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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

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Original poster

Are you batch cooking for babys arrival?

40 replies

Orangemochafrappacino · 18/07/2021 21:30

Some of my baby books/internet forums have recommended that we batch cook some healthy meals and freeze them for when the baby arrives, so that we dont have to worry about cooking amongst getting to grips with everything.

However a few people I've mentioned this to have been a bit and have said of course one of us will be able to find time to cook. DH has a month paternity before going back to work when itll be just me.

Is anyone else doing/done this or is it not worth it?

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BeingATwatItsABingThing · 18/07/2021 21:32

I didn’t and wouldn’t have had space in my freezer.

SmidgenofaPigeon · 18/07/2021 21:33

I will because I have four weeks maternity before due date, and I like cooking, so it’ll be nice to have the time.

dorothysredshoe · 18/07/2021 21:34

Definitely a great idea!

TooManyAnimals94 · 18/07/2021 21:34

I'm making a conscious effort to make bigger meals and freeze leftovers but I'm not planning on spending any set time making up meals to freeze.
We're quite good at quick healthy meals anyway and we both cook so should be OK.

Congratulations BTW, how many weeks are you I'm? I'm 32 🙂

BertieBotts · 18/07/2021 21:34

I did with my first baby, never bothered for the second, it was fine :)

It's quite a useful thing but it's not essential IME, especially if you're happy with convenience food/takeaways.

User135792468 · 18/07/2021 21:37

I did and it was a lifesaver. We didn’t use them every night but it was great not having to think about cooking for 3/4 nights a week for the first month or two. I preferred dh take the baby so I could sleep or shower rather than go and cook.

21Bee · 18/07/2021 21:39

No! We just lived off of Charlie Bingham and Cook meals for a few weeks. I didn’t fancy eating the same batch cooked thing over and over again.

toastantea · 18/07/2021 21:39

I never did; but I'm not a prepper anyway.

Ritasueandbobtoo9 · 18/07/2021 21:43

I just lived off cod in butter sauce and ovens chips n peas

IDontDrinkTea · 18/07/2021 21:48

I did this - I then didn’t cook a hot meal til baby was over 2 months old (I have an enormous chest freezer…)

It helped for me as I had a very very high needs baby. She had undiagnosed CMPA that meant she was constantly unsettled, had to be held and rocked pretty much 24/7, and would feed a lot too.

So my husband would get home from work, I’d reheat a frozen meal, then he’d go straight to bed while I dealt with the evenings, which were always her prime screaming hours. I’d then wake him at 3am ish and he’d take over while I slept until 7:30 when he had to get ready for work. Since neither of us got a huge amount of sleep with this arrangement, I’m glad I wasn’t wasting any time actually cooking from scratch.

I’ve got another baby on the way now and fully intend to do the same thing again in case I have another high needs baby

BridgetGetTheGin · 18/07/2021 22:02

Cook meals are the best! Pre-frozen and cooked from fresh.

Defo a good idea as we had many nights of oh fuck, what should we eat? Do we have anything in?

Tiredness/fatigue is a REAL thing

BridgetGetTheGin · 18/07/2021 22:03

We had a lot of takeaways. I think we will defo buy loads from cook and freeze this time.

rosalindwi · 18/07/2021 22:06

Maybe... or just getting an order in from M&S food or cook!!

Aalvarino · 18/07/2021 22:06

Depends on your budget and the kind of baby you get. A screamer and little spare cash then absolutely. A placid angel and acres of dosh...then no. Spend your last baby-free weeks of mat leave sleeping and doing selfish, indulgent things ...

Elune · 18/07/2021 22:09

My DH had a month off work and we discovered tiny babies don't really do much so the house was spotless and he just cooked all meals. But this time, with a toddler, we might

Elune · 18/07/2021 22:10

Oh the best thing though was my mum leaving us a pot of her homemade bolognaise on the hob when we got home from the hospital. I swear it's the best thing I've ever eaten in my life.

Clevs · 18/07/2021 22:12

I did and was glad I did as well. I decided to breastfeed and my son decided that he wanted feeding at teatime nearly every night. If you do batch cook I'd recommend stuff that you can eat one handed that doesn't need cutting up .

Garman · 18/07/2021 22:12

I do this, but my husband doesn't get time off so I'm on my own in at the deep end for the daytimes and then he's back at 6.30pm and hungry! Easier to have food in freezer for both of us and then I can just hand baby over when he's eaten. I have two freezers so freeze snacks, dinners, things for the dc, shortcuts for other dinners, etc.

Horehound · 18/07/2021 22:14

I think if you have time/energy to do it then yes, I would. But it's not a big deal if you don't.

Hardbackwriter · 18/07/2021 22:14

I also see this advice a lot but it seems to be predicated on the assumption that the father either isn't around at meal times from day 1 or, infuriatingly, that he couldn't possibly do the cooking. If there are two of you and one baby then of course one of you can just cook, especially if you're alright with something quick and easy. I always think this about the MN insistence that random visitors should be doing housework for new parents - I don't get why the father isn't doing it.

RosesAndHellebores · 18/07/2021 22:15

Yes I did and my DH thought I was nuts. Best thing I ever did - it was so helpful. No chance when dd came along so we lived on roast chicken, new potatoes, salad and coleslaw for six weeks , with the occasional pizza thrown in.

EdithGrantham · 18/07/2021 22:19

We have made extra of 3 of our regular meals and frozen the leftovers, but won't want the same thing 2 weeks in a row so will have enough for 1 or 2 each week for around 6 weeks. I kind of ran out of ideas to be honest otherwise might have done a few more.

RoseAndGeranium · 18/07/2021 22:25

Didn’t bother first time round and it was fine. DH did all the cooking and I think he found it very therapeutic! This time I’m planning to get a couple of weeks of dinners in the freezer because I think it’ll be harder for either of us to find the time and energy with a 3 yr old as well as the newborn. If you’re not that keen on cooking, though, Cook does some really nice healthy meals and they deliver to a lot of areas.

mocktheweek1 · 18/07/2021 22:34

I really regret not doing this. We lived on takeaways and I ended up a stone heavier than I was when I had DS

Nanalisa60 · 18/07/2021 22:42

If you have time and feel up to it, then it’s a great idea, to do the batch cooking when you have stop working, it’s real great to defrost a home cooked meal. Especially when you husband finishes his mat leave. Also if you feel up to it get your house real clean and tidy, have a big declutter. Makes the first few weeks easier when you get home.

I still batch cook certain foods all these years later, make two shepherds pies, two lasagnes, two cottage pie, moussaka , chilli, Bolognese sauce, eat one stick on in the freezer .

I also remember my mil leaving a big pot of home made soup on the cooker on the day I got home.

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