From chaos to cauliflower: the recipe weekly planner you’ll actually use

Meal planning sounds like one of those things that people with color-coded fridges and matching Tupperware do. But hear us out: a good recipe weekly planner isn’t about being perfect. It’s about knowing what’s for dinner before you get hungry enough to eat peanut butter on a spoon again.

This guide walks you through the best tools out there, from old-school printables to app-powered smart planning,and yes, we’ll show you how our weird little app, OH, a potato!, makes all of it way easier (and weirder).

Why meal planning matters

We get it, planning meals sounds about as thrilling as alphabetizing your spice rack. But it’s secretly a superhero move for your wallet, your time, and your planet.

Here’s why:

• Globally, households are responsible for 60% of food waste, contributing to an estimated 1.05 billion tonnes of food wasted in 2022. That’s over 1 billion meals thrown away every single day

• One-third of all food produced worldwide is lost or wasted, which includes everything from farm to fork

• In the UK alone, households tossed 6.4 million tonnes of food in 2021–22. That’s about 95 kg per person per year, costing around £250 per person and generating 18 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions

• Food waste also has a huge climate impact, accounting for 8–10% of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to UNEP 

• Most of that waste comes from… drumroll… not knowing what to do with the stuff in your fridge.

Meal planning = less waste, more dinner. It also saves money, reduces “what are we eating?” arguments, and makes grocery shopping 400% less stressful.

Online tools: Tesco real food meal planner

Tesco’s Real Food meal planner is one of the most popular options in the UK, and for good reason. It’s:

• Free

• Easy to use

• Full of recipe packs like the £25 Family Meal Plan (five dinners for under £25-love a bargain)

You can explore customer-submitted plans, adjust recipes, and generate shopping lists based on what you choose.

💡 But it's still locked into Tesco recipes. Great if you’re all-in on that ecosystem… less helpful if your fridge says “half a red pepper and one questionable yogurt.”

Free weekly templates: Live craft eat printables

For fans of analog (or those who just love a good printable), Live Craft Eat offers a dreamy batch of free, customizable planners, 11 styles, in fact.

Some features include:

💡 Pro tip: Print out a few and rotate weekly until you find your rhythm.

Dive into dinner: easy family recipes' weekly plans

Easy Family Recipes takes the “just tell me what to cook” approach. Every week, they post:

• A full 7-day meal plan

• Two side dishes per day

• Family-tested recipes that repurpose leftovers

You’ll find dinner ideas quick enough for weeknights and hearty enough to avoid the “this again?” look. Plus, no logins, no downloads-just scroll and cook.

💡 Still, it’s not super flexible. Can’t sub out Tuesday’s meatloaf? Tough luck.

Analog option: printed meal planner book

Prefer the smell of fresh notebook paper and the thrill of crossing things out? The Weekly Meal Planner Book on Amazon has 72 weeks’ worth of:

• Meal planning space

• Grocery lists

• Recipe logging pages

Why it works:

• Great for households who like structure

• No tech required

• You can draw tiny potatoes in the margins

💡 But once it’s printed, it’s not flexible. No auto-suggestions. No inventory scanning. Just you, a pen, and your ambition.

How to choose the right planner for you

Let’s break it down:

Some questions to ask yourself:

• Do you want a digital or paper setup?

• Do you plan on mobile or desktop?

• Do you need shared access? (Hellooo, household chaos.)

Tips for successful meal planning

No matter what tool you use, the following tips can help:

• Plan once, cook twice. Double a recipe and freeze half.

• Embrace the leftover slot. Don't pretend you'll cook 7 nights a week.

• Track what you already have. You probably have at least three half-used spice jars.

• Be realistic. If you never cook on Fridays, don’t schedule a five-step stir-fry.

Want more ideas for meal planning that are actually doable? We made a handy guide just for that.

Get started with OH, a potato!

Okay, we’ve seen the planners. Now let’s talk about the one that lives in your pocket-and talks to your fridge. OH, a potato! is the recipe weekly planner app that plans with you, not at you.

Here’s how it helps:

1. Fridge scanner
   Take a photo of your fridge or pantry. We extract what you already have. Magic? Yes. Witchcraft? Also yes.

2. Recipe suggestions based on your ingredients
   Just select the ingredients you want to use up and Potato delivers.

3. Browse new recipes or import your own
   Find new things to try, or pull that TikTok ramen hack straight into your plan.

4. Automatic grocery list
   Only buy what you need. No forgotten onions. No fourth jar of cumin.

5. Household sharing
   One plan. One list. Everyone gets involved. Even the picky one.

6. Grow your potato (Yes, really)
   Stick to your weekly plan, and your virtual potato evolves. It’s a little weird. And a lot motivating.

And if you’re new to this whole week meal planning thing, here’s a gentle crash course to get you started.

Conclusion: try one method this week

Whether you’re a pen-and-paper planner, a recipe hoarder, or a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-leftovers kind of cook, one thing’s true: a recipe weekly planner makes life easier.

Try one of the tools above. Or download OH, a potato! and let it do the hard part for you.

Worst-case scenario? You still end up with dinner. Best case? You finally use that jar of lentils and unlock a glittery potato avatar.