A meal plan for a pantry challenge is essential! It can help you get a meal on the table in record time as well as help you prep in advance and make sure you use what you have on hand.
Wondering how to meal plan for a Pantry Challenge? Here are the strategies I’m using to help make our “eat-down-the-pantry” month go well.
Jump to:
This month we’re undertaking a low-spend, Pantry Challenge kind of month. My hope is that we will spend a few hundred dollars on groceries and focus on using up what we have –without anyone freaking out too much, myself included.
When you shop the kitchen, you save time and money, avoid food waste, and learn to grocery shop better going forward.
Taking inventory and meal planning are critical to a good pantry challenge. When you know what you have, you can make plans to use it, prep ahead, and enjoy great meals. Here’s how to do it:
How to Plan
1. Take an inventory.
I think that taking stock of what you have is pertinent to your having success in a pantry challenge.
Even after one day, I find that having fresh knowledge of my supplies helps me think in different ways. The stuff that needs to be used is fresh in my mind.
Be sure to do Freezer Inventory so you know what proteins you have on hand as those are going to be the building blocks of your pantry challenge meal plan. Scan the fridge and pantry as well and find those hidden ingredients that need using.
2. Brainstorm what meals you can make.
After you know what you have in the freezer, fridge, and pantry, brainstorm a list of meals you can make from those ingredients.
It’s okay if you have more than one idea for an ingredient, write it all down. This will give you choices later so you don’t feel locked in.
3. Plan out the month of meals.
Once you have your meal ideas out on paper, plot out a month of meal plans on a grid.
In the Good Cheap Eats Club, we call these our bingo cards. We fill in enough dinners for the month that use what we have or what we anticipate to be on sale. Remember that pancakes make a great dinner.
It’s okay if you don’t make each meal on a specific date, the point is to have options based on what you know you have on hand for your pantry challenge. Then you can meal plan from there.
4. Plan a new week in a little more detail.
When the start of the week rolls around, consult your bingo card. What sounds good this week? What fits your activity levels? What do you have ingredients on hand for?
These are the things to add to your pantry challenge meal plan. Once you’ve used the idea, be sure to cross it off your master calendar.
5. Make a list of things to prep.
Once you know your week’s meal plan, make a list of things to prep. (You can grab this printable meal prep worksheet if you want to be fancy.)
If you are guilty of forgetting to thaw, you don’t want that to be an issue during your pantry challenge. It will impede you from using what you have.
Instead make a list of things to thaw each well as well as set reminders for things to prepare in advance so that actual meal prep can go easily.
Sample Meal Plans
Breakfasts
I like to plan a breakfast buffet for the weekdays. Then my kids can wake up at different times, do their thing, and I’m not a short order cook. Here’s a sampling of the easy breakfasts planned this month:
- Baked Oatmeal Cups with Apple (31 cents each)
- Instant Pot Banana Bread with Chocolate Chips
- Whole Grain Cornbread Waffles (52 cents each)
- Flavored Cream Cheese for Bagels (75 cents/batch)
- Easy Carrot Bread Recipe
- Gluten Free Granola (73 cents/serving)
- Simple Hard Cooked Eggs (Stovetop, Instant Pot, Air Fryer Methods)
- How to Cook Steel Cut Oats in the Slow Cooker
Lunches
Lunches may be all over the map. In order for school to go well, I need to have few interruptions. That means more sandwiches and easy-prep meals. Here are some of my go-to’s for the month:
- Spicy Pork Chili with Pumpkin (91 cents/serving)
- Sweet and Sour Pulled Chicken Sandwiches (Slow Cooker Prep!)
- Potato Soup with Sausage (95 cents/serving)
- Easy Pasta with Lemon – Perfect for Meal Prep
- Beef Chimichanga Recipe (61 cents each)
- Tuna Macaroni Salad (45 cents/serving)
- Ham and Egg Salad
- Instant Pot BBQ Pork Sandwiches (77 cents/serving!)
Dinners
We may have some pretty fancy dinners based on what I found lurking. I hope that my energy level is up for the task.
That said, generally we have some of the same things each week:
- Sunday Roast or a pub-type dinner
- Pasta
- Tacos/Mexican Food
- Date night so the kids make their own ramen
- Soup Night
- Pizza
Based on what I know is on hand in the freezer, we’ll likely have these recipes this month:
What’s YOUR meal plan for the pantry challenge?
