How far ahead do you plan youir everyday meals?

[Stinky The Clown]

My mother used to plan meals a week in advance and shop once a week to get what was needed to make those meals.

Sparkly and I rarely plan ahead for meals. We shop several times a week and buy what looks good and plan ways to cook it when we get home. There are times I'll go to the grocery store and walk around to get inspiration based on what strikes me as appealing that day.

What do you do?

[Callalily]

1. I too used to plan a week

in advance, but no more.

When I'm at the grocer's I check out what's on special and mentally make a list of menus and buy accordingly. So needless to say, my pantry is well stocked.

Or . . . like many here, I am constantly trying new recipes, so I'll cook just about anything on a whim!

[yellerpup]

2. I buy fish, chicken, and loin pork chops at

Costco (supplemented with shrimp, veal, and lamb), break them down into two-serving packages when I get home and stow them in the freezer. I shop locally for vegetables several times a week and let those be the inspiration for how a meal goes together. By averaging the cost of proteins I can get individual servings to around 95 cents per person per meal. If I find apples I buy some for eating out of hand and make applesauce to compliment the pork chops, for instance. We also have at least 2 all vegetarian meals per week, and I also buy beans by the case and make most of the bread we eat. But like you, I look mostly to the vegetable aisle or farmer's market for the ingredients to make each meal truly special.

[Warpy]

3. It depends on what I'm eating

I can get at least 2 meals out of a chicken breast. I eat a pot of potato soup for days on end. Other than that, I get what looks good to me and "plan" the night before, doing veggie prep at night so I can cook on autopilot the next day.

[Tesha]

4. Plan? Well... not really, but

We have goodies in the freezer and a well stocked larder. That's sort of planned, isn't it?;-)

[Denninmi]

5. Planning in advance? And I laughed, and laughed, and laughed (at myself, not you, Mr. Stinky).

I wish I had the luxury of time to do that. In my household, it's usually grab something out of the freezer and see what you can make out of it in 30 minutes or less.

[The empressof all]

6. When I was cooking for my family I planned a few days in advance

I'd usually shop two or three times a week and prepare at least one big meal that included opportunities for left overs. You know things like a roast chicken, pork roast or Sunday gravy.

Now that I'm eating Vegan I tend to rotate through what ever is quick and easy. It's easier to open up a jar of those frickenly good huge beans from Trader Joes and serve them over brown rice with some spinach. I'm not making Tabbouleh or Farro that often though I wish I were motivated to do it. So it just comes down to if it's easier to throw some sweet potatoes in the oven or make a risotto and what I feel up to doing that day. I rely more on my pantry now that I'm not cooking meat...

[tigereye]

7. a few days?

If I want to make kotopita that week or want my husband to make chicken curry, I get certain ingredients a few days ahead and hope that we get it together to make them quickly!

[Phentex]

8. About a week...

Tuesday is pasta night since it's my later day at work. On Sundays I usually think about the week ahead and figure out who's got what going on and then think about meals. I don't get too specific with each night but I'll have a good idea for what we're having for the week.

[Coyote_Bandit]

9. I'm working on a rotating menu plan

Probably about a 6-week plan. Probably won't start actually using it until after the first of the year. I'm designing it to incorporate seasonal and experimental dishes to take advantage of fresh produce and grocer discounts. Still, I expect it to be modified and will probably end up with several versions.

I typically cook for just myself. I hate eating leftovers for more than a second meal. I tend to forget things that are prepared and then frozen for later use - which means they are often past their useful life when re-discovered in the freezer. I hate buying something and then using only a portion of it before it has to be thrown out. I'm not terribly fond of shopping or making shopping lists or menu planning.

A rotation menu for me is a way to be better organized and less wasteful while incorporating a wider range of foods in my diet.

[eleny]

10. I buy what's on sale and then figure out different ways to put it all together

I have standby stuff like frozen bags of mixed sweet peppers & onions, other frozen mixed veggies, some bags of microwavable brown rice plus Italian, Asian and Mexican sauces to use in different ways. You know, condiments of all kinds.

I've always admired people who can make a list, stick to it and fix fabulous meals week after week. Around here, it's a mixed bag. :D

[cbayer]

11. At least two weeks.

We can get groceries only about twice a month. It's become a fun game to try and use everything in the right order so nothing goes bad or has to be tossed.

