Three Steps to a Fuss-Free Dinner…Every Night!
We have all been there. It’s thirty minutes until “dinner time” and you ‘ve got…nothing. The day got away from you, you’ve been busy, and it just didn’t happen. I saw a meme the other day that said something along the lines of this: if it’s past 6 pm and you ask your husband what he wants for dinner, he better suggest takeout.
I have definitely been there so many times!
Before We Dive In…
I’m going to go ahead and preface this little chat with a disclaimer, lest anyone thinks poorly of what I’m going to say:
It is not a requirement in my home to eat dinner at home every night. I am passionate about home cooked, healthy meals, for sure. But sometimes…we get takeout. I hope this is not a shocking statement to anyone. It indeed happens in our home.
Do I feel guilty about getting takeout sometimes? Yes, I honestly do. But life happens and we can’t be on top of our game all the time, am I right?
Anyways, I wanted to clear the air right from the start. I don’t want anyone to think I 100% always have a piping hot, healthy, AND delicious dinner on the clean, beautiful, complete-with-centerpiece table every single night.
But this article is for the times that I want to do my best and I hope these three tips can help you, too!
I have included a few affiliate links in this article. That means if you choose to shop through my links, I’ll receive a small commission at no extra cost to you! Thanks!
Three Sure Fire Ways to Get Dinner Done
1. Meal plan
You all, I know you’ve probably seen or heard this one a lot. But if you plan ahead, knowing what is for dinner on a particular night is a no brainer. I can’t stress how much easier your life can be with a meal plan in place.
Here’s what my meal planning looks like:
I grab two or three of my favorite cookbooks. Usually, it includes a few of the Trim Healthy Mama cookbooks, The Prairie Homestead Cookbook, or something I’ve saved on Pinterest.
Grab a pen and a planner. I like to write it out. Of course, you could open a Note on your phone or type it up on your computer. I just like to do it by hand because for some reason I find it fun and relaxing. The Old Fashioned On Purpose planner is what I use to write down my meals, and everything else in life, too!
Sunday is usually my favorite day to meal plan. My children will be with their daddy outside playing or something, and I can have a few moments to myself to plan. It’s my self-care time.
Generally, I’ll flip through the cookbooks until I see something that I love. Then I’ll write it down.
The criteria for choosing a recipe is that I have ingredients on hand. I usually grocery shop toward the end of the week, so I’m usually pretty well stocked for the coming week. If I need something special for a special recipe, I’ll write it in toward the end of the week so I’ll be sure to get it with my grocery order.
It’s really simple. And I encourage you to find your own system that you love, and get the meal planning done!
That’s step one in ensuring that you successfully get dinner on the table.
2. Set the meat out to thaw early in the day
This can also translate to: have your ingredients ready before you even start cooking.
It’s such a simple step, but it definitely helps when it’s time to start dinner. Many times I have been scrambling around trying to defrost stuff…and it takes a big chunk of time! Make yourself a note, stick it somewhere you’ll see it, and set the meat out!
You may not even have meat that is frozen. We do, because we raise our own beef, pork, and chicken. So we have to freeze it all. If you get your meat fresh from the store, you won’t even have to do this step.
Just make sure you have your ingredients ready to go at some point during the day, and you’ll be better prepared to start dinner.
3. Start dinner prep at least an hour and a half before dinner time.
Let’s say your family likes to eat at 6:00. You need to plan on starting the cooking process at 4:30! Isn’t that a little too early, you may say?
I have found that if I’m mentally present, at least thinking about starting dinner an hour and a half before, everything comes together on time.
If you think this is a dumb rule, that’s ok. I heard it from a podcast first, and I thought it was a little overkill. I mean, an hour and a half? That’s a lot of time!
But you know what? I found that it actually DOES take me that long! So I may as well plan to look at the clock and get my hind end in gear an hour and a half before “dinnertime”.
A word on timeframes: our dinnertime may look different than yours. Here lately, my husband and kids are outside until almost dark. They have a ton of chores to do, and we don’t eat until later…like 7 pm. I know this will happen, so I don’t start cooking until 5:30. You may think that’s too late to eat, but that’s just what our lives look like right now.
We’ll eat earlier in the wintertime because it’s darker earlier.
The point is, whatever time you want your family to eat, give yourself plenty of time to get it done. It makes a huge difference in my life.
Less frustration=happier dinnertime.
And who doesn’t want a happy, stress-free time with your family at the table?
Bonus tips for an easy dinnertime:
-Have dishes done while you’re cooking. That way, when everyone is done with their plates, the sink is clean, and all you have to do is wash a few plates, cups, and forks.
-As you’re preparing dinner, clear the table of all the junk. I don’t know about you, but my poor table happens to be the catch-all for random stuff. I would love to make it a rule in our house to not junk up the table…but right now it’s just too easy to put schoolwork, legos, extra dishes…you name it…on the huge table. I feel less stressed when it is cleaned off.
-Set the table. It just makes the atmosphere less chaotic. Bonus bonus tip: have your kids help with this. They love to have a job setting the table.
-Turn off the TV. Also, make the table a device free zone.
-Teach the kids to sit still and make table manners cool again.
What table tips do you have to make evening dinner go more smoothly? I’d love to hear them!
