A meal planning series about the basics, the secret tricks, and ideas to tweak meal planning to suit you and the way you live.
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Last month, I received two emails in the span of five minutes that were on the same topic: Meal Planning.
Both readers were writing asking for help in how to improve their meal planning. Both were very eager to learn. And both desperately needed and wanted help, meal planning ideas, and other instruction.
I turned to readers on Facebook and they concurred. Meal planning is something we all need. Ya gotta eat! And yet, it’s an area that we can all struggle in from time to time. And there are folks who really don’t know where to start.
Enter: Meal Planning 101
I dunno, the teacher in me just woke up. So, we’ll be holding a little seminar on meal planning here on Good Cheap Eats in the coming weeks. We’ll talk about the basics, the secret tricks, and ways to tweak meal planning to suit you and your current situation. Diets, habits, and tastes change over time and there’s always something new to learn.
Let me know in the comments section all your peeves, questions, and concerns about meal planning. I’m taking careful notes. And we’ll address them all in the coming weeks.
I’ll also be updating this post with the series posts as they happen. Consider this the mother ship for meal planning.
- Know Your Eating Habits
- Take Inventory
- Make Your Emergency Meals List
- Create a Formula for a Week’s Meal Plan
- Make a Two-Week Rotation
- Plan for a Whole Month
- Meal Planning for a Busy Week, Mardi Gras, and Valentine’s Day
- Meal Planning for Freezer Cooking
- 6 More Meals to Make When There’s “Nothing” to Eat
- Learn to Meal Plan Better
- How to Meal Plan on a Budget
- I’ve Got a Meal Plan, Now What?
- Meal Planning for Picky Eaters
- Add Variety to Your Meal Planning
- Planning Meals to Match the Grocery Sales
- Are You in the Mood for Your Meal Plan?
- Cooking for a Small Family
Jen B.
Each week, I make a 7-day dinner menu and then make a shopping list accordingly. I then add to the list those items we usually eat for breakfasts, lunches and snacks since I don’t plan these meals out in advance. I would like hints on making all 3 meals and snacks part of my plan as I lately have been wondering last minute what to make during the day. I also feel like if they were planned, breakfast and lunch would be much healthier and more well-rounded. I also would love to have more pointers on shopping the ads. I have never been able to figure it out- the minute I open an ad, my brain shuts down. It’s overwhelming! I’d love any tricks in this area, as I’m sure I would save money if I utilized ads. I am considering Grocery University as well.
Rachael M.
I love to menu plan, but, unfortunately, I have fallen short on the follow through the last few years, yes years. As my kids have gotten older they have also gotten busier. I have the best of intentions each week, but something always seems to come up and throw me for a loop.
We recently moved and in I have promised myself to stay organized and make plans for each meal. I just asked my girls and hubby if on Fridays we have breakfast for dinner. I think one or two nights a week as a designated theme night will help take some of the work of menu planning. Also, since we are all home on Sundays, that is my designated day to try a new recipe for dinner and desert, the hard part is choosing which ones to make, but I hope to let everyone take a turn picking what they would like to try from a few different choices.
One other thing that helps me is having a list of our favorite meals handy. I can quickly add one of those to the plan if nothing seems to be inspiring me.
This is perfect timing for me, can’t wait to see what great ideas you come up with.
harriet dodson
As I have posted before, I work outside the home at a surgery center. Therefore, I have to be at work at 6AM. The only way I can do this and come home at 3 and still have the energy to put a meal on the table for the 5 of us, is to cook on the weekends. Most people I know think this is horrible! But I know that with the extra 2 or 3 hours I spend doing this during the weekend, the more $ I save because we eat at home and the more time I have in the evenings when I am tired from being on my feet all day.
I throw something in the crock pot on Saturday’s and Sunday’s that we do not eat until Monday and Tuesday (my busiest days at work). After it cooks all day, I put it in a glass Lock ‘n Lock to easily reheat later. (We usually grill on the weekends so the crock pot is free to use.) Also, I try to grill some extra meats to use in wraps for lunches during the week. (We eat between patient loads, so there is not a lot of time to eat “involved” food.)
I only meal plan one week at a time. I use the meats I have on hand for the meals I plan this week. When I go to the store on Saturday mornings, I buy the meat that’s on sale and use it in my next menu plan. Since we are blessed to have an extra freezer, this works well for me. (We also are still eating on the three deer we put in the freezer last fall. This helps fill in the gaps.)
