Timesaving,meals and how to keep juggling work and home life.

[namechangefortoday543]

Hi all
I thought a thread for us to talk about time saving tips, how to eat healthy quick meals and keep a balance between work and home.

I was a SAHM in the early days but Im one of those people who needs the time pressure to get on with things so WOH is better for me and my MH.
I was a terrible procrastinator and really couldn't be bothered to really crack on and get things done.
DH and I have our own chores and generally both pitch in.

My best tips are :
Set up online shopping - it takes minutes to do the shop,I do it while I watch Saturday Kitchen
Meal plan: saves time and money .
Use your slow cooker - I set up the next days meal in it and place in the fridge and then take it out and whack on in the morning.
We have lots of casseroles, bolognese, tuna pasta bake,veggie curries and its lovely coming home and dinner is ready plus not too many pots and pans.
I have 2 really good slow cooker cookbooks-by Judith Finlayson
Get milk delivered.
I did school laundry on a Friday night and had it dried and hung up so that I don't have to run around looking for it and washing on the weekend.
keep a big stock of cards, wrapping paper and buy presents online.
My DC pack their own lunches the night before and are responsible for getting up on time and all their own stuff. no mollycoddling here
Pay bills as soon as they come in,deal with letters etc

Watching with interest!

I'm afraid I am a bit convenience-food-y , but try to give it a healthy slant!
We do following:

Stir fry - using those sets of stir fry veg, sauce and fresh noodles - plus we add chicken. Takes 5 mins!

Fishcakes ( not homemade, but fairly good ones iykwim) plus salad.

Pasta - thrown together in 5.

Dinner at work/school 1 day pw.

Takeaway on Friday!

For a while DS was at a nursery which didn't do tea, and so I perfected the art of 15 minute meals I could get together as soon as I was home. Special fried rice was one. Boil kettle, pour into pan, into boiling water pour jasmine rice. It takes ten minutes to cook, enough to fry random veg/meat/from prawns/stuff in a wok. Drain rice, stir in, add an egg if required and voila...

Egg were popular too, as was pasta and gnocchi...

And I cannot fathom how full time working parents of my acquaintance do a supermarket shop too. We add to our order through the week (both of us have an app on our phones) and then it arrives.

I must confess when I was a SAHM ( ML x3 plus accrued AL) I used to go to the supermarket in the evening just to be alone.
I may have taken a loooong slow walk round and sat in the car for a bit as well

Its just so much hassle and easier to have a nice man bring it to my door.
I cant understand my SIL - she takes DH and 3 DC ??? why?

We also have a few pasta/stirfy/omelette nights but I do love taking leftover casseroles/curries etc to work ,then I don't have to bother making sandwiches ,which I loathe.

I manage by throwing money at the problem! (Appreciate not everyone can)

Ocado online weekly shop
Cleaner three times a week who does all washing / ironing
After school nanny who feeds children / does extra chores

Plus a husband who pulls his weight.

I prep my breakfast and suppers at the start of the week. disclaimer; I may have spent too much time on pinterest.

oaty breakfast casserole made the day before work and portioned into tubs in the fridge.

salads chopped and cheese / chicken / mackerel added and portioned into salad tubs. (£1 from poundland). I just add warmed potatoes on the evening I eat them. dc's eat school dinners and after activities, I eat when they're in bed, at least I can eat something really healthy this way..

I have a slow cooker. I've used it a few times. I like the theory of having food ready at home waiting, just not great in practice.

I haven't done a full shop in a supermarket for about 7 years. I hate shopping. I will do as much as I can online. Banking, clothes shopping etc.

Getting up early. We are all up by six, often before. I get so much done in the mornings. Usually put away a load of laundry, quick tidy, making beds etc, get everyone ready and breakfast (usually eggs, something with a bit more prep than cereal), dishwasher, clean kitchen, sometimes even the hoovering.

And commute. Someone once said to me that the secret to life is to live within an easy walking distance from school and work. My work is about thirty minutes but school is five and DH work about fifteen. I would be buggered if I had to do an hour plus each way.

Go to Lidl and get a massive bag of carrots, onions and a head of celery. Grate them all together in a food processor, divide it into bags and freeze. Then you can chuck a frozen bag into the slow cooker as a base for all sorts of thngs- stews, bolognaise etc and get some veg into the kids.

fancy I do that with onions so that I have little bags ready but hadn't thought about carrots and celery - great idea!

