Do you find yourself staring down the same ho-hum food week after week at home? If so, there’s a very good chance you’ve succumbed to a dreaded recipe rut. Luckily, there are remedies—and they don’t require enrolling in cooking school or ordering takeout. Get ready to climb out of that recipe rut, because I’m sharing four tips that’ll help you reinvigorate your menus. Want even more ideas for making your home-cooked food more interesting? Check out this post, and for produce-specific ideas, read this one.
Follow the Lead of a Favorite Food Blogger
When I am feeling uninspired, I look to a few select food bloggers to get me jazzed about cooking again. If you don’t already have a favorite food blog, check out this updated list of the 50 top food blogs. Once you find a blog you like, spend a little time checking out their offerings. But instead of just getting lost in all the recipes, save yourself time by using the site’s filtering mechanism.
For example, I like to filter the recipes for seasonality if that’s available. Lately I’ve been checking all my favorite blogs for spring recipes that offer lighter ingredients and feature more fresh green veggies (even though there’s still snow in my yard). You may want to filter for the type of diet you follow, such as vegetarian or gluten-free. Or perhaps focus on entrees only, since that’s likely the main source of your recipe fatigue. And don’t forget, we have lots of star-earning recipes on the Guiding Stars website.
Visit a Grocery Store You’ve Never Been to Before
Sometimes all it takes is a change of environment to make things seem new again. Make a point to go up and down every aisle and visit every department within the store. Wandering around a different supermarket can help you notice foods you’ve overlooked before due to the store layout or merchandising. Consider going to a butcher shop, seafood shop, or a food co-op for new ingredient inspiration. Ethnic food markets are also a fun place to explore new foods—don’t be afraid to ask questions! Most people like to share information about their cultural and traditional foods.
Host a Recipe Swap Party
Chances are, if your daily dinners are lacking variety, you may have friends, neighbors, or co-workers experiencing the same thing. A potluck-style party, where everyone brings a favorite dish and copies of the recipe, is a fun way to shake things up. Check Pinterest for some great ideas and how-tos. And having a theme makes a recipe swap party even more fun. Here are a few theme ideas to get your creative juices flowing:
- “Mystery ingredient” — choose a different must-have ingredient for every dish
- “Around the world” — feature a specific culture or country for the meal
- “Farmer’s market” — everyone brings a dish featuring a seasonal fresh fruit or vegetable
- “Family favorites” — everyone can show off their “house specialty”
Plan Your Dinners Ahead of Time
Cooking the same old thing is an easy default when you haven’t had time to think about what to make. When you start meal planning, you force yourself to look ahead. And when you do that, you’ll likely be able to work some novel meals into your week. Keep in mind too that meal planning isn’t the same as meal prepping. The latter involves preparing large-batch recipes, then dividing them into single-serving containers to eat throughout the week—not always enjoyably. Meal planning, on the other hand, can be pleasurable, and may even help you be more organized each week. Here’s how to get started:
- Start by planning just nightly dinners. Dinnertime is often where the predictable menus show up (hello, Taco Tuesday). Also, limiting your efforts to one main meal each day makes the process more manageable if you’re just starting out.
- Consider planning a week ahead of time. That way you can check store flyers or websites for special sale items, and decide when to shop for the week. Also be sure to check your family schedules for any dinnertime conflicts or nights you know you’ll be eating out. If the week’s sales start on Saturday, consider meal planning on Friday evening or Saturday morning. Then shop over the weekend so you’ll be ready for the week.
- Use your grocery store sales flyer as inspiration for recipes you may want to make. This is a great way to both save some money and build variety into your meals. For example, let’s say boneless pork loin is on sale. You can research recipe ideas using pork loin on Pinterest, in your cookbook collection, or on your favorite food blogs. I do this routinely and it never fails to help me mix things up a bit. Oh, and don’t forget to check your pantry and freezer for items you need to use up.
- Ask family members if they’d like to help you plan dinners for the next week. Getting input will take some of the planning weight off your shoulders. And it gives others a chance to be involved in creating menus. They may even be willing to help prepare the meal if they have a say in what’s on the menu.
- Prep ingredients ahead of time if you can. Otherwise, make sure you have the time required to prepare the recipes you’ve chosen for each night. This is when leftovers (we like to call them “nextovers” or “planned-overs”) and half-scratch cooking techniques can be lifesavers. Your slow cooker and pressure cooker are also helpful for getting the prep done with minimal fuss.