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#Post#: 7005--------------------------------------------------
Meal Planning -- Looking for Help Getting Started
By: MinArlington Date: August 25, 2021, 2:03 pm
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We can file this under Things I Should Have Done Years Ago...
We are currently full-time RVers and since COVID I have been
wanting to return to our original plan of living (full- or
part-time) on a boat. One of the things that I do not do well
is plan ahead for meals. This means I shop for groceries 2x a
week at a minimum, and I wind up throwing out a lot of produce
that I bought with the best of intentions :-[
Do you meal plan? How did you start? What have you
learned/changed over time?
What follows is more background than you may want to read so
please feel free to skip...
Both RV kitchens and boat galleys have limited storage,
especially for things that need to be refrigerated/frozen.
Before we went full time in the RV we had a house that had the
normal fridge/freezer in the kitchen, plus a chest freezer, plus
an upright all-freezer, plus an upright all-fridge. Adjusting
to a small fridge/freezer has been.... a challenge.
I am realizing that unless I change my ways, there is no way we
could live on a boat and still stick to the goals of going
ashore as little as possible, not wasting food, and still eating
well (healthy and tasty.)
I am overwhelmed with where to start and am looking for
suggestions. My thoughts so far:
* write down what I actually cook for a few weeks.
* write down what ingredients/spices etc. that entailed
* based on those ingredients, add to the list of meals other
meals that could be prepared from the same ingredients
* turn this into a meal plan for a 3-week rotation (some things
we are happy to eat once a week or even a few x a week, AND we
typically eat 2 meals a day not 3, so this shouldn't (?) be too
ambitious... right?
Thanks for any and all suggestions :-*
#Post#: 7011--------------------------------------------------
Re: Meal Planning -- Looking for Help Getting Started
By: Queenie Date: August 25, 2021, 2:09 pm
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I'm sure lots of people will jump in with much more
sophisticated suggestions, but when I meal plan I basically
[list]
[li]Think of stuff I want to cook[/li]
[li]make a grocery list for those things[/li]
[li] (this is the hard part) stick to the list and the plan[/li]
[/list]
It saves money. There is no doubt of this.
My suggestion is to start by dipping your toe in: check online
what's on sale at the supermarket and plan one week's meals
around that. Start with stuff you already know how to cook,
with staples you probably have already.
#Post#: 7014--------------------------------------------------
Re: Meal Planning -- Looking for Help Getting Started
By: MinArlington Date: August 25, 2021, 2:14 pm
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[quote author=Queenie link=topic=157.msg7011#msg7011
date=1629918575]
It saves money. There is no doubt of this.
[/quote]
Thanks, Q :) Saving money would also be a huge bonus.
#Post#: 7107--------------------------------------------------
Re: Meal Planning -- Looking for Help Getting Started
By: floridafan15 Date: August 25, 2021, 4:01 pm
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I think your plan is a good one, especially starting with
writing down what you actually cook. I used to meal plan, and
it's really easy to go at it with Best Intentions, but reality
always seems to take over. We always seemed to default to the
same core group of meals after a couple of weeks, and then I'd
be left with tons of spices and ingredients that I'd never use
again.
#Post#: 7111--------------------------------------------------
Re: Meal Planning -- Looking for Help Getting Started
By: Queenie Date: August 25, 2021, 4:05 pm
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[quote author=floridafan15 link=topic=157.msg7107#msg7107
date=1629925270]
I think your plan is a good one, especially starting with
writing down what you actually cook. I used to meal plan, and
it's really easy to go at it with Best Intentions, but reality
always seems to take over. We always seemed to default to the
same core group of meals after a couple of weeks, and then I'd
be left with tons of spices and ingredients that I'd never use
again.
[/quote]
Spices don't take up a ton of room.
Another way to go at it is to see what is on sale and then plan
a bunch of meals around that. This would work if space were an
issue. So you see chicken thighs, rice, and, I dunno, bacon.
Google up recipes for those. Then flesh out your grocery list
to match the recipes.
If you're a good and creative cook this can work really well
because you can make some swaps based on what you have lying
around.
It definitely gets easier as you go along. I recommend that you
not overthink it at the beginning.
#Post#: 7128--------------------------------------------------
Re: Meal Planning -- Looking for Help Getting Started
By: NoLongerAubergine Date: August 25, 2021, 4:30 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
[quote author=MinArlington link=topic=157.msg7005#msg7005
date=1629918234]
We can file this under Things I Should Have Done Years Ago...
