A Little Guidance on Meal Planning?

Hi, all,

I'm trying to get in the habit of meal planning because for some reason, cooking for two is harder than cooking for one. (Might be because not everyone can eat ground beef covered in salsa and Greek yogurt four times a week.)

I have a handle on supper, snacks, etc. If we eat X amount of land, air, or sea creatures per meal, then multiply that by 25-30,  I know how much creature poundage I need for the month. Since I rely on a lot of frozen veggies, this is also easy. I even have a good idea on some of "his" foods: PB&J, flour tortillas, hot dogs, and don't get me going on the Miracle Whip.

I'm also diligent about cooking things that I had to buy in bulk (like an 8-pound pork shoulder), then portioning it out in one-meal sizes for the freezer. (So we don't end up eating pork covered in salsa and Greek yogurt ad nauseum.)

What's got me stumped are the pantry/staple items. I'm trying to get my shopping habits organized, but I don't know how to plan these because they vary. Should I use a Just in Time system, where I just get those items when we're running out? Should I track this stuff over time for estimates? Am I over-thinking it?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanx in advance!
L

I vote for Just in Time. We've run our home on that basis for years.

Might be because not everyone can eat ground beef covered in salsa and Greek yogurt four times a week.

What! Who can't do that? Not sure about the yogurt, but GB and salsa is one of the primary food groups, isn't it?

If you actually like overthinking, then you could make a master shopping list that includes every single thing you have/might want to have, in your pantry. Make categories in the order that things live in the supermarket. Have a some blank lines for one-off items you night want to add for a special recipe for example. Print the master list off in advance.

Then, when you run out of things, and again on shopping day, just highlight the ones you need this time.


It might be helpful for remembering those things that the other person uses that you would never even notice were missing otherwise. As well as things that don't run out often, those are the ones I tend to forget.

I agree with Annieh--a master list of the things you use, then check off or highlight what you need to buy before you go shopping. If you plan meals a week in advance, you can add anything unusual that you might need, and make sure you have the staples you need for that week.

The hardest part for me is getting my husband to focus on meal planning so we are in agreement. I always seem to think about this after dinner, and he's "I don't want to think about more food right now!".

Sorry to hear about your partner's food choices. Painful. Hopefully you can make some inroads on that with some really good meals!

We keep a small number of staples in our pantry like two cans of artichoke hearts, two cans of tuna,etc. but the rest is just in time We base our meals for the week on what we get from our CSA, what we have in the freezer and what we want, then we shop for what we need. We try to keep a list of what is the freezers but it is not always up to date.

We mostly follow the just in time scheme - if one of us takes the last item from the root cellar, we are supposed to write it on the list on the fridge. The reality is that he forgets and it is my job as the shopper to note when he is low on his foods. Sometimes I don't notice and he runs out and I try to nicely point out that he should have written it on the list...

He is pretty good about calling me when he runs out during the day to say put X on your list please.

This thread helped a lot. I imagine some of you with these perfect systems in place, while I'm walking around thinking that I'm a pantry failure. *chuckle*

Artichoke hearts and tuna - sounds right to me (because I have the same things in my pantry).  

Thanks everyone!
L

Just because someone might happen to know of the perfect system, doesn't mean that she actually has that system in place. Just a thought.

Not perfect by any measure, but I do like a well stocked pantry with at least two or three really nice meals waiting on those shelves.  Cupboard - tuna, sardines, salmon.  Cans of tomatoes.  Rice.  Loads of spices.  Foil packets of soup and Indian food, carefully vetted for fine ingredients and normally purchased when on sale.  Chicken stock. Olive oil, avocado oil, a couple different kinds of vinegar.  Fridge - hot smoked salmon (lasts a very long time), cabbage, eggs. Several condiments, coconut aminos, gluten-free tamari, fish sauce.  Freezer - one each of some type cut of chicken, pork, and beef.  Bakers rack - apples, oranges, potatoes (white and sweet), onions, garlic.  This hasn't failed me yet.

I do have a large jar of artichoke hearts that I am uncertain what to do with.  It's really large.  Not sure where it came from.  I haven't opened it because I cannot image using it up once I do.

Walrus, what a fabulous pantry.

Annieh wrote:Walrus, what a fabulous pantry.  

I have to agree, and have added some stuff to my "gotta haves."

Thanks to all!
L