Free ALDI Meal Plan week of 3/29/20 – 4/4/20

Obviously, this is not a typical shopping week

Just a quick note, because we can’t pretend everything is normal right now:

• Per request, I’m posting this week’s meal plan & going by the weekly ad as per usual.
• Stores may not have advertised items in stock, and inventory levels will vary by store, region, and demand.
• Use this week’s plan as a starting point; modify as necessary according to what is in stock in your area, and what you have on hand in your pantry.

That being said, here’s your easy weekly ALDI meal plan for the week of 3/29/20: Pick up everything on the shopping list below, then start cooking on Sunday. As always: Six complete dinners for four, $60 out the door!

*** Subscribe to the weekly ALDI meal plans here ***

Find the meal plan below; just a little super-quick ALDI update first.

ALDI Policy Updates, ALDI Finds, ALDI news you need

OK! Some important ALDI notes for your week, starting with an update on their return policy. They’re temporarily suspending their twice as nice guarantee; details here.

More ALDI updates: Temporary store hours, shopping hours for seniors, ALDI is hiring, ALDI has increased wages temporarily… and more!

Here are some ALDI Finds for your week, only if you are out shopping for food anyway. (These two pound bags of cheese will be handy for stocking up on, if you find them in your store.)

Lastly, this is not ALDI-related — but I’ve put together a big old master list of resources to help us through turbulent times. I’m updating this with new links daily, and hope that you find it useful.

ALDI Meal Planning week of 3/29/20 – 4/4/20

I’m assuming that you have on hand some pantry basics like cooking oil, common condiments, and spices. *** Read through the recipes before you shop, to make sure you have the necessary pantry staples on hand for this week’s ALDI menu plan; see a summary in the printable grocery list below.

Print your meal plan summary + grocery shopping list below this week’s detailed plan.

Six easy dinners from ALDI for $60.00

Note: You’ll end up with some vegetable broth and chipotles in adobo left over this week, both of which you can freeze for use in later recipes (might want to puree the chipotles first).

ALDI Meal Plan — Start cooking 3/29/20

Sunday

• Everything bagel whole chicken.
• On the side: Simple carrots & celery side dish.
• Also make braised green beans & zucchini (use one zucchini, & vegetable broth instead of wine).
• Chop and and reserve 1.5 cups cooked chicken for tomorrow’s recipe.

Monday

• Easy leftover chicken soup.
• Serve with everything crescent shapes.
• Have half of the oranges.

Tuesday

• Sheet pan sausage, green bean, & potato dinner (double the sausage to be more filling; substitute one baking potato for red, and minced garlic to taste for whole cloves)
• Have half of the grapes on the side.

Wednesday

• Chocolate chipotle chili (see note about substitutions, if you don’t have chocolate on hand).
• Top with shredded cheddar and serve over baked potatoes (reserve one potato for tomorrow’s dinner).
• Have the rest of the oranges.

Thursday

• Everything sheet pan chicken and veggies.
• Slice up the pineapple on the side.

Friday

• Roasted veggie paninis (substitute sliced regular mushrooms for portobellos; use the yellow and orange bell peppers).
• Have the rest of the grapes on the side.

Saturday

• Leftovers, family pizza night (ALDI sells nice big take-and-bake deli pizzas), or order in.

ALDI Shopping List — Shop through 3/28/20

Dairy & refrigerated

Bake House Creations crescent rolls, $.89
8 oz Happy Farms cheddar block, $1.65
Priano shredded Parmesan, $1.99
8 oz Happy Farms deli sliced provolone, $1.99

Grocery

Specially Selected ciabatta rolls, $2.69
Deutsche Küche whole grain mustard, $1.55
32 oz SimplyNature organic vegetable broth, $1.89
32 oz Chef’s Cupboard chicken broth, $1.29
2 cans Happy Harvest fire roasted diced tomatoes, $1.78
Can Dakota’s Pride black beans, $.69
Pueblo Lindo chipotles in adobo, $.99
Who Needs the Bagel? seasoning, $1.95
Stonemill minced garlic in water, $1.79

