Healthy Meal Planning

What you will be able to do

• use the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating to check the balance of a whole week of meals.
• build a balanced meal from four simple parts, and upgrade meals you already cook.
• plan seven days of meals in about 20 minutes around your real diary, with a back-up meal for busy nights.
• turn your plan into a shopping list sorted by aisle and compare products using the Health Star Rating and the Nutrition Information Panel.
• keep a store cupboard, fridge and freezer that let you make a balanced meal on any night.
• plan and run a batch-cooking session, and cool, store, defrost and reheat food safely.
• plan leftovers on purpose and cut the food you throw away.
• review your week and build a 3 to 4 week meal rotation you can reuse.

1. 1What a healthy week of food looks like

   Learn why planning makes healthy eating easier, and use the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating as a simple template for a whole week, not just one plate.

   • Why meal planning makes healthy eating easier
   • The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating as your weekly template
   • Building a balanced meal in practice

   Quick Balanced Meal Cards

2. 2Your 7-day plan in 20 minutes

   Follow a simple weekly routine to plan dinners around your real diary, then set up breakfasts, lunches and snacks that almost plan themselves.

   • A 20-minute weekly planning routine
   • Breakfasts, lunches and snacks on autopilot
   • Plans that fit real life

   7-Day Healthy Meal Planner

3. 3Shopping smart, aisle by aisle

   Turn your plan into a shopping list sorted by aisle, read labels in seconds, and get more healthy food for your money.

   • From meal plan to shopping list
   • Reading labels in seconds
   • Getting more healthy food for your money

   Shopping List by Aisle

4. 4Store cupboard, fridge and freezer staples

   Stock a small set of healthy staples so you can always make a balanced meal, and use your fridge and freezer as planning tools.

   • Building a healthy store cupboard
   • Your fridge and freezer as planning tools
   • Meals from the cupboard when there is 'nothing in'

   Store-Cupboard Staples ChecklistQuick Balanced Meal Cards

5. 5Batch cooking without the burnout

   Choose what to batch cook, run an efficient session in about 90 minutes, and cool, freeze and reheat your food safely.

   • What to batch cook and how much
   • A 90-minute batch session, step by step
   • Cooling, freezing, defrosting and reheating safely

   Batch-Cooking Planner

6. 6Leftovers, less waste and keeping it going

   Plan leftovers on purpose, cut food waste at home, and turn your first plan into a routine that lasts.

   • Planned leftovers: cook once, eat twice
   • Cutting food waste at home
   • Keeping your plan going, and when to get help

   Leftovers Planner7-Day Healthy Meal Planner

• Planner7-Day Healthy Meal PlannerPlan a balanced week of breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks on one page, with cook nights, leftover nights and a back-up meal marked in.
• PlannerBatch-Cooking PlannerPlan one batch-cooking session: what you will cook, in what order, how many portions it makes, where each portion goes and which days you will eat it.
• ListShopping List by AisleA ready-made shopping list in supermarket aisle order: untick what you already have, add what your meal plan needs, and shop in one loop.
• CheckerStore-Cupboard Staples ChecklistTick the healthy staples you already keep in your cupboard, fridge and freezer to see how ready you are to make a balanced meal on a busy night, and what to buy next.
• PlannerLeftovers PlannerPlan your leftovers on purpose: what you cooked, how many extra portions you saved, what they will become and the day they must be eaten or frozen by.
• CardsQuick Balanced Meal CardsTwelve printable, everyday meal ideas built on the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating, each made mostly from staples and ready in about 30 minutes, to slot straight into your planner.