How to Meal Plan on a Budget
melaniedj • 26 May 2019
It's 5pm, you just got home from work, or just sat down after a long day home with the kids and suddenly everyone's asking "so whats for dinner?"
Yup, the family needs to be fed AGAIN.
But didn't they just eat an hour ago? And last night?? That's not enough to last them a few days?
Whether you just want to save time or you're looking to save some serious dolla's, meal planning the RIGHT way allows you to do both!
Here's how to meal plan on a budget!
⭐️ Related reading:
HOW TO MEAL PLAN ON A BUDGET
MISTAKES TO AVOID WHEN MEAL PLANNING
1) STARTING YOUR GROCERY LIST FROM SCRATCH
Many people make the mistake of first going to Pinterest to find recipes to make for the week before looking at what they already have on hand.
Instead, see what you have in your fridge, cupboards and pantry and use that as your starting point for deciding what meals to make.
Chances are you either have some foods that need to be used or they will go bad soon, or maybe you just have a stockpile of a certain ingredient.
Either way, don't start your meal planning until you've taken an inventory of what you already have on hand!
2) TRYING TO MAKE FANCY MEALS
Guilty! When we first got married, I wanted to be the most bomb wife ever and make meals that had ingredients that I'd never heard of.
The problem was I would buy these fancy pants ingredients and then they'd never see the light of day again, because they weren't practical ingredients that I'd use often.
If you're going to meal plan on a budget, you'll have to let go of your four-course meal trophy wife dreams.
Keep it simple when it comes to meal planning!
3) OVER ANALYZING/ PLANNING
You know those people who take EVERYTHING to the next level and have panic attacks when the smallest, most minute problems arise? Don't be one of those people.
If you aren't flexible, you'll lose your mind, and this is true with meal planning!
You'll forget a meal, or you won't have time to plan for the WHOLE week.
That's is OKAY. Give yourself a break, and don't stress about it and go order 12 pizzas because you're a failure ;)
MEAL PLANNING THE RIGHT WAY
1) USE A MEAL PLAN TEMPLATE
To meal plan effectively, you need to have a calendar/schedule for what you're going to make every night (and for other meals if applicable).
If you subscribe below, I will instantly send you two free meal planning templates to print and use!
Using a template every week will ensure you don't forget a meal (trust me mom brain is a real thing).
A template is great to keep on the fridge so everyone can see what's on the menu for the week!
2) SHOP YOUR PANTRY FIRST
Before making your meal plan, check to see what you have on hand, what will outdate soon, and build your meals around those ingredients.
If you go to Allrecipes.com , you can search for meals by ingredient!
Just click the "ingredient search" button on the very right of the search bar, as pictured above.
I use a meal planning service (for only $5 per month), and I can easily build a meal plan using the recipes by ingredient module.
Most people make the mistake of starting from scratch and not shopping their own kitchen first!
3) HEALTHY MEALS ON A BUDGET
Making healthy meals for your family on a budget is possible!
I would HIGHLY recommend using some sort of service or planning guide to help you out with this. When I try to make my own healthy meals on a budget, I almost always go over my grocery budget.
Y'all. Sometimes you have to spend a little money to save a lot of money.
I'd recommend the Healthy Meal Planning Guide , which includes...
- 11 Cookbooks
- 15 Meal Plans
- 11eBooks
- 9 eCourses
- 10 Printables
- 1 Membership and a Summit
Eating healthy doesn't have to cost a fortune, it just requires a little extra planning!
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4) MAKE FREEZER MEALS
If you don't have the time to prep meals every single night, take it a step further. Set aside a few hours one day of the week and make all your meals for the week.
Freezer meals are the perfect meal when you're in a time pinch, and they allow you to effectively buy in bulk.
The hardest part is remembering to set your freezer meal out in the morning (and even then it's not a big deal if you forget).
I have some AMAZING free resources to share to help you with your freezer meal planning!
FREEZER MEAL PLANNING SERVICE
Freezer meals are great for families that have busy week nights!
When I was working full time, it was nearly impossible to try and spend time with our son, make dinner, and get my to do list done. Because of this, I started making freezer meals.
Once I did this, it was like a weight lifted off my shoulders. I could spend time with our son, put dinner on the table, and have time to relax!
If you're tempted to hit the drive thru a few times a week because of your busy schedule, try using Myfreezeasy , a freezer meal planning service that offers affordable, efficient, and healthy meals!
