The rising cost of food is inevitably going to mean many of us will need to find economical ways to feed ourselves and our families seven days a week. If you’re mad about food like me, this prospect is an exciting one, however, if food is simply a means to an end, how on earth do you begin to tackle reducing your food costs, and learning a new way of cooking at the same time?
I don’t mind if you’d rather not read on, that’s completely fine. But I’m sure you need something to cook for dinner tonight, or tomorrow, so I’d love it if you’d try my delicious pesto. Drizzle it over pasta, chicken, fish or a salad. It takes your food to a new level!
https://inastew.co.uk/recipe/homemade-basil-pesto/
I admit avoiding food waste isn’t easy, but I hope that I can help you to see that it really isn’t too hard with a little bit of planning, list writing and savvy shopping.
What is important to focus on is the idea that we are trying to avoid wasting both money and food. Food is too expensive to waste, and money is far too hard to earn, and then waste. The other idea behind food planning is that we are showing that we can be responsible humans: guardians of our precious planet who have a duty to protect it for future generations.
I hope this is something that you can relate to. If it is, please read on and I will try to guide you through the process that I have created and used very successfully over the past 18 years.
Here are your first steps:
The 3 golden rules:
- Write a list of all your meals for the week
- Write a shopping list before you go shopping.
- Unless it is absolutely impossible, buy local or British produce and buy according to the seasons.
This process begins with getting organised. Let’s go –
Step One – Fridge & freezer leftovers and checking your cupboards.
- Take a scrap sheet of paper, your memo app on your phone, or a notebook and write down the days of the week, starting with the day after you are going shopping.
- Also, have a piece of paper/your phone to allow you to write your shopping list as you go along.
- Then before you do anything else, go to your fridge and check if there is anything left in your fridge that needs to be eaten first; jot down these foods/meals on your weekly. Depending on the date, they might be things you need to eat immediately.
- Now, if you have a freezer, repeat the process and check what’s available to use and make into a meal. There might be a meal prepped and ready to go, and this can go on your weekly plan. Alternatively, there could be a bag of frozen vegetables to use in a soup or stew.
- Finally, have a look in your food cupboard to remind you of foods you might like to cook with, and to try and give you a bit of inspiration.
Once you’ve gathered together all your information, it’s very straightforward to now begin to create a menu for the week. This works so well for a single person, a couple or a family. Before I give you an example of what my weekly planning looks like, I just want to spend a minute explaining why if you adopt this approach you will feel like you are winning, and feeling amazing too.
Planning your meals helps you see what you are eating.
Yes, that’s right. By writing down your meals for each day, it’s there in black and white for you to observe. These observations might reveal to you that you’re eating too much red meat or that you’re not eating as many vegetables as you could be. Another revelation might be that you’ve made a plan but for three days you didn’t follow the plan and instead you went to the local takeaway. It may seem extreme and you might have already said to yourself that I am talking rubbish, however, I am very serious when I say that by being critical about what you eat will help you and this takes me to my next point.
Planning your meals will help you lose weight.
By taking control of the food that you eat you will instantly start to see very positive results. Planning your meals is a big part of this. Knowing what you are going to be eating rather than wandering aimlessly around the supermarket, hungry and with no idea what to cook, is not a good feeling or a good place to be. Imagine this – you walk into the supermarket with your list, with the knowledge that you have a clear plan as to what you are going to do with those ingredients. You are in control of the food; not the food in control of you.
Planning your meals will help you to improve your diet & lifestyle.
By sitting down and purposely thinking about the food you are going to eat, leaves you making decisions and considerations; should I make one day a week a veggie day?; I think I need to eat more beans and pulses, I’ll look for a recipe; I’ve got family over at the weekend,. I think I’ll try cooking something new. Whatever your situation, putting time aside does pay off. Another approach to help you make good food choices is to refer to a cook book. I’m sure you’ve got at least one on your bookshelf. Make sure you choose a book about food you like to eat but that also perhaps contains something you wouldn’t normally eat. I could go on but the message is simple: put time aside for your body and your health.
Planning will help you save money.
Giving every single ingredient a recipe it means nothing will go to waste, you’ll get the very best from your pounds and pennies, plus you will eat in the very best way. Anything that is leftover, especially vegetables, can be made into a vegetable soup, stir fry or pasta dish with the addition of some store-cupboard ingredients. The fundamental rule is: if the ingredients isn’t on your menu plan, don’t buy it, and don’t be tempted into thinking that you might, you won’t.
