Easy Meal Planning – Save Time and Money!

Meal planning is something that everyone should get in the habit of regularly doing.

However, many of us are struggling with where to even begin. If this is you, then stick with us as we dive deep into the world of Meal Planning. At the bottom of this posts is your Free Meal Planning Kit!

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Updated August 2024

So, let’s start off easy; what actually is meal planning?

Meal planning is taking the time each week to sit down and plan out what you and/or your family are eating for the week, fortnight or month. You look at what groceries you currently have and then need to make up your weekly menu. Some people only use it for dinners; others use it to plan their entire meal, including breakfast, lunch and dinner, and any snack allowances for the day. It is entirely up to you as to what you think is necessary to meal plan out.

Who can do meal planning?

Anyone! Whether you are a single person, a small family, or a large family, anyone can benefit from meal planning.

Well, tell me, What are the benefits of meal prepping?

Here we delve into the reasons why you need to start your journey into organizing your meals.

1, Save money

If you worked out how much money you spent on food and fast food each month, you might just surprise yourself. If you also worked out how much money gets lost with food going off or expiring, you may also be just as shocked. Meal planning ensures that you are only buying what is required. You set your food budget, and then when you do your grocery shopping, you only get what is on the list, nothing else.

2, No stress in trying to figure out what to have for dinner.

How many of you get to 4pm and haven’t even thought of dinner? Or, you haven’t pulled out something in time, so then you resort to spending more money on takeout. Meal planning means that you do not need to think about what’s for dinner until it’s time to get the prep started. You then have everything already in your fridge, and it doesn’t take long to put it together.

3, Effective way to incorporate healthy meals into your week.

It is always a good idea to ensure you are eating a well-balanced diet with variety. Meal planning helps you not revert to pulling out that pizza night after night; it ensures you have healthy meals planned with variety, so you know you are eating well for the week.  Creating delicious meals also ensures your kids are healthy eating too.

4, Less food waste.

As well as saving money, it also helps to reduce the amount of food that just ends up in the trash.

5, Portion control.

How often do you notice yourself making so much dinner and then filling your plate up until it’s overflowing?
Meal planning helps to ensure you keep to a good portion ratio. This is especially useful if you are watching your weight or tracking your food intake.

6, Saves time.

Believe it or not, meal planning can help save you time. Initially, when you first set up your meal plan routine, it will take a while, but each week will become easier and quicker. Once you know your system, you can have all your meal plans and easy recipes sorted for the week in no time. You are then not spending countless hours each day and night trying to figure out what to have for dinner or continuously running to the store.

7, A great way to get the whole family involved.

As you have already done the meal plan, it can become easier to start involving your family in helping. If you have older kids, get them to check the meal plan daily and start any prep work for you. As you will be organized when going to the grocery store, get your kids to help find each item and place it in the trolley.

Where do I even start with Meal Planning?

Starting your meal planning journey can feel overwhelming, but breaking it down into simple steps makes it manageable and even enjoyable. Begin by assessing your current eating habits and identifying the types of meals you enjoy. Next, start with a basic plan: choose a few easy-to-make recipes for the week, considering your schedule and how much time you have to cook each day. Make a shopping list based on these recipes, sticking to ingredients you know you’ll use. As you get comfortable, experiment with new recipes and gradually increase the variety in your meal plan. Remember to stay flexible—meal planning is about making your life easier, so don’t stress if things don’t go perfectly at first. With time, you’ll find a rhythm that works for you and makes mealtime less of a hassle. 

How to Meal Plan

1, Inventory your Fridge, Freezer, and Pantry.

Go through every area of your kitchen and make a list of everything you need to use up. From this list, you will start figuring out what meals you can make up with all or most of the ingredients you have on hand. This also provides a wonderful opportunity to give your food items a rotation. Remember new items towards the back and older items towards the front.

Keeping track of your inventory lists will also help to determine what supermarket items you need to purchase.

2, Check your local supermarket store mailouts and online specials for the week/month.

Check what is on sale this coming week at your local supermarkets. Look at their online website and weekly mail-out specials. This will also help get your list of ingredients together for each night’s meal.

3, Now, looking at ALL your ingredients in the freezer, pantry, and fridge, you can start to compile your menus.

Browse through your recipe book or check out the range of different meal ideas online and start producing your weekly menu. Look at what you have on in the upcoming week and make sure to account for any future family gatherings and birthday parties to ensure you have enough food.

4, Compile your shopping list

Add all your items to a shopping list, this helps to know that you will purchase everything you need for your meal plan but to also not overspend.

5, Go grocery shopping

Whether you go shopping online or in-store always, only buy what is on your list – this is how you save a ton of money!

6, Fill out your weekly planner template

Add all menu ideas to a meal prep sheet ready for the week.  Plan for a leftover night (or 2) so you can use up any leftovers from the previous nights; this will help with wastage.

7, Each night, refer to your weekly menu planner for dinner

Meal Planning Tips!

• Place your meal plan menu where everyone in the family can see it.
• Use an alarm on your phone to remind you to take the meat out of the freezer.
• Make extra that you can freeze for quick and easy go-to meals.
• Add your favorite recipes to a notebook. 
• The important thing is to stick to the same time and day of the week to review your meal plan and make up your following week’s one.  Add an appointment to your phone calendar to commit to. Sunday afternoon planning often works well, or perhaps do Saturday afternoon planning and order your groceries for Sunday. Do what works best for you and your family.
• Consider making up 2 weeks or a whole month worth of meals and then alternate each week.
• If you have time during the day, consider making up parts of your meal. This way, when it comes to evening meal times, you only need to reheat a few things or cook a couple of items to finish off dinner.
• Head on social media and join a Facebook group to get a range of menu ideas and delicious recipes.
• Invest in a Slow Cooker or an Instant Pot – Instant Pots cook meals fast and save you time. This is a must-have in every household!
• Find simple meal ideas that you like and give yourself a couple of cheat days with a frozen lasagna or TV dinners. Make the most time-consuming meals on days you know won’t be hectic.
• Get your family members involved! It can make all the difference when it comes to dinner time

Free Meal Planning Kit

Have you got any meal Planning Tips?

We would love to know them – list them below in the comments!

Happy meal Planning