Eat at Home 3!

[dpswift]

We made some progress tonight. DH and I both wanted to go out. But we stayed home and ate the roast I fixed the other night. DH is heading to Florida tomorrow so most of our upcoming meals are out

 

[tinkerbellandpeterpan]

Rearranged Menu:

Wed- L/o chicken cutlets with tortellini
Thurs- Pizza out a local brewery (DH runs their social media so we get a monthly gift card in exchange)
Fri- Breakfast for dinner

 

[Bellex917]

New week upcoming, new plan. Some of these are carried over... I ended up switching up some meals the last two weeks (for example BBQ chicken pizza has been on the plan for 3 weeks and I haven't made it lol). I keep a pretty stocked pantry and freezer so it's not abnormal for me to not be in the mood and swap for something easy.

This week (and I don't anticipate swapping bc I'm excited for these).. most are served with salad bc I prep a big salad and use it all week
:
Sunday- strip steak, baked potatoes, salad, biscuits
Mon- grilled chicken fajita tacos, Spanish rice
Tues- pot roast, potatoes, carrots (from freezer last time I made it)
Wed- BBQ chicken pizza (for real this time lol)
Thur- penne vodka
Fri- nachos (son's request)

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

We pretty much keep just a couple of items in the freezer (usually some chicken nuggets, maybe a bag of veggies and some ice cream) and some sort of pasta/rice and cereal in the pantry. Not much else. We don't ever freeze meat of any kind because we will wind up throwing it away after a month or so because we didn't use it. We try to get a pound or 2 of HB meat every time we go to the store and cook it 1-2 times per week. We've also starting keeping a bag of shrimp in the freezer (wife doesn't eat shrimp, but I like to sauté it and put with some noodles and veggies). We mostly just shop each week for that week's food (we need to buy milk and bread weekly anyway because it won't be good more than a few days after purchase).

Our meals typically look like this:
Something with HB meat (tacos, spaghetti, sloppy joes, etc),
Something with smoked sausage or ham steak (usually with a potato or rice),
Something with precooked chicken fajita meet (fajitas, baked potatoes with chicken, etc)
Some sort of pasta (maybe some veggies mixed in) and bread,
Some sort of quick meal (chicken nuggets, french fries or frozen pizza),
Maybe a crock pot meal (sausage balls, chicken spaghetti, something wife finds on Pintrest).

We don't like raw chicken in the house, and wife won't let me cook fish/salmon/seafood in the house because it smells up the place for days at a time she says. However, I've gotten her to accept me sauteing shrimp from time to time.

For example, this week's dinner menu was:
Monday - cheese ravioli (from the frozen foods section);
Tuesday - chicken fajita (frozen precooked chicken);
Wednesday - chicken sandwich;
Thursday - bowl of rice;
Friday - frozen pizza;
Today - sloppy joe casserole (Pintrest);

I keep a pretty stocked pantry and freezer so it's not abnormal for me to not be in the mood and swap for something easy.

 

[TwoMisfits]

Did shopping early b/c of snow...but don't have absolute set plans, but here's a rough guess - shops were HMart and Aldi for the week...

Sunday - Hmart Korean Marinated Chicken Thigh (1/2 price) and Veg Stir Fry (Onions, Peppers, Mushrooms, maybe some Spinach too), White Rice, Strawberries and Kiwi

Monday - Aldi's Hamburgers with Cheese, Lettuce, Tomato, Pickle, Onion, and the Condiments, Roasted Okra, More Strawberries and Kiwi

Tuesday - Roast Whole Duck with Orange Sauce (Aldi's - under $3/lb clearance), Homemade Stuffing with Onions and Celery, Roasted Broccoli, Sliced Oranges

Wednesday - Duck Soup/Stew (not sure what yet, but I'll use the duck bones to make something nice), Homemade Bread or Muffins, Green Leaf Salad with Tomato, Cucumber, and Carrot

Thursday - Aldi's Pork Tamales with Salsa Verde, Homemade Guacamole, Lettuce, Tomato, and Cheese (for the willing), Black Beans, Probably Orange Slices

Friday - Lenten Soup and Pasta Church Dinner - bringing an Indian Chickpea, Green Pea and Veg Curry and Fruity Pebbles Cupcakes (both dairy and nut free)

Saturday - Girls are going out with their friends, so I may take spouse and the boys out for their favorite fast casual

Punted tamales b/c spouse found a few packages of old steaks in the freezer. So made that Thursday, and will be having steak Thursdays for a few weeks (not planning tamales this week, but they are my back up, "I'm sick and not cooking plan" b/c they are premade). Also have 2 kids who woke up sick with congestion today and I haven't done my 2nd shop yet, so I'm gonna make plans and probably change plans (except for today), but it is always good to at least have a plan.

