This is how I rock the Paleo Meal Planning. I've got 6 simple steps lined out for you plus some great tips!
Here's my first post on this topic.
And another good one.
A few additional tips before we get to the act of planning:
- I buy farmers market veggies and eggs whenever possible.
- I also get a weekly CSA box.
- Always check the weekly coupons at your local grocery store. I typically pick/plan based on what meats and veggies that are on sale after I go to the farmers market.
- See what items you're okay with purchasing from a value grocer. I found things like organic onions and garlic are much cheaper at Vons (and by value I mean cheaper than Whole Paycheck). Check out the clean 15 and the dirty 12.
STEP #1: First and foremost you'll need to get out a fresh piece of paper (ugh, MOM- I sound EXACTLY like you right now!!) and sit the eff down. Yes, meal planning takes time but it's time well spent!
STEP #2: Write out the days of the week for your dinners (I usually do just 3-5 days because one way or another Jer and I end up at a friends house, out to eat or having leftovers). The key with integrating the dinners and lunches is to pick dinners that will give you leftovers or will serve for both meals.
STEP #3: Pick a protein. Try to mix up poultry, fish, beef, pork etc to keep things interesting. From there you can click on my recipe drop down to find recipes for each protein category. Or you can literally google "Name of Protein_Paleo Recipe" and come up with just about 4 million hits now a days.
STEP #4: Pick a veggie side. You can do one hot, one cold or just a big serving of one type of veggie. Think about if you'd like to have any sauces or particular way of cooking the veggie and from there, find your recipe.
DINNER:
- Monday- Lamb and Bison Stuffed Peppers (Make 4) with blanched asparagus
- Tuesday- Jer's Favorite Sketti with giant green salad
- Wednesday- Slow Cooker Chicken with roasted brussels
- Thursday- Paleo Carnitas Taco's with Mexican cole slaw
- Friday- Bacon, Avo, Shroom Burgers with sweet potato fries
STEP #5: Plan for brekkie, lunches and snacks! Keep in mind that ANYTHING is acceptable as a breakfast food. Leftovers are always on the list and I add a few more options to make sure my husband and I stay on track.
LUNCH/BREKKIE:
- Salad with sliced steak
- Tuna salad sandwiches with apple slices as "bread"
- Slow cooker chicken lettuce wraps with salsa
- Hard boiled egg, tomato and bacon bowl
- Cole slaw w/ hard boiled egg and shredded chicken
- Leftover sketti with a cucumber salad
- Leftover burger
- Salami with cucumber and deli mustard
- 1/2 lb lamb
- 1 lb bison
- 1 lb ground pork
- 1 lb venison
- 1 free range whole chicken
- 4 lb pork butt
- 2 lb grass fed ground beef
- 2 lb grass fed skirt steak
- 1 lb bacon
- 1 log salami
- 4 bell peppers
- 3 onions
- Asparagus
- Sketti squash
- Salad lettuce
- Radishes
- Kale
- Brussels
- Cabbage
- Carrots
- Sweet taters
- Wrap lettuce
- Avo
- Shrooms
- Tomato
- Cucumbers
- Limes
- Fresh herbs
- Eggs
- Mineral water
- Grapefruit juice
- Mustard
- Grass fed ghee
- Etc..
Live to Thrive,
Lauren