Meal Planning to Save Money

Growing up my parents went to the store almost every day. I guess they thought about what they wanted for dinner and went to the store. It wasn’t until I was older and started doing that myself that I was spending more at the store than I needed to. Then I stumbled into the amazing world of meal planning. I was amazed at how much money I started saving.

Meal planning helps in so many ways.

1. It helps you avoid impulse buying. If you go to the store every day you don’t just buy what you need for dinner, you end up buying things you don’t need.

2. You’ll avoid eating out. We all know eating at home is cheaper than eating out. I guarantee that you are more likely to eat out without a meal plan. I know anytime I don’t meal plan, we end up going out and spending a weeks worth of meals on our bill.

3. Less waste. When you meal plan you are more likely to use what’s in your pantry and freezer.

4. Save time. When you go to the store once a week or even twice a month, you save all that time you didn’t go to the store.

So how do I start meal planning?

Contrary to many beliefs, meal planning is quite simple and isn’t nearly as time consuming as some think it is. I hear all the time people say they don’t have time to meal plan. Personally I spend triple the amount of time on meals or going out when I don’t meal plan.

1. Pick one day a week that you will plan and shop. This is the easiest way to get it done. Pick a day you are usually home and just do it. You don’t need anything fancier than a pen and paper.

2. Look around your pantry and cupboards. Take a mental inventory of items you already have. It’s best to use what’s in there to save money.

3. Make a menu. Don’t worry about a list right now. Break it down by days and even breakfast, lunch and dinner if you prefer. We only plan dinners right now since we usually do leftovers for lunch.

4. Make a list. Once you have your menu, make a list from it.

5. Go shopping and make sure you have everything on your list. You don’t want to have to go back to the store. Our point is to save time.

Now you have everything for the week and you shouldn’t have to go back to the store. But, there are some tips to remember.

1. You don’t have to follow your menu religiously. Don’t feel like spaghetti tonight? That’s ok, switch it for Fridays meal. Even though you have a menu, you can be flexible.

2. If you are flexible make sure to cook foods first that may spoil. This especially matters if you cook with a lot of fresh vegetables like we do.

3. Save your menus. It’s hard to come up with new ideas every week or even ideas to rotate. So I always keep my menus so I can go back to them.

Do you meal plan? What’s your strategy for thrifty meals?