I really look forward to hearing how others meal plan so that I might incorporate new ideas into my planning 🙂 Love this idea!
Shannon
I am interested how your meal planning will evolve now that you and your husband are eating differently. This has been my challenge since my daughter, age 12, decided to eat vegetarian and the boys are wanting their meat.
Zena Sue
My hardest problem is what to make as a side dish. I find a main dish that I would like to try and then can’t think of what to serve with it. We get in a rut of; green beans, broccoli, brussels sprouts.
lisa
Being a mom with older kids, I have done many kinds of menu planning over the years and have even myself taught classes in the community on how to menu plan for the last 4 years- but recently have found myself moved past it. It’s a strange new endeavor in my life, that just happened with no real thought about it. Basically I have stopped planning menus and have stopped using recipes and it is a freedom I am really quite enjoying truth be told. When I go to the store now I usually just have a very short list of items that I must have, other than that I shop from whats on sale, what looks good and then take it home. (Funny, that this is how I started out as a new wife and mom-but no idea what to do).
For me, I have started to love the daily challenge of creating whats for dinner based on what I have in the home and garden. This freedom has been like a weight lifted from my shoulders and its exhilarating! Please note that I am not newbie, I have been cooking and planning for many years, so this comes easy to me- for those who are new to feeding a family or have never quite honed your skills – learning to menu plan and basic cooking skills is key to saving money, having nutritious and balanced meals and keeping yourself sane!
donna
@lisa, I find I am like you, Lisa…after years of doing menu planning and shopping, I’m now “winging” it more…but doing well with it because of all my past experience. It is freeing!!
Kathy
I plan meals for a month at a time. We have standards on the menu. Sunday nights are homemade pizza, Tuesday’s are Mexican (family favorite), and Thursday’s are leftovers (church night no time to make big meal). We also eat out about once a week. I try to ask everyone what they would like to see on the menu and I fill in the gaps. We do 1/2 a cow so many meals are based on what we have. I also try to be mindful of things like roast on one day means we can have beef and noodles later in the month with the leftovers that I freeze. I still have to shop about every 10 days to get perishables. My trouble comes when I buy fresh produce, the plan changes due to life and then I have 2 heads of lettuce go bad. Ugggg.
Kerry
With a newly gluten-free hubby, and a kid in extra-curriculars plus a younger preschooler who is picky…meal planning this school year will be a bit more difficult. I love to meal plan each week, but this is going to throw some kinks into the works. 🙂
Roberta
I do a simple plan (usually each week), but my problem is that we’re in a rut. It seems as if we have spaghetti and burritos every week (not on the same day, of course. Ha!). While we like these foods (and my son could live on pasta, PBJs, and burritos), I’d like to have more variety while keeping things frugal and fast.
Laura
@Roberta, I feel very similarly. I plan weekly, but I’m tired of everything that I make. It’s hard coming up with new recipes that can fit into the regular rotation, so over a period of a couple of months, I might find one new recipe that we like eating occasionally… I would have to say, hands down, that my biggest challenge is having a meal plan I’m excited about!
Tiffany R
I am a meal planner and my latest challenge has been planning meals to take with us to the football field during practice. We do not eat fast food so stopping along the way isn’t a viable option. And since my husband doesn’t get home until we have to leave for practice, I need ideas for things I can prepare and then take the the field to eat. I am sure there are lots of families in the same spot right now so any ideas you can pass on would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
CeCee
I know this comment is a year old but I figured I would reply for people who read articles from the archives, and maybe the original poster will get it!!!
My saving grace is my crockpot, Especially during football season (fall/winter). I have a traveling crockpot I bought from Walmart about three years ago for 20$. It was a lid that clips into place. You can make chilli, soup etc in it. Then bring it with you. Then invest $12-20 in an adapter that will allow you to plug your crockpot into your cigarette lighter. It’s also at Walmart in the electronic section (I believe it’s called an AC adapter). This will keep your food warm and at your finger tips. With a small investment and some paper bowls/plastic spoons life has become sooooo easy!!!!
I don’t have kids who play football but I do this all the time tailgating and people always comment about how smart it is.
