Menu Planning – How and Why I do it?

Ever since I have been married, I have done menu planning. I have found it extremely helpful to me and today I am going to share how I do it and why it works for me.

One of the the first things sceptics of menu planning will question about it is, “What if you don’t feel like eating what you planned to have a week ago?” My answer is, “Don’t!” I would say it is very rare that I actually make all 5-7 meals I had planned exactly the way I planned. I allow myself a lot of flexibility. Even though I list a dinner plan for each day, I will happily switch them around to whatever day works best in my week. I will also readily skip one if we get take out, I think of something else I’d rather make, or I end up having more leftovers then I had planned.

I plan dinner meals 5 – 7 days a week. A lot of factors go into these. I personally plan my meals on Monday and grocery shop on Tuesday. I don’t always know my weekend plans at the beginning of the week so that is where my meals are often a little more messed up. Also my husband enjoys cooking and may find time on the weekend to make something so I happily move one of my meals to the next week if needed.

The next question may be, “Well, if you are so flexible and change things around all the time, what is the point?” The following reasons are why I love menu planning and it works for me!

1. Always having a plan. I may switch around the days or do something different all together. However, if I have something planned, I don’t have those frantic afternoon thoughts of what I am going to make for supper. I always know that I have all the ingredient for at least one option for supper. This is especially helpful if we’re very busy. I started meal planning when my husband and I both worked full time. Now I am only part time but have a busy toddler and still find it very helpful.
2. Always having the ingredients. I menu plan before I do my grocery shopping, so I can look up all the ingredients I will need for any of my meals that week and add them to the list. This saves us on last minute trips to the grocery store.
3. Less waste. I buy ingredients I plan to use. This is especially useful for perishables like fresh produce. I use what I was planning to use and therefore my food doesn’t spoil on me. It has been an extremely rare occasion that I have had any vegetables go bad on me. Even when I switch up my menu, I make sure to use the vegetables I bought. If I know I want mushrooms, I will often put two mushroom plans on the menu as I know I will not use the entire Naturally Imperfect club pack of mushrooms in one meal.
4. Saves on money and space. This ties into the less waste, but it also saves me on having as much excess stuff in my freezer or pantry shelves. I stock some extras, of course, but not too much. This helps me use what I have and not forget the turkey in the bottom of my freezer or the many jars of pizza sauce on my shelf. It is also beneficial because we live in a small space and don’t have excess food storage room. Another way it can save money is, planning ahead can help you budget as you know exactly what ingredients you need to make the meals in your week. If you have too many high cost items, you can switch the plan to be more budget friendly. I also check flyers while menu planning and making my grocery list to see if I can build any meals around the week’s sales. (I use the Flipp app for flyers.)
5. Having time to defrost/marinate meat. I have time to do the preparations when I know what I need to do in the morning or multiple days ahead. There’s no excuse to not have the chicken defrosted, etc. I love this aspect!
6. Ability to plan a nice variety into your weeks. I like to plan a variety of meats, vegetables, and starches into my weeks and not have noodles all week or chicken all week. This is easier for me when planning out a week at a time. I also often plan meals that take different lengths of prep time and include some that can be prepped ahead. This gives me options for those nights of the week that I just don’t have more than 30 minutes to prep supper and also for the days I only have time to make something in the morning.

I hope that if you are new to menu planning, these tips get you excited to start your meal planning adventure. I would love to hear feedback from you on what you have loved about meal planning.

My last tip is to buy a cute journal or day planner that allows for menu planning. Or, go digital if that is your preference! I love my TimeKeeper! It has a multi-section layout that builds in daily menu spots. I have been buying this one for 6 years straight and have yet to find one I like as much. Find one that works for you and your life and enjoy!

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