# Meal Plans for Couples

Published: 2014-11-11T13:44:23.004206-05:00
Canonical URL: https://www.getmealplans.com/blog/2014/11/11/meal-plans-couples/

A meal plan member emailed:

*"I've been using the meal plans for a month and I'm still having a lot of trouble with the length of time it's taking me to cook. I double the individual plan for my husband and myself and can't get out of the kitchen in 2-3 hours. For me, it's closer to 5 hours. Any advice on how I can reduce my prep and cook time?"*

![http://photos.happyherbivore.com/2014/11/couple-grocery-shopping.jpg](http://photos.happyherbivore.com/2014/11/couple-grocery-shopping.jpg)

For couples, we recommend using the family meal plan. It's much easier that way because it serves 4, so you take leftovers for lunch the next day. I think you'll find that it's much easier and quicker than doubling the individual plan.

You can also shave some time by buying pre-prepped items like already diced onion or minced garlic and frozen vegetables. I'm also a huge fan of making big batches of grains in advance and freezing 1 cup portions. See [this post and video](http://happyherbivore.com/2013/04/cooking-grains-ahead-freezing-video/) for more help.

For more tips on how to reduce your time in the kitchen, see these posts:

[How to Cook All Your Meals for the Week in 2-3 Hours](https://www.getmealplans.com/blog/2013/03/01/how-cook-all-your-meals-week-2-3-hours/)

[Cooking One Day A Week](http://happyherbivore.com/2011/08/make-ahead/)

[Need Help Preparing the Meal Plans?](https://www.getmealplans.com/blog/2014/07/11/need-help-preparing-meal-plans/)

[4 Easy Tips for Faster Meal Prep](https://www.getmealplans.com/blog/2014/08/01/4-easy-tips-faster-meal-prep/)

Hope that helps!

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