If you plan what you want to eat and THEN shop for those items, you probably will not save money, because you will be buying the items whether they are on sale or not.
The best way to plan a menu is to look at what is already in your freezer and pantry and plan from there. You can add what is on sale that week, though I find it quickest and easiest to plan our menu based on what I already have (other than the produce, etc., that I buy regularly each week). Then I'm not committed to having to shop to get the items for that week's meals. This also makes it more of a time-saver, too.
The best part for me, though, is knowing what is for dinner each night - it takes away all that 4:30 pm stress that comes with the question "what should I make for dinner?"
Of course, if I thought my menu meant I could never change it if I felt like tacos on tomato soup night, I wouldn't ever do it! I like to change it up every now and then, but not as much as I like the comfort in knowing something is planned versus the times when I haven't had a menu planned.
Another bonus I'm discovering is that a menu seems to allow me the ability (time? thought?) to plan some new recipes I'd like to try. I don't know why, but when I don't plan, we just seem to have the same old things (tacos, spaghetti, etc.), I guess because they are easy to remember.
All this leads to Monday's Menu (I'm most comfortable doing a weekly menu). I plan only for dinners, as everyone makes their own breakfasts around here (except for the weekends), and lunches are usually leftovers for the adults and sandwiches for the kids. I just make sure I have items for these general meals on hand.
These are my steps to dinner menu planning with an eye toward frugality and ease:
1. Download and print a free calendar for the month (I like Calendars That Work).
2. Look in the freezer and/or pantry for items to use up. If there's a lot, or there's a need to clean out the freezer, I make a list.
3. To make planning easier for me, I assign a certain theme or ingredient to each day- I don't always keep to it, but it gives me a starting point for finding a meal. Right now my days are broken down this way:
Monday-kids youth night (needs to be portable)
Tuesday-Mexican/Asian
Wednesday-Beans
Thursday-Chicken
Friday-Fish/Vegetarian
Saturday-alternate Pizza and Burgers
Sunday- Free (leftovers, quick meal of pasta, or eat out- in other words, flexible!)
4. Start filling in each day with meals. I usually start with things that our family likes. I also keep a binder of past menus for ideas and to remember what we've liked and haven't had in awhile. I'll look at new recipes for ingredients that are new to me or things I've wanted to try for awhile. If I've got a stack of recipes to try, I'll see where I can plug those in according to what I found in the pantry first, then go to the past menus. Basically, it takes more time to figure out new meals, so if it's a busy time, there may not be many new items on our menu that week.
5. That's it! It usually only takes me about 10 minutes. It only takes longer if I've decided I want to try some new recipes or have a lot of ingredients I want to use up.
Here's a sample menu:
Monday - Sandwiches (homemade bread); chips; veggies
Tuesday - Soft Tacos
Wednesday- Sausage and Lentil Stew; Artisan Bread; vegetables and dip
Thursday - Maple Mustard Chicken; roasted potatoes; sauteed green beans; green salad
Friday- Hoisin Baked Salmon on Soba Noodles
Thursday - Maple Mustard Chicken; roasted potatoes; sauteed green beans; green salad
Friday- Hoisin Baked Salmon on Soba Noodles
Saturday- Homemade Pizza
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