What can we replace Jacket Potato Night with??

[FusionChefGeoff]

I love JPN but kids have started moaning! Bonus features were:

no prep, just shove in in between calls
DH with no confidence in kitchen can do it too
10 mins to finish off & serve
we could all have our own version / fave toppings
healthy
cheap
can all take and eat whenever it suits
No thought needed!
always got cheese / tuna / beans and potatoes last for ages so basically a store cupboard meal

What can I start doing on our very busy Wednesdays instead??

Omelette is obvious but the bastards don’t like them.

Just keep cooking the potatoes and stop pandering to the fussy little darlings.

Turn it into a more exciting version of jpn. Chilli with guacamole and sour cream.

Fish finger wraps with salad

mmm

Wraps - assuming you aren’t veggie pan fry mince, add sachet of taco spice (and water if needed), heat wraps, serve with salad, grated cheese, sliced avocado or guacamole if you like, sour cream. Literally 10 minutes all in!

Everyone knows life’s too short to stuff a mushroom tho 😆

We do taco night but can be as easy or difficult as you wish.

Personally I love breakfast for dinner night. We alternate between full English, or bagels with cream cheese and smoked salmon or omelettes depending on energy and will.

Salad
Pasta pesto
Carbonara
Stuffed fresh pasta with toppings (olive or chilli oil, garlic butter, crispy onions, pancetta, cheese, herbs, rocket)
Stir fry
Fajitas
Savoury pancakes

Do a two or three week rotating menu so nobody gets bored.
Try sweet potatoes for a change.
Ask husband to cook more often so that he gains confidence.

Tomato pasta - can add tuna, chicken, cheese etc

Our recent easy night tea is egg fried rice and gyoza. Takes about 20 mins of non- faff to get on the table.

This and offer them a rotation if they can suggest and will eat options for alternate weeks.

Or we do packet tortellini and ready made sauce, 2 for £3.50 from Morrisons.

I might be an unreasonable outlier here but I'd be offering either Jacket Potato Night or, if they prefer, No Jacket Potato Night...

Those part baked baguettes, cook up a load of sausage, bacon, scrambled egg, then some deli meats and slices of cheese with some condiments, salad and everyone can make their own.

If you batch cook a lot and it is a busy night for you, isn’t it easiest to have a chuck it in the oven batch cooked meal like lasagne or cottage pie?

Keep all the JP accompaniments the same and swap the actual JP with toast, toasted pitta, pan fried gnocchi, or pre cooked cold pasta (points if you make proper pasta salad). Do one week JP, one week bread type variation, one week gnocchi/pasta type variation.

Or what I do alot in summer is a 'Mezze Platter'.

If I call it a 'mezze platter' DH and the DCs scoff it down. If I call it 'all the leftovers and a bit of dips and veg sticks I can find plus a boiled egg or two' they turn their nose up.

We have Greek night. Day before I chuck 2 pork loins in a marinade with garlic, olive oil, oregano and some lemon slices.

Get home from work and whack it in the pressure cooker with a bit chicken stock (but you could foil cook in the oven or slow cook) for 35 mins. Chop into now tender cubes or shred if you cook longer (but I like a bit of texture).

Serve with deconstructed Greek salad (so tomato’s, feta, olives, red onions and cucumber) so fussy eaters can put in what they like, humous, chilli sauce and flat breads. If I CBA I make a garlic sauce with plain yogurt, salt, pepper, garlic and fresh coriander/mint that I stash in the freezer (btw game changer- I buy fresh herbs, chop them day of purchase and pop in the freezer in the recycled mini chocolate pots with lids you can buy. Wouldn’t use in a presentation way but great to add as an ingredient).

Goes down a treat and all I have to do is a bit of chopping and warm the bread in the oven.

Honestly the absolute worst thing about parenting is the meal planning 😆

Another idea.

Corned beef hash. Cook the JP’s and cube - skins and all. Mix with cubes of corned beef. Buy frozen jp’s or cook the night before to make life easy.

Put in a dish (or pan fry but oven is easier) oven cook until crispy on top. Ideally serve with a fried egg.

Tomato sauce is obligatory.

“Orange Wednesday” is a favourite in our house - frozen chips / wedges / sweet potato fries with chicken nuggets / fish fingers / Kyiv / fish cakes, and baked beans or frozen peas / sweetcorn

Try different toppings, left over curry, bolognaise, chilli and use sweet potatoes,
potato skins or loaded wedges night?

Loaded fries.

My favourite, from The Netherlands - chips, truffle mayo, parmesan, spring onion and bacon bits!

Loads of ‘recipes’ and ideas out there. I use oven chips.

Nachos are my easy store cupboard quick meal. Load of tortilla chips in a baking tin, sprinkle cheese over, 10 mins in the oven to get melty and crispy. Then let everyone help themselves to refried beans, salsa, guacamole. Not the healthiest meal but about the same composition as JP and beans, if you have any cooked chicken in the fridge you can put that in with the nachos and cheese too.

“Ask husband to cook more often so that he gains confidence.”

Agreed. Just bizarre that it’s 2025 and working women are still compensating like this. Another generation of kids learning that women are the domestically competent ones. Men must laugh their heads off at us.