Make-ahead Meals and Menu Planning

by Emily Ruth

Some weeknights you barely have time to get the mail, so how are you supposed to get a halfway decent dinner on the table?

There’s no need to resort to fast food or frozen pizzas (though the best of us cave in occasionally). Just follow these simple tips for make-ahead meals and menu planning, and your family will have hot, nutritious dinners on even the most hectic weeknights.

Prep Your Protein in Advance

A bag of frozen pre-cooked chicken slices can become any one of a thousand different meals in minutes. Buy chicken breasts on sale, cut them into 1/2-inch slices and sauté them until cooked through, then freeze meal-sized amounts in zippered plastic bags. When it comes time for dinner, just grab a baggie and reheat the chicken in the microwave. Toss the chicken atop a bowl of spaghetti, a big Caesar salad, or a bowl of store-bought bean soup for an easy, hearty meal. You can do the same thing with beef and pork as well.

Get Creative With Your Food Storage

Storing and freezing food in meal-sized servings may take a little while up front, but it will save you tons of time in the long run. You’ll thank yourself at 6:00 p.m. on a busy weeknight.

Put ground beef, leftover chili, or pasta sauce in a large zippered bag and divide into individual square portions by pressing down on the bag with a ruler. When it comes time to eat, all you have to do is snap off a square and defrost. You can also freeze cooked rice and pasta in airtight containers, then simply dump them in a pan with sauce and vegetables for an instant meal.

Just Stew It

Stews are the ultimate make-ahead food. Try a rustic Italian- or French-style stew made from pre-cut cubes of stew beef or pork browned in a pan, then slow-simmer with broth, dry red wine, and vegetables. Throw a huge batch on the stove on Sunday afternoon, then do something else around the house while it cooks. Freeze dinner-sized servings in airtight plastic containers marked with the date—it’ll stay good for months. At dinnertime, just reheat the stew and dress it up with a sprinkling of fresh parsley or rosemary. Serve with a chunk of crusty bread.

Bring the Slow Cooker Out of the 1950s

Slow cookers may call to mind images of bland, brown mid-century food cooked up by June Cleaver look-a-likes. But slow cooker recipes have gotten much more sophisticated since the days of Eisenhower. You can cook everything from rich lamb stews, citrus-flavored salmon steaks, spicy shrimp curries, and even dessert, all while you’re busy at work or running errands. Recipes can take as little as two hours or as many as eight, so pick something that fits your time slot.

Create a Shopping List Template

Use you computer to create a shopping list with columns or boxes for the sections of the grocery store you frequent: produce, bakery, dairy, frozen, etc. Stick it to the front of your refrigerator with a magnet, and when you run out of, for instance, milk, just write “two gallons of milk” in the Dairy column. You’ll be able to breeze through the store without forgotten anything (and worse, not realizing until you get home).

While these tips will help make your job easier, another great way to cut down on cooking time and cleanup is to prepare several days’ worth of meals at the same time. While you cook a meal that doesn’t store well, fire up the stove and make a stew or spaghetti sauce for the next night—you’ll cut your time in the kitchen in half and you’ll only have to clean up once.