I've noticed a few people posting here who want to feed their families well but struggle to cook a good meal every evening. One possible solution is to do "once a month cooking". A google search for that term and/or OAMC will bring up loads of websites with recipe ideas, meal plans, etc.

The idea is that you do one big shop and spend one weekend a month cooking enough meals for the whole month that can be put in the freezer. I have done this a few times and, although it is exhausting for that one weekend, the rest of the month is blissful.

This is a way of having "fast food" using good ingredients and no additives.

All well and good if you've got an absolutely huge freezer.....

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Originally posted by Pam 55:
All well and good if you've got an absolutely huge freezer.....

I find a compromise work for me - I have about two weeks of food at any one time in freezer in various states of readiness. I cook a double or triple meal and freeze the extras. I pack portions of meat with marinades - all thats needed is to remember to take then out the night before and then pop into the oven.


Slowcookers are a godsend for the busy parents and take very little time to set up in the morning once you get into the routine.

It's not easy putting a home cooked meal on the table every night but with it can be done with a little organisation and help from other family members. You dont need to be Masterchef or A Delia - just committed to give your family the best start in life.

quote:

Originally posted by Pam 55:
All well and good if you've got an absolutely huge freezer.....

Not at all. I can easily fit 20 to 30 days worth of meals for myself and my husband in my three drawer freezer, along with the usual loaf of bread, frozen veg, etc. A single portion of, say, chicken curry takes up little room. It also takes up a lot less room than a box from a supermarket freezer containing a portion of curry plus a portion of rice. Everything can be frozen in freezer bags, rather than using plastic boxes which means a lot more fits in a small space.

The secret of success is to freeze food in quantities appropriate for use. It is no good freezing a large quantity of food if only a small amount is required for a meal as it is very difficult to break something up that is frozen.

frozen bread. well that is a new idea (or it is to me)

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Originally posted by still lovin' Philip:
frozen bread. well that is a new idea (or it is to me)

I thought everyone did it. My mum always has and I'm in my late 30s. Sliced bread toasts perfectly from frozen and only takes about 20 minutes or so to defrost a couple of slices if it's needed unfrozen. It is as fresh after it's been frozen as it was when it went in the freezer.

Ooh, well sounds interesting. I personally have never done it but it sounds good.

What if you are a family of say 4 how would u fit a months worths of food in a freezer?? and who really wants to spend a weekend cooking a months worth of food?

If I had a family of four I'd no doubt have a larger freezer than the one I've currently got. Mine is pretty tiny compared to most fridge-freezers on the market.

I was only making a suggestion that someone might find useful. Spending one weekend a month cooking and freezing meals that then take less than 30 minutes to get onto the table for the rest of the month is something I like. I don't and won't buy any form of ready meal as the quality of them has deteriorated so much over the past ten years or so and I don't like eating that many additives. I prefer to make my own "ready meals" using all fresh ingredients (and about 1/100th of the salt that companies seem to put in them).

goodness me....it was a fab idea and thanks for sharing it...

Regarding the bread. We have done this for some time and with microwaves, if you forget to defrost it is still OK.

Living in a remote area and the bakery not having sandwich loaves anymore, and only baking for the tourists, I get my bread online every fortnight from a regional centre. They bring 28 loaves, as I have five children. It all gets frozen and is cheaper than the supermarket. I get the fruit and vegetables as well and they come in boxes to the door.

I don't think I would cook in advance.

There is supposed to be some pilaf mixes, where you have it dried and then cook it up on the day.

This is just an example:

http://www.riceselect.com/kasrec3.htm

a little bit different, the other night i intended doing soup, but i was pushed for time and tired.

so i ditched the cooking part, chopped a load of carrot, cabbage, broccolli, turnip etc. threw it on a plate with a dollop of cream cheese on the side and my 6yr old wolfed it down.
and i didn't feel such a baaaaaad mum for doing it

quote:

Originally posted by laurz50:
What if you are a family of say 4 how would u fit a months worths of food in a freezer?? and who really wants to spend a weekend cooking a months worth of food?

well I have a family of 6 to feed and our freezer holds enough for about 2 weeks at a time and as someone earlier mentioned I believe, you dont have to have a special cooking weekend or day at all, but you just make extra large portions of the meals you are coooking anyway for a while til you stock up and its there for when you are pushed for time, Ive found this especially useful for school holidays when times is short with day trips etc we can go out all day and come home to a fresh home cooked meal (all be it out of the freezer)

quote:

Originally posted by ecclectic leopard:
a little bit different, the other night i intended doing soup, but i was pushed for time and tired.

so i ditched the cooking part, chopped a load of carrot, cabbage, broccolli, turnip etc. threw it on a plate with a dollop of cream cheese on the side and my 6yr old wolfed it down.
and i didn't feel such a baaaaaad mum for doing it

hahaha an excellent idea, will bare that one in mind

I often cook large dinners and freeze at least half of it. Here in Canada, it is a way of life as many of us live far from cities, or in my case on isolated islands. I find setting an afternoon aside to orginize my kitchen helps alot. I pre wash my produce and store it in the fridge in bags with a damp paper towel. I freeze soups and stews in ziplock bags, you can take them directly from the freezer and place in boiling water (the whole bag) I keep my kitchen clean, so as to be able to come in and make dinner in a hurry. I keep my knives sharp, and buy the best pots I can aford, it makes cooking feel like a luxury, which makes it more fun

Which part of Canada you in nurse, Ive alot of family in Vancouver, only managed to get over there once but my sis goes every other year to work thge summers and is hoping to move there once she gets qualified to do SOMETHING here

I bought a plastic bag heat sealer (about £20) and buy rolls of large, thick plastic bags from Lidl supermarket which can be cut to size. When I make a curry I make one for 6 people - we eat 2 and put the other 4 portions in seperate bags and then seal them. This way we can keep the packs flat and get lots in the freezer.I also do the same with cooked rice so when we have been out for the day just pop curry and rice in microwave. Make smaller portions of curry so you can have a little of 2 different ones. Chicken tikka also freezes well (yes we are curryholics)
After we have eaten what we want from a join of meat I slice it up and put a portion in a plastic bag and add water to cover the meat then seal. Don't put made up gravy in it as it tends not to mix very well on defrosting - meat juices are ok if not thickened.
Cooked pasta freezes ok on its own or with the sauce.
We had a Pub restaurant for many years and did this kind of thing all the time - never bought any ready made food and we had an extensive menu.

I also cook extra "fresh" food and freeze it for another day, this works really well for lasagne and curry (firm fave's with my 4 children). Its also good because you can take advantage of 'special offers', buying certain foods in bulk when they are on offer, cooking and freezing - then enjoying later when normally too expensive....lovely

it doesnt take too long to cook a meal for say 2 or 4, ive just had a stir fry and in half an hour id prepared the food, cooked it and eaten it. Chicken in a sauce is easy to do, it takes no time at all to put the chicken(or any meat of your choice) into a dish pour the source on top and pop it into the oven

just phone a pizza or nip down to the local lake and tickle a trout on ur way home in into the farmers field say hello to the scarecrow as you pull a few spuds up fresh and free :@))))
mmmmmmmmmmmm yummy

People are so lazy, Its not hard to cook, instead of spending money on takeaways, go out and buy a new pot and pan set.... Get some sharp knives and a good chopping board.
Oh and buy a good cooking book NOT DELIA....

Hope everyone finds the above really helpful