With everyone in the family being so busy with work, school, sports, and other activities, dinner might be the only time you get to sit down together and talk about your day. To help you make the most of this time, our expert shares some fantastic tips for saving time and money while still putting together a great family dinner.
As a professional organizer and time management consultant, my aim is to help people create order in their homes, businesses, and lives. My passion is simplifying lives and surroundings, and the biggest benefit of this is reclaiming time. Not just for watching TV or cooking complicated meals, but for spending quality time with your family. Many of my suggestions focus on planning, from weekly menu plans to easy meals with simple clean-up that the whole family can enjoy making and choosing together, all while saving money.
Being organized reduces stress, boosts productivity, and improves your quality of life. With each family member dealing with their own daily tasks like homework, bill paying, and household chores, mealtime is often the one moment everyone can come together with a shared purpose.
If only one person is responsible for planning, cooking, and serving meals, it turns into a chore. This feeling can spread throughout the household, making mealtimes something to be rushed through. Sharing these responsibilities allows everyone to contribute and transforms mealtime into an enjoyable break from our hectic schedules.
Look through your recipe cards or cookbooks for inspiration or to rediscover a dish you haven’t made in a while. Once your list is ready, create a grocery shopping list and check your pantry to ensure you have all the ingredients you need. Add any other items you might need to your list, put it along with your reusable bags and loyalty card in the car, and you’re ready to go shopping.
A simple laminate board and a dry-erase marker can be used to display the week’s menu. Kids love knowing what’s for dinner when they get home from school and will be thrilled to see if their choice made it onto the menu. It also serves as a reminder to take items out of the freezer if necessary.
Everyone can help according to their ability. Some tasks can be done in advance to fit into someone’s schedule better. For example, children can set the table when they get home from school or unload a clean dishwasher.
Build a collection of family favorites, one-dish meals, and crockpot recipes that are healthy and easy to clean up. Ideal recipes take less than 40 minutes to prepare and have no more than 5 or 6 main ingredients, excluding seasonings and oil. Take advantage of cooking double the amount and freezing half for later.
If your plans change and you do something different for dinner one night, freeze the meat or fish you were going to use. You can save it for next week. You’ll be amazed at how much time this saves each week. Shopping will usually take less time, and you’ll notice the savings at the checkout.