Meal Planning Rotations has proven to be the best way to creating a meal plan that isn’t going to become dull. Read this why and how-to for meal planning rotations.

My Pinterest Research suggests that creating meals on a rotation is one of the best ways to save money with groceries. It becomes routine, and  your spending habits become a little more predictable. To accommodate both mine and Kyler’s loosely defined dietary needs, I will informally blend Mediterranean and Keto diet characteristics (i.e. fewer carbs and more produce). My current meals always include meat, veggies, starch. Now I’m thinking that I should increase the vegetables in a given meal- something like “1 from the green and 2 from the ground” such as oven roasted carrots with olive oil and seasoning, potatoes, green beans, bell peppers, broccoli…..the list is somewhat short because Kyler is picky. A 5 lb bag of carrots is $3.98 and as long as we diligently eat the carrots, none of it should go to waste… 

Simply having tacos every Tuesday, breakfast on Fridays, etc. sounds like it could get boring- but Pinterest research suggests it works. I’m going to modify it a bit by having central focuses instead. See below.

My Meal Planning Rotations

  1. Pasta
  2. Pork
  3. Veggie/Soup
  4. Chicken/Turkey
  5. Tacos
  6. Beef
  7. Leftovers/Misc
  8. “Fancy”- the very occasional fish/shrimp dish. Although- Shrimp is kinda cheap, $16 for 50-70 count frozen bag, and can be easily incorporated into pasta, veggies and taco dishes. I’ll have to keep track of how many meals I can use the shrimp before the bag is empty!

Why a “Vague” Rotation?

It seems easier to me to go around this sort of rotation- it keeps things from getting stale and I can pick something new everyday or on a week by week basis. It also helps that I organize my recipes on Pinterest by meat.

Additional things to Consider for Meal Planning Rotations

Prices vary greatly between readers. I am always seeing blog posts on Pinterest that seems promising, but then after I finish reading the article, I’m just as lost as I was before. I live up in Montana and the grocery items listed in these other articles are not that cheap….Milk in Montana is not $1 and we don’t have those amazingly cheap grocery stores, and our Dollar Tree only has a small freezer section. Some pantry staples are reasonably similar in prices but dairy, bread and produce is not. 

Strategy Plan

What I currently do is compare prices between Walmart, my local grocery store, Costco and my favorite: Target (not affiliate). I use the Target app and seriously prepare my grocery trip there….It’s best to stick to your list when you head into Target. 😉 

I’ve often read about using a cash-only system when it comes to grocery shopping, but the challenge in that is when you use payment systems like your Target app. Then you combine sale prices, coupons in the RedCard savings all in one transaction digitally. 

However, another strategy I am going to try is shopping for in-season produce at my local Farmer’s Markets with cash. 1. Purchasing in-season produce is a great way to save always 2. I want to see how prices compare. I will keep you posted on that matter…. 3. Perhaps I can stretch a weekly produce allowance farther than at the local store…. We are essentially paying for quality and the cost it takes for the produce to get to the store, and what’s closer than the Farmer’s Market? (Not counting your own garden). It’s possible that this doesn’t turn out the way I hope but that’ll be okay. 

Read to set up your Meal Plan Rotation? Click here!