:hi:

[NMDemDist2]

12. i go to town on Mondays and Thursdays and shop then

so I tend to plan 2-3 days ahead, and since Mr. K is on back shift, I send 80% of his daily calories in his 'lunch' so i cook the night before or in the AM so i have it chilled and ready to send in the lunch box

if i go back to work for the summer, that will change.....but since it's all fresh food these days, i am actually giving away my freezer this week so i have a bit more room in the laundry room for brooms and such. don't think i'll miss it.

and Mr. K has mentioned my getting a new refrigerator for Xmas, since i keep smacking my head on the freezer door handle, i want a bottom freezer unit again and like the looks of those new french doors on the top and bottom freezers

[grasswire]

13. I used to do a weekly plan.

Did it for years. Now I tend to shop every day for fresh stuff, and decide while in the store what will be for supper. I don't particularly like it this way; I spend time wandering the proteins looking for inspiration instead of thumbing through cookbooks. But I walk to the store these days, and so shopping for a week is not possible. Shopping daily is quite European -- that's my rationale. :-)

[Iwillnevergiveup]

14. Well, after a recent visit to the doctor

with a resulting high cholesterol count, I'm shopping more frequently for fresher stuff and pretty much doing away with all the yummy Trader Joe and Stouffer prepared meals. No more ice cream at all and lots more vegetables and homemade stews. Cooler weather makes it easier IMHO to eat healthier.

[marybourg]

15. I have a "self-executing" routine where when I finish a quantity

of either pre-prepared and frozen meals (yesterday I made a pot roast for 4 meals, 2 weeks apart) or fresh items, I buy enough to replace with the same type of food. For instance, when the pot roast meals are finished, I may buy a pack of minute steaks to replace them. I make certain types of meals on certain days of the week, eg., the beef meals are for Wednesdays, always having on hand what I need and don't have to think about meal prep hardly at all. Works for me.:dunce:

[kestrel91316]

16. The night before. After I clean up from dinner, I look at what's in the fridge

that needs to be used up, and what's in the freezer and pantry, and come up with some idea about what might come together for a meal, and then make a short list of what I need to buy. Next day after work I buy what I need and fix dinner. Being single, I only have to do this once or twice a week because I can eat leftovers forever, and I also do casual unplanned mini-meals fairly often - like a fried egg sandwich and a piece of fruit, or whatever.

I do more planning and actual cooking using recipes in the cooler months.

[noamnety]

17. I stock up on sales

freezing things as needed, both from the sales and the garden, and I can from the garden.

Fresh produce inspires a lot of our meals. This week I got two large eggplants for 70 cents, last week I got 12oz tubs of fresh mozzarella for about a dollar a piece. So eggplant parm is on the menu this week.

[madmax]

18. Same as you and Sparkly

I think my husband is having an affair with the deli-woman or a cashier. He seems to 'need' a visit to the grocery store every 2 days or so. :evilgrin:

He'll ask what I'd like,I throw out a few suggestions, but I'm not a fussy eater and whatever he buys, or is on sale we make and eat. Each day is a surprise. :)

[csziggy]

19. I don't really make meal plans but I do plan shopping for a week at a time

I check the store flyers (online where they are posted after midnight Wednesdays), make a list of what is on sale and in season, check what I can make from those things and make a list for hubby to buy Friday afternoon. He drives right by the store on his way home so it is easier to let him shop.

I've gotten a routine for some things - chicken breasts, either regular or skinless and boneless, get roasted right away, then cut up an frozen in portions for easy use later. I bought a half boneless pork loin last week, cut it into a roast, chops, cubes and strips and froze then for cooking later. A bag of potatoes gets made into twice baked, frozen for later, or my new favorite, shredded, cooked with onions and garlic and frozen so I can pull out some for hash browns another day. Broccoli and cauliflower get cut up, blanched and frozen. Summer squashes get cubed, sauteed with onions and garlic, and frozen. And so forth.

With portions already prepared, I can decide what I want to make and thaw overnight or in the microwave and make quick dinners - about as quick as buying expensive pre-made stuff.

[hippywife]

20. I loosely plan once a week

so I only have to stop at the store once. I don't necessarily plan menus, just make sure I have what I need to put together whatever meals.

My MIL had 9 children and used to shop once a month, make entrees and pies for the month and freeze them.

[davidwparker]

21. When I go back to cooking in a month, I'm hoping to

buy most of what I need on Friday afternoon and then spend Saturday making things for reheating or doing prep work so that if I do need to cook something, that aspect has been done. I have a freezer out in the garage that sits practically empty. I need to fill it up with things which I make on the weekend.

Then, while I'm reheating during the week, I'm planning out my next week's meals.

If this doesn't work, then I will just pick up only what I need each day, and keep a thin pantry.

I have been busy and eating out way to much. Now that things are slowing down for me, I really want to start cooking again.