My friend Alaina told me all about a great, free app that makes planning and shopping for meals much easier.
Whether you’re looking to plan meals because of health concerns, want to save money, or just hoping to try something new, I think you’ll enjoy this app.
Mealime helps you choose menus based on your dietary preferences or restrictions and then generates a shopping list for the week. Plus it offers step-by-step cooking instructions. Let’s take a look at how to download and use for your Android phone or iPhone.
Mealime is also available to use in a browser, but it doesn’t have quite so many features. Click here to check the browser version out.
First, head to the app store for your device and search for Mealime. The app is free, so just choose to install it.
Once the app is installed, open it up. If you are following any special diet plan, you can choose to only see recipes that fit with it. Then tap next.
Then you can filter out any ingredients you’re allergic to.
You can also exclude recipes that include ingredients you dislike.
Then choose how many servings you’d like to make.
Now it’s time to pick your meals. You can look through categories like New and Top-Rated and make your selection by tapping the + icon.
Your chosen meals will appear at the bottom of the screen. Click Done when you’ve selected all you want.
View your meals by tapping the Meal Plan icon.
Tap the Grocery List icon to see your shopping list.
The app groups items you’re most likely to have towards the bottom of the list.
You can go through and mark off things you already have in your pantry.
Food is sorted into categories like produce and meat. You can also choose to have the groceries delivered to your home by Instacart or Amazon Fresh in areas where it’s available.
To see a recipe, just tap on it.
Tap the Cookware tab to see what type of equipment is required. The Ingredients tab to see ingredients and the Instructions tab for detailed cooking instructions.
There’s also an option to choose Cooking Mode.
The screen will remain unlocked and you can navigate by hovering your hand close to the screen without touching it.
It really is a very helpful tool. Check it out in the app store for your device. Remember, the name is Mealime. My brain keeps wanting to call it Meal Time.