If you’re going to be having a busy week, the last thing you want to worry about is what meals to eat. Here are some tips and tricks for planning out your meals to make the week a little easier. 

Make a Menu
The easiest way to pre-plan your meals is by making a menu. Choose the meals you want to eat for the week and assign them to a day. Make sure you take into account what each day will look like for you and how much cook time you will have. Assign quick, easy meals to long days and leave more complicated meals for the days you’ll have a little extra time. Having a menu means you don’t have to think about what’s for dinner and you’ll know when things need to be prepped.

Buy Everything You Need at Once
Once you have your menu drafted, go through and write the ingredients of every single meal. Cross out anything you have and count up the duplicates. Then it’s time to make your list. By checking the recipes and accounting for each ingredient you will save yourself time not only in the store but at home. On a busy week, you don’t have time to be running to the store every day for forgotten ingredients.

Make Extra Portions
Don’t forget about lunches during your busy week. A great way to cut back on time and save on food waste is to make extra portions. If you’re used to cooking dinner for 2, then make it dinner for 4. Package up the leftovers in a reusable bag or container and your lunch will be all ready to go the next day.

Prep What You Can
If you’re short on time, the best thing to do is prep as much as you can ahead of time. A few ways to do this include pre-chopping vegetables, making slow cooker meals, and even making meals ahead of time to freeze for easy heating.