🕒 How to Meal Plan a Week of Family Meals in Just 20 Minutes

Do you ever open the fridge at 5 PM, hoping dinner magically appears? You’re not alone. Between school runs, work, and everything else on your plate, cooking often feels like a daily struggle.

Here’s the good news: meal planning doesn’t have to take hours. In fact, with the right system, you can plan a full week of family dinners in just 20 minutes. 🙌

Step 1: Choose Your Family’s Favorite Meals

Start by listing 5–6 meals your family already loves. Tacos, pasta night, a sheet-pan dinner — keep it simple. Having go-to meals takes the guesswork out of planning.

Step 2: Add Two “Lazy Dinners”

We all have those nights where energy is low. That’s where lazy dinners come in — think sandwiches, frozen pizza with a side salad, or breakfast-for-dinner. Quick, easy, and guilt-free.

Step 3: Create a Master Shopping List

Write down the ingredients for your chosen meals and see what overlaps. (Spoiler: you’ll save money by buying in bulk). Keep this list handy for next week too — it’s a time-saver that keeps paying off.

Step 4: Use a Meal Planner

Here’s where it gets easy: write your meals on a weekly meal planner template. Stick it on the fridge so everyone knows what’s for dinner (and you’ll avoid the dreaded “What’s for dinner, Mom?” question).

✨ To help you get started, I’ve created a FREE Weekly Meal Planning Template — grab it here and plan your week in minutes.

Step 5: Batch Cook When Possible

If you’ve got 30 extra minutes on Sunday, batch-cooking can save you hours later in the week.

For example:
👉 With 2 kilos of ground beef, I make meatballs with pasta & sauce, a meatloaf, and spaghetti bolognese — three dinners from one cooking session!

🎥 Want to see how I am meal prepping for the week ? Check out my video here: "10 Easy Meals you can Prep for the whole week"

Quick Dinner Ideas to Steal This Week

Need inspiration? Here are a few crowd-pleasers you can whip up fast:

• 🌮 Taco Tuesday (customize with toppings).

• 🍝 15-Minute Garlic Butter Pasta.

• 🥪 Grilled Cheese + Tomato Soup.

• 🥗 Rotisserie Chicken + Side Salad.

• 🍳 Breakfast-for-Dinner (eggs + toast + fruit).

The Secret: Keep It Simple

Meal planning isn’t about cooking gourmet meals every night — it’s about saving time, reducing stress, and making sure your family eats well. With just 20 minutes of planning, you’ll feel more organized and ready to take on the week.

✨ Don’t forget to download your FREE Weekly Meal Planning Template — it’s the exact tool that helps me stay on track (and keeps dinner stress-free).