If you're tired of meal planning after 60, these 8 template dinners solve everything

There’s a funny thing about cooking after 60.

Most people I talk to still enjoy good food, but the decision fatigue hits harder than the hunger.

It’s not the slicing, stirring, or seasoning that wears you down. It’s standing in front of the fridge thinking, “What on earth do I make tonight?”

I’ve been obsessed with food for most of my life, and one lesson I borrowed from my years in hospitality is this: the best chefs do not reinvent dinner every night. They rely on templates.

Frameworks.

Simple structures you can plug ingredients into without having to think.

Today we’re diving into eight dinner templates that make planning effortless, whether you’re 60, 70, or simply tired of treating every evening meal like a research project.

Let’s get into it.

1) One pan roasted base plus veg plus protein

Ever notice how your oven is basically a personal assistant you do not use enough?

This template is the simplest way I know to get a balanced meal with almost no work.

The structure is three parts:

• A base
• A vegetable
• A protein

Think potatoes or sweet potatoes as the base. Add whatever veg is hanging around. Then toss in sliced chicken, salmon, tofu, or even chickpeas.

Season everything the same way, drizzle with olive oil, and roast at 400°F until the edges are crispy.

The beauty is that you can’t really mess it up.

If you want to upgrade the flavor instantly, use spice blends instead of single spices. Za’atar, Cajun, Italian herbs, Japanese seven spice. They all do the heavy lifting.

Question for you. When was the last time you let dinner be easy instead of clever?

2) The ten minute skillet pasta

I know pasta gets a bad reputation, but used as a flexible template instead of a carb bomb, it’s a gift.

Here’s the structure:

• One cooked pasta
• One vegetable
• One flavor booster
• One protein

A flavor booster could be pesto, lemon zest with olive oil, roasted garlic, or a spoonful of sun dried tomato paste.

I learned this trick from a chef I worked with who created staff meals out of leftover bits from the kitchen. He did not follow recipes. He followed ratios. And honestly, those meals hit harder than a lot of fine dining dishes.

If you keep frozen veggies, canned beans, and a jar of pesto on hand, you can pull off a pasta template dinner even on days when you are tired, cranky, or debating cereal for dinner.

3) The soup that cooks itself

The older I get, the more I understand why soup is the universal comfort food.

But what most people forget is that soup is also the king of low effort meals. You throw things into a pot, walk away, and the pot does the magic.

Here’s the template:

• A broth
• A veg
• A protein
• A starch
• A finishing flavor

The finishing flavor is what makes the difference. A squeeze of lemon. A swirl of yogurt. A sprinkle of herbs.

It reminds me of something I read in a book years ago about the compound effect. Tiny actions create surprisingly big results over time. Soup proves that.

One tiny lift at the end can turn a basic broth into something you actually look forward to.

This is one of the best templates if you’re cooking for one or two because leftovers taste even better the next day.

4) The mix and match grain bowl

Grain bowls are basically adult Lunchables with nutrients.

The structure is simple:

• A grain
• A cooked veg
• A raw veg
• A protein
• A dressing

The dressing is where the personality comes from. Tahini with lemon. Balsamic and olive oil. Soy sauce with a little honey.

I once worked in a restaurant where the chef said, “A good sauce forgives everything.” It’s true. Even if your base is plain quinoa and leftover broccoli, a good sauce turns it into something you would pay for at a trendy cafe.

This template also works beautifully if you want something easy on digestion. Warm grain, soft veg, and lean protein tend to be gentler at the end of the day.

5) The Mediterranean style snack plate

Some nights are not for cooking. They are for assembling.

Enter the snack plate. The most underrated dinner in America.

The template:

• A protein
• A dip
• A crunchy thing
• A fresh thing
• A savory thing

Think hummus, olives, grilled chicken strips, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, feta, crackers, or pita.

It is hands off, customizable, and surprisingly satisfying.

This is the template I use when I am exhausted or traveling. It turns a nothing night into a small ritual. A little board. A few textures. A glass of something. Done.

Ask yourself. Does dinner really need to look like dinner to count?

6) The slow cooker dump meal

Slow cooker meals were invented for people who want homemade food without the work.

The template:

• A protein
• A veg
• A sauce
• A seasoning

That is it.

Drop ingredients into the cooker, press a button, walk away.

The key is the sauce. It could be a can of tomatoes, a curry simmer sauce, teriyaki, salsa, or broth with herbs.

I used to think slow cookers were for big families until I watched my friend’s mom in her seventies use one every Sunday. She made a batch, portioned it out, and coasted through the week with zero stress.

Smart. Efficient. Very practical.

7) The three ingredient stir fry base

Stir fry is one of the fastest ways to cook fresh ingredients without fuss.

Here’s the template:

• A protein
• A vegetable
• A sauce

You can add a grain or noodle if you want, but it is optional.

The sauce is where most people go wrong because they complicate it. You need just three things. Something salty like soy sauce. Something sweet like honey. Something acidic like rice vinegar or lime.

That is the blueprint for almost every stir fry sauce you have ever loved.

This template is especially great if you are cooking for one because it adapts to whatever you have left in the fridge.

It is the refrigerator clean out without the emotional trauma.

8) The baked fish formula

Lastly, since this is the final point, let’s talk about the dinner template most people overlook. Baked fish.

Fish cooks faster than chicken, tastes great with minimal effort, and pairs well with almost anything.

Here’s the template:

• A mild fish
• A citrus
• A fat
• An herb or spice

Lay the fish in a dish, drizzle olive oil, add lemon slices, sprinkle herbs, and bake at 375°F until it flakes with a fork.

This is one of the few meals that feels both fancy and effortless. I used to make versions of this after long restaurant shifts when I was too tired to move but still wanted to treat myself.

Fish is forgiving when baked gently. Add a side salad or roasted veg and you have a plate that looks like it came from a coastal cafe.

The bottom line

At some point, dinner stops being a grand event and starts being a quiet ritual.

A chance to nourish yourself without turning the evening into a project.

If meal planning has started to feel like a chore or if you just want to simplify without sacrificing flavor, these templates are your new best friends.

Use them as frameworks, not rules. Swap ingredients. Add shortcuts. Let frozen veg save the day.

The goal is not perfection. It is ease.

And if there is one thing I have learned about food after years in and out of kitchens, it is this. Simple meals taste better when you are not stressed about making them.

Here is to dinners that work for you, not against you.

Until next time.