Planning will SAVE you time.
I’m generally not very productive under pressure. This is also true of me in the kitchen. I know from my hundreds of hours in the kitchen, that when I have a plan, not only do I feel better, but it also saves me lots of thinking time on the day and it means I can possibly squeeze in cooking another meal for another day. I want the whole food journey to be enjoyable and by being organised I always enjoy every second in the kitchen. One approach I take is to cook on day 1 for day 2 or 3. When day 2 arrives, I open the fridge and my dinner is waiting. Once you get into the swing of this, you quickly get ahead of yourself and most importantly, you feel in control.
The Plan
Now that I explained the why behind my approach, let’s take a look at what a weekly plan could look like.
Veggie Monday – I always dedicate one day a week to a vegetarian meal. Veggie meals are so simple which is just what you need on a Monday. Indian meals are a perfect choice; Pasta pairs beautifully with leftover veg and jars of olives, peppers and capers you might have in the fridge. My favourite is my tomato and broccoli pasta. Go to my Feast page for details.
Tuesday – a great option on Tuesday is to have second roast dinner using meat/veggie from the weekend and pairing with some freshly roasted potatoes or mash. If this isn’t possible, it’s a good day to let the slow cooker do all the work; economical to run, very quick to prepare and delicious to eat. Pop in your favourite meat, veg, potatoes, or really any combination you like. Served with pasta or rice, you’ll be so glad you did when you arrive home from a busy day.
WEDNESDAY – the middle of the week and you need something to pick you up mid-way through the week; a tasty, homemade meal is sure to do just that. My choice would be my fish goujons with kale & brown rice. Delicious. They can be ready in under half an hour and if you’re time rich, you could make some homemade chips. You’ll be running home to make this delicious, nutritious meal. I promise.
THURSDAY marks a turning point in my week. Usually because fresh food is running low and I have to perform some magic in order to create a meal. By having some chicken fillets out of the freezer, it means I can create a stir fry of veg: red onions, peppers and courgettes and pair it with some chicken goujons in breadcrumbs. Of course pasta or rice is a good option with this and they’re both very quick to prepare, so with very little effort there’s a meal on the table in no time. Try my https://inastew.co.uk/recipe/baked-risotto-with-tomato-courgette-parmesan/ or https://inastew.co.uk/recipe/broccoli-tomato-pasta/
FRIDAY – I always see Friday as my ‘takeaway’ night. I make homemade pizza for my children or flatbreads are a speedy option https://inastew.co.uk/recipe/quick-tasty-flatbreads/ I then go the extra mile for my husband and I’s dinner. Often indulging by watching a film whilst eating dinner on our knees. Sinful, I know. This often means a veggie curry, something spicy. Lentils are my go to for comfort and you can make them as spicy as you like. Try my Kitchari https://inastew.co.uk/recipe/tomato-spinach-kitchari/
SATURDAY – normally a very busy day and for this reason I need something easy or instant. Easy comes in the form of a deli style buffet: maybe a large Tuscan salad, some cheeses, grapes, a homemade garlic baguette, a bowl of pasta with fresh tomato sauce, olives and a simple desert of fresh fruit and yogurt. Instant involves a dish from the freezer: Kitchari with naan bread or a vegetable lasagne you made for a special occasion a couple of months ago. Homemade yet instant.
SUNDAY For many of us, Sunday isn’t a day of rest. Instead it’s a day for jobs, activities or socialising. This means that the stereotypical sitting round the table eating a Sunday lunch with the family probably doesn’t happen, most weeks anyway. One thing I’ve tried to help make this happen is to have a piece of meat pre-roasted. Then if you’re out all day you simply roast some potatoes and cook some veg. This takes under an hour and means you can still have a Sunday lunch but without having to be in the kitchen for hours. My favourite is pork tenderloin, apple sauce, stuffing, gravy and veg.
A collection of ideas on how I plan to save food waste, time and money. My goal in a way is to not only help you to make healthy, nutritious food in your own kitchen, but it is to also help us all to eat ‘real’ food. Making inroads to a new food lifestyle takes a lot of time. Don’t expect it to happen overnight, just aim in the beginning to make one meal from scratch with fresh ingredients and over time this will slowly grow into two, three and eventually 6, maybe even 7 meals (you’ll be better than me if you do!)
I really hope my kitchen cooking tips help and I also hope that if you do attempt to give my suggestions a go that you will enjoy being in the kitchen as much as I do.
Laura x
