What does a Mediterranean diet meal plan look like?

Each day is built on vegetables, fruit, whole grains, beans and olive oil, with nuts as snacks. Fish or seafood shows up at least three times a week, poultry, eggs and yogurt in smaller amounts, and red meat only now and then. The 7-day plan on this page runs about 1,800 calories a day.

What is a typical Mediterranean breakfast?

Greek yogurt with fruit and walnuts, eggs with spinach and tomato on whole-wheat toast, oats with berries, or shakshuka. In this plan breakfasts run 281 to 448 calories.

How many calories a day on the Mediterranean diet?

The diet sets no calorie number. Your needs depend on your size and activity, so start from your TDEE. This plan averages about 1,790 calories a day, and Harvard's sample Mediterranean menu is about 2,000.

What foods are not allowed on the Mediterranean diet?

No food is banned, but the pattern keeps red and processed meat, butter and cream, sugary or fizzy drinks and store-bought sweets and pastries to a minimum.

Can you lose weight on the Mediterranean diet?

Yes, when calories are controlled. In the 2-year DIRECT trial, people on a calorie-restricted Mediterranean diet lost an average of 4.4 kg (9.7 lb), against 2.9 kg on a low-fat diet.

Are eggs allowed on the Mediterranean diet?

Yes. Eggs sit with poultry, cheese and yogurt as foods eaten in smaller portions, daily or a few times a week. This plan uses them on four breakfasts.

How much olive oil should I use a day on the Mediterranean diet?

The PREDIMED adherence checklist awards a point for 4 or more tablespoons a day, but each tablespoon is 119 calories. This plan uses about 1 to 2 tablespoons of added oil a day to stay near 1,800 calories.

Is the Mediterranean diet expensive?

It doesn't have to be. Dried or canned beans, lentils, oats, canned tomatoes, canned sardines and tuna and seasonal produce are cheap staples. Fresh fish, nuts and good olive oil are the pricier parts.

Mediterranean Diet Meal Plan: 7-Day Menu With Calories

A Mediterranean diet meal plan builds every day on vegetables, fruit, whole grains, beans and olive oil, with fish or seafood most days and red meat about once a week. The 7-day menu below comes to about 1,800 calories a day, with 83 to 115 g of protein and 28 to 44 g of fiber.

Every meal was calculated from USDA FoodData Central for the exact portions listed, so the daily totals add up. Scale the portions to fit your own calorie target.

Key takeaways

About 1,800 calories a day: daily totals run 1,772 to 1,819 calories.
Fish or seafood 6 times this week: salmon, shrimp, tuna, cod, mussels and sardines.
Beans or lentils every day, and a small handful of nuts on most days.
Red meat once: two lamb loin chops on day 5.
Olive oil is the main fat, at roughly 1 to 2 tablespoons of added oil a day. Each tablespoon is 119 calories, so measure it.

What a Mediterranean diet meal plan looks like

There's no single official menu. What researchers use instead is a pattern, and the clearest version is the 14-item checklist the PREDIMED trial used to score how closely people ate a Mediterranean diet. Harvard's Nutrition Source describes the same shape in plainer terms.

Food group	How often	Serving used in the checklist
Olive oil	Main cooking and salad fat, every day	1 tbsp (13.5 g, 119 kcal)
Vegetables	2+ servings a day, one of them raw	200 g (7 oz)
Fruit	3+ pieces a day	1 piece
Legumes (beans, lentils, chickpeas)	3+ servings a week	150 g (5.3 oz) cooked
Fish or shellfish	3+ servings a week	100-150 g (3.5-5.3 oz) fish, or 200 g (7 oz) shellfish
Nuts	3+ servings a week	30 g (1 oz)
Poultry, eggs, cheese, yogurt	Smaller portions, daily or a few times a week	-
Red and processed meat	Less than 1 serving a day; Harvard says a few times a month	100-150 g
Sweets, pastries, sugary drinks	Rarely	-
Wine	Optional, with meals	1 glass

Water is the everyday drink. Wine is optional, and you don't need it to follow the diet. If you don't drink, don't start for this.

7-day Mediterranean diet meal plan

Portions use cooked weights for fish, meat, grains, beans and lentils. Yogurt is plain whole-milk Greek yogurt. Sodium isn't listed because it depends mostly on how much salt you add.

Day 1

Meal	What to eat	Calories	Protein (g)
Breakfast	6 oz (170 g) Greek yogurt, 1/2 cup blueberries, 1 oz (28 g) walnuts, 1 tsp honey	411	20
Lunch	Bulgur salad: 1 cup cooked bulgur, 1/2 cup chickpeas, 1/3 cucumber, 1 tomato, 1 oz feta, 1 tbsp olive oil, lemon juice	520	19
Snack	1 orange, 1/2 oz (14 g) almonds	150	4
Dinner	5 oz (140 g) salmon, 6 asparagus spears with 1 tsp olive oil, 1 cup lentils, 1 slice whole-wheat bread with 2 tsp olive oil	738	55
Total	44 g fiber	1,819	98

