How to get started on meal planning

Planning out your meals a week in advance can improve your nutrition, allow you to make healthier choices, eat more high quality foods, save you money, save you time and can help decrease your stress.

Although planning out an entire week’s worth of meals might seem intimidating, here are some tips to help you schedule your meals and save food, according to SavetheFood.com.

1. Don’t start from scratch:

Start with your go-to meals. Repeat them every week or two. Eventually you can toss something new every once in a while.

2. Check the refrigerator:

See what needs to be used up. Then think of a meal to make with those items. Check the pantry for the rest of the ingredients and add missing pieces to the shopping list.

3. Use portion planners:

Portion calculators can help you feed a big group.

4. Have kitchen essentials handy:

Stock up on two or three grains, cooking fundamentals, key spices and sauces like barbecue and peanut sauce.

5. Use building blocks:

Pick two types of protein, one or two grains, and a vegetable medley to incorporate into different meals.

Ingredients sometimes come in larger portions than needed.

6. Think double duty:

Try to plan a second meal around those extra ingredients.

7. Schedule a lazy night:

If you don’t have the time or energy to cook every night, plan a few lazy nights that don’t require cooking.

8. Go fresh fruit:

To preserve freshness and nutrition, use perishables like seafood and meat earlier in the week and save staples (pasta, dairy, omelets) for later in the week.

9. Lean on frozen ingredients:

Frozen foods have nearly all of the nutrients than their fresh counterparts. Frozen vegetables can fill in gaps.

10. Cook and freeze:

Soups, stews, casseroles and lasagna can all be made in large batches and then frozen and defrosted when you need a quick dinner.