We are currently full-time RVers and since COVID I have been
wanting to return to our original plan of living (full- or
part-time) on a boat. One of the things that I do not do well
is plan ahead for meals. This means I shop for groceries 2x a
week at a minimum, and I wind up throwing out a lot of produce
that I bought with the best of intentions :-[
Do you meal plan? How did you start? What have you
learned/changed over time?
What follows is more background than you may want to read so
please feel free to skip...
Both RV kitchens and boat galleys have limited storage,
especially for things that need to be refrigerated/frozen.
Before we went full time in the RV we had a house that had the
normal fridge/freezer in the kitchen, plus a chest freezer, plus
an upright all-freezer, plus an upright all-fridge. Adjusting
to a small fridge/freezer has been.... a challenge.
I am realizing that unless I change my ways, there is no way we
could live on a boat and still stick to the goals of going
ashore as little as possible, not wasting food, and still eating
well (healthy and tasty.)
I am overwhelmed with where to start and am looking for
suggestions. My thoughts so far:
* write down what I actually cook for a few weeks.
* write down what ingredients/spices etc. that entailed
* based on those ingredients, add to the list of meals other
meals that could be prepared from the same ingredients
* turn this into a meal plan for a 3-week rotation (some things
we are happy to eat once a week or even a few x a week, AND we
typically eat 2 meals a day not 3, so this shouldn't (?) be too
ambitious... right?
Thanks for any and all suggestions :-*
[/quote]
Great plan. Also since you want to save space, start by looking
in the fridge, freezer and pantry as the starting point for
recipes that will use up those things. When I meal plan
(admittedly hit or miss) that's where I try to start.
#Post#: 7131--------------------------------------------------
Re: Meal Planning -- Looking for Help Getting Started
By: WestCoastJo Date: August 25, 2021, 4:35 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
I'm a big meal planner, following mostly Queenie's method. I
like to meal plan so I can save time throughout the week. I
don't have to go to the grocery store mid week, and if I'm doing
really well, I was able to pre prep some of the things for
weeknight meals during my one big cooking day on the weekend. I
cook for two, so effectively using all perishable items is the
biggest thing to pay attention to. So as you're figuring out
what it is you really like to cook, also start noticing what
only uses half or a quarter or something of some perishable
item. That way you know when you're planning your week (or three
weeks) that you need to add two meals that each use half an X on
the plan.
#Post#: 7242--------------------------------------------------
Re: Meal Planning -- Looking for Help Getting Started
By: Thetis099 Date: August 25, 2021, 8:04 pm
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You have a good plan already. I can contribute a few ideas hat
may be helpful. I have a small apartment refrigerator with a
tiny freezer. I pick up groceries once per month (I am single,
so it isn't a huge load of groceries). Thinking about getting
groceries once per month instead of once per week helped me
think through lists and meal plans more efficiently. I like
fresh vegetables. So, I know I need to be cook those earlier in
the month. I choose recipes to use them up that freeze well and
put half of each recipe in the freezer. This way I can feel
like I am having my fresh vegetables the whole month. If
storage is very limited that may not work as well for the boat.
Fresh, never refrigerated farm eggs are good for saving space in
the refrigerator. They can store at room temperature as long as
they have not been refrigerated.
#Post#: 7271--------------------------------------------------
Re: Meal Planning -- Looking for Help Getting Started
By: nsw11 Date: August 25, 2021, 9:57 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
I do a mix of planning based on what is on sale and what I
already have. I start with meals that use perishables that I
already have, add what's on sale or what is coming in our fruit
and vegetable delivery, then think about variety. But I don't
live on boat. If I did, I'd probably drop the last one.
#Post#: 7294--------------------------------------------------
Re: Meal Planning -- Looking for Help Getting Started
By: Chicagogirl22 Date: August 26, 2021, 12:07 am
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Not the exact same thing, but I just went from a large suburban
kitchen with 2 refrigerators to a city kitchen with 1 I loathe
shopping more than once a week. A few things that help:
(1) be really honest about what you actually eat, not what you
think you should eat. I have to remind myself of this every
single time I want to buy eggplant.
(2) for a month, write down every meal you make that you enjoy.
See if there are any common elements that make sense for you to
keep in your pantry.
(3) when I get my groceries delivered, I prep all my produce
that day. Most fruit is washed in a vinegar solution.
Raspberries, blackberries, and greens are washed in cold water.
I use Oxo Greenworks to store produce and they work extremely
well at both preserving produce and making it easier to see what
you have.
(4) find some recipes that use up odd and end leftovers every
week. I use all leftover fruit for smoothies. Vegetables are
turned into: quiche, soup, quesadilla filling, strata, or pasta.
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