Re: slow cooker - I am just used to it now .
it takes a few minutes to prep but I have a few favourites and don't need the recipe anymore.
I often do brisket( brown first) or a gammon with peppercorns, carrots and onions ,pour in water half way up and chuck on.
I serve it with mash, carrots and parsley sauce ( buy or freeze portions)
I use the rest the next day or in the case of the gammon , in pasta or cold with salad.
I try to cook things that do another meal or two.
Bolognese becomes chilli the next day so some days I cook, some I just have to assemble.
Agree on reducing commute if possible - mine is 10 minutes!

I have a slow cooker. I've used it a few times. I like the theory of having food ready at home waiting, just not great in practice.

Me too - I rarely use mine. Does anyone have some good suggestions for meat-free recipes?

I do a lovely veggie chilli in the slow cooker. Chop up courgettes, peppers, aubergine, onions, chuck it in with tinned tomatoes and kidney beans. Also Dhal. Lentils, lots of water and turmeric but no salt. Then fry onions and cumin and mustard seeds when you get home and mix them in. Add salt to taste after lentils cooked.

I got the carrots and celery idea from the 5:2 diet recipe book- its the only thing I still do

Great thread idea!

Op do you have a recipe for your tuna pasta bake, do you do that in the slow cooker?

Our diet has become far to convenience/take away heavy and I want us to eat better!

I go to the supermarket on a friday on my way home from work - I have flexi and go in early during the week to leave an hour early on a friday.

I do a load of washing every day - I have a sorter laundry basket that has removable bags so I just take down which ever is the fullest on my way downstairs. I put it on when I make my morning coffee and then DH hangs it out or on the pulley airer before he goes to work.

I have a cleaner that comes every week and I iron on a sunday at some point.

I do try to plan meals and will usually do a bit of batch cooking so I have something quick to heat up on those nights that we have 20 minutes to eat and be back out of the door.

Judith Finlayson 125 best vegetarian slow cooker recipes.

Once you get using it its such a great way of cooking.
Nothing nicer than coming home on a freezing winter evening to a lovely bubbling casserole whether meaty or veggie
Crusty bread or if you can be bothered put on some rice .

Yum!

Jackie its in the Judith Finlayson book-
The Healthy Slow Cooker ( not the veggie one!)
Not sure that I can post it on here tbh.

I am not Judith Finlayson !

I supermarket shop. I need to see what I'm buying and have had too many duff substitutes.

This week we have had: Roast lamb and trimmings; lemon and garlic marinadec chicken with lemony and feta cous cous and salad; chicken Kiev's, oven chips and peas; spag bol; salmon fillets, pasta with pest and salad; and tonight we're on leftovery bits. Lots of bits and pieces of that lot left over for lunch.

I unload the dishwasher while the kettle boils in the morning and while the tea brews I unload w/mach, put next load on, unload tumbler and fold and sort and whack next lot on.

I do admin daily - opening post, dealing with it and filing as soon as I get home.

I always make dd's lunch in the mornings and always make breakfast for her - she's 16.

Before I leave I tidy and wipe units in kitchen, make beds and leave sitting room ship shape.

I have a cleaner for three hours pw and she irons fir a further two.

Oh, I feed the cats before I leave too. DH sweeps before he leaves and does the bins as required.

Work full-time. I often don't sit down until 8.30/9 midweek.

Placemarking to come back with tips tomo.

Opening the wine now

I only buy staples from Ocado Beaufort they don't do substitutes.

I buy meat, chicken, cheese, veg, fruit,ham from Abel and Cole- the quality is superb.
Top up at the local market - strawberries today have been fought over today

I feed the cats before I do anything else -they climb up my leg !

Actually I do feed the cats first, before the kettle goes on!

This is fabulous.

I now try to have three suppers sort of ready by Sun night,

a slow cooker one I can just turn on on Monday

, a v quick for weds as we are all frantic, grilled kippers anyone?,

something eg a pasta bake or the sauce ready for Tuesday. Lasagne using quorn for example.

Friday I take a bit longer because I wah.

Thursday is the problem. I will rethink slow cooker for then. Will look at Judith finlayson.

We do the same separation with washing.
It's the correspondence that gets me down.

What's the oaty breakfast casserole?