How to Make a Meal Plan for Free
A meal plan is a list of what you will cook for breakfast, lunch and dinner for an entire week. Meal planning is a great way to save money and eat healthy. By choosing and preparing meals ahead, you won't be tempted to eat fast food, which tends to be less healthy and more expensive than home cooking. Just having a weekly meal plan means you don't need to stare inside the fridge wondering, "What am I going to make for supper?"
Instructions
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Learn daily food guide recommendations. The U.S. Department of Agriculture recommends you get a variety of whole grains, fruit, vegetables, low-fat dairy products and lean meats. When planning, choose meals following these guidelines. The USDA has an online meal planning tool for your weight and activity level to help track calories and servings from the food groups.
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Choose recipes you can freeze. For busy nights, having homemade frozen meals make healthy eating convenient. A lot of foods freeze very well, such as chilis and stews. You can even freeze vegetables or fruits if they are starting to go bad. Instead of wasting food and money, do a little preparation, such as quickly blanching the vegetables, and freeze food for later.
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Choose recipes with leftovers you can reinvent. By making a large meal, you'll have leftovers for another meal. If you don't want to eat the same thing over again, try to find recipes that can be easily changed. For example, a stir fry could be turned into fried rice or spaghetti could be baked with cheese for another taste. Remember to watch your portions when making larger meals. It can be very easy to overeat when there's food left.
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Use your time wisely. When choosing your weekly meals, look for recipes with common ingredients. This will prevent you from buying small amounts of many ingredients. Often, buying larger quantities is less expensive. Do as much of your preparation work in one evening or day. Put a stew on to simmer while cutting up vegetables for the week.
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Get creative. Meal plans don't need to be repetitive week to week. Sign up for a recipe website's daily or weekly emails. Do a recipe exchange with your friends or co-workers.
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Tips & Warnings
Many online recipe sites have weekly meal plans.
References
- Photo Credit pen money and shopping list image by Warren Millar from Fotolia.com
