For those of you who know me, I am a HUGE planner. And to say that is an understatement of how much I am a planner!
Over the years I have had many different budget numbers to work with when it comes to meal planning for the week – We have been on a budget anywhere from $15 for the whole week, to whatever I would like to spend! Meal planning takes finesse and hard work, but I can give you 5 quick tips that will surely keep you on track with a tight budget!
1. Pick recipes for the week that intermix. For example- buy a pack of chicken breasts and plan for chicken on the stove 1 night and chicken tacos another and etc – you should be able to get 3 meal for a family of 4 out of a large pack. Or when buying carrots, buy enough to make as a side 1 night and then you can make a soup another night and add them in.
2. Pick cheap proteins – For the really rough weeks back in the day, my hubby and I ate A LOT of hot dogs.. like WAY more than I would like to admit. It might not be on a diet but a pack of hot dogs will lead you for at least a whole meal and you possibly only spent $2 on the pack! You can slice those babies up and fry them in butter for a fried hot dog sandwich, or load them up with a can of wolf chili and put them in the oven for wonderful chili dogs! Ground Turkey is another option in this category – if ground beef skyrockets, switch to turkey! It will taste almost the same.
3. Plan Leftovers nights! AND STICK TO THEM! This is a very important one! I can’t tell you how many times I plan in a leftover night and when it comes around we all go EHHH maybe we can afford to eat out. This is the kicker – train yourself to be quick on the question of “but what do we have?” – this will deter the other parent from feeling like eating out is an option. It’s soo easy in today’s society, but you are going to spend $40-$80 on a meal you could have cooked better yourself!
4. Breakfast for dinner. One of my best kept secrets is serving breakfast food for dinner! You cannot go wrong here – My kids LOVE breakfast and so does my husband! They LOVE when I announce there will be egg sandwiches for dinner or pancakes! This is the best secret, because you can get out of the grocery store with a carton of eggs and loaf of bread for under $4! Or Krusteaz Pancake mix (just add water) can run you $2! And you would have pancakes for several meals!
5. Keep your pantry stocked with essentials – On weeks that you have a couple extra dollars, spend them on canned goods, spices, flour, sugar – keep that pantry stocked because as soon as you have a hard week, you can try to “eat from the pantry” and this will help you stretch your budget even more! You might be able to afford a more expensive protein on a tight week because all your veggies are stocked up!
All I can say is no matter what your budget- Plan ahead! It those nights that are late and you are tired that will kill your budget with the eating out. Stock the freezer, this is a HUGE tip I have. If you don’t have time to eat the leftovers, freeze them!
Steph's Lifestyle 