Comments on: Ten Tips for Successful Meal Planning

By: Carrie

Carrie — Fri, 01 May 2009 16:55:15 +0000

meal planning has been such a huge help in keeping my grocery costs down. i feel like i’m eating better and tastier food than ever before too!

By: deidre

deidre — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 00:04:13 +0000

one of the best money and time saving things i do..i buy meat in bulk when its on sale..cook it…freeze it and its ready to thaw and make a meal. i cook ground meat (usually turkey for us…sometimes beef and pork) add onions and garlic-freeze it in family size packs-its ready for many different meals-spagetti-shepards pie-my stuff i make lol 9thats what the kids call it) but to have the meat all reay to go is a huge time saver. we eat onions and garlic in everything so i always add them when im cooking the meat.if im cooking chicken breasts i sometimes marinate them in something…cook..freeze…when you think about it cooking the meat is usually the most time intense part of cooking..that and chopping veggies–which i also do in bulk. i almost always make mor than we need so i have leftovers to take for lunch to work.

By: caro

caro — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 23:06:09 +0000

My great discovery is Hunts canned spaghetti sauce, found on the top shelf above all the pretty jars in our market. Has been running $1.00-$1.20/25.6 oz can for the 6 or so years that I have been buying it . . .

By: bocarat

bocarat — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 21:26:32 +0000

When I roast a whole chicken, I always make a pot pie out of the leftovers and vegetables.

I used to make my own pasta sauce but if I can get a jar of decent sauce for around $2 it’s cheaper than scratch. Though we often just have pasta with a little olive oil , garlic and basil instead of sauce, and it’s healthier.

I also use a crock pot, pressure cooker and have discovered slow roasting in the oven for making tougher cuts more tender and delicious.

Great blog, Jim!!

By: Jim

Jim — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 19:51:54 +0000

We’ve been growing our list of dishes we can whip up without looking at a recipe and it’s helped tremendously. I think having a good portfolio of backup dishes is great when you’re in a rush. Not much time? Whip out some pasta and a homemade pasta sauce. Have more time? Maybe you make a chicken pot pie.

By: bocarat

bocarat — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 19:44:57 +0000

I think the key is flexibility. Let the person who does the cooking also clip coupons, check sales and do the shopping… if possible.

Have a repertoire of various dishes and be flexible based on what’s on sales, seasonal etc.

Watch the cooking shows for ideas, too!

By: BrewCrewFan

BrewCrewFan — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 15:43:58 +0000

Great post. I’ve started to planning our family’s meals. Not only are we eating better, we are also reducing our monthly food budget. There are fewer expenditures at food restaurants and I am able to consolidate shopping trips at the warehouse grocery store for many of the staples in my pantry. While I still prefer to buy meat and produce at the local grocery store, I am making fewer trips and making less impulse purchases.

I have been using epicurious.com for recipe ideas. The user ratings are a good way to identify new recipes to try. Does anyone else have any good recipe websites to share?

By: tom

tom — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 04:47:16 +0000

I think the first step is the most important, don’t expect to get it perfect, just do it.

As I always say Ready Fire and then you AIM
not Ready Aim Fire
You could end up aiming for a long time.

By: Charlie@paylessforfood.com

Charlie@paylessforfood.com — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 11:19:07 +0000

Great article.

I think tip 7 is especially essential. Just consider that it doesn’t take that much extra effort to make a double portion of any meal. Serve one portion and then freeze the other portion.

Do this for every meal for a week or two and you’ll quickly have a stash of frozen meals in your freezer that are great when you have a hectic weeknight and need something quick to serve your family.

Its like having a fast food restaurant in your freezer.

Another option is making several meals at the same time and freezing them for later use. Two great books that provide great recipes for accomplishing this are:

Fix, Freeze, and Feast by Kati Neville and Lindsay Tkacsik

and

Don’t Panic – Dinner’s in the Freezer by Susie Martinez, Vanda Howell, and Bonnie Garcia

Tip 9 is also a great money saver. Consider stocking up on items like potatoes, eggs, and salad greens. These are what I call meal extenders as they allow you to make an extra meal from left-overs.

Almost any sauce from a meal the night before can be poured over a baked potato to make another meal. Many left-overs can be combined with eggs to create an omelette or mixed with salad greens to make another meal.

By: Shannon

Shannon — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 20:49:33 +0000

Yes, meal planning has been greatly overlooked thanks to fast food. Meal planning can really help cut down the spending of a family and at the same time provide nutritious, home cooked meals.

Meals with “heavy veggies” like carrots, potatoes etc will do fine in the refrigerator but herbs or leafy veggies like spinach really need to be bought, or picked just right before cooking. Simple solution? Plant these in your garden!

By: Patrick

Patrick — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 19:38:01 +0000

I love meal planning. My fiance and I just started doing it and it really saves us time and money and allows us to more easily shop.

By: saladdin

saladdin — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 00:46:47 +0000

I take leftovers for work lunch but there are very few things I like heated up the next day.

saladdin

By: Steve @ pfstartup

Steve @ pfstartup — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 23:05:35 +0000

Meal planning can be an enormous task, especially if you’re a newbie chef. I try to think of good ideas for meals, but I always come back to some chicken and rice dish and pasta because they are the easiest.

Recently, I’ve started checking out the frozen meal sections of the grocery store. I’m not out their buying hungry man though. I’m looking for good ideas. Frozen meals will really help get you thinking about what you can make.