Seven Easy Ways to Meal Plan with Free Printable

We have to eat. We have to feed the people we love (pretty much). Feeding ourselves and the people we love can be hard though, so it’s helpful to have a plan of attack. Here are some easy ways to meal plan with a free printable to make your job simpler and more fun!

1. Schedule.

Schedule when you’ll plan. For me, Sunday afternoons are usually a quiet time, and I camp out at the dining room table with my planner, our wall calendar, a couple cookbooks and our menu chalkboard. When you have a set time in your week (actually put this in your calendar!), it can be relaxing, and it becomes a habit you don’t have to think about or try hard to remember.

It’s also helpful to think about what actually works best for you for

• when to plan
• when to shop
• when to cook

Then take a look at your family’s schedule. Will you be having friends for a meal? Do you have events that will keep you out close to meal-time that might tempt you to eat junk on the run? Can you plan to pack a lunch for work or school outings?

(My friend Katie has a beautiful helpful post on how to be hospitable on a budget that you might find helpful!)

I like to plan on Sundays, but I don’t like to shop then. For me, off-hours when my kids are at sports practice or youth group are perfect little pockets of time to run errands. I’ve also learned that Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings the store is often quiet, and I much prefer to be out and about then! So while I plan on Sundays, I anticipate leftover Mondays, or meals from the week before. This may change as your season and family dynamics change!

I also often shop twice in a week; fresh produce often wilts before it “fits” into our menu plan, so I plan a second trip mid-week to make the best use of our groceries. Plan to shop during the times that work best for you and your family!

2. Shop.

Always shop first from your own pantry and fridge! Look at what will expire soon, or what you may have forgotten you have. I often find sauces I bought because they looked fun, that may inspire a whole meal!

Shop in-season produce and deals at your local grocery. Look at flyers for loss-leaders that have super low markdowns. Build your menu around these bargains, or stock up and freeze for future meals.

Shop discount stores when possible. When a friend insisted I try Aldi, I became an instant fan. The selection is limited, which helps me narrow my focus and I’m less likely to buy impulse items. When I do, they’re so well priced that it doesn’t blow the budget!

3. Build.

• Build a collection of reliable recipes. I keep mine in a binder, and I Pin away from my favorite bloggers, as well as saving favorite recipes to my Allrecipes user account. You can organize your recipes by season, preparation method, dietary preference, meal, or ingredient – whichever works best for you. For us, it works well to do a combination of ingredient/meal, and prep method, because then I can quickly find a recipe for an ingredient that’s on sale, or a pressure cooker recipe for a busy weeknight, for example.
• Build some “non-recipes.” These are quick meal ideas that you can shop and make on the fly, without having to look up ingredients and directions. For me that means a killer salad with a quick homemade dressing, a soup thrown together with leftovers and produce, my breakfast bowls, roasted chicken thighs and vegetables, or a fast cheese plate with dried fruit, nuts, and gluten-free or grain-free crackers.
• Build a spice collection. The same protein and vegetables can taste completely different when you roast them in chunks with one flavor profile, or when you spiralize them and use different spices.

4. Ask.

Ask for help! Ask friends for what works for them (hopefully you’ll find that here 🙂 ), and ask your family for help. Our kids are active in the kitchen from the time they’re old enough to stand on a stool (or sit on the counter, in some cases). This has given them an adventurous palate and a confidence in the kitchen that pays off in the ones who’re grown up and on their own now. But it also gives them a valuable role in our home! When they’re able to read and follow a recipe (or confident from practice to experiment a little), they are able to help get healthy and delicious meals on the table. Eating well (and sharing your table with others!) should be a team effort. In the same way, don’t be afraid to share cooking duties with your spouse – it’s a blessing to you both and to everyone who sits at your table.

5. Use good tools.

I LOVE the planner I designed for sketching out our meals each week. I laminated it and punched it to fit into my disc bound planner (a combination of Martha Stewart’s and a Happy Planner that I customized). I use a wet-erase fine point marker (that stays put!) and write out what we’ll have for each meal. I don’t like to clutter that page with a grocery list, so on the back, I have my shopping list divided by where I’ll find it in the store. Each week I wipe off what I’m changing, and add in what we need to both the plan and the list. SUPER simple. I always have it with me in case I have extra moments to shop. For our family, I go the extra step and write the plan on a wall board, so everyone can see at a glance what we’re having or how they can help!

