Three Master Tips for Meal Planning
1. Have a grocery list!
- Identify your pantry staples
- What items are you always looking for?
- What are your go-to meals to eat and make?
- How much space do you have to store certain foods?
- Fridge, Freezer, Pantry, Counter
- What ingredients are quick to cook?
- What recipes or techniques reduce your hands-on time?
- Stock up when you find deals to save money
- Look at weekly sales ads at your local grocery stores
- Figure out which stores have better items and deals for each food category, such as dairy, meats, and produce.
- Check out Trello! Trello is a tool that you can use to take inventory of what items you have at home, what you’ve used, and what you need to buy on your next grocery trip.
2. Be strategic!
- Think
- What are the resources and skills at my disposal?
- What is the time that I have?
- How do I put all this together to have a household that functions well?
- How can we improve the way we spend our time? The goal of Christian efficiency is not more time for yourself, but time well spent for the Lord! Every minute done out of worship to God is a minute well spent!
- "So teach us to number our days, That we may present to You a heart of wisdom." Psalm 90:12
- Reduce time or effort
- Know what needs to get done and how long it actually takes. Be creative in using strategies, tools, and resources to get things done faster!
- Use an instant pot, crock pot, or slow cooker.
- With these, you don’t need to stand in front of the stove for 2 hours. You can do other things in between as something cooks.
- Use one-pot, one-pan, or no-cook recipes.
- Make use of “time sinks”!
- While waiting for water to boil, the oven to preheat, and rice to finish, maximize the time and think through your cooking game plan!
- Thawing, cutting, and seasoning ingredients can take a lot of time. Instead, consider prepping ingredients in bulk and freezing them or starting prep in the morning or the night before.
- Clean as you go, use your dishwasher, and designate a bowl or container for your trash as you cook so that it’s all in one place!
- Have a backup plan!
- Have meal recipes that you can whip out for times when you might not have a lot of resources or time.
- Leftovers are okay! You can plan to have leftovers. For example, you can cook enough dinner to have lunch for the next day or cook bulk meals a few times a week.
- Be smart with your recipes
- Cook familiar meals, and then introduce yourself to new and more challenging recipes slowly.
- Use recipes with similar ingredients so you can use the same items for multiple dishes and meals.
- Use shelf or freezer-stable ingredients. Don’t be afraid to use canned or frozen foods!
3. Plan to Plan
- Identify your current limitations and needs.
- You might have a child to care for, an on-the-go schedule, or only one pot to use between all four of your roommates, but you CAN still meal plan!
- Create a system that meets those needs and works for you. Make goals and work towards them with patience! Figure out the best time for you to start prep.
- Make it fun!
- Be willing to learn from others, cook for others, and cook with others!
- Plan a meal to try out and cook together with friends!
- "The wise woman builds her house, But the foolish tears it down with her own hands." Proverbs 14:1
- Look for inspiration when you need it!
- If you find yourself losing interest or don’t like eating the same thing over and over, utilize others around you and the internet. For example, you can make a Pinterest group with friends!
- Set aside time for trying new or elaborate meals, such as on the weekends.
