Do you plan meals for the week in advance?

lizzief79

lizzief79

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To some extent I plan ahead with my meals. This is in a general way. I think about meals that we will probably have and buy the main ingredients for these. If I change my mind I simply go to the local shop and get a few extra things. I know that some people plan ahead and every single meal is decided in advance and they only buy the exact ingredients for these meals. Which do you do and why?
 
I plan a little bit for the next couple of days. Not things such as "pasta tonight, chili con carne tomorrow for lunch etc" but I usually figure out "hey I want to make chili con carne somewhere in the next 3 days, better get some beans"

So my planning is done in a very broad way. Basically buying things I will most likely be using in the next 3-4 days. Why don't I do it more precisely? I don't see the point. Why would I decide that I'll eat this this and this in advance, when I can just choose on the stop. I make what I feel like eating. :)
 
We plan for the week ahead, but we don't say this meal has to be this night... it is simply more that it controls the shopping and enables us to stick to a shopping list for the weekly shop. It also prevents us buying too much food and throwing what has gone bad away. So I will plan 7 evening meals and 2 midday meals and they get eaten as and when we fancy or if one of them has veg in it that is going to go off much faster than so other veg, it gets eaten first.

My parents, who like to plan everything down to the last minute detail, do plan what they are having each and every meal and will stick to it. Wednesday's meal can not be eaten on Thursday! :rolleyes:
 
I don`t really plan ahead, and always cook what I think I would love to have, each day. Sometimes I will cook for the better half of a day, and make several meals which I then eat for a couple of days. Usually a combination of soup and a stew of some kind.
 
I always have basics on hand that I use to cook my go to meals. If I plan on experimenting, I'll make a more detailed menu plan. I might try making a plan every week though, because I think it does cut down on waste, and reduces the stress of what's for dinner.
 
I'm not sure if I would consider what I do planning the meals in advance, but I do my grocery shopping already thinking of what and when I'll prepare the foods as I pick and choose products and ingredients. I don't exactly plan on which day I will do what, but I plan what I will prepare together so that I buy the products in accordance.
 
I don't plan too much in advance because I like to cook around my fresh, local produce. I shop a lot because I look for deal and like to try out new recipes. I would rather go to a farmer's market and get some super cheap produce then plan my meal accordingly than to plan ahead of time and spend more.
 
I don't plan, although I would like to. I usually just decide what I want almost daily or every two or three days because I have a hard time deciding what I will like in the future. I think the closest I could come to plan due to my behavior would be to make weeks worth of meals and just freezing them so I can just take them out whenever I crave certain dishes.
 
We always plan in advance the menus for a week that is why we do the groceries of our food every weekend. It is also one way for us to avoid being in a hurry not knowing what to cook for the day. We also see to it that the foods we have to prepare for the coming week are all healthy and at the same time are enjoyable to eat by both the kids and adults in the family.
 
You know, this seems to be a trend among my current peers (the stay-at-home moms with kids in elementary school and super busy lives and tight grocery budgets). I have to be honest, this is not my style at all.

I probably go to the grocery store 3-4 times a week. It isn't out of the way and I can do a shopping trip in a matter of minutes, even with kids. I typically plan my meals around what is on sale in the meat and produce discount areas. I usually try to shop for the next day so that if something needs to be prepped early I can get to it without running to the store, but that's about as far out as I get.

I'm lucky when I overcook and have to freeze half of what I've made, making a meal for another night when prep and planning isn't as easy. People think I'm crazy, about to have my 4th child and kind of a Nazi about my grocery budget, but I'm telling you, this is the way I keep the budget low, keep things creative in the kitchen, and truly, how I get my inspiration to keep making dinner night after night.

I have a sort of love affair with my grocery store, though, so that helps. :)
 
I live with my family, so it's always my grandmother (who's doing most of the cooking) who sets the meals everyday. She always prepares in advance and asks for our opinion on dishes before she goes to the grocery during the weekends. After that, if we want to try something else that isn't on the "menu", we have to buy it for ourselves or suggest it for next week's "menu".

For me, I really don't mind because I like variety and surprise in our meals, and we kind of have no choice considering the steadily increasing price of ingredients, haha.
 
I try to plan ahead. I can only usually pick up 3 to 4 days worth of groceries at a time as the grocery store isn't nearby and I cycle or walk. Even if I do plan a week in advance, I usually only manage two or three days before I am off my plan. Sometimes it is the result of running out of something I was sure I had lots of. Other times it is just a general interruption to my schedule that makes it impossible to make the planned meal at the designated time. I think for me, I need to do what some have suggested and plan a group of meals that don't necessarily have a specific day.
 
I try to plan as many as I can - but I honestly can't plan all of them. My tastes/cravings change so I may have planned to have one thing a week from now, but will not be too thrilled about having it when the day comes.

The main thing I try to do is plan meals based on grocery sales that weekend. I'll especially try to get ingredients and food products that I can use in more than one recipe so I'm not buying too many things and I can change things up later on if I no longer wanted what I planned to make.
 
I don't plan for every night either, but I do plan out some meals before I go grocery shopping.

I HATE have 95% of the ingredients I need for a meal, but am missing that one ingredient that makes all the difference or is required. By doing some basic meal planning, I can ensure that I have all the ingredients for at least the bulk of the meals and then I can still play around and change the meal plan throughout the week if I want to.
 
I do plan our weekly meals ahead. I tried doing this for an entire month but found it too tedious to keep up with and I was not catching the meats on good sales this way. My main reasoning for creating menus is to save myself time, to have everything organized (no waiting until the day of to decide at the last minute what to have) and of course to stretch my budget as far as I can.

When I have the extra time I do prep meats and crockpot meals ahead of time and put them in freezer bags to make meals easier for me during those hectic days.
 
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