Getting dinner on the table every night isn't easy -- there's planning, shopping, and cooking, not to mention clean-up -- but that doesn't mean it has to take up hours of your time each day. Here's how to streamline your routine so you spend less time in the kitchen, and more time with your family.

Organization starts with coordinating your menus -- even easy ones -- before you head to the store. Plan to make fish and prepare fresh leafy-green salads earlier in the week than, say, dry goods that can wait, such as pasta. Browse our collection of Grocery Bags that offer a week of meals with a single, strategic shopping list.

Keep your pantry stocked with items you're always reaching for (canned tomatoes, brown rice, chicken broth).

Print Our Pantry Checklist

Take advantage of discounted prices on milk, butter, bread, and meat and store them in the freezer. (Take meat out of the butcher paper first and store in freezer bags.) You'll have plenty of options when meal planning, and you'll reduce trips to the grocery store. Plus, you'll save money on future meals.

Take five minutes before heading to the market to take stock of your kitchen, then arrange your list around the layout of the store. Your shopping will go faster, with fewer missed items, and you will be less tempted to buy foods you don't really need.

Our Everyday Food iPhone app uses ZipList technology to help you organize your shopping lists right on your phone. Grocery shopping has never been easier!

It's fun to whip up fresh waffles for your family on a Sunday morning, but who can manage it during the week? Next time you have the waffle iron out, make extras, and freeze your delicious creations for later. Let them cool completely on a rack, and layer them in a plastic bag with parchment between them (so you can remove one at a time quickly). They can be frozen for up to a month. On a busy morning, just pop one in the toaster, and voila -- breakfast is ready!

Have your ingredients ready before you start a recipe. Begin by chopping, slicing, and measuring. Then arrange the items on a tray with other ingredients for the recipe. Chefs call this "mise en place," which in French means "setting in place." Everything is ready to go, so cooking is efficient and stress-free.

Preparing ingredients efficiently helps save time in the kitchen, and knowing how to properly wield a chef's knife or peel the skin smoothly from a tomato can actually result in a dish that tastes better and looks more enticing. It can even make your time in the kitchen more enjoyable.

For dinner in a flash, prep ingredients in the morning, and chill them on a baking sheet (lined with paper towels in case of a spill) in the fridge. At mealtime, just grab and go.

Tip: Prepping ingredients early in the day saves time at dinner, but you need to store them in the refrigerator properly to keep them fresh. Pack salad greens, herbs, and vegetables in resealable plastic bags in the crisper. Store foods with stronger odors, like cooked meats, cheeses, onions, and garlic, in airtight containers; transfer homemade salad dressing to a jar with a tight-fitting lid.

Skip pricey salad packs -- wash and spin-dry lettuce yourself. Store the clean greens in a paper towel-lined salad spinner for up to five days. They'll be ready to go when you want them (think main course salads) and much less likely to spoil.

Keep a container for food scraps and wrappers on the counter, and toss the contents all at once. For faster kitchen clean-up, wash pans in a sink of soapy water as you go.

Cook big batches of meat, chicken, sauces, and other foods to save you valuable prep time on busy nights. Reinvent leftovers in new dishes (next-day salads or sandwiches), or freeze the extra and have a meal on hand.

Extra ingredients, like broth or tomato paste, can be frozen in ice cube trays to be used later as a ready-to-go base for sauces.

One-pot recipes are another way to reduce effort and energy, particularly during clean-up.

Having homemade pancake mix on hand saves you precious time while allowing you to avoid boxed mixes (and their additives). To make your own mix, triple the dry ingredients of your favorite pancake recipe and store in a resealable plastic bag or glass jar. When ready to cook, shake contents, measure out what you need, add the wet ingredients, and presto -- pancakes in a flash!