite.

Tuna melt potato wedges.
750g frozen potato wedges
4tbsp mayonnaise
1 shallot or 1/2 small onion, very finely chopped
100g grated cheddar or gruere cheese
2x160g tuna steaks in spring water, drained
bunch parsley, chopped (if you have it)

Heat oven to 220C/fan 200c/gas6. Tip wedges onto a large making sheet, ensuring they sit in a single layer. Bake for 10mins (although might want to leave in for 5-10mins longer as I've found some of the wedges aren't very cooked at the end). Mix together the mayo, shallot/onion, cheese, tuna and parsley.

Tip the wedges into a large heatproof serving dish and spoon over the tuna mixture. Pop back in the oven for a further 12 mins until bubbling.

I've recently discovered you can substitute creme fraiche (I use the half fat version)for white sauce in all sorts of recipes. So I have recently made v yummy fish pie, also chicken and leek bake (with thin sliced potatoes on top), and a veg and turkey pie. It's great not having to make the white sauce, so good for when you don't want to faff too much.

Chicken/pork loin steak/sausage provencale - basically a casserole based on tomatoes rather than gravy.

Choose your meat - wack in a casserole dish
Add veges - normally do onions, mushrooms & peppers but could do whatever you fancy
Add 2 tins chopped tomatoes, splash of tomatoe puree, splash of garlic puree (I'm lazy) Veg oxo, chick oxo.

Cover and stew for about 90 mins. Thicken a bit about 30 mins before serving.

this week we had
oven cooked mackrel roasted veg and cous cous
chicken kebabs , rice and sauted peppers and fennel
pasta with broccoli, tuna cherry tomatos homemade pesto
chorizo and butterbean stew
chilli and rice( add an aubergine to chilli so only use half the meat)

Recent meals include

Quiche, baked potatoes and veg
Toad in hole
Roast dinner
Roasted veg with spicy cheese scones, salad and balsamic vinegar
Arroz al horno (spanish rice dish cooked in the oven) & apple crumble
veggie chillie with tortillas and salad wrapped up like fahitas
Cheesy leek and poato pie
aubergine stuffed with spicy chickpea mix and roasted in oven
phad Thai (not sure of spelling)
Chinese stir fry & rice
Risotto

grilled fish & oven chips with veg/salad

Now you see I made an effort and cooked a quiche last night. Was late for my History GCSE class, decided not to blind bake the pastry case, thought I would just leave the flan in the oven on a lower temp for a bit longer, guess what - bottom of the flan raw!!! That'll learn me

Vegetable stew with kidney beans and root veg
Pasta with pesto
Hummus with salad and pittas, sometimes avocado, or cold veggie sausages
Nut and rice loaf with roast veg, or new pots and salad
Cashew nut and sweetcorn loaf ditto
Scone base pizzas or shop bought wholemeal base pizzas
Quorn bolognese with pasta, or oven chips
Veg korma with rice or quinoa or naan
Butternut and red lentil sauce with quinoa or bulgar wheat
Mushroom stroganoff with rice
Baked bulgar wheat with beans, peppers etc
Roast aubergine, courgette, mushrooms etc with quinoa
Tofu kebabs with rice or pittas
Baked potatoes with middles scooped out and mashed with loads of cheese and butter
Baked beans, eggs and chips
Stir fried veg and tofu with rice or noodles

don't forget things like

macaroni cheese

curry (meat, fish or vegetarian ones like chickpea& spinach, soya mince & potato, dhal)

soup and bread

omelettes

All fairly quick to make although not necessarily slow cooker meals.

baked potatoes with various fillings

Hula - do you have recipes for the below meals you mentioned?

Sweet and sour chicken (prawn for me) with rice
Mushroom, sundried tomato and pamesan rissotto
Chicken and leek pie

Thanks

Roast chicken
BBQ ribs (very cheap and unbelievably nice)
Chicken cooked in soy,ginger and sherry with rice
Chilli con carne
Frittata
Pasta,creme fraiche,dill,capers and salmon
Thai prawn baby sweetcorn and green bean curry
Chick pea and spinach curry
Beef/pork kebabs and sate sauce
Fish,roated with olives,tomatoes and onions
Dhal

I have done a cottage pie, but used chichen. I got the idea from Tesco as they do it. Mine is much better though