Day 2

Meal	What to eat	Calories	Protein (g)
Breakfast	2 eggs scrambled in 1 tsp olive oil with 1 cup spinach, 1 slice whole-wheat toast, 1/2 tomato	281	18
Lunch	Greek salad: 1 tomato, 1/3 cucumber, red onion, 6 olives, 1 oz feta, 1 tbsp olive oil, plus 1 whole-wheat pita and 1/4 cup hummus	584	17
Snack	1 medium apple, 1 oz (28 g) pistachios	255	6
Dinner	5 oz (140 g) roasted chicken thigh, 1/2 cup carrots and 150 g (5.3 oz) sweet potato roasted in 1 tbsp olive oil, 1/2 cup brown rice	656	41
Total	30 g fiber	1,776	83

Day 3

Meal	What to eat	Calories	Protein (g)
Breakfast	1/2 cup (40 g) rolled oats cooked in 1 cup 2% milk, 1 tbsp chia seeds, 1/2 cup strawberries, 1/2 oz walnuts	448	18
Lunch	White bean and kale soup: 1 cup white beans, 2 cups kale, 1/2 cup canned tomatoes, 1/2 cup carrots, 2 tsp olive oil, 1 tbsp parmesan, plus 2 slices whole-wheat bread	572	30
Snack	Caprese: 1 oz fresh mozzarella, 1 tomato, 1 tsp olive oil, plus 1/2 oz almonds	227	10
Dinner	Shrimp pasta: 4 oz (113 g) shrimp, 1 1/2 cups whole-wheat spaghetti, 1 cup cherry tomatoes, 1 tbsp olive oil, arugula and lemon	527	40
Total	44 g fiber	1,774	97

Day 4

Meal	What to eat	Calories	Protein (g)
Breakfast	Shakshuka: 2 eggs poached in 1 cup canned tomatoes with 1/2 red pepper and onion, 2 tsp olive oil, 1 slice whole-wheat bread	377	20
Lunch	Tuna plate: 3 oz (85 g) tuna canned in olive oil, 2 cups spinach, 1/2 cup artichoke hearts, 1/2 cup chickpeas, 4 olives, 1 tsp olive oil, lemon, 1 whole-wheat pita	590	43
Snack	2 Medjool dates, 1/2 oz almonds	214	4
Dinner	6 oz (170 g) baked cod with 1 tomato and 4 olives, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1/2 cup each roasted cauliflower and broccoli, 1 cup brown rice	630	49
Total	39 g fiber	1,811	115

Day 5

Meal	What to eat	Calories	Protein (g)
Breakfast	6 oz Greek yogurt, 1 sliced peach, 1 tsp honey, 1/2 oz pistachios	325	20
Lunch	Falafel pita: 4 small falafel, 1 whole-wheat pita, 2 tbsp hummus, 2 tbsp tzatziki, tomato and cucumber	511	20
Snack	1 pear, 1 oz almonds	264	7
Dinner	2 grilled lamb loin chops, 1 cup eggplant and 1 cup zucchini roasted in 2 tsp olive oil, 1 cup quinoa	672	38
Total	28 g fiber	1,772	84

Day 6

Meal	What to eat	Calories	Protein (g)
Breakfast	2 slices whole-wheat toast, 1/2 avocado, 1 hard-boiled egg, sliced tomato	406	17
Lunch	Mezze plate: 1/4 cup hummus, 1/4 cup baba ganoush, 2 stuffed grape leaves, 1 whole-wheat pita, cucumber, red pepper, 4 olives	667	18
Snack	1 cup grapes	104	1
Dinner	Seafood rice: 3 oz mussels, 3 oz shrimp, 1 cup brown rice, 1/2 red pepper, 1/2 tomato, 1 tbsp olive oil, side of arugula	633	48
Total	34 g fiber	1,811	84

Day 7

Meal	What to eat	Calories	Protein (g)
Breakfast	2-egg omelet with spinach and 1/2 oz feta in 1 tsp olive oil, 1 slice whole-wheat toast, 1 orange	376	21
Lunch	Sardine toast: 1 can (3.75 oz) sardines in olive oil, 2 slices whole-wheat bread, arugula, tomato, lemon, 1 tsp olive oil, plus 1/2 cup white beans	536	40
Snack	3 dried figs, 1 oz walnuts	245	5
Dinner	5 oz (140 g) lemon-herb chicken breast, 1 cup pearled barley, zucchini and red pepper roasted in 4 tsp olive oil	624	49
Total	29 g fiber	1,781	115

Totals come from unrounded values, so they can differ by 1 from the sum of the rounded meals. Across the week, the plan averages about 1,790 calories, 97 g of protein and 36 g of fiber a day, with 32 to 45% of calories from fat and 6 to 10% from saturated fat.

