January 27, 2019
How To Start Meal Planning & Save Money
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Meal planning is something I’ve only really got the hang of in the last year or so and I’m now a total convert! I can’t imagine not having a meal plan in place.
I think meal planning helps with both budgeting for the weekly shop and helping to curb the call of the takeaway on busy nights. Of course, the occasional treat is fine – but if you feel you’re relying far too heavily on take-outs and ready meals learning how to start meal planning could save you some serious cash.
There are loads of benefits to meal planning – from saving money on meals to making sure all the food you have is getting used and rotated properly. It can also help you feel more in control on those busy nights when family members are coming and going at different times.
If you are nervous about how to start meal planning – don’t be. It can take a little while to get used to planning everything out but I honestly love doing it now and it is definitely saving us LOADS of money too. Here are my top tips on how to get start meal planning and save money.
1. Start with a List
The biggest key to successful meal planning is knowing what food you actually have in the fridge, freezer and cupboards already. If you feel there are lots of items that are going unused then start by planning dishes that will use them up.
This will save money on buying more food and help avoid those items going to waste. If you’re in need of inspiration simply google the ingredients you have or try the recipe planning app Yummly where you can photograph your ingredients and it will suggest dishes you could make.
2. Get in the Habit of Making a Meal Plan BEFORE you go shopping
We always do our meal plan before we head out the door for our weekly shop. This is another great way to make sure all of the food and ingredients you have in already are getting used up before they go off and should help avoid purchasing duplicates too. Once in the supermarket, it can be hard to remember exactly what you already have in at home.
3. Start Meal Planning Around Your Family
Families nowadays are often super busy – between kids with various clubs and activities, teens that come and go as they please and Mum and Dad often having different work schedules meals times can end up being pretty hectic.
Meal planning takes away that feeling of ‘Oh my god, what am going to cook tonight?’ because you’ll already know what you’re cooking and have all the ingredients ready to go.
If you have a night where lots of family members are home at different times make use of your slow cooker with a stew or sausage casserole – everyone can help themselves to something hot as and when they want it.
Fussy eaters?
Try a three-pot slow cooker that can hold three different meals at a time. This is also perfect if a member of your family has an allergy that needs to be catered to.
If there’s a night of the week where you have to be in and out of the house in a hurry, planning something like a stir-fry that can be made in 10 minutes is perfect for getting everyone fed quickly and easily.
4. Remember The Meal Plan is NOT set in stone
There are some weeks I follow our meal plan rigidly and others where I really don’t fancy what we are supposed to be having. Meal plans can be flexible.
As the majority of the food we eat comes from the freezer it’s fairly easy to get something different out if our plans change or if I’m craving some comfort food.
Also if you have plenty of staples such as mince, chicken breast and passata meals can easily be changed around to something else without too much hassle.
We only plan our evening meals but you can plan as many or as few meals as you wish.
5. Prep Ahead If You Can
Different times of day work best for different people, but for me, it’s the mornings.
While my little one has her breakfast I try and prep as much of dinner as I possibly can. Whether it’s peeling veggies for a roast or dicing and marinating chicken for a curry.
I find having things ready to go at 5 pm makes life so much easier, especially if we’ve been out for the day and get home later than expected.
It also makes it easier for my husband to take over the cooking if our little girl is unwell or if something else needs my attention.
6. Meal Planning Doesn’t Have To Mean New Meals
While meal planning may inspire you to try new things – don’t feel that you have to go all fancy just because you’re writing meals down. Sticking to your families tried and trusted favourites is absolutely fine.
7. Keep Your Lists Updated
I keep a list of everything we have in our freezer stuck to my fridge. It helps me easily see what I have when meal planning for the week and I can cross things off and add items to our shopping list as I along.
If I’m having a week where I’ve meal planned but haven’t stuck to the days I’ll also cross off meals as I go too. Nothing feels better than ticking items off of a list!
8. Don’t forget To Take food out of the Freezer the night before
As I mentioned before we use a lot of frozen food. This doesn’t mean we live off ready meals or processed crap but frozen vegetables and meat keep much better and are often cheaper.
If I’m making something in the slow cooker or making a dish where the meat needs marinating I always try and take it out of the freezer to defrost the night before for ease the following morning.
9. Try Batch Cooking And Dump Bags
As with so many things in life, preparation is key, and meal planning is no different. If you have a few hours free it’s worth batch cooking meals that can be defrosted quickly and easily for busy days – we tend to make Chili con Carne, bolognese, cheese sauce and mince in gravy.
These can be microwaved from frozen and are perfect for days when you don’t have time to cook from scratch.
You could also make ‘dump bags’ which are plastics baggies filled with all the ingredients for one dish – for example, chicken breast, diced onions, peppers, carrots and courgettes and pasata for a quick Mediterranean chicken stew that can be popped in the slow cooker in a matter of minutes.
You could easily make 10 or more of these bags in a couple of hours filled with chopping and prepping and have several quick and tasty dinners for the weeks ahead. If you need inspiration, Pinterest is awesome.
My advice is to get these bags out of the freezer to defrost the night before.
10. Planning Ahead
Plenty of food will keep for a couple of days in the fridge – so if you have a quieter day where you can cook a bit extra it could save you time on a day where things are busier.
This is something I do with both vegetables and rice. If we’re having curry one night I’ll cook extra rice and then use it the next day to make egg fried rice to go with sweet and sour chicken.
Same with potatoes – I’ll cook extra and then the next day they can be used to make saute or popped in anomelette as they are already cooked.
If you have fussy eaters cooking double of their favourite meal so they can have it again the following night while the rest of the family eat something different, can really help you feel more organised as their dinner will just need reheating and you know they’ll eat.
11. Plan Your Meals Using Cheat Ingredients
For days when I know I’m going to be late or need my meals to be super quick, I like to use what I call ‘cheat’ ingredients.
These are usually more expensive but if it’s between them and getting a takeout I still think they can fall into the money-saving camp.
These include things like microwave rice, fresh pasta (cooks in 2 mins) and pre-prepared veggies and salads. For me, meal planning is all about saving time and being prepared, as well as saving money.
12. It’s Okay To Have An Off Meal Plan Day
No one is perfect and there will be days where all thoughts of your perfectly curated meal plan go out the window. And that’s fine.
Life is busy and things get in the way and there will, of course, be days where takeaway is the best and easiest option.
While I don’t recommend having a ready meal every night of the week, a couple in the freezer for emergencies is fine too – not every meal needs to be a home-cooked work of art and we all need a night off occasionally.
Do you have any awesome tips for how to start meal planning? I’d love to hear them!
Fiona Hawkes
