How do you come up with your menus?

I am always on this board, and looking at everyone's menus. I feel like I can never come up with a menu for a whole week and stick with it. For one thing I am not that organized, and second I can't cook half the stuff on your menus.

My question is are you all just naturally good cooks or is this something that you had to work on?

My goal is to start planning my menus, and shopping so that I can cook at home more, and save money at the same time.

TIA!

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

Women's Day has a monthly calendar.

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

I honestly think most of the stuff sounds a lot more difficult than it is. I am willing to bet my hat that you could make anything here!

I wasn't always a planner but I have found it saves so much money.

I look through my cooking mags, look at what's in the pantry..if something I know I have needs to be made ASAP and see what I feel like doing.

this week, I knew I had meatballs and sauce in the freezer and the supermarket near us had ricotta on sale...viola...baked ziti!

my MIL made a batch of black beans that I need to use and organic chicken tenders were on sale...HELLO fajitas.

I pretty much make pizza at least once a week. everyone loves it, it's super quick and it's cheaper than ordering in, so that is prety much a given.

generally I make a really nice dinner on Sunday nights. luscious and inviting.

I always try to plan one veggie dish and one fish dish, and whatever is on sale that is wild caught is what determines how I make it.

every so often, I make a HUGE batch of sauce and freeze it in smaller quantities. it is a life safer some days.

I was not always like this, but I force myself to make a list and stick to it. it really has helped immensely. I look at that thread for inspiration too!!!

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

My menu is usually based on DH's schedule.. if he'll be home then the dinner will be something i will put effort into. Also, I work right next to a grocery store, so I just pick up stuff right after work for dinner.. not the best way to save money, but I live in the City and I don't have a car accessible for when I need it.

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

I love to cook and therefore would say it is pretty natural, but at the same time, just like anything else, practice makes perfect. I have worked on it, by cooking everyday and it does get easier and tastier and everything else...

im a planner so i like to make shopping lists and menus... it also helps with the budget.

I go based off of sales at the supermarket and our favorite foods. I cook a few things and if we like it I make it again and if we dont like it I throw it away and don't make it again.

So I make an index of all the foods we have liked and i make the menu out of that list and occasionally add in new recipes (1-3 times a week i will try something new) and then if we add them it helps make the main index larger.

I would recommend to first use cookbooks and magazine recipes. Once you get good at following recipes, it gets so easy to become your own chef and come up with you own recipes and meals.

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

I do not think what I make is difficult. I just started cooking when I got married 2 yrs ago. I lived @ home and was spoiled bc my mom is a master at cooking.

I just follow recipes or wing it and the stuff tastes good

The menus are pretty easy. I basically buy what is on sale/in season and base menus around that. For instance --when chicken cutlets are on sale I buy a lot and freeze so I always have that, same w/ground beef and steak.

I always make chicken @ least once a week, something w/lean ground beef, a pasta dish, a fish etc. So the menus get easy. Like this week I am making a grilled chicken salad, next week I might make lemon chicken-I switch it up.

Also, I usually stop at the vegatable store every week so I use fresh veggies, potatoes etc. often but I always have frozen veggies, brown rice etc. in my pantry so I can throw together a meal if need be.

HTH

Message edited 2/28/2011 11:50:30 AM.

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

I am def not good at it but if I make an effort I wind up saving $$ and time

I usually look for recipes on here, foodnetwork.com, my weightwatchers cookbook or the food mags i receive in the mail

Then its usually one chicken, one pasta, one fish etc

I try to change it up and then we wind up with faves that get used again

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

My menu ideas come from all over. I have a lot of my staple go to dishes. But I also get a lot of ideas from my cookbooks and food blogs..and here of course .

I am just starting this 'planning out' menu process now though. I really think planning ahead will make my life much easier and also be more cost effective. In addition, I will have all my ingredients on hand if I know in advance what I'm making. Nothing worse than having a whole meal planned out in your head when you get home from work and then realizing you're missing one or two key ingredients I also make certain things in bulk and freeze them so that they are readily available when I need them....like sauce and sofrito.

