If you are thinking about “doing Whole 30” but are unsure if you can make it happen, this menu plan is for you. The Restful Home is not a food blog, so I’ll just be rounding up recipes from helpful websites to get you started. And yes, you can do it! I did Whole 30 a year ago while caring for our toddler and newborn. Chopping vegetables just had to happen every time the baby fell asleep. (No, I didn’t make my gluten-loving three year old give up bread.)
I’ll include a quick overview of what you need to leave out of your Whole 30 menu for a month. You’re not meant to live without these things forever, but rather to weed them out for a full month and slowly add them back in to see which foods may be causing inflammation or other issues in your body.
For one month, you’ll stay away from:
- sugars, real or artificial
- alcohol (this includes your vanilla extract)
- grains
- beans/legumes
- dairy
- MSG/sulfites/carrageenan
- junk foods/baked goods/food treats in general
For further elaboration, you can visit the Whole30 website. But if you’re still reading, you’re probably already sold on the idea and ready to try 30 days of careful eating for your health’s sake. Enjoy these menu ideas!
Whole 30 Menu for a Month
(A roundup of 54 recipes to simplify your Whole 30 meal planning.)
You can repeat your favorites! Repetition and leftovers make your life easy! Once you’ve found your favorite websites, as well, you can find recipes for anything healthy you’re craving! (My favorite is No Crumbs Left, and I’ve linked to it several times below. Her magic elixirs make any meal restaurant-worthy.)
Whole 30 Menu for a Month Breakfasts (rotate throughout the week):
Green shakshuka. Photo from Downshiftology.
- Green Shakshuka (change it up by adding spice–I tried Serrano peppers and some za’atar, thanks to inspiration from Adeena Sussman)
- Breakfast Casserole (leave out the sausage if you can’t find Whole30 compliant sausage)
- Scrambled Eggs (we love them with a sprinkle of Trader Joe’s Everything But the Bagel seasoning blend)
- 5-Day Casserole (eat a square every day for a week!)
- Sweet Plantains fried in a little olive oil, served with eggs and an avocado
- Asparagus Benedict
- Fresh Fruit Salad sprinkled with Plain Cashews or Almonds (not cooked in oil)
- Zucchini and Sweet Potato Latkes
- Olive Oil Fried Eggs with Sautéed Kale
- Egg Roll in a Bowl
- Breakfast Hash Power Bowls
- Breakfast Tacos
Whole 30 Menu for a Month Lunches:
(Add leftovers from the night before as lunches to keep your life easy!)
- Chicken Salad in Lettuce Wraps (while I didn’t follow this recipe, chicken salad was a regular lunch item for me since my toddler also liked it with the homemade Whole30 mayo)
- Gluten Free Pad Thai
Gluten-free Pad Thai. Photo from Against All Grain.
- Grilled Romaine Salad with Shredded Chicken
- Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Sweet Potatoes (leave out the cheesy topping to keep this a valid part of your Whole 30 menu for a month; make extras so you can have several lunches)
- Creamy Cauliflower Soup (I make my own version of this fairly often when the weather gets cooler because my kids love the roasted cauliflower taste with ginger.)
- Steak Salad with Spicy Poblano Sauce
- Tossed Salads with any grilled meats and a simple dressing of salt, pepper, olive oil, fresh garlic, and lemon juice
- Simple Vegetable Soups (whatever you have on hand plus some tomatoes and fresh or dried herbs)
- Pesto Chicken Salad on Lettuce
- Spicy Asian Zucchini Noodles with Almond Butter Sauce
- Southwest Stuffed Peppers
- Picante Shrimp Salad with Lime Caesar Dressing
Whole 30 Menu for a Month Dinners:
I’m including 30 different dinners in this list. HOWEVER, most of them you can repeat the next day as a lunch or dinner option. Don’t get overwhelmed and feel like you can’t repeat meals! If you want to succeed at doing Whole 30, it’s vital to avoid the overwhelm!
Persian chicken. Photo from Cotter Crunch.
- Greek Lemon Chicken with sautéed broccoli or asparagus
- Roasted chicken breasts (season well) with any assortment of roasted vegetables cooked at 425 degrees F in a sheet pan coated with avocado oil. We especially love potatoes, celery, and carrots roasted with chicken.)
- Grilled Steak or Chicken with grilled zucchini and Crispy Smashed Potatoes (potatoes are such a helpful filler when you don’t have the bread you’re accustomed to eating!)
- Whole 30 Glazed Meatballs
- Sheet Pan Balsamic Salmon and Green Beans
- Whole 30 Creamy Taco Soup
- Lemon Pepper Wings, Mashed Potatoes, and “Gravy”
- Sweet Potato Shepherd’s Pie
- Spicy Citrus Chicken Stir Fry (variations of a chicken-veggie stir-fry are easy, thirty minute meals that can really save your “life” on busy nights)
- Peruvian Pot Roast with Cauliflower Puree
- Grilled Chicken with Skhug and Roasted Broccoli or Cauliflower (you can find the recipe for skhug here; I use the version in the cookbook Six Seasons and we LOVE eating it year round because it’s always the freshest, brightest, most addictive sauce to put on any meat or veggies. Skhug is a spicy Israeli condiment. You can control the spiciness by adjusting the amount of hot pepper you add.)
- Taco Salad (leave out the tortilla chips and cheese and make sure your salsa doesn’t have sugar in it!)
- Slow Cooker Italian Meatballs in Marinara Sauce (serve on spaghetti squash unless you’re married to an Italian) 😉
- Chicken Pesto Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
- Tikka Masala Soup
- Kung Pao Chicken Wings with roasted cashews and vegetable stir-fry
- 5-Ingredient Green Chile Pork Stew
- White Chicken Chile
- Coconut Ginger Salmon with broccoli sautéed in olive oil and salt (this meal is so amazingly good I now make it all year, using whatever mild-flavored fish we have on hand! My husband requests it often.)
- Korean Beef Bowl
- Chimichurri Steak Salad
- Teriyaki Salmon Bowl (serve with cauliflower rice)
- Easy Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
- Crispy Chicken Caesar salad with Tahini Dressing
- Sheet Pan Shrimp Fajitas
- Steak with Creamy Garlic Mushrooms, a light tossed salad, and Crispy or Mashed Potatoes
- Shrimp and Chicken Green Curry
- Healthy Salisbury Steak
- Healthy Italian Wedding Soup
- Persian Spiced Pan Roasted Chicken and veggies
I hope this list has helped you get started and helped introduce you to some incredibly helpful bloggers. Good luck on your month of clean eating!
What are some of your go-to Whole30 recipes? Have you done Whole30 for longer than a month? Let us know why in the comments!