our 12 rules are a manifesto against the tyranny of ‘should’ that turns cooking into choreography. The way you elevate weeknight dinners from fuel stops to tiny acts of rebellion is why this piece doesn’t just advise—it liberates. More life in these lines than in a dozen glossy cookbooks.
"In a beloved fantasy, I live in Downton Abbey, where a highly trained staff presents my family with a delicious meal each evening. We dine at a table adorned with fresh flowers, flickering candles, and gleaming silver. We enjoy our dinner while using perfect table manners and engaging in scintillating conversation, and graciously thank the capable staff, who expertly clean up."
I do 90% of the cooking in the house (and honestly eat most of the leftovers), and the thing that has immensely saved my marriage is making a meal plan on Saturday for the following week. We sometimes end up deviating from the plan for one night if plans change, but I'm able to bump whatever meal is the most shelf-stable/lasts longest in the fridge to the next week, which eliminates waste (something that drives me up the wall).
I do tend to try new recipes but we also have a rotation of favorites that take ~30 minutes (and I've gotten pretty adept at reading recipes to figure out if the estimated cook time seems wildly off). I love this list, though - going to add some of these to my list of tricks.
I'm also over here diligently and sometimes frantically trying to eat up everything in my fridge/freezer lol. Leftovers are satisfying to me. My husband never had to eat them growing up and therefore calls them recycled food. Lol.
Attitudes to leftovers are definitely formed in the family of origin - my husband magically knows how to make them into something delicious while I ignore them in the fridge!
I do the same with my partner and we also switched to ordering all groceries online to be delivered to our place. It's definitely made prepping a lot easier.
The weekly plan is key - whenever I try to wing it without a plan things fall apart badly and we’re eating the worst, unsatisfying meals. I won’t make anything that requires more than 25 mins cook time on a weeknight. 😉
I have grown to think of weeknight meals as feeding rather than cooking . 🤦🏼♀️My husband enjoys cooking so he does a lot during the week when he’s working from home but I have been enjoying Caro Chambers Substack and cookbook so much that I find myself cooking (and enjoying it) midweek a lot more. Her recipes are user friendly AND delicious.
Thank you for the inspiration and clever tips towards the end of a school year and very busy spring.
I do too! One basic technique of hers that I memorized was for a tuna sandwich: spreading the bread with mayo then press shredded parm cheese into that mayo-part and then toast the mayo-cheese-part in cast iron skillet. It makes for a little fancier tuna sandwich. + broccoli = dinner.
The air fryer changed my life, and I'm not exaggerating! Throwing a piece of meat and opening a Trader Joe's bagged salad solves dinner/lunch in a pinch, and it's healthy-ish. Also, ready-made food from Trader's or Costco (and put it in the air fryer)—Also, batching boiled eggs for the week has saved me a couple of times as well.
At some point on a Saturday or Sunday I cook a giant pot of pasta sauce. I them bag it, four portions to a bag, throw it in the freezer with date and what is in the bag, try and do salads during summer with sauce on the side with pasta, garlic bead or some kinds of pita chips.
Winters are pot roasts.
What’s for dinner is an all ages problem. I am retired!
our 12 rules are a manifesto against the tyranny of ‘should’ that turns cooking into choreography. The way you elevate weeknight dinners from fuel stops to tiny acts of rebellion is why this piece doesn’t just advise—it liberates. More life in these lines than in a dozen glossy cookbooks.
Thank you Anton!
"In a beloved fantasy, I live in Downton Abbey, where a highly trained staff presents my family with a delicious meal each evening. We dine at a table adorned with fresh flowers, flickering candles, and gleaming silver. We enjoy our dinner while using perfect table manners and engaging in scintillating conversation, and graciously thank the capable staff, who expertly clean up."
YOU AND ME BOTH 😍
I mean, is there any better fantasy?!
I think my success/happiness as a mom began when I realized that chicken nachos can be for dinner.
They sure can! I had a similar epiphany about baked potatoes, as a main course, not a side 🤣
I do 90% of the cooking in the house (and honestly eat most of the leftovers), and the thing that has immensely saved my marriage is making a meal plan on Saturday for the following week. We sometimes end up deviating from the plan for one night if plans change, but I'm able to bump whatever meal is the most shelf-stable/lasts longest in the fridge to the next week, which eliminates waste (something that drives me up the wall).
I do tend to try new recipes but we also have a rotation of favorites that take ~30 minutes (and I've gotten pretty adept at reading recipes to figure out if the estimated cook time seems wildly off). I love this list, though - going to add some of these to my list of tricks.
I'm also over here diligently and sometimes frantically trying to eat up everything in my fridge/freezer lol. Leftovers are satisfying to me. My husband never had to eat them growing up and therefore calls them recycled food. Lol.
Attitudes to leftovers are definitely formed in the family of origin - my husband magically knows how to make them into something delicious while I ignore them in the fridge!
I do the same with my partner and we also switched to ordering all groceries online to be delivered to our place. It's definitely made prepping a lot easier.
The weekly plan is key - whenever I try to wing it without a plan things fall apart badly and we’re eating the worst, unsatisfying meals. I won’t make anything that requires more than 25 mins cook time on a weeknight. 😉
I have grown to think of weeknight meals as feeding rather than cooking . 🤦🏼♀️My husband enjoys cooking so he does a lot during the week when he’s working from home but I have been enjoying Caro Chambers Substack and cookbook so much that I find myself cooking (and enjoying it) midweek a lot more. Her recipes are user friendly AND delicious.
Thank you for the inspiration and clever tips towards the end of a school year and very busy spring.
Love the "feeding vs cooking" reframe - so smart and practical! I follow Caro Chambers too and she's full of great ideas!
Her Substack is also phenomenal.
I got the Caro Chambers book out of the library and cooked through most of it— it’s fantastic and everything is easy.
Did you memorize any of the recipes/techniques? I love finding a solid recipe I can recreate from memory!
I do too! One basic technique of hers that I memorized was for a tuna sandwich: spreading the bread with mayo then press shredded parm cheese into that mayo-part and then toast the mayo-cheese-part in cast iron skillet. It makes for a little fancier tuna sandwich. + broccoli = dinner.
anything in a cast iron skillet makes me SO happy!
That photo made me howl! A ski buffett😂
dreamy!
I lol’ed at number 12!
I was wondering when someone would notice that 😉
The air fryer changed my life, and I'm not exaggerating! Throwing a piece of meat and opening a Trader Joe's bagged salad solves dinner/lunch in a pinch, and it's healthy-ish. Also, ready-made food from Trader's or Costco (and put it in the air fryer)—Also, batching boiled eggs for the week has saved me a couple of times as well.
I'm very intrigued by the idea of an air fryer, especially when it's just 1 or 2 of us for dinner
My husband does most of the cooking, and uses the air fryer multiple times a day. Much faster than heating up the whole oven for two people portions.
So smart!
Moving to Downton 😉
right?! what a dream!
At some point on a Saturday or Sunday I cook a giant pot of pasta sauce. I them bag it, four portions to a bag, throw it in the freezer with date and what is in the bag, try and do salads during summer with sauce on the side with pasta, garlic bead or some kinds of pita chips.
Winters are pot roasts.
What’s for dinner is an all ages problem. I am retired!
I have never mastered the art of freezing/reheating well! Dinner is a perennial human problem!
RICE COOKERS UNITE
Solidarity!