The Only Weekly Meal Planer Guide You’ll Ever Need

If figuring out what’s for dinner every night feels like a never-ending chore, you’re not alone. Between work, family, and everything in between, planning meals can fall to the bottom of your to-do list. That’s why I’ve created The Only Weekly Meal Planning Guide You’ll Ever Need—a practical, step-by-step Christian homemaking resource for building an easy, budget-friendly weekly meal planner that actually works.

You might hesitate because who wants another step to add into the weekly routine? I have a simple planning routine that I outlined last week, and this will easily fit in. For a quick summation of that, whenever you’re listing out plans for each day, pick a meal to go there with it. Go check that out for the basics, and add this in right after writing down all your plans. Simple, easy, quick. (No excuses!)

Here’s why you should consider meal planning if you don’t already: saving time and saving money. Meal planning is a part of the week that we use to not only have more structure in our busy life, but also to save as much as we can for our financial goals. And I’ll be honest, I’m not about the “what’s for dinner?” conversation. More often than not, you’ll spend more time avoiding choosing dinner than you are actually making it. That’s why I’m always planning two weeks in advance. It is not for everyone, but we find that it works best for us. A bonus? We aren’t shopping with our stomachs instead of our brains.

In this guide, you’ll find everything from simple strategies for saving money, a weekly meal planner printable templates (see below!!), and a step-by-step approach to plan your meals. Whether you’re cooking for one or feeding a family, this guide is designed to help you save time, reduce food waste, and finally answer the dreaded “What’s for dinner?” question with confidence.

Let’s dive in and make meal planning something you actually look forward to!

Easy Meal Planning Formula: 3 Trusted + 3 Themed + 1 Fun

Let’s face it—picking meals is the hardest part of meal planning. However, I have a formula that you will love and that is easy to adapt. This works for two weeks for us, but it can easily be made for just a week or a month. I use a combination of 3 tried-and-true recipes, 3 themed recipes, and 1 fun recipe.

I know that 7 recipes is only one weeks worth, but here’s the reasoning: leftovers. We’re a leftovers household. It’s not always the best sounding option, but when you’re saving for a house, it’s the best financial option. By the way, I plan to share more about our home-buying journey if you want to follow along. The best way to do that is to either sign up for email alerts or follow me on Instagram. If you aren’t a leftovers family, increase the number of meals. 6 trusted, 6 themed, and 2 fun!

Three Trusted

Picking recipes that you know and love is key to making this work. This gives you food to look forward to! More importantly, these are likely recipes that you don’t need to pull out instructions for (TIME SAVING!). We cycle them so we don’t get too tired of them, but they are ones that we wouldn’t mind having every week.

Three Themed

After that, I usually pick a theme for the week. For example, I’ll pick Mexican-themed dishes that I can make other meals with using the leftovers. A family favorite is Birria. I’ll make the roast one night and then we make tacos with it. Afterwards, I either pivot to quesadillas or enchiladas. Sometimes we repeat it or switch to something else then come back to the leftovers. We find that this allows us to eat something for multiple days without getting tired and save some much-needed cash.

One Fun

Within this theme, I try to pick something new or make a new spin on something to keep it interesting. I love to look through my Magnolia Home cookbooks and my husband loves to look through Joshua Weissman’s! We definitely try to have both of us contributing to planned meals so we get a say in what we eat and don’t have decision fatigue. Marriage is a team sport!

Where We Grocery Shop on a Budget (and Why Aldi Wins)

I put a lot of effort into shopping cheaply. We only have so much time before we meet Jesus, so I try to keep John 6:27 in mind when I go on my shopping trips.

Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.

John 6:27

It is so important when dealing with mundane tasks that we keep in mind the greater purpose: living for God. We can take pride in what we make and how our homes look, but when the trumpets sound it won’t matter at all. I always need to remind myself that I’m working not for the newest trend, but to contribute to my church and to missions supporting spreading the word.

We have to work in baby steps! My favorite grocery store is always Aldi. I will go to Aldi first and check other places like Walmart for the things that I can’t find there. Aldi can be a pain if you’re looking for a quick, painless experience, but it is the cheapest place in our area to buy food. I always have my good bags and list and get in and out pretty quickly.

They have a lot of deals and fun home items that you don’t feel guilty for picking up! I picked up a dehumidifier last week and it is helping keep the stuffy feeling out of our bedrooms. Aldi also makes it easy to stay in budget by buying things that are in season. I’m planning to make a post about how I preserve seasonal items so I can use them all year without having to pay a lot to get them out of season.

How to Pick the Best Day to Meal Plan and Grocery Shop

When you go is a trial and error decision. You have to find the right time for your schedule. If you are a Monday-Friday worker like me, Saturday is a good starting place. It’s the day that I have the most time to use my weekly meal planner printable, shop, and meal prep. You, however, might have a different schedule and find Tuesdays work better. Whatever day you pick, try to keep it consistent to keep you on track!

Free Printable Weekly Meal Plan Template

So you have the big questions out of the way, how do you put it all together? Simple! I’ve made a weekly meal planner printable. Try it out and see if that works best for you! There are also a lot online, this is just what I use personally to keep myself organized.