Meal Planning: 5 Best Tips for Planning Your Menu on a Budget

Meal Planning

Mar 21

Do you find that your attempts to follow a healthy diet have taken a bite into your food budget? If so, it's never too late to change your habits. Today I want to show you how meal planning in advance can actually help you save money on your groceries.

If you have your meals planned in advance, you won't feel so overwhelmed about the prospect of cooking dinner. The preparation will prevent you from throwing in the towel and ordering pizza or some other unhealthy take-out option.

You will also be more likely to incorporate fresh vegetables and lean protein into your pre-planned meals since you'll already have the ingredients on hand. This will not only benefit your health, but it will also cut down on food waste as well. Here are a few of my best tips for Meal Planning on a Budget…

Meal planning on a budget

Stock Your Kitchen

Buying in bulk is always less expensive than purchasing smaller quantities. When you're deciding which meals to prepare for the week, consider recipes that call for versatile ingredients, such as rice, beans, or pasta. Then attempt to incorporate these into as many meals as possible.

Start watching the sales in your store’s weekly flyer. Stock up on non-perishable items when you see them go on sale.

You can also save money by shopping at local farmers' markets or growing some of your own vegetables if you have the available space. There is nothing better than going out to the garden and picking a fresh cucumber or squash!

A well-stocked pantry is one of the greatest money-saving gifts you can give yourself. When you keep a multitude of spices, salts, condiments, and other cooking staples on hand, you won't be starting from scratch for every meal. This will make meal planning easier for you by being able to choose recipes based on what you have available.

Make a list—and stick to it

Since you already know what you'll be making, there's no need to fill up the cart with extra items. Buy only what you need for the weekly menu. This requires having a grocery list each and every time you head to the store.

Go through your meal plan and make a list of all the ingredients you’ll need to make the recipes for the week ahead. Shop in your pantry first and cross off or leave out any supplies you already have so you don’t buy duplicate items. Then include any additional items you need for breakfast, lunch, and snacks.

Remember to take your final list to the store with you. I don’t know how many times I’ve left my list on the kitchen table then spent the whole time wandering around the store trying to remember everything I had written down.

Take stock

Chances are, you already have the building blocks for a meal or two right in your fridge or freezer without realizing it. Before you go shopping, do a quick inventory of what you have on hand.

Try to incorporate any ingredients that are either nearing their expiration date or have been hanging around in the freezer for longer than a few months.

Keep it simple

There's no need to go gourmet for every meal. A savory roast chicken accompanied by steamed veggies makes a perfectly appealing dinner, and you can use any leftovers to top a salad or two later in the week.

I will often buy a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken and use it for a few different meals throughout the week. Once we eat the main meal, I break apart the leftovers and use them to make soup, pot pies, tacos, salads and so much more. This idea may not work for larger families but is perfect for one, two, or even a family of three.

Using your Leftovers While Meal Planning

There isn't enough love for leftovers. People often waste a lot of food simply because they keep leftovers in the fridge, and never touch them. Instead of just scraping them into the trash bin, you should utilize those leftovers for your meal planning!

Make Leftovers Your Meals

If you typically use a single day of the week to do the bulk of your cooking, then you should make that meal large enough for leftovers. Something like a casserole can easily feed a family of four and then some throughout the week. It makes for a great quick-grab breakfast that you don't have to worry about cooking.

Another example might be a steak that you cook and still have plenty of meat leftover. You can continue to eat that meat throughout the week. You can even utilize portions to ensure that you're not overdoing it on how much protein you consume.

Repurposing Leftovers

Let's say you cook something in bulk on Sunday and you're left with a lot of leftovers. However, you're not the type of person who can eat the same kind of meal every day. You don't have to toss out your leftovers either. Instead, repurpose them into a new meal for your meal planning.

Let's take the example of steak again.

Sure, you could just warm up the steak and use it as a meal. Or you could slice it up a bit more and make steak fajitas out of it. Throw those pieces of meat into a wrap and load it up with all of the extras that you desire. This is a chance to become a little creative in the kitchen. It will not only ensure you have a lot less cooking to do overall but you'll also never get tired of your brand new meal plus you only have to buy one item at the store.

Related Post: Planning Your Meals A Month Ahead

Cook Large Meals to Make Leftovers

Finally, you need to know what kind of meals are actually the best at creating leftovers. Sometimes you just need a really good pizza to get through the week. Why not make a veggie supreme pizza? Veggie-packed and large, it can easily feed you throughout the entire week.

Use your leftovers to your full advantage, even if that means purposely cooking in bulk so you can plan several meals from one type of recipe.

Once you've gotten into the habit of planning and prepping your week's meals in advance, you'll find it easy to stick to the schedule—and your budget.

Bon appetit!

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