Planning and cooking dinners can be difficult, especially when you have a busy day. That’s why I’m a firm believer in learning how to make a weekly menu plan. I know sometimes it’s tempting to put it on and make dinner together, but I can’t do my eyeliner either. So figuring out dinner at the last second is a sure recipe for disappointment. Taking out is an option, but one that quickly depletes the food budget.
So I sit down every Sunday morning to map out a week’s worth of dinners at a time. Learning how to plan a weekly menu completely changed my life. I know it sounds like one of those things you can do in your head, but following my steps to plan weekly meals will pay off in many ways:
- You earn money. Making just one trip to the grocery store prevents you from buying random things like cookies that somehow end up in your cart.
- You stop stressing. Without a plan, families can have up to 21 arguments a week over food. A consistent plan ensures that everyone happily eats what they like, even picky kids.
- You save time. You can cook once and eat twice by turning leftovers into brand new meals.
- Eat healthier. No more last minute takeout orders. I think we are missing the pizza delivery guy!
- You reduce food waste. With the price of groceries increasing every week, knowing you’ll use what you bought before it spoils is, well, priceless.
Here’s my step-by-step framework for handling dinner without panic.
Step 1: Check your calendar first.
Before looking at the recipes, check your weekly schedule. Identify late nights of work, training or events. Match your dinners to your available time.
Take the pressure off yourself. You don’t have to cook a big dinner 7 nights a week. Aim to only cook 3 or 4 nights. Plan for easy nights out or a planned takeaway night to fill in the gaps.
Step 2: Buy your kitchen.
Don’t go to the grocery store yet. Search your fridge, freezer and cupboard first. Find ingredients you need to use right away. If you have a head of broccoli or half a box of pasta, build a meal around them. This cleans the fridge and saves you a lot of money.
Step 3: Gather your trusted recipes.
When you figure out how to plan weekly meals, don’t try a bunch of complicated new recipes. This is a quick way to burn out. Then you’ll end up with spoiled ingredients and a tired brain.
Instead, make a list of meals that your family already loves. Ask everyone what they want to eat. When they have a meal to look forward to on the schedule, they are less likely to complain on other nights.
Decision fatigue is real. You can beat this by using themed nights. Here are our meal plan themes to give you an idea:
- Mondays: Meatballs, salad, mashed potatoes.
- Tuesdays: Chili and cornmeal.
- Wednesdays: Pasta night with salad and fruit.
- Thursdays: Leftovers.
- Fridays: Salmon or tuna patties, brown rice and steamed vegetables.
- Saturdays: Dinner out.
- Sundays: Grilled or grilled chicken, leftover rice and steamed vegetables with grated cheese.
Need a simple framework to plan your own weekly meals? Aim for one source of protein (meat, beans or pulses, tofu, eggs), a vegetable or two and a grain for each dinner.
Step 5: Write a 2-step grocery list.
Once you know how to plan a weekly menu, grab a piece of paper.
- Write the meals on one side and their ingredients on the other.
- Delete items you found in Step 2.
- Group the rest by store aisle for a quick shopping trip.
Don’t be afraid to buy convenience foods like bagged salad or jarred pasta sauce. They are much cheaper than fast food and can save your sanity.
Hang your finished menu on the fridge where everyone can see it. This helps stop the dinnertime panic and reminds you that the hardest work is already done: you have the ingredients and the meal plan.
Step 7: Save and toggle your designs.
You don’t need to create a new menu every week. Save your completed weekly plans. Once you’ve done a few good weeks, just repeat them later. This trick saves an incredible amount of time.
Pro tips for advanced dining success
- Cook once, eat twice. Make double servings of protein like ground beef or roast pork. Eat half now and use the rest for easy fries, tacos, or salads later in the week.
- Feed your freezer. When chicken breasts or beef are on sale, buy extra. Double your recipe and freeze the second batch for a super busy week.
- Just change a new recipe. Want to try a fun dish from Pinterest? Add just ONE new recipe to your menu per week so you don’t get bored. (I like to try new recipes on Fridays when the pressure is off and I can have a glass of wine while I cook.)
- Shop the seasons. Buying fruits and vegetables that are in season keeps your grocery bill low. Check local sales ads before you schedule.
Learning how to plan a weekly menu takes a little practice, but it gets easier every time you do it. Stick with it and you’ll enjoy a much calmer kitchen.