I prefer to actually prep our meals close to serving time, with the exception of when we use the slow cooker or freeze meals in advance, rather than right after I shop. Speaking of freezing – use your freezer for sale items and produce, and if your family doesn’t enjoy day-after leftovers, freeze individual portions for quick-grab lunches and dinners.

Having good tools does make a huge difference! Here are a few tools I love and use often in our kitchen that make my job faster and more fun:

Instant Pot – you can buy a fancier version, but this workhorse has been used weekly from the time I bought it several years ago.

Immersion Blender – it is so easy to use and clean, and it makes quick work of smoothies, homemade mayonnaise or dressings, and coconut whipped cream.

Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer – I waited years before I owned the classic white mixer, but we use it weekly as well. The best tip I ever read was to use the paddle attachment to shred cooked chicken! (Our Kitchen Aid isn’t just for baking -after owning two different styles that broke, we love the spiralizer attachment as well.)

Good knives – these make all the difference. I have a Shun knife that I bought with a gift card years ago and it’s so valuable in our kitchen. Even inexpensive knives work better when you use a simple sharpener regularly to keep them in shape. (Funny story: I was so proud of that huge investment I’d made when I first bought my gorgeous knife. A few weeks later we were filming a cooking segment for a large brand commercial in our kitchen and one of the cameramen commented as I was chopping butternut squash, “That’s a gorgeous Shun knife you have!” I was so excited someone else appreciated my new “baby.” 😉 )

Vitamix Blender – My husband bought me a refurbished Vitamix for Mother’s Day one year – there were tears – and we use it every single day for smoothies, juices, grain-free pancakes, bulletproof coffee and bone broth lattes, dressings, and more. It really makes a difference when working with hard-to-blend ingredients and when looking for a smooth texture.

None of these tools are necessities, but I share them (affiliate links) because I love them, and they really make our meal prep easier and more fun.

6. Plan ahead (for meals AND leftovers!).

Can you double a recipe and freeze half for a future meal that doesn’t feel like “leftovers?” Can you cook twice the protein and use half for a meal later in the week? These are huge time savers. I especially love pulling out a part of a recipe after it’s cooked and before it hits the table, for breakfast or lunch later in the week.

• Store leftovers where you can see them easily.
• Actually put leftovers and “clean the fridge” plans on your menu so they get used.
• Re-purpose vegetables and proteins so they feel like a different dish and make use of your hard-earned grocery dollars!

7. Simplify.

As a writer and a photographer, a principle I learned (but don’t always use!) is to look at what you have, and remove something, before presenting a final product. In the same way, consider streamlining your menu. Can you eat the same breakfast several days a week, or have dinner the next day? Can you skip the convenience food or the added bread and instead enjoy double helpings of a green vegetable? These are healthy choices that make easy ways to meal plan, even easier.

Would you like the meal planner I use weekly as a free printable? Join the Everyday Welcome community of readers for weekly-ish inspiration for your heart and your home, and grab my free minimalist meal planner printable now!

Want even more ideas? Jenn at What You Make It blog shared some similar tips for meal planning for beginners and she’s a mom with littles and a unique perspective. I love her thoughts on this subject!

(When I shared our menu board on Instagram a few weeks ago, everyone went crazy over it, so I went digging to find similar ones for you. 🙂 )

Here are a few menu planning boards I found you might like!

I loved this vintage framed chalkboard. It could be used for meal planning or scripture verses, reminders or notes to the fam.

I’m not gonna lie – I’m tempted to give away my beloved menu board to get my hands on this barn door chalkboard – I love the size, and it’s gorgeous!

These are my favorite fine point chalk markers. They’re bright and crisp and wash off easily when you’re ready!

This magnetic chalkboard menu planner has a small spot to make notes of last-minute grocery items or calendar details to remember.

Another cute and simple menu chalkboard.

This one is a bit more detailed, but I love that it’s peel-and-stick.

It’s my prayer that these 7 easy ways to meal plan will be a blessing and help you have more time and creativity, and less stress, as you open your heart and open your home.

( Don’t forget to GRAB YOUR FREE PRINTABLE MENU PLANNER!)

Inspiring (easier, more fun, more healthy, and delicious) welcome,

Angela