Meal Theme Nights to Break You Out of Your Dinner Rut
I have been using Plan to Eat for over a year now to help streamline my meal planning process. And while I love using the Meal Planning App, there has been the occasional bump in the road, usually in the form of the dreaded “Dinner Rut”.
My recipe database has grown significantly in Plan to Eat, and combined with the sheer amount of recipes available between online magazines, cooking websites, and Pinterest coming up with dinner ideas can be simply overwhelming. There are SO MANY recipes available, that without some sort of structure you can spend a ridiculous amount of time aimlessly browsing and scrolling.
Figuring out what is for dinner doesn’t have to be difficult or time-consuming, there can be simple and efficient meal planning, and for me all it took was narrowing down meal ideas into categories and assigning those types of meals to a specific day of the week.
The idea is simple: Assign a food theme to each night of the week. After a month’s time, keep with the same themes or change it up with new or seasonal themes for the next month. Even though you’re eating the same “types” of dishes, you’ll be surprised at how varied your meals can be.
Sound familiar? This idea is hardly new, there was a time when it was typical of families to have a certain meal each day of the week, I want to say 1950’s but I can’t find anything to confirm that. Same idea, but we are going to expand on it! Instead of religiously cooking the same recipe for meatloaf on Monday, and fish on Friday, you will use general terms to help streamline the meal planning process.
When faced with a sea of endless meal options, this has helped me tremendously. A week of theme night dinners for my family might look like:
Monday: Sheet Pan Dinner Night
Tuesday: Taco Tuesday
Wednesday: Slow Cooker Night
Thursday: Ground Beef Night
Friday: Fish Night
Saturday: Asian Night
Sunday: Roast Night
Using theme nights will give your meal planning structure, but it is completely up to you how varied your meals can be! I have put together a list of family meals that creatively implement traditional theme nights! These are no ordinary links to recipes, these are the most popular dinner ideas on Pinterest right now. Use the list below as inspiration, or put together an entire meal plan for a month.
One last thought before we move on to the huge list of family dinner ideas, try really hard to NOT sweat the small stuff! Consider theme nights as a “guideline” not a rule, and one you can ignore at will. Craving tacos on Monday and have all the ingredients of hand? Go for it! I’ve never had the meal planning police knock at my door for observing Taco Tuesday on another day of the week 🙂 Have fun with it, meal planning is supposed to make your life easier, not cause stress. Really the only time I strictly follow my meal plan is when fresh perishable food is involved, like seafood.
Happy Meal Planning!
If you are new to meal planning, or just need a little extra help organizing yourself, I have created a super simple set of meal planning printables to help you out.
Big List of Family Meal Themes to Break Your Dinner Rut
Pasta Night
Breakfast for Dinner
- Cheesy Bacon and Egg Hash
- Crescent Bacon Breakfast Ring
- Ham and Cheese Hash Brown Casserole
- Sausage Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole
- Italian Breakfast Casserole
Soup Night
- Ham and Potato Corn Chowder
- Thai Chicken Ramen Soup
- Skinny Chicken Fajita Soup
- Creamy sausage and tortellini soup
- King Ranch Chicken Soup
Salad Night
- Chicken Avocado Caprese Salad
- Buffalo Chicken Taco Salad
- Loaded Greek Chicken Avocado Salad
- Shrimp Avocado Taco Salad
- Italian Sub Salad
Chicken Dinner Night
- One Skillet Chicken with lemon Garlic Cream Sauce
- Loaded Baked Potato & Chicken Casserole
- Parmesan Crusted Chicken
- Homemade Shake and Bake Chicken
- Crispy Oven Fried Chicken
Pork Night
- Slow Cooker Angel Pork Chops
- Honey Garlic Baked Pork Bites
- Baked Stuffed Pork Chops
- Crispy Baked Breaded Pork Chops
- Honey Garlic Dijon Pork Tenderloin
Steak Night
- Cheesesteak Sandwiches
- Perfect Pan-Seared Steak
- Easy Balsamic Glazed Steak Tips and Mushrooms
- Pan Seared Sirloin Steak with Mushroom Sauce
- Garlic Butter Brazilian Steak
Sheet Pan Dinner Night
- Lemon garlic parmesan chicken and asparagus
- Sheet Pan Flank Steak with Garlic Roasted Potatoes
- ONE PAN Healthy Italian Sausage & Veggies
- Honey Garlic Chicken Sheet Pan Meal
- Maple Dijon Chicken and Vegetables
Taco Tuesday
- Chili Lime Chicken Tacos with Grilled Pineapple Salsa
