Last Updated on August 27, 2021 by TheMealPrepNinja
Meal Prep Strategies Tips and Tricks
Here are some meal prep strategies that will help you with meal prepping. Most families consist of busy parents. It becomes difficult to handle everything in the house and still manage to work. For this reason, people have turned to meal prepping to save time used in cooking daily. Meal prepping involves cooking a batch of food to run the whole family for a week or days. It is an involving exercise and may make some people shy from it. But you don’t have to worry in this article we discuss prepping strategies that will make your meal prepping easy.
Follow these tips and you will not complain of not having enough time to prep.
Buy food in bulk.
Save time on grocery shopping by purchasing larger containers/servings of just about everything you buy.
Get larger cooking devices.
Sounds silly but it works. Get larger pots, larger baking pans, a larger grill if you have to – the more food you can cook at once, the better.
Invest in good Tupperware containers.
Here are my favorite glass meal prep containers that I use to store my meals.
You will need a place to store all the food you’re preparing, and nothing is better than Tupperware. Be sure it can go from the fridge to the microwave to the freezer without an issue.
Buy pre-chopped vegetables.
If cutting vegetables prevents you from getting these down, buy the pre-chopped variety instead.
Don’t overlook frozen vegetables.
Or, consider going the frozen vegetable route. You’ll never have worries about them staying fresh throughout the week. I also like frozen fruit for my protein shakes instead of fresh fruit.
Buy convenience for half the process.
Okay, so you cannot cook a full-blown meal some days when things are hectic. Why not just modify a meal you buy so it becomes healthier for you to eat? Try purchasing a frozen dinner for instance and add some of your own freshly steamed vegetables or chicken to boost the nutritional content. You can make convenience food more healthy much of the time if you make a few small tweaks.
Use your slow cooker.
Crock-Pot SCCPVL610-S-A 6-Quart Cook & Carry Programmable Slow Cooker with Digital Timer
meal prep strategies -Using a slow cooker is by far the most straightforward and basic way to make healthy eating easy. Slow cooking is super easy, and a method of cooking everyone should get into doing from time to time. Just put all the ingredients in the slow cooker in the morning, turn it on, and by the time you arrive home from work, the food will be ready to serve. You can also prepare in large quantities to ensure you have enough for the week.
Go for salads instead of cooked food in between the week.
Salads are Not only incredibly healthy, but they are also easy to prepare as well. Include them in your eating plan more often.
Snack on fruit.
Nothing is easier than applying butter to an apple or banana. The fruits are low in calories yet healthy hence suitable to be included in your eating plan. Meal prep strategies.
Seek out new recipes.
Chicken meal prep recipe ideas
While preparing a fresh new recipe is a bit more work, it’s fun, and when it’s fun, it won’t feel like meal prep.
Food Processors.
Hamilton Beach 10-Cup Food Processor & Vegetable Chopper with Bowl Scraper, Stainless Steel
Food processors can be a very useful tool when it comes to preparing meals for your family. One way that food processors can help you with your meal preparation is by eliminating the need to manual prepare items. Instead of having to chop vegetables by hand, you can now do it in a fraction of the time. You are able to chop, shred, and slice vegetables bout the same size, which would help you dramatically in this situation. So consistency is another important function that the food processor can provide you with. The food processor will, therefore, help prep your meal easily.
Tips and tricks for beginners.
Determine the Best Prep Method for You
Being new to meal prepping, there various methods to prep meal that you need to know. You can go with the one that is easier for you and have time for. You can also combine different cooking styles and work best. They include.
Make-ahead meals:
This type of meal cooking involves cooking meals completely such that you will only require to reheat them during meal times. This method is suitable for people or parents with little or no time to prepare meals during weekdays.
Batch cooking/freezing:
It involves cooking a recipe several times to have enough for the whole week. The meal is then portioned, depending on how much your family consumes for a certain meal. It is then frozen to be stored. This method of prepping is suitable for people with large families, and have a favorite meal in common.