Shops this week - Aldi's (done) and Safeway (not done)

Sunday - Rigatoni with Trader Joe's meatballs and a homemade veg marinara sauce, strawberries and clementines (I have a LOT of both)

Monday - Aldi's Turkey Tenderloin, homemade stuffing with onion and celery, roasted carrots, homemade cranberry clementine sauce

Tuesday - Shrimp Tacos with all the fixings, black beans, strawberries and blueberries

Wednesday - Safeway shop day - whatever their discount protein is or fried chicken, bakery French bread, salad, raspberries and apple slices

Thursday - Steak with coffee rub and caramelized onions, roasted potatoes or mashed potatoes, roasted asparagus (if Safeway has it during my shop this week), last of strawberries and clementines

Friday - Church Soup Dinner - Bringing butternut squash and black bean chili with an allergy free cake and hopefully some fresh fruit (my clementine bag this week got demolished)

Saturday - Date night with friends - we are going to Indian - kids will get Subway or pizza

 

[Bellex917]

We pretty much keep just a couple of items in the freezer (usually some chicken nuggets, maybe a bag of veggies and some ice cream) and some sort of pasta/rice and cereal in the pantry. Not much else. We don't ever freeze meat of any kind because we will wind up throwing it away after a month or so because we didn't use it. We try to get a pound or 2 of HB meat every time we go to the store and cook it 1-2 times per week. We've also starting keeping a bag of shrimp in the freezer (wife doesn't eat shrimp, but I like to sauté it and put with some noodles and veggies). We mostly just shop each week for that week's food (we need to buy milk and bread weekly anyway because it won't be good more than a few days after purchase).

Our meals typically look like this:
Something with HB meat (tacos, spaghetti, sloppy joes, etc),
Something with smoked sausage or ham steak (usually with a potato or rice),
Something with precooked chicken fajita meet (fajitas, baked potatoes with chicken, etc)
Some sort of pasta (maybe some veggies mixed in) and bread,
Some sort of quick meal (chicken nuggets, french fries or frozen pizza),
Maybe a crock pot meal (sausage balls, chicken spaghetti, something wife finds on Pintrest).

We don't like raw chicken in the house, and wife won't let me cook fish/salmon/seafood in the house because it smells up the place for days at a time she says. However, I've gotten her to accept me sauteing shrimp from time to time.

For example, this week's dinner menu was:
Monday - cheese ravioli (from the frozen foods section);
Tuesday - chicken fajita (frozen precooked chicken);
Wednesday - chicken sandwich;
Thursday - bowl of rice;
Friday - frozen pizza;
Today - sloppy joe casserole (Pintrest);

I use a system called reverse meal planning which has enabled me to cut my grocery budget dramatically. Meat can last in the freezer for over a year... so no need to throw it out after a month. The basic premise is you buy what you normally eat when it's on sale and stock up. So for you, if smoked sausage was on sale you'd buy as many as the offer allows and freeze them so you don't have to buy them at full price. Bc I do this for all food we eat, with the exception of fresh produce and dairy items, I try to never pay full price for anything. If this interests you I get my inspo from Frugal Fit Mom on YouTube... she has whole videos about it.

 

[tinkerbellandpeterpan]

Sunday: Sausage, peppers, and onions
Monday: Teriyaki chicken tacos with white rice
Tuesday: Marinated london broil and baked potatoes
Wednesday: Regular beef tacos with yellow rice
Thursday: Huli huli chicken (maybe I'll actually get around to it this time) with roasted seasoned potatoes
Friday: TBD

Lunches will be leftovers and I'll make the last of the tortellini in the fridge so we can have that one or two days this week.

