YumpotGrocery list forthe week, built from a dinner plan
Updated October 30, 2026
Start with the dinners, not the shelves
Write the five dinners with their days first, then list the ingredients under each one. Here is a sample week:
- Monday: halloumi rice bowl
- Tuesday: chicken shawarma bowl
- Wednesday: baked cod with tomatoes and potatoes
- Thursday: pork and pepper goulash
- Friday: shakshuka with chickpeas
Each recipe is written for two people. For four people, double every amount. Yumpot does this when you set the household to four.
Keep the list in day order. When each item carries its day, you can see which fresh food is needed first. A paper list, a notes app or a shared note all work. Cross items off as you put them in the basket, so nothing gets bought twice.
Add the amounts across recipes
The same ingredient often shows up in several dinners. Add the amounts for each dinner before you shop. For the sample week:
- Cherry tomatoes: 150 g + 150 g + 250 g = 550 g
- Garlic: 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 = 8 cloves
- Potatoes: 400 g + 400 g = 800 g
- Yellow onion: 1 + 1 + 1 = 3
- Bell pepper: 1 + 2 + 1 = 4
Check the units before you add. A recipe that says 1 tbsp is the same as 3 tsp. Convert everything to one unit first, or the total will be wrong.
Round only at the end. If one dinner needs 150 g and another needs 250 g, add them to 400 g first, then pick the pack size that covers it. Rounding each dinner on its own can leave you short on the last night.
Check the pantry first
Look in the cupboard before you write the shop, and cross off what you already have. Shelf items keep, so each one is bought once for the week. For the sample week:
- Olive oil: 8 tbsp across the week
- Rice: 320 g, because two dinners use 160 g each
- Ground turmeric: 1 tsp
- Chopped tomatoes: 800 g, which is two 400 g tins
- Chickpeas: one 400 g tin
- Smoked paprika: five dinners use it, so check the jar before you shop.
Check the dates as well. Tins and rice keep for a long time, but spices lose their smell over time. If the smoked paprika in your cupboard is old, buy a new jar before Thursday, since the goulash depends on it.
Group the list by aisle
Group the list by where things sit in the shop, so you walk one way and do not double back. The sample week has these items:
- Fruit and veg: 1 courgette, 4 bell peppers, 550 g cherry tomatoes, 5 fresh parsley, 8 garlic cloves, 800 g potatoes, 3 yellow onions
- Meat and fish: 300 g chicken breast, 300 g cod fillet, 300 g pork fillet
- Dairy and chilled: 200 g halloumi, 150 g Greek yoghurt, 4 eggs
- Pantry: 320 g rice, 8 tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp ground turmeric, 800 g chopped tomatoes, 400 g chickpeas, and the smoked paprika
This week has no bakery items, so its list has four groups. A week with tortillas or bread adds a bakery group.
Walk the store in the same order each time. Once you know where the produce, the dairy and the pantry sit in your store, the list becomes a route. Leave the fridge items for the end of the walk, so they spend less time out of the cold.
Split fresh food into two trips
A whole week of fresh food bought on Sunday means the last dinners get old food. Split the list so each fresh item is bought close to the day it is cooked. For the sample week, that looks like this:
- Trip 1, Monday to Wednesday: courgette, halloumi, 550 g cherry tomatoes, chicken breast, Greek yoghurt, cod, 400 g potatoes, one bell pepper, one onion, parsley and garlic, plus the shelf items you need: rice, olive oil, turmeric and paprika.
- Trip 2, Thursday and Friday: pork fillet, 400 g potatoes, three bell peppers, two onions, two parsley, four garlic cloves and four eggs, plus the shelf items first needed on these days: 800 g chopped tomatoes and 400 g chickpeas.
Shop for trip 2 on Wednesday or Thursday morning, before the pork is needed. Yumpot does this split for you. Choose Twice a week, and the app puts Monday to Wednesday on one trip and Thursday and Friday on the other.
For the full method behind the list, read how to meal plan for the week.
Questions
Should I write the list before or after checking the fridge?
After. Check the fridge and the cupboard first, then write the list. That way you buy only the gaps.
Why do the totals look so big, like 550 g of tomatoes?
Because three dinners each use some. Add every recipe before you shop, so you do not run short on the third night.
How many trips should a week need?
One trip works if the food keeps and you have the space. Two trips work better for fresh food, with the shelf items on the first trip and each fresh item bought close to the day you cook it.
What do I do with items I already bought?
Cross them off before you shop. Shelf items like rice, oil and tins keep, so they can carry over to next week's list.
More guides
Let Yumpot plan the week
Yumpot picks dinners around what you eat and who you cook for, writes one shopping list for the week and walks you through every recipe step by step.