No money, no time, so what to do? (Full Version)

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WD402009 -> No money, no time, so what to do? (8/5/2008 3:09:03 PM)

I work all week and have very little time to cook dinner. Thing is, we can’t really afford to do delivery and take out every night, nor is it good for my family. Do you have any suggestions as to how I can eat healthier at home – even though I don’t have a ton of time or money to spend?



SkittlesRmyFave -> RE: No money, no time, so what to do? (8/5/2008 4:16:17 PM)

I suggest doing bulk cooking. My mother got me into this. She basically cooks for at least a week at a time on Sundays and then stores leftovers for the week. She makes chilis, soups, and other dishes that heat up very well. Now, it isn’t necessary I guess, but she invested in some Foldtuks to help her along with this. The Foldtuk goes directly from freezer or fridge to oven and is just really convenient and helpful…. Maybe this will take some of the stress out of your week :)



pbaribeault -> RE: No money, no time, so what to do? (8/5/2008 4:24:04 PM)

I pre-cook not whole meals, but the parts that freeze well...

Chicken
Ground Beef
Pork
Turkey
Ground Sausage
Ham
Meatballs
Meat-and-Tomato Sauce
Mashed Potatoes
Brown Rice

I have a list of 100 fairly ordinary meals based on these main pre-cooked ingredients. I've never noticed a difference between making them the ordinary way and making them from cooked and frozen ingredients.

I pick 8 meals, buy all the 'extras' that go with the main things into the meal on one grocery trip. Any day, I choose from my 8 do-able meals, and put it on the table in 10 minutes.



Jenny-Fair -> RE: No money, no time, so what to do? (8/5/2008 5:26:24 PM)

Your crock pot can be your best friend. The library usually has several slow-cooker recipes. Then you can do your prep in the morning and dinner will be ready when you walk through the door.



locomom -> RE: No money, no time, so what to do? (8/6/2008 12:33:16 AM)

Bulk cooking can be done in more limited amounts too. If you are making spaghetti sauce, make twice as much and freeze the extra. Doing that regularly provides lots of extra meals. Make a good number of hamburgers up when you buy the meat and freeze them already made up. Make two lasagnes and freeze one.



Focusing -> RE: No money, no time, so what to do? (8/6/2008 12:39:05 AM)

We do lots of salads during the summer. They're pretty quick. I usually add grilled chicken, and grill enough for a few nights at time. During the winter, we eat a lot of homemade soups.

I like pbaribeault's idea too. Sometimes I cook things in bulk (spaghetti sauce, chili) and then freeze in portions. It's easy to just grab one as I'm heading out the door in the morning too so I don't have to buy lunch.

It's definitely worth searching the food / recipe websites for good ideas that will work for your family. A little work up front, some cooperation from other family members on a weekend (make it fun, and bake some cookies when you're all done [;)]), and voila! lots of easy meals. Saves so much time and money.



Karaboo2 -> RE: No money, no time, so what to do? (8/6/2008 2:12:48 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Jenny-Fair
Your crock pot can be your best friend. The library usually has several slow-cooker recipes. Then you can do your prep in the morning and dinner will be ready when you walk through the door.


Yup yup yup ... my crock pot is my favourite kitchen item ... followed closely by the dishwasher! I'm a SAHM, so technically I'm "home" to do the cooking, but I certainly don't want to be spending hours in the kitchen when I can be enjoying my kids and hubby ... I get the prep work done either the night before (when all are in bed) or the morning of (while they are STILL in bed) ... throw it all in together, set it to low and walk away ... dinner is ready promptly at 5 and we get to sit and relax as a family.



3cappuccinosmom -> RE: No money, no time, so what to do? (8/6/2008 4:18:07 AM)

Crock-pot--take ten minutes in the morning to throw the ingredients in, and the majority of your meal is cooked and waiting for you when you come home from work. [:D]

I would argue, though, that if you know what you're doing (it takes a little practice and some planning), putting together a decent homemade meal does *not* actually take that much time. Keeping it simple helps (spaghetti, chili, stir fry, soup and sandwich, salad) really helps, as does having the ingredients on hand and a flexible menu already written out. Many of the things we eat take 10-15 minutes of preparation, and then cook for a while longer, but I don't need to be standing over the stove watching them, so I can get other things done. If you include your family in the meal preparation and setting the table, it will also seem a little less rusehd and overwhelming.



favoredmomof4 -> RE: No money, no time, so what to do? (8/6/2008 10:45:29 AM)

An easy crockpot recipe that is inexpensive is:

Chicken (preferably with bone) & Catalina (like a sweet French) dressing. You just put in the amount of chicken for your family, and pour dressing over. Cook on low for 4-6 hours. The chicken will fall off of the bones, it can be served with brown rice and salad or veggie.

If I think of any others, I'll let you know. [;)]



Georgia-Peach -> RE: No money, no time, so what to do? (8/6/2008 11:50:04 AM)

Definitely the crockpot...I would have been lost without it when I was working outside of the home. There are so many different things you can do in one. There are a lot of recipes online for crockpot. My favorite site is RECIPEZAAR. But, here are two of my favorite and easy recipes for the crockpot.

- Put 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breast in the crockpot, cover with an entire bottle of your favorite bbq sauce, cover with lid, and cook on low all day. When you get home shred the meat and serve on hamburger buns.

- Put a roast in the crockpot w/ some carrots. Mix together 1 dried packet of ranch dressing, 1 dried packet of Italian dressing, one dried packet of brown gravy, and 1.5 cups of water. Pour that mixture over the roast, cover with lid, and cook all day on low. Make some mash potatoes and biscuits, your meal is done. Later in the week you can turn the leftovers into vegetable beef soup.



3cappuccinosmom -> RE: No money, no time, so what to do? (8/6/2008 12:39:30 PM)

There is a series of books for crockpot cooking called Fix It And Forget It which you might find helpful. I just saw they have a new book with the subtitle "5 ingredient favorites", which looks like the recipes are super-simple.



isaacsmom -> RE: No money, no time, so what to do? (8/6/2008 1:26:19 PM)

I definitely say crock pot, too! You can throw pretty much any meat in there (roast, pork, chicken, etc.) and let it cook on low all day -- and cook the veggies right in with it! Soups/stews are also great in the crock pot and you can freeze the leftovers for a later meal. You can even cook a meatloaf in the crock pot.

Pre-cook your meat on the weekends (like ground hamburger) and put it in the fridge or freezer and pull it out when you get home from work to make spaghetti, casseroles, etc.

Keep frozen veggies on hand and steam in the microwave for a quick, healthy side dish. Takes about 2 minutes.



Georgia-Peach -> RE: No money, no time, so what to do? (8/6/2008 2:21:35 PM)

Salads are quick, easy, and healthy meals as well.



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