This week’s Money Monday post is all about making a simple meal plan which includes having the same meals twice in one week.

We can sometimes feel pressure to provide a different meal every night, constantly worrying that the weekly menu might get boring.  Getting stuck in this mindset causes so much stress as well as costs you extra money.

I used to always buy more than we needed each week, my cupboards were overflowing and my freezer jam-packed. When I decided to start using the envelope system to budget I realised that something had to change or I would forever be overspending on groceries.

I sat down and wrote a list of 14 meals that the whole family enjoy, keeping in mind the cost of the meal and how many it would feed. I decided to rotate the meal each week and sometimes repeat the same meal twice.

Every week I write a shopping list making sure to check the cupboards to avoid buying duplicates. I buy only what we need, working out how much veg we need for each meal as well so there won’t be any food waste.

Of course, there is a little flexibility sometimes. A few weeks ago I cooked a whole chicken and planned to make two nights of roast chicken dinners but decided to make a pie instead using the leftover chicken and some other ingredients. The point is, on the whole, I’m sticking to the plan and it’s saving us so much money.

I do find it hard to ignore all those great bargains on the supermarket shelves but I keep reminding myself that something is only a bargain if you really need it. I’m really enjoying having money leftover in those envelopes at the end of each week.

We have also started doing our main shopping trip almost entirely at Aldi which seems to be saving us a lot of money. I love the quality and prices of their fruit and vegetables.

Do you stick to a menu plan? Does your family moan about having the same meals each week or are you all on the budget bandwagon together?

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