Mastering Meal Planning: Simple Steps for a Stress-Free Week of Eating
I was not too fond of the idea of meal planning. Every video or post I read about it sounded tedious or time-consuming. Before our children were born, I used to prep for the week and cook three different meals that would last for five lunches and five dinners. When our girls were born, I didn’t have time to cook that much prep, and I would also struggle with the “what to cook” question as you can easily fall into a routine of cooking the same things repeatedly. That worked for me as it was easy, but I wanted my girls to try different things. So, I decided on a new approach that worked for me on a budget and was not wasteful of food. With time, this new routine helped me with time management, made packing lunches stress-free, and gave me an outing once a week or bi-weekly.
Could you break out those cookbooks? No longer is the “what to cook?” question bothersome. I only ask myself that once or twice a week. I look through my cookbooks to find inspiration on my grocery list based on what I need and have. Look at the recipes and see what you and your family would enjoy for the week. You can turn it into a freezer meal or prep it for the week. Remember, you can look for similar recipes, change the sides, and have a new meal. For example, you can prep chicken alfredo and steaks with mashed potatoes and veggies. Now, you can have the complete meal and get creative with your leftovers during the week. Chicken quesadillas or steak quesadillas, chicken sandwiches, chicken and mashed potatoes, steak with pasta, and steak or chicken salad can be made throughout the week from just the two menus you selected. These are some of my go-to cookbooks for inspiration at the moment.
Could you make extra with each meal? This is a vital part of my technique. This is ONLY if you plan meals or leftovers to avoid wasting food. For example, if your recipe calls for two chicken breasts, make three to five, depending on what you need for the week. This way, you don’t need to prep anything extra; it’s already with the ingredients you are working with. It is always good to have staples in the pantry that don’t spoil fast and are great for working with leftovers, such as flour tortillas, bread, chips, and rice.
It is debatable whether this part is meal prepping or not. We have two kids, a two-year-old and a four-year-old; depending on the week, my prep time is good on the weekends, or there is simply no time for me to prep the meals, so this is my backup “meal simplifying” plan. I do not necessarily cook the meal but prepare it in the fridge for fast cooking. This “backup plan” takes advantage of kitchen gadgets and cooking timers. For instance, I will prep my rice cooker and set the timer to cook in an hour or so to be ready when needed; you can do the same with an InstaPot. This way, I can still make dinner while working or doing chores. But I will always cook extra servings, so some leftovers are in the fridge for a quick-fix meal. These are some of my essential kitchen appliances:
My rule for stress-free meal planning is that the guide for the week is optional. If I can’t meal plan this week, I won’t stress over it and work with my leftovers. With this attitude, I realized that, at some point, prepping meals for the week became part of my routine. There is always something prepared in the fridge or ready to cook. There is always some muffin in the freezer, freezer pancakes, or leftover meat from which I can design a meal.
Lastly, stick to your grocery list. Take a good look at what you have in your pantry, and if you did use a cookbook as inspiration, make your grocery based on what you need for the week. This is to prevent overshopping and wasting food. I used to shop frequently at Sam’s Club and Costco, thinking I was saving money by buying in bulk, but this led to food going bad before we could consume it. After I started using my cookbooks as inspiration or planning my meals for the week, I would browse my pantry and only shop for what I needed. This made me more productive in the kitchen.
I hope this makes you less stressed when thinking of food prepping. You don’t need to cook it all in one go and then pack it in individual containers. You can look for inspiration if you are unsure what your family would enjoy in the week. Cook multiple servings and just play it up. There is no need to be so strict with meal prepping. Whether you prepped for three days instead of five is good.
