NBR: How often do you or SO cook "real" meals?

jylly · July 2010

DH and I seriously only cook once or twice a week, max. The rest of the time we each just grab whatever. Like tonight I had a turkey bacon sandwich and he had cereal. We were like this prebaby, so I can't blame it on that :P I want to get into cooking more meals, especially since we are both off work for the summer (we're teachers) but I just can't get motivated. When school's on it's even worse since we don't want to wait when we get home, we just want something quick, especially since time with DS is so limited.

Is anyone else a lazy cook like me? How many times a week do you cook "real meals"? Any suggestions for good recipes?

It's gonna be even more of a challenge later since I'll have to force myself to cook once DS starts eating real food with us!

robinsokj · July 2010

Most of what I make takes under 30 minutes. Tomorrow I'm making potato salad and cole slaw which you can do ahead of time so it doesn't take such a big hunk of the day

lilbugs momma · July 2010

I try to cook 3/4 times a week. I intentionally cook enough for leftovers the next day.

Jennicap · July 2010

I cook, but I like to cook. I usually cook 4-6 times a week depending on what I make and how many leftovers we have. Like Sunday I made meatballs and we've eatten then for two days, I froze what was left and we'll have them another week. So tomorrow I'll make something else, probably something with Chicken, maybe chicken stir-fry and we'll eat that for 2 days. But if I just bake chicken breast that is a one night deal no leftovers so I gotta cook the next night.

to save time I suggest you invest in a crockpot, there are awesome recipes out there I had a word doc I can email you if your interested.

pammi2003 · July 2010

We cook probably once or twice a week.

pandagirl15 · July 2010

I usually cook 3 nights a week. The rest are leftovers/visit parents/go out nights! I am also a teacher, I know it's easier in the summer! I am going to try doing a monthly menu this year. I will grocery shop for 2 weeks at a time (minus fresh veggies. We have a store right on the corner I can stop at for those.) We'll see how it goes.

CTri17 · July 2010

I cook 6 nights out of 7 usually. Usually sunday is FFY (fend for yourself)

If you check out my blog there are plenty of easy recipes in there (some are not).

I love to cook so it is no issue for me.

SL122 · July 2010

Probably 5 times a week. Before we had the baby, we NEVER had, say, cereal for dinner but now we occasionally do.

mara005 · July 2010

Every night

cma1989 · July 2010

We cook or grill 6 nights a week. Saturdays we normally eat out. I just make easy things like salad with grilled shrimp/chicken, stirfrys, spinach lasagna, bbq, fajitas, and spaghetti. I'm not a fancy cook but DH works hard so I can stay home so I like him to be able to have a home cooked meal when he gets off.

h3b · July 2010

i am a sahm, so i sometimes find it easier to cook meals than i would guess a working mother might. i have also been cooking since i was, like, 9 and it's seems normal to me. so i cook at least 5 times a week for dinner, and we either have leftovers, have plans, or scavenge on the off days.

right now i'm doing tons of salad with protein and varied ingredients (like healthy taco salad, flank steak with radishes and carrots, etc.). my go to cooked meals have been taco lasagna (layer corn tortillas, salsa, cheese, and various fillings like black beans/pintos, jalapenos, olives as you would italian style), light pasta dishes filled with sauteed veggies, homemade pizza from whole foods/tjs dough, and quick asian stir fries.

good luck it's not hard when you get into it. have a stocked pantry and lots of fresh veggies prepped and you can throw anything together!

Valentines Day Baby · July 2010

I usually cook 3 days a week. The other days we just eat whatever is easy. My DH likes to eat cereal a lot for dinner, makes it easy for me.

KateLouise · July 2010

I cook probably 4-6 times a week. Depends on how busy we are.

I'm a SAHM and so I often cook things in the middle of the day when LO is sleeping that can be heated up later. Or I'll prep all my veges earlier in the day and then do pieces of meat that cook really quickly.

diana.filipi · July 2010

3 meals a day damn near every day of the year. We go out every once in a while but even if we go out for dinner I would have made a breakfast and a lunch for us.

CheriLooWho · July 2010

Ugh! We were totally lazy cooks prior to DD2.

We (in the last 3 months) drew up a meal plan. It was a 2 week cycle. We stuck to it for 2 weeks. LOL BUT, we have stuck to making a meal at least 4 days a week (some of those days yield leftovers), maybe ordering out/eating out once a week, and a "fend for yourself" once a week. DD1 is a little chef, so we're not concerned with her going hungry (she's a better cook than I am!).

We cook quick meals. Hamburger Helper (which we add veggies to), spaghetti, ready fresh pasta (just add sauce and veg), stir fry, hamburgers, steak and salad, chicken pesto pasta, tacos, Indian food (chicken, rice, onions, tomatoes and usually Korma sauce or Tikka sauce), burritos, chicken ceasar salad, pizza. Every once in a while we'll do a roast chicken, roast beef or stew (in the winter... prep in the a.m. ready in the p.m.!).

Tonight we're having breakfast for supper! YUM!

It might be prudent to invest in a slow cooker for the school months. Or even those ready made meals in packages (just as expensive as eating out, and more healthy with the potential of leftovers!)

