We eat in every lunch/dinner the following. So we follow the rule of 9. 9 items to eat.
- whole plant based starch - barley, millets, chickpeas etc or multi-grain flour, or multigrain rice.
- Legumes, lentils or beans
- Spices and herbs. Usually base of all curries are made of onions, tomatos, ginger, garlic, cilantro, green chillies, yogurt, chickpea flour, coconut milk, curry leaves, dried chillies.
- Around 2-3 vegetables (excluding the onion, tomatoes used in base) - green leaves and cruciferous
- A raw veggi side - beets, carrots, radish, tomatos, onions, lemon juice.
- Small amount of animal protein like chicken, eggs, fish, lamb.
- A chutney made up of cilantro, mint, coconut, lemon juice, green chilli, salt.
- Yogurt based dish to get probiotics.
- Fruit and nuts in icecream.

Anonymous wrote:Can you explain how this rule works, please?

Purchase as 54321 states for each member of your home unless they have dietary restrictions adjust for whatever it is they need or don't. Homes with teens may need to increase in certain categories as a few posters said some of them can really eat but consult with pediatrician if unsure.

Do you follow 5-2-1-0?
It's the guideline for promoting healthy habits in children, focusing on nutrition, physical activity, and screen time.
5 or more servings of fruits & veggies/per day
2 hours or less of screen time
1 hour or more of physical activity
0 sugary drinks

Some may know 95210, the 9 being # of hours of sleep recommended for kids

Anonymous wrote:A method for meal planning and grocery shopping. Encourages a balanced and nutritious diet by focusing on specific food categories and quantities. Supposed to help simplify meal planning, reduce food waste and promote healthier eating habits.

five vegetables
four fruits
three proteins
two starches
and one fun item per week

If you have kids, teens, elders, or those with dietary restrictions in your household, you may need to modify

Sounds unbalanced. Most "diets" are though.

I do every time I go.

5- members of one family shopping together and blocking every aisle
4 - premiere chicken fingers witnessed being sampled at the hot foods buffet
3 - bum wheels on my cart
2 - people contemplating their navels in the cereal aisle
1 - coffee to get me through it

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I e never even heard of this rule. Did you just make it up?

It says "the" rule, so clearly it was passed down from the ancients.

Obvious they were often in conflict with the "one weird tricksters," who lived on the other side of the mountain.

Clearly. Thou shalt shop the perimeter of the bazaar and be not tempted by the central square which definitely does not contain harlots and wine.

Can you explain how this rule works, please?

Anonymous wrote:It's also my experience that if you buy a fruit or veggie that you can't freeze without some kind of plan on how it's going to get used, it's likely to just end up in the compost. I do keep bags of certain frozen veggies and fruits in my freezer.

I have a plan that works consistently for preventing this. It is called “Teenage boy”. I have one of these and two spares. If you have need I can drop one or two off and they will clean out your fridge as efficiently as locusts.

Anonymous wrote:I e never even heard of this rule. Did you just make it up?

It says "the" rule, so clearly it was passed down from the ancients.

Obvious they were often in conflict with the "one weird tricksters," who lived on the other side of the mountain.

It's also my experience that if you buy a fruit or veggie that you can't freeze without some kind of plan on how it's going to get used, it's likely to just end up in the compost. I do keep bags of certain frozen veggies and fruits in my freezer.

Anonymous wrote:Honestly I'm just happy if I don't forget a crucial ingredient for one of the meals I've planned. I'm not going to make it more complicated than it already is.

Seriously. I just pick a recipe and add a veggie or protein if I think it needs it. Or not- maybe today will be carb heavy and tomorrow will be protein heavy. I’m not going to drive myself crazy with more rules that aren’t really based on anything.

Protein amount is tricky

Nah, we just eat at my house.

Anonymous wrote:No. But we only eat organic produce, grains and eggs so it doesn't really apply.

Why doesn't it apply?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wow this really helps me op I appreciate it! How do you scale it though, is that per person per week? How does it split into meals ie two veggie meals per week ? I’ve got three growing boys and a carnivore husband so I struggle with meal planning. We do eat a lot of beans does that fall into starches?

Also trying to figure out how much. I guess per person for the week, unless they can't eat from one of those groups. Beans are primarily a protein source but they also contain good amounts of carbohydrates, can be categorized as both. They are a part of the vegetable group plus a key component of protein food group especially for vegetarians and vegans.

Or it could be per household?
For ex., veggies, 2-3 broccoli heads is enough for a household of 2 adults and 3 teens. you count broccoli as one of your veggie for the week.

Every household is different so it is probably per person.

No. But we only eat organic produce, grains and eggs so it doesn't really apply.