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

I just usually know our schedule for the week. I know I always work 2 late nights, so one of those days is when I slow cook. One night is always leftovers. I have a word document at work of recipes I want to try, so I just pick of of that and build my shopping list.

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

Thanks ladies. I am going to work on it, and try to get more organized. I love seeing new recipes from this board.

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

When I used to cook

I would pick several categories that I wanted to fill and then fill those in

Monday - chicken
Tuesday - beef
Wednesday - "fake" cooking like tacos
Thursday - fish
Friday - egg

That way I wouldnt be having chicken every night! lol

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

When I have free time, I like trolling the internet for new recipes! I just bookmark things that look interesting. Then, when I'm looking through the circulars, I pick out meals based on what's on sale, what I already have, and what's in my bookmark folder.

I have to say, writing it on a post it and putting it on LIF has made me stick to it more! That little bit of time planning ahead saves me so much during the week since I'm not scrambling to figure out what to make.

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

ITA with the original post. i dont think i could plan a weeks meal ahead of time, but i definitely see how it saves time and money.

im going to try this next week tho!

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

Cooking is my hobby and I am mildly obsessed.

I really don't own any pre-made meals - just ingredients - i.e. broth, canned tomatoes, frozen meats, sauces, spices, etc.

Weekly I purchase fresh fruits and veggies (and other staples like milk, bread, deli meat) and then create meals.

For me - I start with maybe something in the fridge/freezer that needs to be used up - i.e. leftover tortillas, make soft tacos or enchiladas, etc.

I just go off of feeling and what I have in supply. If there is a good price on something then sometimes I get inspired.

Like others said, I try to have 1 fish/seafood dish, usually 1 night of leftovers, 1 night of chicken and then 1 night of pork or beef.

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

I have a billion recipes bookmarked. i think of wither the main meat or what type of dish i am craving and go from there. Sometimes I have ingredients that need to be used up. I make easy recipes, a lot from the pillsbury site. And I try to make ones that will have leftovers. the buying based on what is on sale I am still working on!

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

I am the most disorganized human on the planet. It can't be hard if I can do it!

First I think about my cravings - is there anything I've been really wanting or something Rob or the boys have been bugging me for? If so - I jot that down. Then I peek around at the circulars to see what's on sale and then I just take it from there.

I try not to do more than 1 protein and 1 starch per meal. I also try not to put the same protein 2 nights in a row - so if I have chicken on Monday - I will try not to make it again until Wednesday. Sometimes when I'm completely uninspired I'll just write: "Monday-Chicken, Tuesday-Steak, Wednesday-Pasta, Thursday-Chicken, Friday-Fish" and start to look for recipes based around the protein.

Weekdays when I work tend to be easier to prepare items and I try to plan more elaborate meals for days off.

It seems overwhelming but it actually winds up saving me time and money.

Good luck!

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

First I try to use anything we have left in the house to buy less for the week.

Then I take into consideration our schedule- busy days=easy meals.

After that I try to mix it up. I make things we haven't had in awhile..try to do a pasta one night, fish another, meat another, chicken another, etc.

Re: How do you come up with your menus?

I try to "cook out of what I have" first, before I go shopping, it's also part of my budget challenge as well.

I generally stock up on meat when it's on sale, vac-seal and freeze in portions for DH and I.

ALso, if I make a big batch of something - sauce, chili, I do vac-seal and freeze as well, but something like leftover tacos or chili is great 2 nights later making pizza with it or cornbread chili pie. Same thing with leftover chicken fajitas or chicken cattiacatore - put it on pizza crust with a little cheese and it's awesome. And quick, which is always a plus.

On the weekends I usually make a more fancy meal, I love to cook and I'm knee deep in Mastering The Art of French Cooking, which, I have to say, is a labor of love by Juila Child. I have never had more intense recipe directions ever.
God Bless that woman, she had alot of patience.