YouAsk Kim
Hands slicing tomatoes on a worn wooden board beside lemons, herbs and a bowl of white beans

Kitchen · 15 min

Keep five things for a hard night

Eggs, a can of beans, frozen vegetables, something to toast, something to grate. A plan for the evenings when there is nothing left.

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Some evenings there is no energy left to plan, shop or cook. Those are the nights that end in skipped meals or whatever is quickest. A small shelf of five standbys, always replaced when used, means there is something decent to eat in ten minutes.

The steps

Four small steps,in your own time.

  1. Choose five things that keep and that you like: for example eggs, a can of beans or lentils, a bag of frozen vegetables, bread or wraps in the freezer, and a hard cheese.

  2. Give them their own spot in the cupboard, fridge and freezer, so you always know they are there.

  3. Write two ten-minute meals they make on a card and stick it inside a cupboard door: for example beans on toast with grated cheese and peas, or an omelette with frozen spinach.

  4. When you use one of the five, put it on the shopping list straight away.

The reason

Why it helps

Tiredness makes decisions harder, and food decisions are among the first to go. Having a ready answer already in the cupboard takes the decision away. Eggs, beans, vegetables and bread together make a meal with protein, fibre and vegetables in less time than waiting for a delivery.

A gentle variation

If cooking at all is too much on those nights, choose five things that need no cooking: crackers, a can of fish, a jar of nut butter, fruit, yogurt. A plate of those still counts as a meal.

Neighbours setting a long table in a green garden

WE · TRIBE

Try itwith someone.

If you care for someone, keep a standby shelf for them too, with things they can make or eat easily on their own. Tell anyone who helps out where it is.

Make it a plan in HIVELIVE, with WE

Try it today

Today, choose five standbys, give them their own place in the kitchen, and write two ten-minute meals they make on a card.

Add it to your day

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