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Do you want to figure out how to successfully plan your meals ahead of time? I’ve been meal planning for over 4 years now. Planning our menu out is a life saver for a few reasons. We save money because I only buy the food I know we are going to eat. I don’t stress every night wondering what to make. And we don’t waste food because we have a plan to eat everything I buy. If you want to save money, waste less food, and get rid of dinnertime stress, you have to try meal planning! This is my complete guide to meal planning.

The Complete Guide to Meal Planning

Why Meal Planning?

As I mentioned above, meal planning is an easy skill to learn that will save you money, help you waste less food, and get rid of stress. By planning our meals out, I know exactly what we are going to eat each week. This helps me to know exactly what to buy at the grocery and how much. Since we have a plan for each night, I don’t have to stress when dinnertime rolls around wondering what to make. We rarely eat out since we have yummy meals planned each night with all the ingredients waiting. This saves a lot of money! And we hardly ever throw food away because I only buy what I know we are going to eat each week. >>Want to learn my best grocery saving tips? Get my free printable, 10 Ways to Save $100 on Your Grocery Budget to start saving money on groceries today. Get your free PDF printable here.

1st Step: Make a List of Meals Your Family Enjoys

Grab a sheet of paper and write down all the meals you make that your family enjoys. The easiest way for me to think of these is to go by categories like chicken meals, beef meals, pork meals, pasta, casseroles, etc. Having this list is key to making a meal plan you will actually stick to. Without a list, I feel like I make the same 5 dinners all the time and get burned out on meal planning quick. You can use this FREE Family Favorites Printable to make your list. 

2nd Step: Choose Monthly or Weekly Meal Planning

There are 2 different ways to meal plan, and I often switch between them. You can make a monthly meal plan or a weekly meal plan. This month, I’m trying monthly meal planning since I’m working on the $300 grocery budget challenge. 

Monthly Meal Planning

To make a monthly meal plan, you just need a simple blank calendar. You can find these on the blog here.  I like to use a simple calendar first to plan the meals, then write everything in my planner. That way, I can easily see the whole month at a glance and make sure we aren’t eating the same meals too close together.

Pros to Monthly Meal Planning:

Planning a month of meals means you only have to do this 12 times a year. You can plan for leftovers. Make a large batch of spaghetti sauce the first week, and freeze 2 more servings for later meals. You have more time to shop for deals on ingredients for your meals.

Cons to Monthly Meal Planning:

When you plan a month of meals there is the possibility of things coming up and changes to the plan. That’s totally fine – just skip to the next day or push everything back. It takes more time to plan a whole month, but you won’t have to worry about it again for another month. You don’t know what foods are going to be on sale. By shopping grocery deals, you can find deals to make your menu plan around. You can always shop ahead and freeze ingredients and meats.

Weekly Meal Planning

The other option is to plan you meals for just the week ahead. This is easy to do, and you most likely know your plans for the week. You can use your planner, a chalkboard in the kitchen, or this free weekly meal planner printable.

Pros to Weekly Meal Planning:

Easy and quick to plan a week of meals. You most likely know what activities and events you have to plan around for the week. Make your menu plan around deals you find at the grocery store. Plan to use up leftovers.

Cons to Weekly Meal Planning:

You have to make a meal plan every week. By only planning for the week, you don’t know what deals to grab for future meals in the month. You may feel like you plan the same meals every week. Either way you go, monthly or weekly meal planning, it’s always great to have a plan. I go back and forth between monthly and weekly meal planning. Monthly meal planning is great to have it taken care of and not have to think about until next month, but it is a little more upfront work.

3rd Step: Time to Make Your Meal Plan

Ok, so you made your list of your family’s favorite meals and you are ready to make your meal plan – either monthly or weekly. There are a few things to think about as you make your meal plan for the week.

1. What do you have going on this month or week?

   You need to know what activities, events, and plans you have that you need to plan around. If you know you have a family party one night, you can skip planning a meal for that night.