How this week scores on the Mediterranean diet checklist

Checklist item	Target	This plan
Fish or shellfish	3+ times a week	6 times
Legumes	3+ times a week	Every day (lentils, chickpeas, white beans, hummus, falafel)
Nuts	3+ times a week	6 of 7 days
Vegetables	2+ servings (400 g) a day	400 g or more on days 2, 3 and 4; 310 to 375 g on the other days
Fruit	3+ pieces a day	1 or 2 a day
Red meat	Less than daily	Once (day 5)
Poultry instead of red meat	Yes	Chicken twice, lamb once
Sweets and sugary drinks	Rarely	None; 2 tsp honey all week
Olive oil	4+ tbsp a day	About 1 to 2 tbsp of added oil a day

The plan falls short on three items. Vegetables and fruit come in under the checklist on most days, and a side salad plus one or two more pieces of fruit a day fixes both for roughly 100 to 200 calories. Olive oil misses on purpose: four tablespoons alone is 476 calories, which leaves little room for anything else at 1,800. If your calorie target is higher, extra olive oil is an easy, on-pattern way to add calories.

How to adjust the plan to your calories

First find your number with the TDEE calculator, then the calorie deficit calculator if you want to lose weight. Then move portions up or down with these swaps.

Swap	Calories	Protein (g)
Add 1 tbsp olive oil	+119	0
Add 1 oz (28 g) walnuts	+185	4
Add 1 oz almonds	+164	6
Add 1 slice whole-wheat bread	+81	4
Add 1 cup cooked lentils	+230	18
Add 3 oz (85 g) cooked salmon	+175	19
Drop 1 oz nuts from a snack	-164 to -185	-4 to -6
Halve the rice, bulgur or barley serving	-75 to -124	-2 to -3
Use 2 tsp instead of 1 tbsp oil	-40	0

For a different menu at the same calorie level, see our 1,800 calorie meal plan. Keep protein near the same level when you cut, and take calories out of oil, nuts and grains first.

Mediterranean diet shopping list

Quantities cover all 7 days for one person. Meat and fish weights are cooked, so buy about a third more raw.

Fish and seafood: salmon 5 oz, cod 6 oz, shrimp 7 oz, mussels 3 oz, 1 can tuna in olive oil, 1 can sardines in olive oil
Meat and eggs: chicken thigh 5 oz, chicken breast 5 oz, 2 lamb loin chops, 7 eggs
Dairy: plain whole-milk Greek yogurt (12 oz), feta (about 2.5 oz), fresh mozzarella (1 oz), parmesan, 1 cup 2% milk
Grains and bread: 10 slices whole-wheat bread, 4 whole-wheat pitas, rolled oats, bulgur, brown rice, quinoa, pearled barley, whole-wheat spaghetti
Beans and dips: lentils, chickpeas, white beans (canned or dried), hummus (about 2/3 cup), baba ganoush, 4 falafel, 2 stuffed grape leaves, tzatziki
Vegetables: 6 to 7 tomatoes plus 1 cup cherry tomatoes, 1 large cucumber, 2 red peppers, 1 red onion, 1 to 2 zucchini, 1 small eggplant, spinach (4 cups), kale (2 cups), arugula (3 cups), asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, 1 sweet potato, 1 avocado, 1 jar artichoke hearts, olives
Fruit: blueberries, strawberries, 2 oranges, 1 apple, 1 peach, 1 pear, grapes, lemons, 2 Medjool dates, 3 dried figs
Pantry: extra virgin olive oil (about 3/4 cup for the week), 1 can diced tomatoes, walnuts, almonds and pistachios (about 2.5 oz, 2.5 oz and 1.5 oz), chia seeds, honey, dried oregano

Canned fish, canned tomatoes and dried beans keep the bill down. Our salmon calories guide has cooked weights by fillet size if you buy whole pieces.

Can you lose weight on a Mediterranean meal plan?

Yes, as long as calories are controlled. In the DIRECT trial, 322 adults with obesity followed one of three diets for 2 years. The calorie-restricted Mediterranean group lost an average of 4.4 kg (9.7 lb), compared with 2.9 kg on a low-fat diet and 4.7 kg on a low-carb diet.

Harvard's review points out the catch: the Mediterranean diet doesn't set portion sizes, so it's easy to overeat olive oil, nuts, cheese and bread. That's why the plan above lists grams and calories for each meal.

The diet's long-term evidence is about health more than weight. In PREDIMED, published in its corrected form in 2018, 7,447 adults at high heart risk ate a Mediterranean diet with extra olive oil or nuts, or a reduced-fat control diet. Major cardiovascular events were about 30% lower in both Mediterranean groups (hazard ratios 0.69 and 0.72).

Foods to limit on a Mediterranean diet

Nothing is off-limits, but these sit at the "rarely" end of the checklist:

Red meat, and processed meat such as ham, sausage and salami
Butter, cream and margarine (use olive oil instead; see butter vs olive oil)
Soda and other sugary drinks
Store-bought cakes, cookies and pastries
Refined white bread and pastries in place of whole grains

For what the diet provides nutritionally, and calories for common Mediterranean foods, see our Mediterranean diet nutrition guide. The Greek food nutrition guide covers restaurant dishes like moussaka and souvlaki.

Track your Mediterranean week

Olive oil is the number that drifts. If a free pour comes to 2 or 3 tablespoons, that's 238 to 357 calories that never make it into a food log. Measuring it for the first week shows how much you really use.

Nutrify logs meals from a photo, a barcode or a short description, and tracks protein and fiber alongside calories. It has a 7-day free trial, then a paid subscription.