- Coconut Shrimp Taco
- Thai Chicken Tacos
- Ground Beef Tacos
- Chipotle Copycat Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas
Slow Cooker Night
- Slow Cooker Salisbury Steak
- Slow Cooker Korean Beef
- Mississippi Pot Roast
- Slow Cooker Thai Peanut Chicken
- Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Pork Chops Recipe
Pressure Cooker Night
- Instant Pot Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole
- Instant Pot Beef Stroganoff
- Instant Pot Pulled Pork
- Pressure Cooker Italian Sausages with Onions and Peppers
- Restaurant Style Beef Shawarma
Stir Fry Night
- Beef and Cabbage Stir Fry
- Teriyaki chicken with vegetables
- Garlic Shrimp Stir Fry
- 30 Minute Ginger Beef
- Crazy Good Beef And Broccoli
Homemade Pizza Night
- Roasted Garlic, Chicken and Spinach White Pizza
- Buffalo Chicken Pizza
- Cheesesteak Pizza
- Italian Sausage & Caramelized Onion Pizza
- Hawaiian Pizza
Casserole Night
- Cheesy Chicken Tetrazzini
- Chicken Rice Casserole
- Easy Baked Burrito Casserole
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Casserole
- Doritos Taco Casserole
Burger Night
- Juicy Salsa Burgers
- BLT Ranch Burgers
- Whiskey Bacon Burgers
- Loaded Beef Hamburgers
- Asian Burgers with Sriracha Mayo
Ground Beef Night
- Philly Cheese Steak Sloppy Joes
- Crispy Southwest Wrap
- One Pot Chili Mac and Cheese
- Unstuffed Peppers
- Dad’s Meatloaf with Tomato Relish
Meatball Night
- Teriyaki meatballs
- Meatball Parmesan Bake
- Thai Meatball Lettuce Wraps
- Mediterranean Meatball Gyros Sandwich
- Meatball Sub Sandwiches
International Cuisines:
Mexican Night
- Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
- Creamy Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas with white sauce
- Smothered Baked Chicken Burritos
- Chicken Fajita Pasta
- Mexican Stuffed Shells
Asian Night
- 30 Minute Peanut Sesame Noodles
- Sticky Asian Glazed Chicken
- Beef and Broccoli Lo Mein
- Thai Peanut Chicken Pasta
- Korean Beef
Italian Night
- Sausage, Ricotta, and Spinach Stuffed Pasta Shells
- Pasta Carbonara
- Italian Sausage Tortellini
- Italian Alfredo Tortellini
- Italian Herb Bruschetta Chicken
Indian Night
- Chicken tikka masala
- Easy Butter Chicken
- Grilled Indian Chicken Skewers
- Quick Indian Chicken Curry
- Indian restaurant chicken jalfrezi
Take out fake out Night
- Easy 15-Minute Lo Mein
- Easy Chinese Pepper Steak
- Easy Orange Chicken
- Mongolian Beef
- General Tso’s Chicken
Rotisserie Chicken Night
- Rotisserie Chicken Casserole
- Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole
- Rotisserie Chicken Skillet
- Easy Chicken Pot Pie
- Chicken and Cheese Quesadillas
Foil Packet Night
- Grilled Shrimp Boil Foil Packets Dinner Recipe
- Garlic Butter Baked Salmon in Foil Supper Recipe
- Foil Pack Italian Sausage and Veggies Recipe
- Butter Garlic Herb Steak Tin Foil Packets Dinner Recipe
- Southwestern Chicken Packets Tin Foil Supper Recipe
Make your Own… Night
- Make your Own Salad Bar
- Make your own baked potato bar
- Make your own chili bar
- Make your own english muffin pizzas
- Make your own sandwich bar
From the Freezer Night (freezer meals that have been prepared in advance)
- 20 Minute Tuscan Pasta (Freezer Meal)
- Beefy Baked Ravioli: An Easy Fake-Out Lasagna {Freezer Meal}
- Chicken Stuffing Bake
- Freezer Chicken Pot Pie
- Baked Chicken Penne {Freezer Meal!}
Skillet Meal Night
- Mexican Beef and Rice Skillet
- Cheeseburger Macaroni Skillet
- Chicken Burrito Skillet
- Italian Sausage & Tortellini Skillet
- One Skillet Sun Dried Tomato Chicken & Gnocchi
Meatless Monday
- Skinny Mediterranean Pasta Toss
- Creamy Spinach Artichoke Tortellini
- Three Cheese Baked Ziti
- Greens and Beans
- Eggplant Parmesan
Grill Night
- Taco Lime Grilled Chicken
- Cornell Chicken Barbecue
- Grilled Cuban-Style Pork Chops
- Grilled Balsamic Flank Steak
- Grilled Steak, Potato & Mushroom Kabobs
Leftovers
- Take a night off and advantage of any leftovers you have floating around in the fridge. I often plan leftovers into my meal plan by scaling up recipes. Pasta, casseroles, soups and slow cooker meals tend to make for excellent leftovers.
Kids Choice
- This started as a sanity-saving strategy. I was sick of hearing “I don’t like that” so I gave my kids the option to pick a homemade dinner occasionally. A lot of the time their choices surprise me. We have basic rules, and usually, their choices are reasonable, but sometimes they need a little gentle direction. Ground rules: The meal has to include a protein, side, vegetables, and a fruit. Dorito Taco casserole is a popular dinner request for kids night in my house!
