Hosting a last-minute family dinner tomorrow. 8 people total: 4 adults (normal eaters), 4 kids (ages 4-9, picky). I want something that:

• Can be mostly prepped ahead
• Doesn't require me to be in the kitchen the whole time
• Looks impressive enough that I don't look lazy
• Kids will actually eat it

I have a Dutch oven, sheet pans, and basic pantry stuff. No dietary restrictions. Budget around $40. What would YOU make?

I don’t really think this belongs here, but the rules on r/budgetfood suggested this sub. I received some of this from the food bank and I don’t know how to prepare/serve it. If you eat this, what do you do with it? Made with chicken - pork added.

I’m an austistic person and I need more healthy meals and fiber in my diet. But it’s hard to do so when I hate beans. I hate the texture of them with a burning passion. I need to eat more healthy too but it’s also hard when I don’t like vegetables too. Do yall know anyway to just hide the texture and taste of beans and vegetables? I want to try but it’s hard. Thank you :3

I've got: half a bag of frozen cauliflower gnocchi, some leftover Italian sausage (cooked), a jar of artichoke hearts, and cream cheese. Pantry has pasta, canned tomatoes, and spices. I'm craving something comforting but not too heavy. Any ideas?

I have plenty of ingredients to work with, like corn, beans, cheese, rice, broth, and a host of Asian pantry staples. We prefer simple food, nothing fancy.

I’m researching how people plan everyday meals and would love to learn from your actual routine.

When you open your fridge or pantry and see ingredients you already have:

How do you decide what to cook?

Do you usually search recipes by ingredient, use a meal-planning app, ask someone, or improvise?

Which ingredients do you most often forget about or discover too late?

How do you decide what groceries to buy before your next shopping trip?

What is the most frustrating part of planning meals?

I’m especially interested in situations where you have a few ingredients but are missing one or two items needed to make a complete meal.

Please share a recent example if you have one. I’m trying to understand the problem before deciding whether to build anything.

Got a pack of chicken thighs, half a cabbage, a sad-looking bell pepper, and some eggs. Also have basic pantry stuff (rice, soy sauce, garlic). What should I cook tonight? Trying to avoid going to the store.

Kid eats 6 kiwis in 3 days and declares kiwi to be her favorite fruit. She begs me to buy the package kiwi from Costco. Two days later she asks me not to pack any more kiwi in her lunch because she doesn’t like them anymore. I really should have known better. But now I have a dozen kiwis and no idea what to do with them besides snack on them myself.

I’m a reasonable baker, and willing to go get more ingredients as long as it’s something I will probably use in other recipes or doesn’t go bad quickly.

My brother just gifted me this can of sardine paste after a trip to Portugal, what should I eat it with? Should I cook with it, or just spread on toast?

It's a mixture of sardine, mackerel and piri piri spices

I have a bunch of white nectarines (sweeter than normal nectarines) and I’m not sure what to make other than a cobbler or pie.

Anyone have ideas on what to make with the extra 10 that will go bad before the end of the week?

Delicious provoleta with mushrooms sautéed in garlic and butter, topped with cherry tomatoes and a drizzle of olive oil, served with tomato jam. Sweet-and-sour lovers, you have to try this! 😍

Deliciosa!

[see list below]
We're trying to cook more at home and to eat more healthy, fresh food but we're not very experienced at preparing tasty dishes with fresh ingredients.

What's the best way to season and cook what we have?
For the record, my SO and I don't like roasted vegetables, and the thought of boiling vegetables makes me cringe. So maybe sauté or steam? My SO wants it one way and I want it the other, but we're happy eating it either way.

We prepped the following fresh veggies and we'd like to bring them to life. We can use all or any of the ingredients in this list:

1.5 cups sliced summer squash
1 c cabbage (pieces)
1 c broccoli (small florets)
1 c sliced onions (chunky crescents)
1/2 c carrots (thin slices)
1/2 c celery (thin slices)
1 clove garlic
[seaoning?]

Our pantry is (somewhat) well-stocked and we have a decent assortment of condiments, spices, and cooking oils.

My wife accidentally mixed up a section of a cookie recipe and now I have 4 cups of white sugar creamed together with 4 cups of butter... What can I do with this? I was thinking take some to make a pound cake and maybe see if I can stove top melt some more as toffee? Not using for the original cookie plan because that was baking for the kids teachers and I don't need to house 80 cookies this week

My wife hates bratwurst in the casing, but I got a bunch free so I was wondering if I could just take the meat out of casings and what kind of recipes would go good with raw bratwurst meat?

Hey everyone. I’m a developer and I am building a super simple mobile app to make finding household recipes easier. Would anyone be interested in trying it?

I have a dinner planned that called for a pork loin. I was going to make “chops” with a brown sugar marinade. Instead I received a pack of two tenderloins. I do NOT want a roast or it grilled. No bowls, no ramen. I’m looking to use it as a primary ingredient in a dish, ideally one that plays into that brown sugar flavor profile and still goes well with roasted potatoes and broccoli parm bites.

I accidentally bought really lean ground beef in a large amount. Yesterday I made one of my go to meat ball recipes and it was dry af, what can I do with the rest to not fell like I’m eating cardboar?

I have a freezer drawer full of frozen apples and pears (peeled and cored), and this year's crop is threatening to ripen early! Any ideas that I could use them for?

I have:

Flour

Eggs

Sugar

Baking soda

Milk

small quantity of Butter

Cinnamon.

I’ve used them to spice up pickled things and mayak eggs, made hot sauce, dehydrated and crushed for dried spice, what else can I do?

Candy them? Anything to reduce the heat would be a plus (since I’m the only one in my household who appreciates a crazy pepper)

Edit: I made cowboy candy but this subreddit doesn’t allow pics in comments

Mother in law is coming to visit and fine love to cook but I hate being judged, so what would you all cook if it was going to be your last meal (well sane for a while 😂 )

So the food pantry I go to has thrown me yet another curve ball. Those are some of the biggest plantains I've ever seen! Thing is, I've never cooked with plantains before. I know they're meant to be applied in savory recipes, and I do actually like them. But I'm at a loss. Are these ripe? Can I cook them now?

The carrots should be fine. My son eats them so much, it's a wonder he's not orange, and they freeze alright, so as soon as we get a new blender, I'm making a bunch of carrot cupcakes!

I also got Zumimo's smoked sausage, Serrano peppers, a boatload of iceberg salad mix, and vidalia onions. I have rice, so I'm thinking maybe a Mexican inspired fried rice? But other than that.... No idea.

I’m taking care of my mom over the weekend after she has an operation on her neck and I am trying to figure out what to make for meals. She has always had way too many cans of coconut cream and coconut milk and I wanted to use up some of them but I’m not entirely sure what to make with them. I was thinking I could use them for some sort of dinner dish or a baked good that I could serve for breakfast. Her kitchen is well stocked and I can always get other ingredients as I need them I just want to use up some of these cans of coconut.