2. Are there any meals you can make with food you already have?

   Look in your pantry, fridge, and freezer and take note of the food you already have that you need to use up. What meals can you make with this food? Plan those for the first meals in your plan.

3. What ingredients do you need to make a meal with food you already have and need to use?

   Do you have some ingredients for meals? Write down the remaining ingredients on a grocery list and plan those meals in your menu plan.

4. What are the grocery deals this week?

   To save the most money, you can plan your meal plan around what’s on sale at the grocery. Check the ad and make your meal plan based on the great deals you find.

Time to make your meal plan!

Using your blank calendar, your planner, or the free weekly meal planner printable, it’s time to make your meal plan. First, write in meals you can make with the food you already have. Then, write in the rest of the meals using your family’s favorites list.

4th Step: Make Your Grocery List

Using the meal plan you just made, make your grocery list with only the ingredients needed for those meals. Now you know exactly what to buy and how much to buy when you shop, saving you money!

Tips to Make Meal Planning Successful

Keep Your Meal Plan in Sight

Use a kitchen chalkboard, or hang your weekly meal planner on the fridge. DIY Tip: You can even frame the meal planner and use a dry erase marker on the frame to easily change it up. Keeping your meal plan in plain view will help you stay on track. You can easily see what’s for dinner every night. And when your family asks what’s for dinner, you have an answer right in front of you!

Remember to Thaw the Meat

If you freeze meat or other ingredients for meals, make sure to place your meat in the fridge the night before to thaw. I try to remember to do this as I am making dinner each night.

Plan Easy Meals

Especially in the beginning, don’t plan complicated or time consuming meals every night. Plan quick and easy meals you know your family loves. This year, I am planning to make 3 new recipes every month. But, I am making sure they are quick and easy. Plan the more complicated meals for weekends or days you know you will have more time. Related: 21 Quick, Easy & Simple Meals for Busy Families

Use a Crock Pot or Instant Pot

Dinner time is busy and you are usually doing a few things at once, so use appliances that help you get dinner done. I love my Crock Pot to make easy meals like beef stew, BBQ, and chili. Just load it up in the morning and it will be ready at dinner time. Related: 23 Easy Crockpot Dump Meals To Make Your Life Easier I got an Instant Pot for Christmas and am loving it!! We had a Creamy Italian Pasta last night, and it was so tender and delicious. The Instant Pot is so easy to use, and makes meals so fast that taste like you spent all day cooking. Related: Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Cookbook: 500 Everyday Recipes for Beginners and Advanced Users

Have Back Up Meals

Having some back up meals is great in case you forget to thaw the meat or you are missing an ingredient. Here’s a few ideas:

• Pasta and jar sauce = Simple Pasta
• Flatbreads (in the freezer), pizza sauce, shredded cheese, and pepperoni = Easy Individual Pizzas
• Tortillas and shredded cheese = Easy Quesadillas

Related: 10 Pantry Meals: When the Menu Plan Doesn’t Happen

Try Freezer Cooking

I love freezer cooking and it makes meal planning and dinnertime so much easier. If you are making a meal that freezes meal, go ahead and make a double batch. Then, you don’t have to cook the next time you want to have that meal. Check out these posts to learn more about freezer cooking:

Beginner Freezer Cooking: Baby Steps to Saving a Ton of Time & Money

Breakfast Freezer Cooking – 11 Breakfast Freezer Meals in 20 Minutes for $5

Freezer Cooking for 2: 21 Meals in 1 Hour

The Ultimate Aldi Freezer Cooking Plan – 80 Meals in 2 Hours

There you have it! The Complete Guide to Meal Planning. Once you get started, you will find meal planning is not complicated at all. Sure, it’s a skill that needs to be learned. But, once you learn that skill, you will find your own routines that work best for you. Meal planning will come second nature after a few times. I think you will find you save a lot of money, waste less food, and get rid of unnecessary stress.

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