Individually portioned meals:
People who want to have a fast grab and go meals can prepare meals and portion them into one person serving. This will be easier for them to heat and serve quickly. This method is also suitable for people who have a healthy goal to achieve.
Ready ingredients:
prepping ingredients helps you to prepare food faster hence saves time to cook for a whole week.
Make a Plan
Once you have come into a conclusion which meal prep type suits you, its time to have a plan. A plan helps to be focused and organized on what you are going to need and do. the plan involves;
Choose meal(s) to prep:
This will be determined by your daily schedule, for example, if you do not have breakfast time you can prep smoothies, or you have no time to make dinner you can prep make-ahead meals that will be easy to reheat in the evening.
Write your menu:
Record the items you require and come up with the recipes. Rely on the recipes that you are ford or comfortable with. This makes it easier to prepare. You can also add some build your meals around the season of produce to ensure availability and flavors.
Schedule your prep:
Prepping a meal does not take a minute, it requires ample time to prepare. Plan a day that you have enough time to prepare the different meals on your menu. This ensures all the meals are cooked and completely cooked.
Take Stock and Shop
After deciding what to include in your menu its shopping time. Note what you already have in your kitchen to help you come up with proper shopping list.
Stock up on staples:
We have common foods that we eat mostly. e.g whole grain foods and dried herbs and others will make prepping more easier.
Build a better shopping list:
Let your shopping list have categories of different types of foods you use regularly in prepping. E.g, brown rice, olive oil, etc. Have an inventory of each to do a quick shopping
Check your supply of containers:
Meal prepping requires several containers for storage, like freezer bags, glass, and plastic containers with lids and zip-top, depending on the type of meals you are prepping they will be of great use.
Prep and Store
Having all the need ingredients and produce, its time to start prepping the meal.
Make the most of your time:
In prepping it is advisable to start with foods that require the most time to cook. Have the ingredients prepared for the first meal. Boil water to cook grains that take a longer time. In case a certain ingredient is needed to prepare more than one food, prepare it large amounts and then divide it depending with the number of meals to cook. This will save time. A cutting board is essential in this stage, to avoid washing it severally, start cutting the produce that will be eaten raw and lastly the one to be cooked. Clean the chopping board and utensils after using them to prepare raw proteins.
Be mindful of storage life:
If stored in airtight containers, peppers, onions and other types of cut vegetables, can last for two to three days in the refrigerator. Heartier vegetables can go for a minimum of four days like winter squash chopped carrots. Washed and dried greens and will remain fresh for a week when stored in the refrigerator. Any cooked grains, meat, seafood, vegetables, and poultry should be eaten within four days and ensure preheating for about 165℉ before serving.
To have the best quality, Freeze properly: Foods such as cooked grains, soups, casseroles chilies, can be frozen easily for future consumption. It is more relaxing to know you have a ready meal to heat from the freezer after a long day of work.
Ensure to cool to room temperature within two hours For cooked grains and soups, then store them by use of zip-top bags and containers. Ensure you leave some space to allow expansion when the food is freezing. Label them and their life span date to remind you and avoid wastage.
Enjoy the Fruits (and Vegetables) of Your Labor
Having several meal prep practices, you will come to learn the best style that is best and easy for you. Meal prepping for either breakfast dinner or lunch will not have to sound wired or impossible for you again.
You are now armed with vital information on how to make meal prepping easier for you. You don’t have to fear the process anymore. For beginners you now have the idea of how to start meal prepping, just use the information above and be sure it will be an exciting experience for you.
Final Thoughts
We hope these meal prep strategies have helped you get started on the right track. Meal prepping can be fun when you got the right tools and strategies in place.
Jim Lopez, the founder and editor of The Meal Prep Ninja, shares his journey from a passionate bodybuilder and fitness enthusiast to a certified nutrition coach. Certified by Precision Nutrition, Jim aims to empower others with knowledge on meal prep and nutrition, offering resources for busy individuals to enjoy low-calorie, tasty foods. His blog is a community for sharing healthy eating habits and meal prep recipes
