Ramadan Series: Meal Planning Made Simple

Ramadan is a time we get once a year to focus on our spiritual self, disconnect from the materialism of the world and remind ourselves of the blessings we’ve been giving. The focus is less on food and more about feeding our soul. However, sometimes it doesn’t feel that way. People meal prep tons and tons of food in advance and eat mostly fried and fatty foods. Of course my fondest memories of Ramadan have to do with food and I do want to continue that with my family, I also want the focus to shift to doing more good deeds and breaking bad habits. Although, it’s definitely good to meal prep in advanced, we have to be thoughtful to what we put in our bodies. During this month, it should be minimizing time into be kitchen, not adding more to our plate.

Tip 1: Make a Menu for the Week

Pick a day of the week for grocery shopping and menu planning. For myself, I like Sundays as my husband is usually home and make a plan for the week. It’s easy since you only have to plan for two meals a day. Many weekends are filled with iftars at others homes so I usually plan for Monday through Friday. During fasting, we all start to have cravings for every food possible so meal prepping will help curb those cravings. Stick to the plan!

Tip 2: Choose protein packed and hydrating meals

When meal planning for the week, choose meals that are protein packed, hydrating and of course healthy. I know my culture growing up it was all fried samosas and rolls, sugar drinks and high fat foods. Now it’s hard because when Ramadan comes around, I naturally crave those items. Instead of cutting them out completely we bake samosas and rolls once or twice a week. The rest of our meals include: lots of fruit, protein and good fats. My favorite person to follow is Zehra from the FitNest. Her healthy Ramadan guide is amazing filled with easy meals and great tips. Here are some examples of meals I’ll be having. Zehra has many of these recipes in her guide. Otherwise, I make it up myself. Below I have my Weekly Menu Plan you can save and print and plan for the week. There is also an example below.

Suhoor: Iftar:

1. Smoothies 1. Fruit, fruit and fruit!

2. Oatmeal 2. Kabobs and Salad

3. Omelette/Eggs/Quiche 3. Chickpea Chaat

4. Avocado Toast w/ Eggs 4. Salads w/ Chicken or Shrimp

5. Greek Yogurt Parfait 5. Soups

6. Green Juice 6. Regular Dinner

Tip 3: Keep it Simple.

I cannot stress this enough. We want to be mindful of what eat all the time, but it is even more important during Ramadan when we’re fasting 16 hours a day. I know when we’re fasting we want all the best foods possible. It is okay to do this on the weekends or a few times a month, however its important to keep it simple throughout the week. Pick simple and quick meals so its less stressful giving you more time for worship.

Tip 4: Choose quick recipes you’ve already mastered.

This isn’t the time to br experimental. If you want to try out new recipes, test them out before Ramadan starts so you’re not questioning if Iftar will be good or you’ll have to get take out.

Tip 5: Distribute responsibility in the home.

This is extremely important. As moms we tend to want to do everything and take the burden of doing it ourselves. If you’re a mom with young kids and will be fasting, you have to let others share responsibility in the home. In our home, my husband typically well get suhoor started and I’ll clean up. For Iftar I’ll cook and then he will clean up. If you have older kids, have them help set the table and cook. Even younger children can help clean, set the table or even just hand out dates!

Tip 6: Give yourself a break.

Ramadan is an amazing time of the year that brings spiritual enlightening, happy times with family, long nights at the masjid but also brings exhaustion. So it is okay to give yourself a break mama. Order in, go out for Iftar or just enjoy some yummy food at an Iftar party.

Weekly Menu Sample