IrishBrideND · July 2010

almost every night. We usually don't do long intensive dinners, but we make "real" healthy meals.

emjenkins715 · July 2010

DH and I are both teachers as well. During the months I was pregnant we put together a monthly menu and a grocery list that covers the ingredients for each of those meals. So far it has worked really well. I won't say we cook every night because we had to put "pizza night" on the list a couple times during the month. I love pizza! We also get lazy sometimes and resort to our drawer of take out menus. We definitely cook more than we ever did before. This fall will be a different story because he's the HS football coach and I'm the HS volleyball coach. Leaving not much time for anything.

honeybee111 · July 2010

We cook usually 5-6 times out of the week. We take turns planning meals and we usually cook together(one of us does the cooking and the other one helps with prep and cleaning up). I'm a teacher too, so I use my vacations to try and practice new recipes. If I find something that I like and that's easy to prepare, I'll add it to our recipes to make when we're both working and don't have as much time. Oh, and we have no problem eating leftovers, so sometimes we'll cook more and eat it for lunch the next day or freeze part of it.

grapeape73 · July 2010

DH and I make dinner about 5/7 days a week. With 3 kids it is a lot less stressful to eat in than to go out. Plus it is a heck of a lot cheaper.

I am also a teacher, but I only teach Tuesday-Thursday. We do simple meals like pork chops, steaks on the grill, pasta, and easy stuff. Also on the days I work I like to do crock pot stuff so it is ready to go at 5:00 when I get home.

I find that if I plan for 1 week at a time, then we stick to the plan. We also do a co-op basket for our fruits/veggies, and that helps a lot because it is already her and ready to cook/eat.

MrsRebecca · July 2010

We cook real meals every day. Occasionally for lunch we'll eat whatever, but I meal plan and I don't like wasting food.

StephE623 · July 2010

Things have gotten a lot better in the cooking department. I cook at least 3 nights a week and since we've gotten the grill DH likes to cook 1-2 nights a week.

Soto Pop · July 2010

4-5 times per week

whitward87 · July 2010

I cook every night of the week because we can't afford takeout.

One simple meal I make is Parmesan Chicken.

Basically it's Parmesan shake n bake, follow directions on the box, and 10 minutes before the chicken is fully baked, top it with your favorite spaghetti sauce, and mozarella cheese. I put in on a bed of noodles.

baby#1hopeful · July 2010

we cook at least 5 times a week..normally weekends are up in the air

lite-bright · July 2010

Almost every night. I plan a couple of super easy meals per week like grilled cheese & soup, or a frozen pizza, but most of the time I cook. DH does most of the cooking on the weekends.

Last night was chicken with apple salsa and a cucumber salad. Tonight was salad with chicken tenders (another super easy meal!).

I love trying new recipes. I like epicurious.com for recipes as far as websites, and I have a slight addiction to cooking magazines and cookbooks, especially Cooking Light, anything by Cook's Illustrated, and Bon Appetit (now that Gourmet shut down).

I try to pick out a new recipe to try at least once a week; it keeps things from getting boring. Sometimes it's just a new side or veggie, sometimes it's the whole meal or a dessert. I plan all of our meals before I go grocery shopping, and that helps me have the right ingredients on hand without making a bunch of extra trips to the store.

raysinet · July 2010

DH and I are both teachers too. We cook most nights. I think the following would be useful to help you get into a routine:

Making a meal plan, then a shopping list, then go to the store. (I find it too hard to just make a meal from just a random selection of food in the house)

Buy a crock-pot and a crock-pot cookbook. We are vegetarians, so we can't take advantage of this as much as I would like, but a crock-pot is the best!

We have a "fuzzy logic" rice maker, which has a timer. I can put rice and water in the maker in the morning. About 3pm it turns on and makes the rice. That way, we have the base for all sorts of meals. I know a lot of people think making rice is easy, but having this already made really motivates us to "keep going" when we are thinking of eating out. Rice is also something that babies can eat and like.

We sometimes have a day of the week that we eat out. Sort of like a reward. I also think that having both us of responsible for meals and being engaged with the food prep, etc. is very helpful.

GL!

14kgirl · July 2010

We cook about 4-5 nights a week. Before LO, whoever made it home first started the meal, but now even though my commute is longer, I usually cook. I love to hear DH playing with Zach while I prepare dinner, though. My go-to meal is pasta or rice with a protein, and steamed veggies.

DH will honestly eat anything I put in front of him, including the one time I tried a curried crab dip that ended tragically. Bless him, he ate the whole mess. I sure hope Zach is as easy to please.

ANJ410 · July 2010

Most weeks, I cook 6 nights a week. During the summer, DH will grill a few times a week and on Fridays we do take out.

My week night meals are nothing elaborate. I stick to 30 minute meals and try not make anything that requires more than two pots since a big cleanup interferes with my children's bedtime routines.

I noticed that DH and I both stay thin if I cook our dinner from scratch. Take out and prepared foods are filled with fat and salt.

amykins1283 · July 2010

I cook at least 5-6 times a week. After I go back to work DH is going to take over at least one or two of those nights. I'll probably still do the menu planning, he will just be the one making the food. I even have a cooking blog to keep track of my recipes. They are pretty easy. The link is in my siggy. I only have three recipes in there so far but I am going to try and add 2 or 3 a week.

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