Cook once, meals for a week

Author: Sarah Swain - Food writer, stylist and recipe creator

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Set aside three hours on a Sunday and do some pre-cooking for a week of easy dinners.

All it takes is one Sunday afternoon cooking session to have dinner sorted for the week ahead! With our three-part process, simply prepare the base mix recipes, store them in the fridge/freezer, and then it just takes some hands-on time to assemble your weeknight dinners.

Part 1: What to do on Sunday

Before you start, make sure you have…

For cooking

All ingredients from shopping list (see below)
Large roasting pan for roasted chicken
Large roasting bag
Large non-stick frying pan
Large non-stick saucepan
Sharp knives
Kitchen scissors
Blender or food processor

For storage and labelling

Containers and freezer bags
Labels and marker pens

Step 1

Begin with skinning chicken for roasting. For speed and convenience, use scissors to skin chicken. Preheat oven to 190°C (see Part 2: Base mix recipes below).
Cook prepared chicken for 1 1/2 hours. Place garlic bulb in pan beside chicken and cook for 30-35 minutes until golden-brown.
Prepare Tasty chickpea mix (see Part 2: Base mix recipes below).
Check on garlic.
Prepare Basic mince mix (see Part 2: Base mix recipes below).
Use half to make mince mix (Mince lettuce cups, Tuesday) and the other to make meatballs (Meatballs with spaghetti, Friday).
Once chicken is cooked, stand for 10 minutes then remove from bag and leave to cool.
Cook Morcoccan couscous (Israeli couscous chicken salad, Monday) following packet directions but using just 1 tablespoon oil and no salt. Once cooked leave to stand for 10 minutes.
Prepare Basic rice salad mix (see Part 2: Base mix recipes below).
Break chicken in bite-sized chunks discarding any fat.

Step 2

Divide prepared basic mixes in the correct portion sizes in sealed containers:

Divide Tasty chickpea mix in 3 portions and pack in 3 separate containers labelled ‘Chicken curry’, ‘Spicy chickpea eggs’ and ‘Mince lettuce cups’ respectively.
Pack Basic rice salad mix in one container.
Divide and pack roasted chicken in 2 portions labelled ‘Israeli couscous chicken salad’ and ‘Chicken curry’ respectively.
Pack Moroccan couscous.
Pack garlic bulb.
Divide Basic mince mix in 2 for Mince lettuce cups (Tuesday) and Meatballs with spaghetti (Friday).

Step 3

Store prepared ingredients…

In the fridge:

1 portion Basic roasted chicken for Israeli couscous chicken salad (Monday).
1 portion Moroccan couscous (Monday).
Roasted garlic bulb for Israeli couscous chicken salad (Monday) and Spicy chickpea eggs (Wednesday).
Dressing for Basic rice salad mix (Tuesday).
1 portion Tasty chickpea mix for Spicy chickpea eggs (Wednesday).

In the freezer:

1 portion Basic mince mix for mince lettuce cups (Tuesday).
Basic rice salad mix without dressing for Mince lettuce cups (Tuesday).
2 portions Tasty chickpea mix for Mince lettuce cups (Tuesday) and Chicken curry (Thursday).
1 portion Basic roasted chicken for Chicken curry (Thursday).
1 portion Basic mince mix for Meatballs with spaghetti (Friday).

Top tips for successful freezing

Foods to be frozen should be as fresh as possible.
Cool foods completely before freezing. Freezing food when hot will increase the temperature of the freezer and could cause other foods to start defrosting.
Never refreeze anything that has already been frozen.
Make sure you wrap foods properly and put them in a sealed container or bag.
Freeze items in the quantities suggested so you have no wastage.
Label foods clearly with a marker pen. Date items if you are not going to eat during the planned week.
Defrost food thoroughly before cooking. Remove from the freezer the night before cooking the following day and store in the fridge.
Remove as much air as possible from items being packed in freezer bags.

Shopping list

Fresh vegetables and fruit

1 lemon
5 sprigs thyme
5 sprigs rosemary
2 bulbs garlic
3 red or white onions
1 large bunch fresh coriander
8 tomatoes
3cm-piece fresh ginger
7 spring onions
2 stalks celery
3 red capsicums
3 small cucumbers
kale — 8 cups
1 head cos lettuce or iceberg lettuce
fresh mint
salad greens — 4 cups
mushrooms — 2 cups
2 carrots
1 courgette
2 green capsicums
wild rocket — 4 cups

Frozen vegetables

corn kernels — 2 cups
spinach — 200g

Chilled items

9 eggs
parmesan cheese — 3 tablespoons
grated reduced-fat cheese — 200g
low-fat plain yoghurt— 1/3 cup

