What meals do you repeat each week?

[IDoDis]

I live in PA now, but I will live in NM one day. We spend a few weeks in NM every year and when I am home I miss the food. No green chiles here.

I don't do tacos every week, but at least twice a month we have something Mexican-ish like bean burritos, chicken enchiladas or tacos.

Try to come in August or September which is green chile harvest season. You can buy 10 pound sacks at most grocery stores and they'll roast it right in front of you. Bag it all up in quart-sized freezer bags, freeze them and then pack them in newspaper and dry ice for your trip home. My sister does this every year. She comes in late August and brings an empty suitcase with her for the chile.

 

[LovesTimone]

It's just DH and I now, but Steak and Tato Friday night,

My friends always ask for menu advice they seem to think that I cook all the time. I do cook but not like that. For me it starts at the grocery store. I am a list maker I know terrible but I have to have one. I figure out what we have going on and what is on sale or special and any seasonal items. Then I stock the pantry and freezer with those items. Then I do double duty when I am cooking. Here a couple of examples:

If I am baking potatoes instead of just 2- I will bake 6 to 8 - with the extras, we can make fried potatoes for breakfast, or I will make potato salad, or slice on a sheet pan and add herbs and olive oil, or twiced baked potatoes, even smashed potatoes. This save time and cuts down on the electric bill, as I am using the oven only once for the baking time.

Pasta and sauce are other items that I use like this. If I am making pasta and red sauce, I make a large pot of sauce and freeze part of it. This was a life saver when the kids were at home, and we had dance lesson, team sports, church and other school functions during the week. When I cook the pasta I cook the whole box, I know that we are not going to eat it all, but I portion out what we will eat for that meal, then baggie the rest up for later in the week, make sure that is has completely drained and cooled off. You can use it for pasta salad, mac and cheese, or our favorite shrimp and pasta in a garlic butter sauce, sautee some mushrooms and throw in some veggies all done.

I buy a large package of ground chuck - I made meatloaf last night, I divided the pack in half, making up the meatloaf and used the other part for meatballs, I bake them at the same time, letting the meatballs cool completely then baggie them up and freeze, I can use then later for meat ball subs, or throw then in the red sauce, I have used then for appetizer for parties and taken them to work and church and friends homes for pot luck.

 

[drcmk]

Try to come in August or September which is green chile harvest season. You can buy 10 pound sacks at most grocery stores and they'll roast it right in front of you. Bag it all up in quart-sized freezer bags, freeze them and then pack them in newspaper and dry ice for your trip home. My sister does this every year. She comes in late August and brings an empty suitcase with her for the chile.

I will be in Albuquerque from August 13 to August 25. What I want to buy is a ristra, but I don't know how well it will travel.

 

[drcmk]

We try not to repeat a specific dish more often than once per month. But we do have a regular weekly dinner plan. Every week we have:

One chicken dish (cutlets, roasted chicken, Teriyaki chicken, etc)
One beef dish (London broil, burgers, steak sandwiches)
One pork/ham dish
One sandwich (club sandwiches, grilled cheese, grilled chicken sandwiches)
One non-meat meal (bean burritos, French toast, pizza, tuna salad)
One pasta

In the winter we usually have one soup night each week, too.

We generally eat out weekly too.

The biggest complication is that there is sometimes overlap--our pasta dish might have chicken in it, or our sandwiches might have beef--then we feel like we are repeating the same type of food too often. We really like variety.

 

[branv]

I can't imagine repeating the same meal every week. I think we'd both revolt.

One time I tried making the same fish every Monday, b/c that was the day I shop for the week, and I would buy fresh/never frozen trout (neither of us like prefrozen fish). I was trying to get at least one serving of fish a week. I just cooked it in the pan with garlic parmesan seasoning and some lemon, because it was tasty and very very easy. Finally DH, who never complains about food, asked if we could take a break from that dish

However, every two weeks or so we have a curry dish. Either one of two ready-made brands we buy at costco (in their refrigerated section...seriously, you cannot believe the fresh made taste -- all natural ingredients), or my own. And every weekend lately we've been grilling one night -- different stuff, though. And every few weeks I also make sort of a "hash" rice: toss leftover meat into the rice cooker with basmati, chicken broth, olive oil, salt/pepper, peas, maybe corn. Sometimes I'll change the "flavor" with different spices (such as cumin, curry, garlic, ginger) or liquids, like add in salsa verde, rotel, soy sauce, etc. It's very very simple and comfort-food tasty

I do, now and again, plan a few weeks or month's worth of cooking, but then I see great recipes in my magazines or online (hello Pinterest!) that I just have to try. And even when I stick to the plan, only a handful of those recipes are "the usual suspect". I'm not a "real" chef, as in I mostly follow recipes, and I don't necessarily love to cook, but I do love to eat! Mainly, I love trying new foods, so eating the same meal repeatedly would be like loving music but listening to the same album over and over. That being said, I never choose recipes that involve a lot of steps, ingredients, or are too expensive (unless it's a weekend night, which would make it cheaper than eating out).

I do, however, tend to repeat the same simple sides -- grilled zucchini, rice, sliced tomatoes, stir-fried squash, roasted carrots and potatoes.

 

[IDoDis]

I will be in Albuquerque from August 13 to August 25. What I want to buy is a ristra, but I don't know how well it will travel.

The red chile ristras are in season in October when the green chile that had not yet been harvested turns red. So the ristras you will find in August will be from last year which is fine. it may not travel well if it is really dry. If you are driving, it will be fine since you don't have to worry about freezing etc... If you are flying, put the ristra in a shopping bag with handles and carry it on the plane.

 

[usd2bmd]

We have a list of about 55-60 different meal ideas. Some are specific (i.e.Pasta alfredo with broccoli and chicken) and some are more generic (i.e. marinated pork chops - we would choose the marinade when picking that meal) on Friday night we discuss what we want the next week. Some of the meat that we buy at the grocery store gets marinated when we bring it home and frozen with the marinade so that as it thaws it also marinates. Then I can make a list and I have a plan for grocery shopping. Now sometimes the plan gets changed during the week if DH has to work alot of OT and Thursdays dinner is made on Tuesday because it's quicker. But having a plan makes it so much easier to stay on budget and not order out.

 

[jiminykrikkit]

We repeat beans & cornbread every Monday, and stretch the leftovers out all week.

Monday is beans & cornbread (we only use four cornbread muffins, I freeze the other eight so I don't have to turn the oven on every Monday!).

Midweek is either fajitas or tacos with beans as a side, or bean & cheese burritos.

At the end of the week I use whatever is left to throw into chili.

Other frequent repeats are pork chops & rice, slow cooker salsa chicken, taco salads.

 

[ilovepete]

Thanks for the ideas, everyone. They all sound great. I'm trying to figure out what approach to take. I just have to change something up, I'm in a summertime rut and I don't want to dread the "meal planning" chore every week, like I am doing now! In the winter I tend to enjoy it more because I like cooking things like soups, roasts, etc. but in these blazing hot summer months I just have a really hard time getting motivated and sticking with it, so that is the reason I was looking to simplify.