Make-do mum meals

The essence of being a make-do mum can be demonstrated through meal production.  I'm the SAHM, with my husband not generally getting home until 6.30, thirty minutes before bedtime.  The children tend to eat around 4.30-5.30pm so it is firmly on me to get meals.  Lets review the meal expectations of my family and society:

• Healthy 
• Varied
• Curly fries (that is pretty much DD1's meal requirement)
• Asian influenced
• European influenced
• Delicious
• On budget
• On time/ quick to prepare.
• And then of course there is the usual considerations of the quality of the food ingrediants such as local or not, fresh or canned, and all the other food politics that I can't be bothered with.

So while my great big shopping experience for the week is going to the supermarket (yay) it is fraught with meeting the above expectations.  There is normally a couple of days between the shopping being completed and the total cost being revealed.

So what do I do?  I am always on the hunt for recipes that meet the above criteria.  I also really like meals that have awesome leftovers that create a subsequent meal.

These are those meals, and I'll post the recipes slowly over time.  I'd love to know any other completely tried and true meals, particularly if they meet the above criteria!

The great make-do mum meal list.

• Katsudon: Japanese pork schnitzel with egg and onion over rice.
• Anything and instant flavoured couscous with veges chopped up (this is my most desperate meal before sandwiches and takeout).   It takes approx one minute to chop up some brocolli and capsicum and throw them in the bowl with couscous and boiling water.  Commonly served with roast chicken, premarinated nibbles etc.
• Soup.  We tend to roast something once a week, and I slice the leftover meat and freeze it before anyone can pick at it.  Stock is a must have ingrediant, whether home made or in cartons and so we just heat up some stock, throw in some noodles, a handful of veges and the sliced meat.  Great with frozen dumplings if you have no meat.
• Frozen dumplings (again).  Steamed or fried for dinner in ten minutes.