Standing in front of an open fridge with no plan is one of the most common daily stalls there is. This wheel mixes whole styles of meal, from pasta night and rice bowls to breakfast for dinner, a snack plate or simply ordering in, so one spin points you toward a direction instead of a single recipe.
When to use it
It works best at the moment of decision fatigue, usually around six in the evening, when everyone in the house says "I don't care, you pick" and then rejects every suggestion. Handing the choice to the wheel ends that loop without anyone feeling overruled.
Couples and roommates use it to settle the nightly debate fairly. Because the result is random, nobody can claim the other person always gets their way, and the loser of a spin can still veto one option per week.
It also helps when you are bored of your own rotation. Seeing Curry or Backyard grill land can remind you of a meal you have not made in months.
Ideas
- Put Leftovers on the wheel with extra weight, as this template does, so the food already in your fridge gets eaten before it goes bad.
- Keep a version for busy weeknights with only fast options like Grilled cheese, Wraps and Rice bowls, and a separate one for slow Sunday cooking.
- Let the kids add one meal each, then spin on Friday so everyone has a stake in the outcome.
Variations
- Write Order takeout*1 and Leftovers*3 if you are trying to save money but still want an occasional treat to come up.
- Switch to no repeats mode and spin the whole week on Sunday, so the same meal type cannot win twice before every other option has had its turn.
- Pair it with the coin flip when the wheel lands on something two people feel differently about, and let the coin break the tie.
Tips
- Remove anything you lack the ingredients for before spinning, otherwise the wheel will happily send you to the store at the worst possible time.
- If someone in your household has a food allergy or eats vegetarian, edit the list once and save it on your device so it is ready every evening.
- Treat the result as a category. Tacos could mean fish tacos, bean tacos or whatever tortillas and fillings you have on hand.
Make it yours
Change any entry, weight or color above, or open a copy of this wheel to edit and share as your own. This page always keeps its original entries.