Healthy weekly menu that is easy to prepare, with a shopping list

Who is this menu for, and who is it not for?

This menu is designed for healthy adults who want to eat better and look after their weight without making things complicated, and who have little time to cook during the week.

It is not designed for pregnancy or breastfeeding, people under 18, or people with diabetes treated with insulin or medicines that may lower blood sugar too much. It is also not designed for people with chronic kidney disease or anyone who has or has had an eating disorder. If you have a condition that requires its own dietary plan (coeliac disease, a diagnosed allergy, or heart or liver failure), follow that plan. It is not designed for people who train with very high energy needs either. In these cases, consult a dietitian in coordination with your doctor.

If you have or have had an eating disorder, the first step is to speak to a team specialising in psychology, before considering any menu.

The menu does not set a calorie target. Each person’s needs vary with height, sex, muscle mass and physical activity. The fundamentals of weight loss are covered in our guide to eating for weight loss. To help you get organised, also see our guide to organising lunchboxes with batch cooking and our guide to planning healthy lunches and dinners. See “Cooking for an older person living alone”.

A full week, with each meal ready in 20 minutes

Each day includes breakfast, lunch and dinner, all prepared in 20 minutes or less using a griddle, a frying pan, a microwave and tinned ingredients. At Alimmenta, we encourage you to have breakfast if it suits you and fits your routine; having it matters more than the time you eat it.

Weekly shopping list, by section

These are approximate quantities for one adult for seven days. Check what you already have in your cupboard and only buy what you are missing.

If you use a plant-based drink instead of milk, choose an unsweetened one with at least 3 g of protein per 100 ml (check the label). Soy drink is the best match. Bear in mind that soy is an allergen.

Vegetables

• Salad tomatoes (1.5 kg)
• Cherry tomatoes (1 x 250 g punnet)
• Cucumbers (2)
• Medium courgettes (3)
• Red and green peppers (2)
• Baby spinach (1 x 300 g bag)
• Mixed salad leaves, such as lamb’s lettuce, rocket or lettuce (2 x 150 g bags)
• Asparagus (1 bunch)
• Sliced mushrooms (1 x 250 g punnet)
• Fresh or frozen green beans (200 g)
• Frozen stir-fry vegetables, such as broccoli, carrot and pepper (1 x 500 g bag)
• Avocado (1)
• Fresh mint and parsley (1 bunch of each)
• Garlic (1 bulb)

Fruit

• Apples (5)
• Pears (2)
• Oranges and mandarins (4)
• Kiwis (2)
• Banana (1)
• Peach (1)
• Strawberries and blueberries or other berries (1 x 250 g punnet)
• Melon and pineapple (1 slice or small tray of each)
• Lemons (3)

Pulses, grains and starchy foods

• Tinned cooked chickpeas (1 x 400 g tin)
• Tinned cooked lentils (1 x 400 g tin)
• Tinned cooked white beans (1 x 400 g tin)
• Precooked brown rice in a microwaveable pot (1)
• Wholemeal pasta (1 x 500 g pack)
• Wholemeal soup noodles and rice noodles (1 small pack of each)
• Oats (1 x 500 g pack)
• 100% wholemeal bread (1 baguette or 1 sliced loaf)
• Medium potatoes (2)

Fish, meat and eggs

• Thinly sliced chicken breast (300 g)
• Turkey breast strips (150 g)
• Sea bream fillet (1, about 180 g)
• Fresh or frozen hake (1 portion, about 150 g)
• Tuna in spring water (2 small tins)
• Tinned pilchards and mackerel in spring water (1 tin of each)
• Frozen peeled prawns (1 x 200 g bag)
• Eggs (1 dozen)
• Firm tofu (1 x 200 g pack)

Dairy and drinks

• Unsweetened natural yoghurt (8)
• Fresh cheese (2 x 250 g tubs)
• Fromage frais (1 x 250 g tub)
• Milk or unsweetened soy drink (1 litre)

Store cupboard, tinned foods and seasonings

• Extra virgin olive oil
• Cider or sherry vinegar
• Reduced-salt soy sauce
• Crushed tomatoes (1 small tin)
• Tinned piquillo peppers (1 small tin)
• Tinned sweetcorn (1 small tin)
• Curry powder, sweet paprika, oregano, cinnamon and black pepper
• Linseeds and chia seeds
• Unsalted raw walnuts (1 x 100 g pack)
• Reduced-salt vegetable stock (1 x 1-litre carton)
• Assorted herbal teas

Four ways to cook in 20 minutes or less

With a well-stocked cupboard, four handy options will take care of almost every meal this week.

