This free meal planner printable comes in very handy for helping you plan out your meals for the week and creating your shopping list to help you when grocery shopping.
Why should I meal plan?
Meal planning is helpful for many reasons. First of all, it can really help you to save money and use your budget in the most effective way possible. Second of all, it can really help you reduce food waste by using what you already have on hand and also repurposing leftovers. Thirdly it can reduce stress and chaos, especially during the school year because you don’t have to stress out last minute about what you are going to have for dinner or make last-minute shopping trips because you will have already purchased everything on your shopping list.
How do I meal plan?
Here are some of the best tips to make meal planning a success:
Tip 1: Schedule Time to Plan
Set aside time each week to plan your meals. If you typically run your errands or do your grocery shopping on a certain day each week pick a time that day or the day before to plan out your meals and shopping list.
Tip 2: Shop Your Pantry
Shop your pantry and fridge/freezer first. Plan your meals around what you already have on hand. If you have a bunch of frozen chicken in the freezer plan some meals around that and so on. It can be very helpful to write out or use an app to take inventory of your pantry, fridge, and freezer so you can easily see what you have!
Tip 3: Shop the Sales
To get the most bang for your buck when meal planning, try to plan around what’s on sale. Especially for the more expensive items like your main protein. Look at the ads for your main grocery store or leave a little wiggle room in your budget so when you see a great deal on chicken or beef for example you can grab those items and throw them in the freezer until you are ready to use them!
Tip 4: Plan Around Your Schedule
Consider your schedule when planning meals. If you know you have activities on a certain night of the week consider planning a crockpot meal so it’s ready to serve whenever your meal time is!
Tip 5: Have a List of Favorites
Create a list of go-to meals. Make a list of some of your family’s favorites so that you can refer back to it when meal planning and easily add those meals in periodically. As you try new recipes and find new favorites you can always add to the list!
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