This post was originally published on January 4, 2015. It has been updated for content and clarity.
Claudette
Started the pantry/freezer inventory. Too cold today to stand outside in the garage to inventory the freezer there, but inventoried the on in the basement. I did this challenge last January, and I was amazed at how long we ate before we had to buy anything other than perishables. Thanks for the reminder again this January. We use the Plan to Eat App and it works great for us.
Nancy @ Little Homestead in Boise
We’re joining you at the Little Homestead, with a link back 🙂 Great ideas, thanks!
Jessica Fisher
Thanks for joining us!
Jennifer
The challenge I have this month ( and for a few more!) is that four times a week, I have to go out at our regular dinner time to pick up one of the kids from their activities, so meals have to be fairly easy or very well thought out because by the time we get home, everyone is starving!! Had your turkey burgers this evening and they were yummy!!! Sean and I planned the meals for the next ten days, all based on emptying the freezer and a few trying your book’s recipes. “L’organisation épargne la sueur” as Lio likes to tell me.
Jessica Fisher
How do you say crockpot in French? 😉
Jennifer
“Mijoteuse” parce que ça mijote!
Stephanie
I’m so impressed you even officially planned out breakfasts and lunches! I never thought to do that, though I’ll admit that we eat the same things every day for breakfast. I’m not sure if my calendar will post, but here is what I have. Definitely not quite as detailed! I take some sort of leftovers every day for lunch and my husband (working nights) sleeps through lunch. My son gets lunch supplied by the daycare.
http://www.plantoeat.com/planner/
Heather @ My Overflowing Cup
Thanks for the reminder that I’ve still never made crepes. My family had them once and loved them. It would make them very happy if I made them. I’ve been meaning to try your recipe for quite some time.
I always have a column of meal prep ideas next to my menu because it helps tremendously to have a few things done ahead of time. Any time I find a few extra minutes, I will try to get something else on the list done. It helps me stay ahead and makes dinner less stressful.
My freezer has 3 turkeys in it, so that will be the most frequent meat this month. Thanks for sharing all of your hard work in an effort to encourage and inspire us!
Sandi
breakfast: coffee
lunch: buffalo chicken dip, crackers, half slice of cheesecake
dinner: ham, scalloped potatoes, sauteed yellow squash
Not the most balanced or nutritious, but used up things in the fridge
Quick question about the photo on your FB page showing the jars of mixes… why do you not put the sugar in with the other dry goods?
Jessica Fisher
The jars were so packed, there wasn’t room.
Angela
I’ve got our menu completed too – and I’ve already made some ‘adjustments’… 😉
http://testosteronepalace.blogspot.com/2015/01/happy-new-year-and-semi-annual-pantry.html
Jessica Fisher
Me, too.
Tiffany R
I love pantry challenges but I am doing this pantry challenge in secret. If I tell the family, all I will hear is complaining. So, let’s see how long it takes before the notice…
Breakfast: Oatmeal (me & hubs) & Bagels (kids)
Lunch: Using leftover grilled chicken – Salads w/ last of strawberries (me & hubs) & Quesadillas (kids) w/Applesauce
Dinner: Sesame Chicken, Spinach (to use up before it goes bad), leftover rice & leftover broccoli. I thought they were going to complain about the leftover rice but no one said a word.
Dessert: Homemade Chocolate Chip Scones in honor of the new season of DOWNTON ABBEY!!!!
Lee
I complete mine in secret as well 🙂
Jessica Fisher
I’ve done that before too. 🙂 What they don’t know….
Angela
I’ve done that before too…
Stephanie M.
Starting on Sunday:
Breakfast – Hubby had frosted mini wheats; I had a mini bagel with L.F. cream cheese
Lunch – Hubby had leftover pasta from last night; I had a salad
Dinner – We both had roast turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, corn and dinner rolls
Dessert: Home made banana cake
Deb
This is perfect timing for us. We’ll have no income until February, so using what resources we have available (pantry, freezer, garden, etc.) will be key to not having a credit card blow-out. I was given a number of ham bones & are boiling them up today to freeze the meat & stock for soups. By doing this it will take up less room in the freezer & make dinner prep less mess. I need to do a good freezer inventory & make up our monthly meal plan. I plan only dinners as lunch is usually left-overs & everyone gets their own breakfast (porridge, Weetbix, or eggs.)
