Anyone else worn down by deciding what to make for dinner daily

[MyBusyUser]

I honestly think one of the most draining parts of ordinary life is having to come up with dinner every single day forever. Not even the cooking necessarily — the deciding. What everyone will eat, what we’ve already had this week, what’s actually in the fridge, whether I can be bothered, whether there’s time. Please tell me I’m not the only person weirdly worn down by the constant “what’s for dinner?” problem.

Making a plan for the week is life changing. Plan, factor into the online shop, stick on fridge door. It makes it feel like someone else has done the deciding. What’s for supper - ah, I see it’s Chinese chicken thighs

I wish someone would invent a daily pill you could take that would give you all the calories and nutrients you need for the day so there was no need to eat. Imagine how much time you would gain?!

Just today, I realised I'd already made the things over the last few days that I had planned on making and now I had to think of something else.
I have boxed frozen pizzas, boxed frozen chicken burgers in reserve for those days I'm rushed, but they're more for insurance when I don't have time.
I've tried rotation meals using a monthly schedule.
I don't usually stick with it, mainly because I do enjoy sourcing different recipes both for my interest and those eating the meals.
I think what makes it difficult is that everything costs so much more now and to get the proper amount of protein and fresh veg whilst trying to avoid using so many carbs, such as pasta and rice, has become much more challenging.

Certainly am ! 49 years and there’s not many days I haven’t cooked 🫠

Yes. And sometimes it gets to 5:30 and I am surprised that I have to think and cook another dinner, like my brain blocked out previous memories of it. Really ridgid meal plans just aren't for me, I need flexibility. The boxes don't appeal to me as I have cupboards full if basic ingredients, I don't need a little sachet. I think I need to do better planning when shopping.

Sadly I know that to be true

Just make a 14 day plan and if you want to switch around on the day you can

are you well?

She has more than 7 meals everyone in her house will eat? 😮

@HangingOver @Whatstheplot @BippityBopper
No spreadsheet, I have one of these Whiteboard calendar things. I write the dates on it, then go through my calendar and check for any events that might mean we eat out, or want a takeaway that day etc. Then I look at the regular things like swimming lesson days or clubs where we need something quick before we go out, so they get quick meals like beans on toast or filled pasta or I plan to make something ahead of time.
Then all other dates I stick things in from a list of meals I know my family likes, plus once or twice across the plan I’ll add in something new (on a day where I know I have enough time to make it).
Some days I do write in ‘beige freezer food’ or sandwiches.
But I find having a plan making shopping easier, and prevents me
just making the same 5 meals on rotation.

Yes , can be a nightmare especially when dc were home as one is veggie, the fussy. Dh also fussy.
It's easier now though still boring as its just cycling through the same dull things.
Friends do do meal planning but I can't see that helping.

I used to but then I changed my way of thinking.

I haven't done it recently but for years Id meal plan the week but I would theme it. So one week it would be Italian, another Mexican, another Egyptian and so on.
I quite enjoyed doing it. I kept it simple and would do a desert in the same style.

At least it kept things interesting!

Adult ds moved back in for a bit after graduating, and I basically refused to cook for him. He’s not even too bad. I just had a mental ‘aaarrrgh’ at the thought of doing all that again. The brief period after he left for uni and before like a fool I moved in with dp was BLISS. If I wanted to eat I ate, and I even cooked occasionally - but most of my meals were something on toast, salad, chickpeas out of the tin, or a jacket potato with a knob of butter. I was happy as Larry. Luckily dp does cook, and also doesn’t mind if I sometimes refuse even to think about it, but I still hate being back at the planning/cooking grindstone again.

@sprigatito that is just appalling. Like having to work in three different prison restaurants. I’d be strongly tempted to tell your dad it’s Wiltshire Farm Foods or nowt.

I know it is a drudge but when the kids were at home, we meal planned and did a menu. Everyone had to come up with something they liked and it went on the menu, it changed my life I did the majority of the cooking and "what's for tea" made me want to poke my eyes out 😀

Just the 2 of us now and we still do it over a 8 week rotation.

This was my very first MN user name about 20 years ago.
I used to love cooking and then I had children. By far the most tedious part of domesticity is planning meals. As my DC got older they always wanted to know what would be for tea (or dinner if Southern).

Actually the best thing I did was to write a weekly plan and post it on the fridge. I was flexible and would swap days round or adapt but it really took the pressure off. It was never about the actual cooking or the shopping, just the deciding.

Now it's just DH and me and I often decide half an hour before I want to eat unless DC are visiting then some planning is required. It's so much easier.

I've tried Hello Fresh etc but not really impressed

I once did this with lolly sticks! It's just one jar with loads of sticks in! Mine had about 15. I don't know why I stopped but now I do a 3 week rotation. It's a bit boring but no one minds that apart from me. It also means I can batch cook a massive chilli/dhal/bolognese and pull it out for a meal. I also theme the days- Curry Monday, traybake Tuesday Pasta Wednesday, Mexican Thursday, fishy Friday, takeaway Saturday, Roast Dinner Sunday. I might change Mexican Thursday because we've ended up having chilli every week but in/on different things!

I hear you. DP and I largely manage it by getting a veg box delivered and keeping a storecupboard full of things like tinned tomatoes and pulses, tinned fish, pasta, bulgur etc. We tend to make the same few simple things on rotation (if we get lots of potatoes it's a bean and veg chilli; green beans it's a bean and tomato curry etc), but at least we don't have to spend too much time and energy on thinking about it.

It takes no effort for me because I have the same 7 meals on rotation.

It is so easy.

You could even have 14 meals on rotation or 21.

I don't understand why everyone doesn't do this.

Exactly.

So easy.

DP and I don't ask each other what we want. Whoever cooks, the other person eats it, says thank you and makes a cup of tea after. Thankfully we were both brought up not to fuss or be demanding about food!

Sometimes different people are there who like different things, sometimes you have time to cook properly and other times it needs to be fast before someone goes out at 7, sometimes it’s hot and salad goes down better than stew, we try to eat seasonally, we discover new recipes or get hold of special ingredients….so many reasons!

I find planning on a weekly basis keeps me more or less sane though.

Really? You don’t understand why everyone doesn’t do this? I wish I bloody didn’t.

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