Meal Planning

Meal planning tips

• Meal planning can help you eat healthier and save you time and money. 
• Plan easy meals for busy days and bigger meals for when you have more time.
• Check your cupboards, fridge and freezer to see what needs to be used. Plan meals with those foods first.
• Check the grocery store flyers or use a mobile phone app for the weekly sales. Plan meals using the foods that are on sale.

Balanced meals

The Plate Model can help you eat a balanced meal. This visual tool encourages use of the three food groups in amounts that are suggested by Canada's Food Guide.

Fill ½ your plate with vegetables and fruit

• Try making half of your plate vegetables and fruit.
• Frozen and canned vegetables and fruit are nutritious, easy to prepare, and often cost less.
• Buy fresh fruits and vegetables when they are in season. Freeze extras for later. 

Replace juice with water

Fill ¼ of your plate with whole grains

• Eat a variety of whole grain foods such as quinoa, whole grain pasta, whole grain bread, whole oats or oatmeal, whole grain brown rice, and wild rice.
• Read the ingredient list and choose foods that have the word “whole grain” followed by the name of the grain as one of the first ingredients like:
  • whole grain oats
  • whole grain wheat

Fill a ¼ of your plate with protein foods:

• Protein foods include eggs, beans, peas, lentils, tofu, nuts, seeds, fish and shellfish, lean meats and poultry, lower fat dairy products, and fortified soy beverages.
• Choose protein foods that come from plants more often.
• You don’t need to eat large amounts of protein foods to meet your nutritional needs.

Keep it basic

Healthy meals don't need to be difficult to prepare. Keep basic ingredients in you cupboards, fridge and freezer to make a meal.

Resources:

• Health-Related video gallery - Health Canada
• Menu Planning - UnlockFood
• Food Choices when Money is Tight - UnlockFood