 

[barkley]

I use a system called reverse meal planning which has enabled me to cut my grocery budget dramatically. Meat can last in the freezer for over a year... so no need to throw it out after a month. The basic premise is you buy what you normally eat when it's on sale and stock up

i did'nt know there was a name for what i do i totaly shop this way but i don't limit it to meat-anything we use on a regular basis i keep an eye on the sales and stock up on. i only grocery shop once per month and there are very few items i get on a repeated monthly basis-it's just the odds and ends i need as well as some produce and dairy products. everything is meal planned based on what we have already so it might be just grabbing the odd item i need to complete a recipie (the other day when i did my March shopping i snagged the tomatos, bell peppers and andouiille that are the only items i don't already have for jambalaya).

i agree it saves $$$$. there are some months i have very little i need to buy so the grocery budgeted amount rolls over to subsequent months when there might be a great sale (like this past week-93% ground beef for $3.49 a pound) and i want to stock up.

 

[Bellex917]

i did'nt know there was a name for what i do i totaly shop this way but i don't limit it to meat-anything we use on a regular basis i keep an eye on the sales and stock up on. i only grocery shop once per month and there are very few items i get on a repeated monthly basis-it's just the odds and ends i need as well as some produce and dairy products. everything is meal planned based on what we have already so it might be just grabbing the odd item i need to complete a recipie (the other day when i did my March shopping i snagged the tomatos, bell peppers and andouiille that are the only items i don't already have for jambalaya).

i agree it saves $$$$. there are some months i have very little i need to buy so the grocery budgeted amount rolls over to subsequent months when there might be a great sale (like this past week-93% ground beef for $3.49 a pound) and i want to stock up.

I too use it for everything. If the jarred sauce I like is on sale and I can buy 10, I do. Then I don't need it for a long time. I had to buy chicken tenderloins full price today and I was so sad LOL! That cut of meat never goes on sale here and I needed them for a recipe ( I mean, I could have cut thicker breasts, but whatever, I did what I did haha). I have weeks where I spend under $50 for a family of 4. I really save so much money this way and can't imagine going back to making a meal plan and just buying whatever.

 

[barkley]

If the jarred sauce I like is on sale and I can buy 10

i got 6 jars yesterday but it just the type i had used up there are 48 jars of 7 different types in the pantry now that were all bought when prices were at least 35% off on sale. i used to make all my own from scratch but there are so many different flavors of sauces now that we enjoy and it's less expensive than scratch when it's on sale.

 

[Bellex917]

i got 6 jars yesterday but it just the type i had used up there are 48 jars of 7 different types in the pantry now that were all bought when prices were at least 35% off on sale. i used to make all my own from scratch but there are so many different flavors of sauces now that we enjoy and it's less expensive than scratch when it's on sale.

I make it from scratch under two circumstances:
1- A holiday
2- Cooking for others (making a meal to give to someone, etc.)

My weekdays are BUSY- a jar is good enough LOL

 

[tinkerbellandpeterpan]

i did'nt know there was a name for what i do i totaly shop this way but i don't limit it to meat-anything we use on a regular basis i keep an eye on the sales and stock up on. i only grocery shop once per month and there are very few items i get on a repeated monthly basis-it's just the odds and ends i need as well as some produce and dairy products. everything is meal planned based on what we have already so it might be just grabbing the odd item i need to complete a recipie (the other day when i did my March shopping i snagged the tomatos, bell peppers and andouiille that are the only items i don't already have for jambalaya).

i agree it saves $$$$. there are some months i have very little i need to buy so the grocery budgeted amount rolls over to subsequent months when there might be a great sale (like this past week-93% ground beef for $3.49 a pound) and i want to stock up.

I am so impressed you just shop once per month. I thought i was doing good at once per week and then not setting foot inside the grocery store until the next week LOL!

 

[barkley]

I am so impressed you just shop once per month. I thought i was doing good at once per week and then not setting foot inside the grocery store until the next week LOL!

