I don’t know about you but because of the extra free-time and the competition for grocery delivery, not to mention my fear of grocery shopping right now, I have started to meal plan for two weeks at a time. And I’ve learned a few things in the last couple months that makes it easier so I thought I would share!

1. Plan Everything

While weekly meal plans benefit from a little give, 2-week meal plans are much more regimented. The day-to-day leeway is still there (yes you can swap Tuesday’s meal for Monday) but in order to maximize freshness and ensure as little food waste as possible you really have to have a Plan.

2. Figure out Food Preferences as a Family

If you, like my husband, are spoiled and are unwilling to eat the same food everyday or even the same TYPE of food, planning can get more difficult. How many days is too many days between tacos? Is four days enough time between Chinese stir fry and Japanese Ramen noodle bowls?

3. Understand What is Available Locally and How Long Food Lasts

It pays to really understand how long a food lasts in your fridge, raw or prepared and also know what foods are currently in season. The better you understand your ingredients the easier it is to plan. It’s spring right now and that means that my lettuce and spinach are going crazy. That means that we can have salads at every meal because I can run out to the garden, cut the greens fresh and I don’t have to worry about them going bad in my fridge over two weeks. Same with the rest of my garden produce when it arrives. This is harder in winter but for colder months I typically buy fresh produce for week one and use frozen produce for week two.

4. Plan to Make a Single Protein you can Reuse

Fourth, It’s easier and more economical to make a big batch of protein on a weekend and utilize it through-out the week. Roast a whole chicken, make a pork butt, or even make a huge pot of beans. By having something you can plan meals around that’s already cooked, meals takes less time. Plus, you can always freeze some of it for a different week.

5. Plan in those Times when you Won’t Want to Cook

Finally, plan in buffers. Recognize that 2-weeks of cooking, even for those of us who love it, is a lot. My husband is on the schedule to cook the only thing he does well-scrambled eggs-every Wednesday night. I also usually leave every fourth or fifth night open for leftovers/eat out. I hate throwing out food so a leftover night allows us to clean out the fridge and there are always Those Days, the ones that just need a Really Good Meal Cooked by Someone Else (Scrambled eggs do not count), to make it better.

Interested to see what we’re having for the next two weeks? Check out one of my meal plans