With this easy-to-follow guide, you’ll know exactly what to make for dinner every night, even if you don’t have a ton of time or home-cooked meals stress you out!

The secret to getting dinner on the table!

Listen, I get it. It’s not a walk in the park to get dinner on the table every night. There are certainly evenings where calling in pizza delivery or popping a frozen-box meal into the oven are the only option. Life’s crazy, days are long, and kids aren’t always the easiest, we’ll say, to feed.

I’m right there with you! With five little mouths of my own to feed, plus two adults, mealtime can feel like a hectic, uphill battle many days of the week. Or maybe you’re just trying to make it through the next hour until the end of the day, and by 5 p.m., it finally hits you there’s one more meal to crank out before you can hit the hay. Toddler mamas, you’re most likely in the thick of this “one hour at a time” season, and I know it well.

The secret to taking the crazy out of dinner: make a master list of meals!

Much more flexible than full meal planning, let me explain.

What if I told you I have the fix to mealtime planning chaos? It’s not a fairy godmother or a miracle, and it requires a bit of foresight and planning, but this system has absolutely transformed how I approach family meal prep. The easy answer? Make a master list! And here’s how.

1. Pick a Plan Type

Pick a main dinner plan (see options below!) and then pick 7 (or more) sub-categories, one for each day of the week.

• MOST COMMON: Dinner Plan 1: By Cuisine Type – Examples of different categories: Comfort food night, Italian night, meatless dinners, soup, breakfast for dinner, Mexican, pizza night, grill, ethnic, or slow cooker. This is the dinner plan that I personally do.
• Dinner Plan 2 : Meat-Based – Chicken, hamburger, seafood, red meat, or pork.
• Dinner Plan 3: Grain-Based – Rice, pasta, bread, corn, potatoes, beans, or lentils.

2. Make a Master List

Write all 7 of those genres on a piece of paper, and write down all the meals that you can think of that fit into each category. Pick recipes and meals that you know that you like and have made before.

The goal: Make a list of recipes that you already make! This is a giant mental dump list of things you can make, not new recipes.

Example- Category: Soup

• Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe
• Cream of Tomato Soup
• Tortellini soup
• Loaded Baked Potato Soup (Instant Pot recipe)
• Butternut Squash Soup
• 30 Minute Alphabet Soup
• Beef Vegetable Soup (slow cooker recipe)
• Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
• Chicken and Dumplings Soup
• Vegetable Soup
• Cheesy Broccoli Soup

Example- Category: Mexican/Tex-Mex

• Shrimp Fajitas
• Enchiladas
• Smothered burritos
• Crunchy Baked Chicken Tacos
• Best Chicken Tacos Ever
• Ground Beef Enchiladas
• One Pan Chicken Enchilada Casserole
• Cheesy Gordita Crunch  (Taco Bell knock-off)
• Chicken Burritos

Example- Category: Breakfast for Dinner

• Easy Egg and Potato Breakfast Casserole
• Blueberry Pancakes
• Classic Belgian Waffle Recipe
• Scrambled Eggs with Healthy Carrot Cake Muffins
• Easy Egg and Potato Breakfast Casserole
• Banana Waffles
• Spinach Quiche with Sausage
• Homemade Pancakes: traditional, whole wheat, blueberry, and chocolate chip

Example- Category: Italian

• Spaghetti and Easy Homemade Meatballs
• Creamed Pasta with Bacon and Vegetables
• Classic Homemade Lasagna Recipe
• Baked Spaghetti
• Easy Slow Cooker Vegetable Lasagna
• 30 Minute Simple Roasted Tomato and Sausage Pasta
• Homemade Bolognese Sauce (perfect over spaghetti)
• Zucchini Pasta

Example- Category: Ethnic

• Hungarian Goulash
• Simple Lentil Curry with Butternut Squash
• Quick and Easy Sweet Potato Curry (meatless)
• Green Thai Chicken Coconut Curry
• Orange Chicken with Stir-Fry Veggies
• Shrimp Stir Fry
• Hunan Beef Recipe
• Chopped Asian Peanut Salad with Homemade Peanut Dressing

Example- Category: Pizza Night

• Quick and Easy Flatbread Pizzas
• Calzones
• Stuffed Crust Pizza
• Deep Dish Skillet Pizza
• Stromboli
• Pizza with Chicken and Bacon
• Supreme Pizza Stuffed Zucchini
• Brooklyn Style Pizza Recipe
• How to Make Pizza Dough

Example- Category: Comfort Food

• Ground Beef Stroganoff
• Meatloaf
• Ham and Potato Casserole
• Buttermilk Fried Chicken
• Oven Pork Chops with Funeral Potatoes
• Homemade Biscuits and Gravy
• Shepherd’s Pie
• Beef Short Ribs with Baked Mac and Cheese
• Chicken and Stuffing Casserole
• Chicken and Rice Casserole

Example- Category: Super Easy

• Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup
• Baked Potatoes (with simple toppings)
• Cornbread Waffles with Chili; 15 Minute Dinner
• Club Sandwiches
• 20 Minute Cheesy Pizza Sticks
• Easy Grilled Salmon Recipe
• Easy Homemade Mac and Cheese
• Chili Dogs

Example- Category: Slow Cooker Dinners

• Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Pork Chops
• 5 Ingredient Slow Cooker Chicken Legs
• Garlic and Herb Whole Chicken in the Crock Pot
• Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin and Potatoes
• Easy Slow Cooker Chili
• Creamy Slow Cooker Potato Corn Chowder with Ham
• Perfect Slow Cooker Pot Roast
• Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

Example- Category: Meatless Dinners

• Spinach Lasagna
• Pesto Pasta
• Quick and Easy Sweet Potato Curry (meatless)
• Instant Pot Split Pea Soup
• Pesto Grilled Cheese Sandwich
• Vegetable Lo Mein
• Instant Pot Vegetarian Chili

Example- Category: Instant Pot Dinner

• The Best Instant Pot Broccoli and Cheese Soup
• Instant Pot Loaded Baked Potato Soup
• Classic Ham and Bean Soup (Instant Pot or Slow Cooker recipe)
• Instant Pot Shrimp Boil
• Chipotle Chicken Burrito Bowls (Instant Pot or Slow Cooker)
• Instant Pot or Slow Cooker Cajun Beans and Rice Recipe
• Easy Crispy Instant Pot Pork Taco Recipe

NOTES: The possibilities are endless! The goal is to write down things that you know how to make and are comfortable making, and that aren’t new to you.

New recipes can have their own spot; make it its own day of the week, and make a category list of new recipes you would like to try.

This list-making process will streamline your meal planning so much, so don’t skip it. This is what makes it easy, too! Don’t feel like you have to only choose seven categories to make lists for either, you might want to have 9 to 10 master lists to draw from. It’s up to you!

This is your master list. Don’t lose it! I recommend saving it on your computer under a very easy title so you can look it up. I also print out a copy and tape it to the inside of my cabinet, and keep a second copy in my planner (where I make my shopping list) for easy reference.

3. Use Your New List!

At the start of a a new week or when you need to, check out your list, pick a few meals you know how to make, make a grocery list, and dinner is done! Half of the effort of making dinner is PLANNING what to make. You just made that easier on yourself by taking all of the “thinking” part out of the planning! Just look at your list.

Want to take your meal planning to the next level?

Use your list to plan a MONTH at a time! Here’s how!

With this easy-to-follow guide, you’ll know exactly what to make for dinner every night, even if you don’t have a ton of time or home-cooked meals stress you out!