Juggling work and home life is never easy. Time during the week seems to go so quickly, and before you know it, it’s 7pm and you haven’t even thought about dinner. (Well, unless you’re on the Eat Out team, in which case you’ve been thinking about it since 1.35pm after your last mouthful of lunch.) To help you keep the schedule tight and trim, we’ve planned your week’s meals for you. Stop by the shops once to get all the ingredients, and you’ll be sorted from Monday to Friday.

Monday: Warm Mexican red bean birria
Serve this recipe with tortillas, rice and a handful of grated cheddar for a hearty meat-free Monday dinner. It’s avo season, (and you know how we feel about avos) so you can’t go wrong with this comforting veggie supper.

Tuesday: Pan pizza
Made using puff pastry, this scrumptious pizza recipe is both easy and glam. If possible, defrost your roll of pastry overnight in the fridge. Sprinkled with mozzarella cheese, olives, salami slices and feta cheese, the base is popped in the oven and baked until golden brown. Spoon pesto on top and serve with fresh basil leaves.

Wednesday: Chorizo and brie pasta
Try out this easy and tasty pasta for a cheeky mid-weekie. All you need to do is dice the cheese, add it to melted butter in a pan with garlic, and sprinkle in the salty coins of sliced chorizo. Deglaze the pan with sherry, add cream, grated pecorino cheese and cooked pasta and… voila!

Thursday: Gong bao chicken  
This adaptation of the spicy Szechuan dish is the creation of Masterchef Australia winner, Adam Liaw. It does call for some exotic ingredients like Chinese black vinegar, Sichuan peppercorns, peanut oil and rice wine, so you’ll need to get those from a Chinese supermarket in your area, but the best part? It’ll only take you half an hour to whip up.

Friday: Pan-fried hake with herb butter and mushy peas
This fresh and fragrant dish is as easy as a flash in the pan, and the addition of herb-and-garlic butter takes things up a notch. Prepare this chop-chop before going out to celebrate the weekend.