1. i hate to shop

2. it's a minimum 1 hour round trip to any grocery store let alone any i want to shop at

3. i'm very lucky to have lots of storage (both pantry-ish, full size freezer in addition to an extra old fridge/freezer)

BIGGEST contribution-dairy products here are ultra pasturized so the milk, sour cream and cream cheese i bought last week has a use by date of may (it will be used way ahead of then but it helps with minimizing trips).

produce gets challenging b/c so much is organic here and goes bad quick so i opt for non organic and gets stuff with longer refridgeration life (carrotts, celery, potatos, onions, tomatos...). if we need something w/less of a shelf life it gets snagged on another errand. i realy like it here during the summer b/c i can plant fresh basil, mint and parsley in my deck planters and have fresh herbs (i would do them in the house year round but my crazy cats would gnaw them to bits).

 

[LilyWDW]

I wish I could stock up more. Living in a city apartment makes that hard, along with the fact that I walk to take public transportation to the store. My pantry is teeny tiny and I only really have 1 extra cabinet that I can use for food. The freezer is small too. So I will do a mini version of stocking up where I may buy say chicken breasts on sale for a meal that day, but then I will buy one more for the freezer. But even that I can't do all the time because of space. My freezer is PACKED atm because I did recently do a bigger stock up (had to go out to the suburbs for something so hit up some shops).

This weeks meals are:

Roasted chicken, stuffing, broccoli casserole, crescent rolls, and gravy

Spaghetti with meatballs, salad, and garlic bread

I only cook for myself so I often only make a few meals a week.

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

I've never seen meat on sale at Walmart. And that's the only place we shop.

But we also don't buy tons and tons at a time. Yes we can freeze it, but even if we freeze, we still won't use by the date on the package that it goes bad. Same with most everything else. That's why we don't buy in bulk. We just buy onesies and twosies, and sometimes that goes bad before the date expires. Can't tell you how much food we've thrown out over the years (out of the freezer, fridge, panty) that has passed its use by date.

I too use it for everything. If the jarred sauce I like is on sale and I can buy 10, I do. Then I don't need it for a long time. I had to buy chicken tenderloins full price today and I was so sad LOL! That cut of meat never goes on sale here and I needed them for a recipe ( I mean, I could have cut thicker breasts, but whatever, I did what I did haha). I have weeks where I spend under $50 for a family of 4. I really save so much money this way and can't imagine going back to making a meal plan and just buying whatever.

 

[Bellex917]

I've never seen meat on sale at Walmart. And that's the only place we shop.

But we also don't buy tons and tons at a time. Yes we can freeze it, but even if we freeze, we still won't use by the date on the package that it goes bad. Same with most everything else. That's why we don't buy in bulk. We just buy onesies and twosies, and sometimes that goes bad before the date expires. Can't tell you how much food we've thrown out over the years (out of the freezer, fridge, panty) that has passed its use by date.

When you freeze meat it doesn't go by the date anymore. It can then be used for months.

 

[ariel1025]

Sunday night was pork chops, au gratin potatoes, peas
Last night was slow cooker short ribs, mashed potatoes, green beans
Tonight will be crockpot chicken tacos, Spanish rice
Wednesday: Mississippi roast, potatoes, carrots
Thursday: smoked ribs and ??
Friday: Round steak and gravy
Saturday: Frozen pizza and wings
Sunday: some sort of pasta night

 

[barkley]

Sunday night was pork chops, au gratin potatoes, peas
Last night was slow cooker short ribs, mashed potatoes, green beans
Tonight will be crockpot chicken tacos, Spanish rice
Wednesday: Mississippi roast, potatoes, carrots
Thursday: smoked ribs and ??
Friday: Round steak and gravy
Saturday: Frozen pizza and wings
Sunday: some sort of pasta night

what is mississippi roast?

 

[ariel1025]

what is mississippi roast?

Roast, carrots, butter (1 stick is the norm but we use 1/2 most the time), pepperoncinis (we prefer slices and use around half the jar), juice from the pepperoncini jar (again around half the jar), ranch packet, au jus packet. Cook on low all day in the crockpot. I prefer to throw the carrots in for the last hour or so to avoid them being too mushy. Typically serve on top of mashed potatoes. Not very healthy but amazingly delicous!

 

[dpswift]

We got home Wednesday night.

Last night hot dogs and beans
Tonight Chili
Tomorrow either pork chop or steak