FREE FREEZER MEAL WORKSHOP
This is a free guide to help you confidently feed your family health conscious meals, even on busy nights and weekends!
When you sign up, you'll have instant access to three videos that will teach you...
- the benefits of freezer cooking
- how to prep, thaw and cook your meals
- what freezes well and doesn't freeze wel l
Additionally, there are lots of freebies in this workshop, including...
- Free Freezer Meal Plan to Test Out
- What to Freeze & What Not to Freeze List
- Printable: Freezer Inventory List
- Printable: Most Popular Meal Plan & Shopping List
Erin, the creator, will equip you with all the knowledge you need to get your freezer loaded with simple, tasty and reliable meals!
5) USE CASH BACK APPS (EVEN FOR ONLINE GROCERY PICKUP)
Be sure to take advantage of money saving apps that offer cash back like Ebates.
If you do online grocery shopping, take advantage of Ebates! They offer cash back at most stores and literally all you have to do is install it once and it will show up on your browser!
When you visit a site that Ebates offers cash back for, a popup will show up like pictured below and all you have to do is click "activate."
Ebates also finds coupons that are available for the sites you are visiting!
Using an app can save you quite a bit of money over time, and it really adds up when you are making large purchases!
The awesome part of using an app like Ebates is that you don't just save money on groceries, you save money on almost every online purchase you make!
6) USE A MEAL PLANNING SERVICE
Sometimes in order to meal plan on a budget, you have to spend a little money and outsource your meal planning. I use $5 Meal Plan to keep me sane!
One of the best and most cost effective decisions I ever made was to outsource my meal planning.
For only $5 PER MONTH, I get a complete meal plan sent to me that INCLUDES a shopping list organized by ingredients.
You even have the option to build your own meal plan (and save it for future use), which is SUPER handy if you have picky eaters! All you have to do after you build your own meal plan is click review and print (as pictured below)!
Best $5 per month I spend, hands down. It allows me to spend more time with my little babe, my husband, and to work on my blog!
7) KEEP IT SIMPLE
You don't have to have an inventory of 500+ meals at your fingertips in order to keep variety in your meal plans.
If you like organization/structure, make a meal plan that spans a few weeks and re-use the meal plan. You can switch up a meal here and there, but for people who are uber organized this is a great option!
If you are not that organized/structured, to keep variety in your meals opt instead to have a theme night, like Taco Tuesday!
8) STOCK YOUR PANTRY
Buying in bulk can be an effective way to save money at times, but it also tends to allow for a lot of waste.
Be careful when buying in bulk, because unless you have a big family or really, really like a certain food, you can end up with a lot of waste.
The only thing I buy in bulk is canned foods and pantry items that are on sale.
This way, when I do meal plan and go to the store, i'm not buying out the whole darn grocery store!
9) MAKE LEFTOVERS
Pick one or two meals and double the recipe so for at least one night of the week you can have leftovers.
We typically always eat leftovers for lunch, but rarely for dinner.
I'll double one of my recipes for the week and if I have way too much (more than enough for leftovers), I will freeze the rest!
RESOURCES TO HELP YOU EFFECTIVELY MEAL PLAN ON A BUDGET
- myFreezeasy - many different tools/resources, including freezer meal plans designed to help you make a weeks worth of meals in ONE hour.
- FREE 100 Days of Summer Freezer Meals - free freezer meal ideas as well as tips and tricks for making the best freezer meals (including using your Instant Pot). Available until August 9, 2019!
- FREE Freezer Meal Planning Success Guide - A freebie on how to create a simple freezer meal plan and use your time wisely! You don't have to cook a meal every night for dinner, this takes the stress out of meal time while avoiding a drive-thru dinner on busy nights!
- $5 Meal Plan - meal planning service that sends you a weekly meal plan including a shopping list with ingredients organized by type. $5 per month!
- Healthy Meal Planning Bundle - Hundreds of resources on how to organize your meal plan, kid-friendly meal plans (and efficient cooking and planning with kids), how to save money on groceries, meal organization, eating healthy, etc. A MUST HAVE for moms!
- Intentional Bites Meal Planner - healthy meal planning guide that is available in physical product form or digitally!
I hope this helps you make meal time less stressful and more fun, because unfortunately the fam's gotta eat... every single night ;)
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