Meat and poultry

1 x size 20 fresh (roasting) chicken
1kg lean beef mince

Bottles/canned products, dry goods

1/2 cup oil-free sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 cup peppadew pepper pieces
2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
red wine — 1/2 cup
dried red lentils — 1/2 cup
2 x 400g cans chickpeas
375ml can reduced-fat evaporated milk
200g dried spaghetti
brown rice — 1 1/2 cups
sultanas — 2/3 cup
vinaigrette dressing — 8 tablespoons
balsamic vinegar— 4 tablespoons
700g jar passata with garlic and basil
green curry paste— 4 teaspoons
Trident lite coconut milk — 1/2 cup
1/4 cup walnuts or almonds

Seasonings and pantry staples

Check your pantry to see what you already have in store:

olive oil
oil spray
salt, to season
chilli flakes
freshly ground black pepper
curry powder — 4 teaspoons
ground coriander — 2 teaspoons
cumin — 1 teaspoon
paprika — 1 teaspoon
chilli powder — 2 teaspoons
breadcrumbs — 50g
tomato paste — 4 teaspoons
rustic wholegrain bread — 200g

Part 2: Base mix recipes

Here are the base mix recipes (see Part 3: Your week of dinners, below, for the daily recipes).

Basic roasted chicken

Makes 2 portions
Total cost 19.00
Time to make 2 hrs

1 x size 20 fresh (roasting) chicken (725-750g of meat off chicken)
1 lemon, sliced
4-5 sprigs thyme
5 sprigs rosemary
freshly ground black pepper or chilli flakes
1 bulb garlic
oil spray

Step 1 Preheat oven to 190°C. Skin chicken (this is done really quickly using kitchen scissors). Fill cavity with lemon slices and some thyme and rosemary. Season with pepper. Place in a roasting bag with remaining herb sprigs.

Step 2 Place bag in a roasting pan and place garlic in pan. Spray bulb with oil. Cook for 1 1/2 hours. Leave to cool slightly before removing from bag. Cover and leave to cool completely. Remove garlic bulb once golden brown and cloves go soft when squeezed.

Step 3 Strip carcass and divide chicken in half for Israeli couscous chicken salad (Monday), and Chicken curry (Thursday). Store garlic in a sealed container.

Basic mince mix

Makes 2 portions
Total cost $23.47
Time to make 45 mins

1kg lean beef mince
2 onions, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped or crushed
4 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1/4 cup chopped fresh coriander

Meatballs

1 egg
50g breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon oil

Lettuce cups mix

4 teaspoons tomato paste
400g can chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup red wine

Step 1 Place mince in a large mixing bowl with onions, garlic, curry powder, paprika and coriander. Mix together.

Step 2 Divide mixture in half and to Meatballs portion add egg, breadcrumbs and oil. Form into about 28 meatballs. Place in a container and label Meatballs.

Step 3 To make lettuce cups mix, place remaining mince in a pan with oil spray and heat until evenly browned. Add paste, tomatoes and wine. Cook for 10 more minutes. Place in a container and label Mince lettuce cups.

Make it gluten free: Check curry powder is gluten free, and use gluten-free breadcrumbs and tomato paste

Tasty chickpea mix

Makes 3 portions
Total cost $13.95
Time to make 25 mins

1 onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
3cm-piece fresh ginger, grated
8 tomatoes, chopped
oil spray
1 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
pinch chilli flakes
1/2 cup dried red lentils
375ml can reduced-fat evaporated milk
2 x 400g cans chickpeas, drained, rinsed

Step 1 Place onion, garlic, ginger and tomatoes in a processor and process until they form a purée.

Step 2 Spray a pan with oil then add purée with spices and cook for a few minutes.

Step 3 Add lentils with milk and 1/2 cup water and cook for 10 minutes. Add chickpeas and cook for 5 more minutes.

Step 4 Divide in 3 portions for the Chicken curry, Mince lettuce cups and Spicy chickpea eggs.

Make it gluten free: Check ground spices are gluten free

Basic rice salad mix

Makes 1 portion
Total cost $7.00
Time to make 30 mins

3/4 cup brown rice
1/3 cup sultanas
2 spring onions, sliced
2 sticks celery, chopped
1/4 cup peppadew pepper pieces
1 red capsicum, diced
1/4 cup walnuts or almonds, chopped
1 small cucumber, diced
1/2 cup fresh coriander, chopped
4 tablespoons vinaigrette dressing (made with 3 parts vinegar to 1 part olive oil)

Step 1 Cook rice. Drain and allow to cool.

Step 2 Add all remaining ingredients except dressing. Mix and store in a container to later go with the Mince lettuce cups. Place dressing in a separate container and keep in fridge.

Make it gluten free: Don’t not use malt vinegar in the vinaigrette dressing