The lazy days of summer are almost over and if you’re already contemplating easy, affordable weeknight meals and lunches, we’ve got you covered. Here are some back-to-school meal planning tips to save you money (and stress) seven days a week.
Key Takeaways
- Organization is your friend. Take some cues from the restaurant industry to minimize food waste.
- Plan ahead and shop smart to cut grocery costs—or if you forget, get creative to use the resources you already have.
- Get the whole family involved in menu planning. Not only does it minimize the stress load on parents, it also increases the likelihood of clean plates.
1. Keep it Simple
You don’t have to turn weeknight meals into an episode of The Bear. Keep the menu for lunches and dinners simple and eat what you like (see the menu planning tip below). If you struggle with ideas, consider a meal kit delivery service like Blue Apron, Hello Fresh, or Home Chef. Yes, they are costly, but for a family of four, it’s often cheaper than takeout. Plus, most services offer a wide variety of meals to choose from—no shopping required.
2. Get Organized
Food waste is one of the biggest contributors to food costs, so keep yours in check by organizing your fridge, freezer, and pantry.
- In the pantry. Stack similar items together (like baking stapes vs. canned vegetables). Make sure you can see everything (so you don’t buy doubles) by storing bulk items (like pasta and grains) in clear containers.
- In the fridge. Remove everything and toss all of the expired condiments and leftovers. Next, organize the remaining items in zones. The upper shelves should contain things for immediate use—like leftovers, drinks, and ready-to-eat items. Lower shelves—where temps are colder—is where to store eggs, raw meat, and dairy. Keep condiments and water in the door. The crisper drawers should be reserved for fruits and vegetables.
- In the freezer. Remove everything and toss all of the freezer-burned or unidentifiable items. Reorganize the remaining items in groups with similar items (like ground meats) together. Moving forward, label everything with the date it was packed. Freeze things flat whenever possible by placing your food in a plastic bag, pressing out the air, and laying it flat in the freezer. Once the bags are solid, stack them vertically in bins for easy access with the oldest items in the front.
3. Use Food Service Techniques to Stay Organized
Restaurants require special organization skills to avoid unnecessary waste (and keep diners safe). Take a page from their book by labeling and dating all of your leftovers and excess ingredients—especially the frozen ones. Then, in your pantry, freezer, and fridge, impose a “first in, first out” (FIFO) method. For this common restaurant technique, you’ll put new items behind the duplicate items you already have. That way, when you grab some frozen chicken, you’ll automatically choose the meat that needs to be used first. Also, do an inventory before you shop. If you do, you’ll know what you have and what needs to be used.
4. Use What You Have
If you are guilty of letting produce rot in the fridge or allowing meat to spoil before you cook it, you are not alone. It’s an easy, but obviously wasteful habit to fall into, so challenge yourself to use those greens, ground meats, and other things before they go bad. Don’t be afraid to add unexpected things to ordinary dishes—like kale in your spaghetti sauce or minced broccoli in your scrambled eggs.
5. Plan for Leftovers
Cook larger meals and use the leftovers for easy lunches. Not only does it reduce waste and your overall cost, it also saves time. Casseroles, curries, pasta, and stews reheat beautifully as next-day meals and several leftovers are just as delightful when eaten cold. Examples include fried or roast chicken; meatloaf; BBQ brisket or ribs; quiche, pizza, and several stir-fries.
6. Shop Smart
For weeknight dinners, make a list of meals and buy no more than you expect to use—and then use it. For lunches, choose affordable proteins, like nuts, peanut butter, canned beans, canned tuna, or canned chicken.
Also, when you shop, follow the basic budget shopping rules:
- Don’t shop hungry.
- Stick to the list.
- Shop in-season produce.
- Compare prices and shop sales.
- Buy in bulk and freeze what you don’t currently need (but only when it makes sense).
- Avoid pre-packaged items
7. Go Green
Single-use items like plastic bags and water bottles add up over time. Switch to reusable supplies like insulated bottles and lunch boxes to save. Incentivize your children to bring home the items every day with a boost in their allowance or special reward. For example, give them a marble every day they bring their items home. The marble goes in a jar and at the end of a designated period (a week, month or semester) they get a special prize.
8. Think Beyond the Sandwich
Sandwiches are great, but they don’t work for every child—or every budget. Mix it up by including other healthy, filling options like mini quiches, leftover pizza, tortilla pinwheels, pasta salad, mini burritos, or DIY Lunchables. There are no rules, but—economically speaking—it makes sense to include fun, delicious things that your kids will actually eat. Make a list of their favorites and if something works, repeat it as often as necessary.
9. Plan Meals and Pack Lunches in Advance
Plan your weekly dinner menu and pack lunches the night before to employ one of your most powerful money-saving tools: mindfulness. Why? When we have time to think about our choices, we make smarter decisions. So, think about what you want to include in meals and buy only what you need.
10. Involve the Kids in Planning
Sit down as a family and make a list of your top 15 favorite meals. Then have everybody rank each meal from one to five (five being the best). Note the top three ranking meals and keep them in heavy rotation from week to week.
Kids can also help with lunch preparation. Encourage them to pack their own. To keep it healthy, give them a limited menu of nutritious options by making a list of proteins, fruits, vegetables, snacks, and grains that you regularly keep on hand. Laminate the list and use it as a menu and guide for packing well-rounded lunches.
Want more money-saving back-to-school tips?
- Check out our article on Money-Saving Back-to-School Shopping Tips.
- Find some ideas on How to Budget for Extracurricular Sports & Activities.
- Learn what Maps is doing to help fund educational initiatives (and how you can help)!