Paleo Meal Planners

Kaitlyn811

Hello fellow Groks!

I see there is a vast choice of paleo meal planners out there now - I have eMeals currently - and do not use it (which, if anyone wants my account info - have at it!!).

Looking for opinions on paleo/primal meal planners out there - primalpal, Mark Sisson's, Chris Kresser's, etc?

Let's hear it!

TGIF!

Dragonwolf

Like, actual tools to help plan out meals?

I've tried various such tools in the past, but could never really get into them. Most tools I've tried have lackluster phone interfaces, making them a bit of a hassle to actually use in the store. Some tools I've had are better than others, especially these days, but I still haven't found any I really like. Most also end up coming up with stuff our family wouldn't eat (we're not fish eaters, for example), but to be fair, those were more generic/CW planners.

Instead, I just peruse cookbooks or websites for recipes if I don't fall back to a standby, then build a list of stuff I need in something like Workflowy ( https://workflowy.com/ ), which is a little more freeform list-making. The typical meat + vegetables formula is pretty easy to build with, and we don't often have a lot of time to do some of the crazier meals some people do, though, so our meals tend to be simple and straightforward.

That said, I'd love to hear about and try some promising tools. I've been piecing together a way to keep inventory of staple stuff in my kitchen, to sort of automate stock-keeping and shopping-list building. A tool like that would be awesome, as would one that could then take that stock and suggest recipes that don't require shopping or can suggest substitutes that I have one hand. That's probably a pipe dream, though.

Kaitlyn811

I feel you there! When I get home from work it's already 5:30 and I'm usually hungry so I like to make things in 30 minutes or less. I suck at planning because I try to focus on getting enough sleep during the week (after packing lunches, working out, getting kiddo to bed, getting myself ready in the morning, blah blah adulthood blah blah).

So..I know primal pal and Kresser's plans allow you to edit foods out that you don't eat or are allergic to. And you can move meals around on a whole calendar (which I think is nice - eMeals does NOT do this). i feel like eMeals is geared towards too many different eating styles and not enough flexibility for me. I also only like to grocery shop every 2 weeks - so it would be nice finding a planner that allows for that (which, if I plan by the month it could be and I could just stock up).

I have seen several "paleo" shopping lists, but i tend to look up substitutes as needed. I keep a pretty stocked house, so usually I can find a sub. Hmm..maybe I should pull an all nighter occasionally and brew this stuff up for us

sunnycrisv

I'm with you guys. No time during the week to deal with this. I still use old-fashioned pen and paper and stick the week's menu to the side of the fridge. Helps me keep on track with variety and easily know at any time of the day what I'm supposed to be eating.

3rdxacharm

I bought a Paleo bundle last year and it came with the Primal Blueprint Meal Plan from Mark Sisson. I really enjoyed it and I tried some different things I wouldn't normally cook. It's $10/month. May be worth trying for one month. I still use several of his recipes. I had this for lunch today :happy:

Zucchini Egg Bake
Approximate cooking time: 50 minutes
primal-mealplan_zucchini-egg-bake
This dish is a lot like a casserole and is something that is great to serve for dinner alongside a salad. It can be made ahead of time and heated up just before eating, although it’s great cold if you’re too hungry to wait.

Nutritional Information (per serving)

358 Calories
10g Carbs
29g Fat
18g Protein
7g Net Carbs

Serving Size

4 servings


INGREDIENTS
4 Tbs butter
¼ cup finely chopped onion
2 lbs zucchini, grated
1/2 lb ground Italian sausage or other ground meat
3 eggs, beaten
⅓ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a sauté pan, melt butter and add onion and zucchini. Sauté until zucchini is tender, 5–7 minutes.
Put zucchini in a colander to drain off any excess liquid.
Add sausage to the sauté pan and sauté until just cooked.
Combine the sausage and zucchini and season to taste.
Add eggs, mix well, and pour into an 8x8 square pan.
Grate cheese on top.
Bake uncovered 35–40 minutes.

skygirll

So..I know primal pal and Kresser's plans allow you to edit foods out that you don't eat or are allergic to. And you can move meals around on a whole calendar (which I think is nice - eMeals does NOT do this). i feel like eMeals is geared towards too many different eating styles and not enough flexibility for me. I also only like to grocery shop every 2 weeks - so it would be nice finding a planner that allows for that

looks like I'm reading this 2 weeks later, have you tried one of the other plans you found? I would love some feedback!

bostonwolf

I have a BIG crockpot. Once every two weeks or so I'll make a Paleo chili that usually yields 12 portions at about 450-500 calories each. I put them in tupperware and freeze them and that is my lunch more days that not (if not it's a grilled chicken salad.)

General recipe:

Brown all the meat:
5lbs beef
2-3 lbs other (pork, chicken, turkey, lamb whatever is cheap)
1 big package of button mushrooms
1 big package of shredded carrots
2 onions
28oz can of crushed tomatoes
4-5 tbsp chili powder
4 tbsp cumin powder
2-3 tbsp tumeric (great anti-inflammatory and antioxidant)

Let it simmer in the slowcooker until done and some of the liquid cooks off. Then batch it out and freeze.

I find that eating the same or similar meals every day helps me IMMENSELY in staying on plan. I generally have four egg whites, two whole eggs and a 100-calories guacamole pack for breakfast along with some kind of meat (currently chicken sausages) and chili/salad for lunch.

Then I only have to actually think about one meal, and usually that is some pre-made pre portioned meat plus cooking up some frozen veggies.

Quick, painless and tasty.