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Help an ADHD mother plan a food prep schedule



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amother
OP


 

Post Thu, Nov 24 2022, 10:24 pm
ADHD person here trying to become more organised about cooking including the shipping necessary for cooking, but don't know where/how to start.
- Very small family atm, I work Monday/Tuesday/ Thursday.
-I like to have food ready for kid when they come home
-don't really have time to cook between work and when they come home.

What I'm looking for

I'm looking for someone's actual meal plan/organisation schedule. I can follow structures that already exist, it's just very difficult for me to build a schedule from scratch. I'm good at varying things within someone's schedule if it doesn't work for me, once I have the structure to work in.


What I've been doing


I shop motzai shab and bulk cook on Sunday, I'm not organised so I get a bunch of random stuff from the store that looks good and that I tend to use. Sunday I look at all the stuff I bought and figure out what to make. Every week I figure something out but I tend to make too much, and stuff doesn't always last. I don't always want to put stuff in the freezer because I'm "sure" things will get eaten and why freeze stuff to defrost? Often things get thrown out because it wasn't eaten in the proper amount of time. I'm not happy with how things are going.

I know the ideal way is to plan what and how much you're cooking, and buy what you need.

People who are organised, can you help me plan this? What food stays well that can be cooked ahead of time? I guess I can do an extra batch of cooking on Wednesday for Thursday if I don't want to freeze things from Sunday. We don't have that much freezer space but perhaps some things can be frozen. How do I plan my shopping lists? When do I do them? Honestly I'd be happy with two weeks of meals and repeat every couple of weeks.

Can anyone help with an actual schedule for me? Like when do you make shopping lists, or do you have permanent ones you use? Do you look at your meal plans and make lists of what you need? This all feels very overwhelming to me.
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yachnabobba




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Nov 25 2022, 12:29 pm
I’m not naturally organized
And during the wild and whirly years this is how I did it, and the simplicity and specificity really helped me. By now , I got older and my skills got better and I have modified it
Sunday: shabbos leftovers
Monday: chopped meat with pasta (meatballs, meatloaf, empanadas etc)
Tuesday: baked chicken on the bone and rice
Wednesday: shnitzel and mashed potatoes
Thursday: do it yourself night: noodle soup/sandwich/cereal milk / leftovers from any other night
Hatzlacha
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Nov 27 2022, 9:15 pm
Thanks! Unfortunately kosher meat is so expensive where we live, I don't think I could do that five days a week, but it's a good jumping off point.
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amother
Firebrick


 

Post Sun, Nov 27 2022, 9:19 pm
yachnabobba wrote:
I’m not naturally organized
And during the wild and whirly years this is how I did it, and the simplicity and specificity really helped me. By now , I got older and my skills got better and I have modified it
Sunday: shabbos leftovers
Monday: chopped meat with pasta (meatballs, meatloaf, empanadas etc)
Tuesday: baked chicken on the bone and rice
Wednesday: shnitzel and mashed potatoes
Thursday: do it yourself night: noodle soup/sandwich/cereal milk / leftovers from any other night
Hatzlacha


Im not op, but I struggle with this because I like variety in my meals. I myself want to eat different things so I find a plan like this very hard! But of course that makes it more likely that I won't actually have a good meal because I didn't plan.
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mha3484




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Nov 27 2022, 9:23 pm
I have ADHD. I am a big fan of prep and rally. Its great for me who lacks the executive functioning skills to plan and execute my own meal prep.
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amother
Mimosa


 

Post Sun, Nov 27 2022, 10:12 pm
I love the concept of prep and rally just practically my family doesn’t eat most of it. I learned how to meal prep from her though.
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amother
Saddlebrown


 

Post Sun, Nov 27 2022, 10:16 pm
Here's one that worked for me for years:

Sunday - Shabbos leftovers and/or hot dogs, hamburgers
Monday - Eggs (quiche, shakshuka, or scrambled eggs)
Tuesday - Ground beef (usually pasta and sauce)
Wednesday - Fish (breaded filets or fish sticks, or tuna pasta or patties)
Thursday - Baked ziti (the no boil method)
Motzei Shabbos - chicken soup

Now I also do soups one day a week (potato soup, butternut squash soup, bean soup and/or lentil soup)

I also usually do chicken - chicken wings, or chicken and rice

It's not the most balanced perfect menu in the world, but all the meals are easy enough that I can do them without a lot of prior preparation, and don't take a long time to make or cook.

My phone reminds me to make dinner every day at 4:00 so it will be ready on time. As a time-blind person, this comes as a surprise every day Smile
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amother
Butterscotch


 

Post Sun, Nov 27 2022, 10:26 pm
I like to set my proteins (and sometimes starches/veggies) for the week to be the same every week. I find that I get bored if it's literally the same menu every week, but this way I have a starting point and can ensure the basic essentials are in the house.

I have a list of proteins (dairy, fish, cutlets, bone-in chicken, eggs, ground beef) and a list of starches (potatoes, rice, pasta, bread/buns, other (tortilla, tacos, etc). On Sunday I match up 4x main with a starch combos based on what I have/what I'm on the mood of and then see what other ingredients I need. Usually Monday is dairy, Tuesday is bone-in chicken, Wednesday is ground beef and Thursday is fish or eggs or dairy again
I also try to make a big soup at the beginning of the week so that there's always at least a semblance of some veggie per meal...though I do try to add veggies to every meal
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lucky14




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Nov 27 2022, 10:29 pm
amother Mimosa wrote:
I love the concept of prep and rally just practically my family doesn’t eat most of it. I learned how to meal prep from her though.


Same. I was all excited and ready to sign up and then I actually looked at the meals and realized my family isn’t going to eat those meals!

I wish someone would do the exact same thing but with basic common ordinary foods….
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yachnabobba




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Nov 27 2022, 10:56 pm
amother OP wrote:
Thanks! Unfortunately kosher meat is so expensive where we live, I don't think I could do that five days a week, but it's a good jumping off point.

My family eats no dairy so this worked for us but the concept of categories and not thinking is transferable
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mha3484




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Nov 28 2022, 10:11 am
For prep and rally I use my seichel. If I dont think my kids will like something or its too hard to check or too expensive I edit. But the basic template is helpful.
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