Leslie
I have written down meals on a calendar multiple times… My problem is actually making it to the store for the things I’m missing and actually making the meals. Last wk I made a lil more progress and actually went to the store, so now I have everything for a wks worth of meals… my problem now is that “life has happened” every night since I went to the store. 🙁 I have yet to make one of those meals.
My one success was when I made up some chicken in the slow cooker, seasoned and everything and froze the leftovers. My husband would pull it out to throw on quesadillas, burritos… whatever he wanted. It lasted quite a while and ended up being really cheap.
My MIL makes up a few diff. soups in the slow cooker and freezes them in individual portions so they can have whichever soup they want for a quick meal on busy nights… I’m excited for fall/winter so I can do the same. 🙂
Oh and on the meal plan I did make I left a few nights outta the month empty for leftovers or “life” so I didn’t get so frusterated when life happened… although life happening b4 I’ve even started is really starting to bug.
🙂 Excited to learn!
Leslie
Martha Artyomenko
I love to meal plan, but sometimes I feel like I run out of time to prepare the meals even. So, I try to keep basic foods in my pantry that mean I can throw a last minute dinner together without having to run to the store or spend more money than I have for meals.
Our budget has always been very tight, but I think one of the things I struggled with on meal planning, was the time when I had no idea if there would be that food around when I had to prepare the meal and there was no more money to buy more. I had to learn to be creative with what I had and try to make things taste good on a really skinny shoestring!
Things are not as tight anymore, but I think that I am always thinkings they could be again!
Barbi
I do a 2 week meal plan. I need help with planning snacks. So many times the only thing we Have to eat is a meal that requires time & patience when you just don’t feel like putting forth the effort. I’ve got the dinner part down, I just need help planning snacks, treats, etc.
Thank you!
Nancy
I plan meals weekly on Wednesday, which is the day my CSA box of fruits and vegetables arrives. When planning I factor what’s in my box, what’s in my freezer and pantry, and what’s on sale at my two favorite stores. I don’t have any difficulties with main dishes; we use up leftovers and have almost no waste. My trouble is with side dishes: I over-make and end up throwing away. I’m starting a compost pile for the raw scraps and trying to remember to freeze bits of vegges for soups, but I’d like to get better at planning and preparing the right amount of veggies and side dishes.
Shannon
@Nancy,
Nancy,
I’m interested in getting boxed fruits and veg, but don’t know how to get started. Where does yours come from?
Thanks
Nancy
@Shannon, Shannon, try a website called Local Harvest (http://www.localharvest.org/). You can enter your zipcode and get a list of sources that deliver to your area. I’m near Sacramento CA and get my box from Farm Fresh to You. Some farms deliver to a central location and you have to go pick up your box. Farm Fresh delivers right to my porch. They also provide a lot of flexibility: I can exclude items, choose the size box, and select the frequency of delivery. I also can pay monthly. With some farms, you buy a season’s share up front. I hope you find a supplier that works for you. I swear the carrots in my most recent box are the sweetest I’ve ever tasted.
Cathi
I’ve done meal planning off & on. The thing I struggle with the most is cooking for just three. (Hubs, a 6 year old boy, & myself) I cook way too much food & we get sick of eating it as leftovers & it usually gets pitched after a a few days. I have tried freezing leftovers but they don’t always keep so well. Help!
Cindy
@Cathi,
I’m with Cathi- I have a 6 yr old daughter and she and my husband are Very picky eaters. I thrive on trying new recipes and when I prepare something new it’s met with “Ehhh, it’s ok”… type responses. I am trying to plan to cook in the crock pot 2 nights/week. Lots of nights I make sure we have plenty of salad and I make a big one and thaw cooked chicken to heat up but some nights I am too tired to thaw that… I keep white meat chicken nuggets on hand and can heat them while making the salad. We are blessed with no allergies but I do try and keep away from TOO many additives.
I have problems with starting and stopping and would love input on keeping with it. I need tips on keeping it simple as I’m Really organizationally challenged.
Thanks Jessica for doing this. I’m really looking forward to it.
Stacy
@Cindy, I’m almost in the same boat as you. Just me, my husband and almost 5YO boy. They’re definitely pickier than I am, but then again, I’m cooking so I probably lean toward things I like, even unintentionally. I almost always have leftovers and I almost always make them into lunches for some or all of us. I definitely think about what they like, but I also don’t give it major attention. I figure I’m doing my best to keep it working and if you have a lunch you’re not in love with, it’s not going to be the end of the world, so to speak. It’ll do for a day and next time maybe you’ll like it better.
