Family Chow Hall

List-Making 101

November 29th, 2005

Okay, I happened to notice, last time I was at Stuf-Mart, a lot of people wandering aimlessly down the aisles, cell phone to their ear, haphazardly tossing items into their grocery cart. These people are usually in my way as I am making a beeline from one item on my list to the next. If you are an aimless grocery-store wanderer, please keep reading…

Doesn’t anyone use a list anymore, other than a few scribbled items on a scrap of paper hanging on the fridge? Could this be why so many of us find ourselves eating out more and more, even when we really don’t want to?

I think the list-making process is the KEY to eating right, cooking good meals, and shopping right. We need a plan. We make plans for everything else in life! I’m going to do a short series of blogs on how to plan for your next grocery trip.

First, define what you want. I want variety. I usually want soup one night, a good sandwich another night. A casserole. Something on the grill. Beef… Pork… Chicken… Pasta… Italian… Mexican… German… You get the picture.

There are two ways I can accomplish this. First, I can ask everyone in the family to request one or two meals. This usually provides a good variety. Or, I can think of one meal for each of several different categories. Usually we shop for two weeks of meals at a time, but for example here I will make a list for just one week.

Here is my meal list for next week, provided with help by three of my children:

Beef Stew
Meatball Subs
Burger & Macaroni Casserole
Chicken & Dumplings
Reuben sandwiches
Baked Steak
Grilled Smoked Sausage Kabobs

That’s all I’ll say for today. Think about it, make a list, and check back here tomorrow for more.

Entry Filed under: Mixed bag, Philosophy