Meal plan schedules are life. You will get me when you understand the thoughts behind them, and why they work so well.
When it comes to saving time in the kitchen through meal planning, it goes beyond selecting a few recipes and assigning them to specific days. Now, I don’t want you thinking this is a long, complicated process. On the contrary, setting this up enables me to save hours and not cook everyday. If you’re new to this, it may take you a little more time to plan it than I do. But do keep in mind I have been doing this for over a decade day in day out, so yes, the experience definitely helps!
Today I am sharing a sample 7 day meal plan schedule of mine which you can too follow, allowing you to experience how wonderful having a meal plan schedule can be.
What is a meal plan schedule?
A meal plan schedule is a plan that lays out not only what you will be eating on specific days, but includes a plan of what you will be cooking when. When you do this intentionally, you can plan to use overlapping ingredients and meal prep and batch cook as you go along. The idea is to do more in less time, as well as plan to ‘do the doing’ on less busier days.
Why should I set up a meal plan schedule?
Well, the most obvious is to save time. Why cook everyday if you do not need to, or why spend 1 hour cooking a meal if you can spend 30 minutes instead? But, it goes beyond just saving time. A meal plan schedule will allow you to be present with your family. Gone are the days when you’re in a mad rush trying to cook dinner when you’d rather be sitting down with your child reading a book. Or the days when you’re just so stressed out because it’s bedtime in 30 minutes and you are nowhere near having dinner ready.
Do you know how stressful it feels to try and stick to your usual schedule when there are extra curricular activities to muddle up your plans? Well, a meal plan schedule will help you to feel in control, because you have a plan that works. I won’t make this longer than I have to, but a meal plan schedule allows you more freedom, less stress, helps you make better food choices, keeps you healthier, and saves you money too.
A typical meal plan schedule
MEAL PLAN
Monday *no cooking day* – batch cooked pulled pork with tacos and salad
Tuesday – slow cooked chicken with grilled zucchini and salad
Wednesday *batch cooking day* – Vegan slow cooker chilli
Thursday – Baked fish with grilled zucchini and oven chips
Friday – burgers and salad
Saturday – *no cooking day* or easy meal like chicken wraps
Sunday – out
COOKING & PREP PLAN
Monday
No cooking today
Extra-curriculars are planned + need to catch up after the weekend, so no cooking is planned for Mondays
Tuesday
Time needed: 20 minutes
Dinner in under 20 minutes of prep, with extras to go for another day.
1. Prep chicken for slow cooking in the morning (5 minutes prep time).
2. Grill zucchini and make a double portion. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
3. Make a green salad. I like to add some other veg I have on hand such as carrots and cherry tomatoes. Double this.
Wednesday
Time needed: 20 minutes
Nina is at a 2 hour class today so I batch cook. You can plan this for a less busy day or else even do it in the evening. My batch cooking never takes me more than 45 minutes and I batch cook 3-5 portions every time.
Make vegan slow cooker chili. This recipe serves 6, and you can double it, allowing you to freeze the extra portions and save them for a no cooking day. It takes me about 20 minutes to make.
Thursday
Time needed: 5 minutes
- Prepare fish for baking. I try to do this before dinnertime and have it ready in the fridge.
- When it’s dinnertime, pop fish in the oven together with the oven chips, and heat up the zucchini you already cooked on Tuesday.
Friday
Time needed: 5 minutes
At the end of a long week, I really don’t feel like doing much but celebrating Fri-YAY 😁
Burgers are a typical choice. Go ahead and make your own if you want to. Most days I go for frozen ones. I like to read labels and pick ones with no preservatives with 100% traceable beef.
I don’t even make salad because I actually make a triple batch on the Monday and store it in my FoodSaver. Sautéed onions are a must, but I make a batch once in a blue moon so I just take a portion out of my freezer. That’s it!
Saturday
No cooking or minimal effort
In wintertime especially, I batch cook almost weekly. I don’t batch cook when I have something else on Wednesdays or my freezer is full. Summertime routine is different because we are eating out more (think picnics at the beach), plus we grill more too.
On a typical Saturday I would plan to eat a batch cooked meal, or make something like chicken wraps, or eat out or order in. I don’t like to stress on the weekends (or any day of the week I guess 😁)
Sunday
No cooking today! Lunch out of the home it is, or else it’s a picnic or cookout!
A few things to note
- During the weekend especially, sometimes I’ll switch days. Such as Saturday and Sunday.
- As much as I like to cook, I like to have time for everything else more than I do spending time cooking. If I really want to enjoy a drawn out cooking session, I’ll plan for one on a Friday night our during the weekend.
- I pick simple any day. That’s a non-negotiable.
- I’ll take whatever smart shortcuts I can to help me save time. Frozen garlic and onions? Yes please. Repeat sides a few times a week? Heck yes. The secret is how you take your shortcuts. Whilst I will happily use frozen onions for a curry, I’d never use them for a recipe that requires that crunch, such a stir fry. I use convenience foods – but I will always read the label and steer clear of preservatives.
That’s it my dear mama friend. I hope I managed to give you a clear picture of how having a meal plan schedule can work for you.
Get your hands on my downloadable PDF – my FREE 7 day meal plan schedule!
I’ve gone ahead and put the plan down in a PDF which you can keep handy so you can follow it if you want to have a no-stress week. It also includes all the ingredients you need to cook the recipes I have linked to, as well as batch cooking and freezing tips.
It’s available here for you to download.
Enjoy!
Love,
Nakita xxx
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