My goal with menu planning is to minimize my time in the grocery store. Therefore, I plan 3 weeks worth of menus at a time. I then buy all the groceries I will need for those 3 weeks at one time. Here is a detailed breakdown of how I plan my menus.
1. Plan my dinners for the next 3 weeks. I decide on 6 new main dish recipes. I usually find my recipes at AllRecipes.com (which helps with the next step–compile a grocery list). This will give me 2 new, special dishes to cook each week. Also I plan additional basic things to cook for the rest of the week (for example, we usually have baked chicken once or twice a week, spaghetti once every three weeks, eggs for supper once a week, etc.). Now remember, you don’t need to plan on cooking 21 dinners for 3 weeks. Some nights you are going to have leftovers and other nights you may want to go out to eat. I typically plan on 17 dinners a week, but we are trying to cut down on the meals we eat out.
2. Create my grocery list. Since I use AllRecipes.com to find my main dish recipes, I use their shopping list feature to create the grocery list for those 6 dinners. I then add to that list the ingredients I need for my “basic” dinners. Then I add the items I will need for breakfasts, lunches, snacks, and desserts (we tend to eat the same things for breakfast and lunch, so this part is easy).
3. Order/buy my groceries. I use a grocery delivery service to purchase my groceries. For a $10 fee, I can order my groceries online and they will deliver them to my home. This is part of the reason I get 3 weeks of groceries at once–I don’t feel so bad spending that extra $10 when it is for 3 weeks worth of groceries.
4. Prep my meat. Unfortunately, meat will not stay fresh for 3 weeks. Also, since I buy 3 weeks worth of food at once, I usually buy the large family packs of meat (which I then have to separate into smaller portions). I separate out the meat into meal size portions, wrap each portion in foil, and then place the portions in Ziploc bags. I also label the meat (you can’t really see through foil). Why do I use foil when I could just stick it in a freezer bag? I find that using the foil helps keep the meat fresher.
There are pros and cons to my method. I like the freedom of not having to go to the grocery store so often. Granted I have to make the occasional run to pick up milk and eggs but that is nothing compared with a major grocery store trip. I never liked planning out my meals for a week–sometimes I would get stuck eating something I wasn’t in the mood for. But when you have 3 weeks worth of food, you have more to choose from and more of a chance to have something on had that you are in the mood for.
On the negative side, buying 3 weeks worth of food means that you have a huge grocery bill all at once instead of spreading it out over the month. And, you have to make sure that you have room in your fridge and pantry for the food (I always clean out my fridge before my groceries are delivered).
I hope that my experience can help you find the best way for you to plan out your menus. Good luck!
Wow, & I thought I was organised! I have one question for you, what do you do about fruit & veg, it doesnt stay fresh for 3 weeks?
Comment by Ange — April 9, 2006 @ 9:10 pm
Ange, I tend to buy a lot of frozen veggies. Also, I typically have to go get milk every week so I get fruit then. I have found though that there are some fruits and veggies that stay fresh for about 3 weeks–apples, oranges, broccoli, the bagged hearts of romaine, carrots, etc.
Comment by quirkycook — April 9, 2006 @ 9:22 pm