Once a Month Cooking - Easy 7 Step Guide

Yes...you can cook for a day and eat for a month. I was skeptical at first but I tried OAMC (Once a Month Cooking) as a newlywed. My husband and I worked opposite shifts so settling down for a nice dinner was nearly impossible. A friend told me about OAMC and a few days later had enough meals in the freezer to enjoy some stress-free, nutritious meals with my husband for the next 30 days.

Now, as a busy mother of two small children, OAMC is more important to me than ever before. You'll probably relate to the frustration of last-minute meal planning which usually results in a quick drive through a burger joint, opening a can of "noodle o's" or simply relying on a "just add meat" *helper*. With OAMC, I only have to decide what type of food I am in the mood for....comfort food? Italian? Mexican?...after that, a simple trip from the freezer and then to the oven and "wa-la", dinner is served.

OAMC is an easy, fun way and money-saving way to feed your family. Here are seven steps that will walk you through the process.

Step 1 - Make sure you pick a day that you can devote completely to cooking. If you have small children, you may need to hire child-care, enlist the help of a friend or relative, or pick a day in which your husband is home to help.

When you are thinking about what day to pick, think about some of the interruptions you have. Do you have a home business? Do you get a lot of phone calls or visitors on the weekend? Do you have errands to run on certain days? All of these things are important to consider when planning your cooking day because you'll want to have a day as free of interruptions as possible. Plan to devote between 8-10 hours to cooking and cleaning if you plan to make 30 meals. Some OAMC'ers cook late into the night while their children are sleeping.

Step 2 - Spend some time gathering grocery store flyers and coupons. You'll use these flyers to plan your freezer meals around sale items.
Buying in bulk is just one benefit of freezer cooking so check for specials at your favorite wholesale or discount club.

Step 3 - Grab a calendar and think about what meals you will eat on which days. For example, I like to have some of our family favorites on Sunday evenings because it is a day that I know everyone will be home (and guests might stop in).

If you have sporting events on certain days or errands to run, think about making "quick meals" such as shredded pork sandwiches or burritos on those days. Don't forget to pick out extra-special "favorite" meals for your family members birthdays! You may also want to think about people who are having babies during a certain month and prepare some meals for their family too!

Step 4 - Place all of your recipes in front of you and "tally" each ingredient in each recipe as you create your master shopping list. Don't forget to "tally" the amount of packaging supplies you'll need as well....(tape, markers freezer bags, foil pans, etc). This is where you should be spending the majority of your time so that you don't forget ingredients & supplies and end up running back to the store.

Don't forget to inventory your freezer, refrigerator and pantry so that you can use some of the items you already have on hand. You may also want to try to use up any foods that you have in your refrigerator and freezer before your cooking day. You'll need a lot of space to store your meals!

Step 5 - It is a good idea to do your shopping before your cooking day as it can take a few hours. If you are planning to save money, you'll want to purchase items at different stores. Since I spend less time cooking during the month, I am able to think about my monthly cooking day when I am running other errands. I often purchase "cooking day" items in advance when I see a good sale however; I do the majority of my OAMC shopping the day before my cooking day.

Step 6 - As you are planning your cooking session, try to prepare the most complicated meal first...and work your way to the easier meals. It is also a good idea to think about all of the meals that call for similar preparation methods. For example, if you have two meals that call for shredded chicken, shred the chicken all at once. * It is also a good idea to prepare your meals by the type of meat or protein you are cooking. For example...prepare ground beef meals, followed by beef, chicken, pork, etc...

If you are chopping onions, quickly scan the rest of your recipes and chop onions for all of them. (Keep your tally sheet handy for this step as you will be referring to it often.) You can also cook one recipe at a time if combining tasks seems overwhelming. Trust me, it will become quite natural to combine tasks as you become more familiar with OAMC. Note: I keep all of my recipes on index cards covered with a plastic paper protector. This way, I can easily sort and order my recipes.

Step 7 - Don't forget to label all of your meals (freezer tape and Sharpie markers work great) and create a checklist for your freezer so you can keep track of the meals as you use them. You may also want to keep a second copy of your meal calendar on your freezer door and simply cross of the date as you use the meals.

Trust me, there is NOTHING better than the satisfaction of grabbing a home cooked meal out of the oven for your family each evening. It makes a busy cooking day well worth the effort knowing that you will not be spending an hour every night preparing meals and cooking.

Think about ways that you can spend your newly found free-time each evening! Do you like reading books, bowling, or movies? Trust me, you will have a lot more time on your hands so plan some fun time with your family or enjoy some much deserved "me-time!"