Hollie
I SOOOO need this! THANK YOU!
I have four little ones (ages 9, 7, 5, and 2). Daddy only eats with us on Saturday and Sunday. My kids go to traditional school, getting off the bus at 345. Our eldest has autism and takes medication at bedtime,and that medication is time-sensitive. So, between 4 and 7, we have to accomplish homework and supper and chores and some fun and bonding and together time. We also have extra circulars, but only three out of five nights. I’m the troop leader for both girls’ girl scout troops, so two weeks out of the month, we have something four nights of the week.
So, I guess my challenge might be more how the heck so I fit it all in than meal planning!! 😉 (Hence my homeschool pipe dream that I have yet to prevail upon my husband. But, I digress.)
I have been planning meals one week at a time. I do almost everything make-ahead (meats prepped and seasoned on shopping day and then freeze for the grill or oven, fried and Spanish rices made ahead and freeze, sweet potatoes in big batches and freeze, huge batches of your pancakes and freeze, etc.). My goal is really to do nothing more than heat and serve on school nights. I have also started washing, cutting, and prepping all produce on the weekend so that I have it for the week. I do my baking once a month, wrapping individual portions in dry waxed paper and freezing in gallon ziplocks so I can pull and dump in lunches.
I sometimes feel hamstrung by the meal plan. And, there are some nights, honestly, where even the thought of heat and serve is too much for me. That means I have to put it out, clean it up, and load the dishwasher (with help, of course). Takeout trash just has to be thrown in the garbage.
So, those are my challenges (‘er, excuses). I would say we go in cycles. From takeout only one every other week, to take out up to three times a week. My real concern about that is our health, of course. And, things go smoother when mommy has a plan.
Ah, yes, and I am gluten free and two of my kids have anaphylactic nut allergies.
Looking very forward to this, Jessica. Thank you!
cherie
I think that a ‘course’ is a great idea – it can be so hard to figure out how to make meal planning work FOR you rather than against you. The thoughts that come to mind are:
1. Plan with what’s on hand – not from recipes. If you don’t have enough on hand then shop the sales flyer at home and plan meals based on what’s at a reasonable price.
2. Don’t get locked in. Life happens. Don’t throw your hands up and give up the whole thing because of it.
3. Have some extra things available that can be instant meals – everyone’s house will be different in this regard. There are times when you just can’t follow the plan – forgot to defrost, ran out of time to cook, etc. I always have fixings for pasta and a salad on hand. I also usually have meatloaf in the freezer. These work for ME – find yours.
4. Include defrosting in your plan – each day when I’m looking at my plan it also says what I should defrost for the next day, or the day after [some stuff takes longer] I have less mess-ups this way.
Susie E
I never fail to plan, but without exception there will always be times where the plan fails to execute as expected. So I keep shelf stable items on hand that I can pull out and have ready in a few moments. And my favorite rescue item… In case of emergency, break out the tortillas! I use them for as a crust for individual pizzas, wraps instead of sandwich, huevos ranchos. etc. This is our version of fast food, and keeps us out of the drive thru lines.
Jen Blacker
Doh! Forgot to add….
I know what’s in my pantry but I do keep a spreadsheet of what I have in the big freezer downstairs and the one above the fridge in the kitchen. I use that to plan out what we’ll eat for the month. Someone suggested making a spreadsheet and it’s been great for me. I keep it on the side of the fridge marking stuff off during the week, then I updated it at work on Mondays.
Jen Blacker
I do a monthly menu, not exactly by date but by the second paycheck of the month. So we normally shop around the third Saturday of the month (this month it’s the 25th). We’ll pick up eggs/milk/bread once every two weeks from Costco, and fresh fruit/salad fixings once a week.
It saves us money, saves me time and headache, and I can plan more time intensive things on the weekends. There are always leftovers for us to take to work for lunch or finish up for lunch on the weekend.
Like most every other person on Earth, crap happens. I forget to defrost something, I get stuck in traffic and am late coming home, etc. If that happens I always have fish sticks or breaded frozen fish available. It’s easy to use the potato french fry cutter to turn two potatoes into fries in a few seconds, throw those in the bottom shelf of the oven, then throw some fish in. There is also always waffles & pancakes in the freezer or cereal that we can eat.