This is the perfect week to talk about easy dinner ideas with Shay and Erika. We are currently juggling three sports schedules in addition to all the back to school events and meetings, and this week is especially crazy. I don’t love eating out all the time, so I try to keep things on hand to whip up quick and easy dinners when we are all going in different directions.
As I was sitting in the car during my oldest son’s soccer practice while also listening to a PTA meeting on my phone (hello, multitasking), I was also thinking about how our dinner planning has changed in the past couple of years. I used to work so hard over the weekends to plan out home cooked meals, do all the grocery shopping, and kept a journal to avoid repeating the same meal in a month.
I was holding myself to an unreasonable standard that just wasn’t working when I knew my family would be just as happy with tacos every night. I love to cook and didn’t want to completely stop trying new things, but I needed to be more realistic about how I approached meal planning. That’s when I decided to go with my 3-2-1-1 method.
3-2-1-1 Meal Planning
- 3 Meals that are quick and easy
- 2 Nights of leftovers/choose what you want
- 1 Night of trying a new or more complicated recipe
- 1 Night of eating out or ordering takeout
3 Meals that are Quick and Easy
I have several dinners that can be prepped in under 5 minutes and ready in 30 that I know my whole family will eat. Are they gourmet meals? No. However, it’s worth it to me to keep my sanity and save a little money during the week.
Here are the dinners that are on our regular quick dinner menu:
- Spaghetti and Meatballs
- Tacos
- Pizza
- Smash Burgers on the flat top
- Sausages on the grill
- Anything in the slow cooker
At least two or three of those dinners make it on the menu every week. Most lean on store-bought sauces or frozen ingredients (meatballs, veggies, etc.). I let go of the stress around buying processed food and decided that I would buy decent quality, but that I was ok with not making everything homemade. It’s all about balance here.
2 Nights of Leftovers/Fend for Yourself
On some nights, everyone is home at different times and it just doesn’t make sense to try to have dinner together. I keep a few staples on hand and we almost always have leftovers in the fridge. Everyone simply figures out their own dinner and eats when they want.
1 More Involved Meal
On the night where I decide to spend a little more time cooking, I love trying new things and pulling out my cookbooks or Pinterest boards to get some inspiration. I would say that happens for us about once a month. On the other weeks, I stick to a family favorite.
When we eat red meat, it’s usually on the grill, so I’m focusing on our favorite chicken recipes for this section. It’s usually my go-to protein because it goes in just about anything and it’s easy to prep.
Here are our top two chicken recipes that require just a tad more prep/cook time.
For a TON of easy chicken recipes, check out this post: Easy Chicken Recipes for Busy Weeknights.
1 Night of Eating Out
Designating one night to go out to eat or order takeout saves us money and makes it a little more fun. Sometimes it’s just a lazy night in with the family and a pizza and others it’s trying a new restaurant or letting the kids pick their favorite.
I hope you found a little dinner inspiration here today. I’d love to hear how you juggle dinners with busy schedules in the comments!