Meat

2 Parkview Polska kielbasa, $4.70
5 lb whole chicken, $4.75
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs, $4.58
1 lb 80/20 ground beef, $2.89

Produce

Pint grape tomatoes, $.99
4 lbs navel oranges, $1.99
Pineapple, $1.29
2 lbs red grapes, $1.98
2 lbs carrots, $1.49
24 oz green beans, $2.54
20 oz zucchini, $1.86
2 packs 8 oz mushrooms, $1.58
3 lbs yellow onions, $1.89
5 lbs baking potatoes, $2.49
Celery, $1.29
3 pack multi-colored bell peppers, $2.99

That comes to: $60.44.

Or, maybe less…! These meals will likely run you even less if you supplement this week’s ALDI purchases with clearance meat you already have in your freezer, pantry staples you picked up on sale, produce you already have on hand, and/or sale produce from your local produce market. Let me know if you give it a try.

Printable ALDI meal plan & grocery list

Download this week’s printable ALDI shopping list and meal plan in Word format. (If you don’t have Word, open this in Google Docs or Wordpad.)

Edit and add in your own meal ideas, remove items you already have on hand, change regional pricing to match your own store, etc. *** The day(s) next to each item show which meals use each ingredient, so that you can easily see what to delete from the shopping list if you’re skipping a night.

Things to know about the ALDI meal plans

A couple of notes

1. I try not to repeat main dish recipes more often than once a month, but you will see favorite easy recipes again in these weekly ALDI meal plans as the same meats and produce items come up again on sale. Part of the fun of meal planning lies in mixing old stand-bys with something new each week.
2. If one or more of these recipes isn’t to your taste, or if you have other ingredients to use, adapt the recipes in this ALDI meal plan to your family’s preferences. Or, just use the ideas here to supplement your own meal planning! See: Pantry staples to stock up on and how to modify a meal plan for your family.

** Ad markets & dates

This week’s ALDI meal plan reflects prices from the current week’s ad (running 3/22-3/28 in Sunday ad markets, and 3/25-3/31 in Wednesday ad markets). Non-advertised prices are from my local store in the Chicago suburbs, but non-advertised prices and produce deals *may vary* by location & region. In either ad market, shop any time through Saturday and start cooking on Sunday 3/29/20.

Stay in the ALDI meal planning loop

More ways to stay connected:

• Subscribe here to receive weekly email messages about new ALDI meal plans — no spam, just get email notifications about new plans.
• Browse all of the weekly ALDI meal plans here *** Note: prices may have changed since originally posted.
• Come over and join us on Facebook in the Almost All ALDI group, as well as in the Hot Deals group.

Happy ALDI shopping & cooking this week! If you find this meal plan useful, why not share it with your friends on Facebook so they can save money with ALDI meal planning as well? 🙂

Resources for meal planning + ALDI shopping

Let’s close things out with just a few resources to help you out with your meal planning and ALDI shopping:

• Almost All ALDI — for more ALDI goodness, ALDI finds, reviews, and more.
• Master list of meal planning resources
• Come join us in the Almost All ALDI Facebook group for recipes, meal planning ideas, ALDI food finds, and more.
• Get cash back for ALDI shopping with cash back offers on the Ibotta app (search “ALDI” at the top of the app, if you can’t find it in the store list) and through the Fetch Rewards app.
• Pick up a pack of meal prep containers, & pack up any dinner leftovers for easy weekday lunches!
• Cute & handy ALDI quarter keepers.
• Check out my Amazon shop for some of my favorite useful items for your own meal planning. Also useful: Two pack insulated grab bag totes, or two pack clip to cart bags.
• Almost All ALDI, the eBook.
• How fun are these ALDI themed t-shirts I have for you guys?!

Lastly: You can always access your current regional ALDI ad here.