how to plan your meals

I’ve been writing up some quotes this week for christenings, fridge filling services, dinner parties and catering deliveries. And it made me think about meal composition.

Whenever I quote or am writing a menu plan I start with a few things,

·     Meal make up

o   25% protein

o  25% carbs

o  50% vegetables

·     Tastes and flavours

·     Textures

·     Temperature

Meal make up

By ensuring that each meal you create is balanced in the above portions, you will get all that you need nutritionally. So when you’re planning your meals, this is a great starting point.

Most people start with choosing their protein as it’s normally the main focus of the dish, so see what you’ve got and start there. Then you can build the meal adding the carb element and then the vegetable options.

Tastes and flavours

If i’m at a loss for how to cook my chosen ingredients, a nice easy tip is to pick a type of food! Thai, Mexican, Italian etc. You can then pair the flavours together, so that all elements of the meal work in tandem.

Textures

Play around with textures, everyone loves a warming sauce, but add something with some crunch too.

Temperatures

Don’t forget about cold and room temperature foods. Some foods are better eaten after a while out of the oven! Think about warm salads, and cold soups!

So when you’re next totally stuck for a supper idea, follow that list and I’m sure you’ll create something scrumptious!

Here’s a little table of ingredients that go well together and will transport you to various parts of the world…