How to Meal Plan in 5 Easy Steps

Have you ever found yourself staring at an open fridge, wondering what to cook for dinner tonight? Or maybe you want to make more home-cooked meals for your family. 

I’ve been there too, and that’s why I’m excited to share tips on how to meal plan. 

If meal planning seems like a daunting task for you each week, it may be because you don’t have a system. 

Creating a system you can follow each week will take the guesswork out of making your meal plan. You just follow the steps and get it done. 

What are the Benefits of Meal Planning?

Meal planning can help you reduce food waste. Meal planning is the best way to know how much food you need and plan for portion size for each person, too. All of this helps to reduce your food waste. 

 Having a plan is a great way to know what you need to buy at the grocery store. Grocery shopping is a lot easier when you have a plan because you know exactly what you need. No more wandering around the store wondering what to buy. No more buying fresh foods that will only sit in your refrigerator and go bad. 

You’ll always know what you’re making for dinner the next day, so you can do some meal prepping to make cooking dinner a little easier. 

People who plan their meals also eat healthy meals. When you have a plan, it’s less likely you’ll be eating out. When you eat at home more, you can practice healthy eating habits. 

When you make your own meal plans, you can customize it to fit your food budget, your nutritional needs and food preferences. 

5 Simple Steps to Take Each Time You Meal Plan

Step 1: Assess Your Week

You don’t want to plan meals that take an hour if you only have 30 minutes for cooking meals before you need to run out the door. 

Assessing your week is a good way to get started with your meal planning. If you have a busy schedule for the week, be sure to plan easy recipes or make a slow cooker recipe that takes less time to prepare. Or make-ahead meals for the freezer to make dinner even easier. 

The main thing to remember is to set aside time to cook each day’s meals. 

Step 2: Pantry, Fridge and Freezer Inventory

Do you have food you throw out each week? That’s like throwing money away. Which is bad for your budget. 

Before you make a meal plan, it’s a good idea to check to see what you already have. 

Be sure to check for items that are close to expiring or items that need to be used quickly in the refrigerator. Save them from a moldy, yucky death. 

Take the time to make a list of items you need to use up. Now let’s move to the next step, planning meals. 

Step 3: Plan Your Meals

Now you know your time constraints and what ingredients you need to use up. It’s now time to pick the meals you’ll be cooking. 

Start with recipes that will use up those soon to perish foods in your refrigerator. 

Move onto meals your family loves next. Have your family members make suggestions on what they want to eat. Be sure to add in simple meals like breakfast for dinner, Friday night pizza night, and taco Tuesdays. 

Mix in a new recipe to keep things exciting. 

Remember, it’s all about balance and keeping everyone satisfied. 

Tip: If this is the part of meal planning you struggle with, I can help. You can use Plate and Plan to come up with meal ideas for you. You just need to answer a few questions and enter the ingredients you need to use up. In about 5 minutes, you’ll have a meal plan customized to what you have on hand and your family’s preferences. Check it out here!

Step 4: Make a Shopping List

Now you have your meals planned. It’s time to make your shopping list. If you used Plate and Plan, this step is already done for you. Woo hoo!

To make your grocery list, all you need to do is write each item you need for each meal you’ve planned. 

Shopping with a grocery list helps you to stay focused on what you need to buy. So you don’t forget an item. It can also help you avoid impulse buys too. 

Tip: If you need more help with creating a meal planning system, I’ve put my complete system with money-saving ideas and leftover meals tips included. You can see more about it here. 

Step 5: Prep Ahead

This is an optional step, but it’s one that can make cooking dinners easier. 

As you are putting your groceries away, make a note of what could be done in advance. Consider chopping vegetables, marinating your proteins, prepping salad as a side dish for the week. 

 It’s like giving a gift to your future self!

Bonus, Stay Flexible

Even with the best laid plans, life can get in the way. 

Don’t stress if a meal you had planned for a certain day won’t work out. It happens to everyone. Even a veteran meal planner like me. 

Just shift, look for a meal later in the week that would work better for this night. Keep a few easy meals in the pantry to shift to if needed. 

Tip: Grab my pantry meals cookbook for a few meal ideas you can make from your pantry in a pinch. Did I mention the ebook was free!

Creating a weekly meal plan isn’t just about feeding your family. 

It’s about reclaiming time and peace of mind. 

With a little planning, you can enjoy more fun and happy moments around the dinner table and less stress in the kitchen. Are you ready to try it?

Resources that can help…

Meal Planning Simplified, my system for meal planning in about 15 minutes a week. Read more about it here.

Plate and Plan, your meal planning best friend. Answer a few questions and get a customized meal plan to your family preferences and catered to foods you need to use up. In about 5 minutes, you’ll have a meal plan, recipes, and a grocery list too. It’s the easy button for meal planning.