1. Store-cupboard staples. Tinned pulses, frozen vegetables and fish canned in water make a complete meal in under 10 minutes. Rinse the pulses under the tap to remove some of the salt in the liquid, then stir-fry them with vegetables or add them to a salad.
2. The microwave. Prick a medium potato with a fork, wrap it in baking paper and cook on full power for about 6 minutes. Steam sliced or floretted vegetables in a microwave-safe dish with two tablespoons of water for 4 or 5 minutes.
3. Quick stir-fries. Thin strips of chicken, turkey or tofu cook in 4 or 5 minutes in a very hot frying pan with a few drops of olive oil. Add spinach, finely sliced pepper or grated courgette and the meal will be ready at the same time.
4. Chilled soups with no cooking. For gazpacho or cucumber and apple soup, simply wash and chop the ingredients, then blend for a couple of minutes with natural yoghurt, extra virgin olive oil and fresh herbs.

Why does this menu support healthy eating and weight care?

It is based on five evidence-informed principles, none of them restrictive.

The first is the plate method, which allocates half the plate to vegetables and fruit [1]. This gives you a generous portion with relatively few calories.

The second is fibre. The European reference intake for adults is 25 g of fibre a day for normal bowel function [2]. Pulses, vegetables, whole fruit and wholegrains feature in the menu every day and help you move towards that amount. They also take more chewing and add bulk to your meal.

The third is energy density, meaning the number of calories in each gram of food. When it is lower because meals contain more vegetables, fruit, soups and salads, you may eat less energy without trying, while still having filling portions [3]. That is why many lunches in the menu start with a salad, soup or gazpacho.

The fourth is including protein at every meal, from eggs, fish, poultry, pulses, tofu or dairy. An analysis of clinical trials found that a protein-rich meal reduced appetite over the following hours [4]. In studies lasting several weeks, the effect was not sustained to the same extent. Protein can help, but it cannot do the whole job on its own.

The fifth is the guidance from the World Health Organization (WHO). It recommends basing your diet on fruit, vegetables, pulses and wholegrains. It also advises limiting free sugars to less than 10% of daily energy intake and salt to less than 5 g [5].

This is not a very low-calorie plan either. Spain’s obesity guideline approaches weight management through diet, physical activity and psychological support [6]. The UK guideline calls for a plan tailored to each person, with ongoing support [7]. A quick, sustainable menu fits that approach; severe restriction does not.

How to put meals together using the plate method

To adapt the menu to your day without weighing food, use this visual guide for lunch and dinner.

• Half the plate: vegetables, with fruit for dessert. Have them raw, steamed, in soup or stir-fried. They provide water, vitamins, minerals and volume.
• A quarter: protein. White or oily fish, eggs, poultry, pulses, tofu or seitan. These help maintain muscle and fullness.
• A quarter: wholegrains or starchy foods. Rice, pasta, oats, 100% wholemeal bread, potatoes or sweet potatoes. These provide energy and fibre.
• Good-quality fats. Use one or two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil for cooking and dressing, or have a handful of nuts or a little avocado.

Once you have done the shopping, a good dinner is just ten minutes away.

The menu keeps ready meals, soft drinks and packaged juices, pastries and sugary cereals, fried snacks, shop-bought sauces and fatty processed meats for occasional use. They tend to contain a lot of salt, sugar or less healthy fats, and are not very filling. No amount of alcohol is safe for health (WHO): the less, the better. Avoid it altogether during pregnancy and breastfeeding, in childhood, before driving, or if your medication does not allow it.

What common pitfalls do we see in consultations?

Three common snags come up with quick menus, and all three are manageable.

• Having only fruit or a yoghurt for dinner to make up for something. You may feel hungrier the next day, which often leads to snacking.
• Giving up on the menu the first time plans go awry. If you do not cook on Wednesday, swap dinner for another option in the table or use your store-cupboard staples, then carry on on Thursday.
• Buying all your fresh food for the week in one go. Some of it may go off before you use it. Buy fresh food for three or four days and use frozen food for the rest.