Meghan
Not a real meal plan but I went shopping & got tons of stuff because Mother Hubbard had nothing on me. This week we are planning on chicken parm made w/ crescent rolls, roast in the crockpot, pasta night, breakfast for dinner, chicken in the oven, baked with green beans & potatoes. I also got tons of stuff for lunch so I do not spend money eating out. Also got breakfast stuff so we are not stopping at our local WaWa for breakfast everyday.
Mona
We also started the Challenge on the first so our monthly menu is ready to go. All the prep work is done for the first couple days. Did run to the store today for cheese, bananas, lettuce, spinach, crescent rolls and onion soup mix for a total of $12.58.
Our meals:
Yesterday: Breakfast – Cinnamon raisin bagels with cream cheese
Lunch – Leftover beef stew
Dinner – Baked hake, noodles, green beans
Today – Brunch – Bacon, fried eggs, potatoes and toast
Snack – Crackers and cheese
Dinner – Ree’s Chicken spaghetti with green salad
Stephanie M.
I don’t have a specific meal plan where I know what I’ll be eating each day. My freezer is stocked with a good variety of meats such as eye round for roast beef, bottom round for pot roast, a roaster chicken, a turkey breast, a pork roast, pork chops, flounder, bay scallops, thin chicken cutlets, boneless chicken breasts, chicken drum sticks, one package of ground turkey, 3 New York strip steaks, and sweet Italian sausage. I also have a few bags of frozen veggies, such as corn, green beans, and peas. I usually always have more fresh than frozen. I also have a variety of frozen appetizers left over from the holidays which can serve as weekend lunches when my husband is home. I have a good amount of side dishes in the pantry like beans, pasta, rice, boxed side dishes, etc. So really, my goal is to use all of these things and only go to the store if I need perishables and essential ingredients to prepare meals with whatever meat I’ve chosen. Most of the roasts will be eaten the second day same as the first and then turned into a completely different meal which will warrant several more meals. So I think I’m set up pretty well to not have to go shopping too much. I’m planning on an empty to nearly empty freezer when the month is over. 🙂
jan
Started the Challenge on the 1st … made my life easier by pulling out THREE proteins from the garage freezer (ground beef, chicken breast and italian sausage) and based my menu for week around that … as much as I complain about the amount of food we have in this house, I’m glad when I do the Pantry Challenge because it’s not really difficult, just makes me be more focused to use what we have on hand! Not sure I could plan a whole month ahead of time but its nice to know WHAT you can make based on what you have on hand! First stop of the year at Aldis and spent $26 … that included 3 boxes of tissues, tp, 2 gallons milk, 2 dozen eggs and an assortment of veggies … kind of nice not spending $$$ for the holidays!
Rhonda
Hi Jan
I also pull my proteins at the start of the week and get an idea of my weekly menu based on what fresh ingredients I have on hand and any items I am wanting to use up. Does make life easier to have them out. I like to plan week by week, I enjoy the flexibility and we waste very little so works for us.
Cindy
My plan is to finish using up the holiday leftovers; Christmas Eve ham is almost gone (scalloped potatoes, ham and cheese sandwiches and omelets). Ham bone stock (2 quarts) in freezer for ham and bean soup later this month. Left over turkey will be used in enchiladas and possibly turkey/broccoli Alfredo.
We do brunch on the weekends so yesterday was blueberry pancakes and turkey sausage and fruit; dinner was meatless spaghetti, romaine and spinach salad with the remaining chocolate chip mint ice cream.
Brunch today is spinach, mushroom, feta omelets, bacon and bananas. Dinner will be chicken stir fry – broccoli, carrots, celery and onions with brown rice.
Nancy
I’m starting out the pantry challenge with a pot roast, potatoes, and carrots in the slow cooker today. This will feed our family of three for three dinners, at least. Next up is the frozen turkey, which will stretch to turkey divan, turkey pot pies, turkey tortellini soup, and turkey/rice/bean enchiladas. I have three full weeks of dinners planned and most of the fourth week. I’ve only planned dinners because we’re all adults in this household on different schedules, and everyone fends for themselves for breakfasts and lunches.