These 11 meal prep tips will make meal prep a breeze! Once you master these things, you will always have ready-to-eat food. Not to mention, a heap of stress off your shoulders.
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If there’s one thing I KNOW I’m good at – it’s meal prep. As a dietitian and private chef, I not only have to make food decisions for myself and my family, but I also make food decisions for clients week after week. I have worked with hundreds of people on their nutrition or directly cooking for them. From my work, I have gathered that lack of time seems to be the major reason why people don’t meal prep & plan. To take it further, one of the major reasons people don’t eat in alignment with their goals is because they don’t plan ahead. This one hurdle keeps people from eating home-cooked meals and usually, their health suffers because of it.
Benjamin Franklin said, “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail”. Whether your goal is to save money, improve your health, or prioritize quality time with your family – meal planning & prep is your solution.
It’s A Skill
Over the years, I have learned a trick or two when it comes to meal planning and prep. I want you to know that this is a skill that gets easier as you do it. It may take some effort at first, but soon will be able to plan an entire week of meals in less than 5 minutes. And the time dedicated to meal prep will be customized to the amount of time you are willing and able to dedicate that week. Some weeks the prep might be longer, other weeks it’s short, sweet, and to the point. By the end of this blog, you will understand how to customize your plan to your lifestyle and needs!
In this blog, I will teach you how to make meal planning stress-free (dare I say FUN?!) and the best meal prep tips that I use weekly.
This post is all about Meal Prep Tips.
A NEW REALITY
Old Reality
Imagine it’s the Sunday before a crazy busy week. Your oldest kid has all of his end-of-school parties, your middle child has her final soccer tournament this weekend, and the projects are building up at work all while the kid’s final days of school are crammed with quizzes and tests. As if things weren’t crazy enough, your family STILL has to eat. Did you know that kids eat every day… multiple times per day?! Crazy right?! (I hope you are catching my sarcasm here). You end up in the drive-through and dining out because you can’t even fathom cooking on top of everything else going on. It’s not in alignment with the money you wanted to save or the fact that you wanted the kids to have fewer french fries in their diet – but it feels like the only option!
This is the reality most people face – and understandably so!! When life gets crazy, we just try to keep up. Most of the time, people don’t think about food until they are hungry, which is exactly why they don’t eat the way they would like to eat.
New Reality
Now imagine a new reality – you spent 5 minutes planning out your meals for the week because you have mastered meal planning. You immediately write out your list and cross-check it with what you have on hand in your kitchen. And you have a plan that you KNOW you can accomplish even with your crazy schedule. With just a few extra minutes and a lot more intention – you DID IT. You feel accomplished because your family is eating better, you saved money, you felt more in control of your week, and you spent more time around the dinner table with the people who matter most.
Let’s lean into this new reality with these 11 meal prep tips, shall we?!
MEAL PLAN
1. Get Inspired
If you are feeling inspired then there is no room to feel stressed or overwhelmed! Start with inspiration and the planning experience is much more fun.
Here are some questions to ask yourself to spark inspiration:
- What’s something you’ve always wanted to learn how to make?
- What is your favorite meal? What could you add to that meal to make it even better?
- Who inspires you in the kitchen? Maybe open their cookbook, visit their blog, or call them (like maybe your grandma or your aunt)!
- What do you want your week to look like? How can food make that vision a reality? (maybe you want more sense of control of your time, money, or health – or maybe you wish to eat in alignment with the season)
2. Pick a Theme Night
Starting with a theme makes it easier to decide what to serve. For example, when it’s Taco Tuesday – you know exactly what to do. You break out the salsa & guacamole, serve it with chips, spice up the chicken, chop up the lettuce, add in the black beans, and don’t forget the tortillas! Once you have the theme decided, the meal unfolds a bit more naturally.
Picking a theme can help narrow down recipes and make home cooking more exciting!
Here are a few themes to consider:
- Thai-inspired night
- Taco Tuesday
- BBQ
- Build-Your-Own Greek Pita Night
- Pizza or Italian Night
- Cajun Food
- Indian Food
- Soup & Salad
- Breakfast for dinner
- Crock-Pot City (I just made up this theme but I like it ha!)
Once the themes are decided for the week, that’s when you can pick the recipes!
3. Recipe Selection
This next part is really important:
When selecting recipes, make sure to mix familiar/staple recipes with 1-3 new recipes.
This ensures you keep your weeks interesting (reducing food boredom) without making meal prep too overwhelming and time-consuming. We don’t want to get too ambitious only to end up not following through. Realistic recipe selection creates sustainability.
Staple Recipes
Staple recipes help simplify things. I recommend finding 5-10 staple recipes that you can rotate into your weeks so you don’t get bored. My definition of a “staple recipe” is something that is balanced, satisfying, quick to make, and (most importantly) delicious!
Some of my staple recipes are:
- Slow Cooker Green Chili Chicken Stew
- Tortellini Soup
- Jambalaya
- Taco Soup
- and breakfast for dinner!
Consider your appliances
This is MAJOR. Instead of selecting 5 recipes that are all cooked stovetop, why not do:
- 1 slow-cooker recipe
- 2 oven-baked recipes
- 2 stovetop meals
That way, you can multitask and ultimately cut down your time spent in the kitchen.
4. Get Organized
Make A List
Once you pick out your theme and your recipes, immediately make a grocery list! Once it’s made, cross-check your list with what you have on hand so you can scratch those things off. Keep the list on your phone, in your wallet, or your purse. That way, you won’t forget it. The next time you are out and about you can swing by the grocery quickly for a stress-free quick shopping experience.
Consider A Calendar
I suggest making a fun calendar on the wall or refrigerator with the weekly dinner menu. That way, it’s out of your brain and written down for a reminder throughout the week. This calendar also communicates the food plan to the rest of the household. Which reduces the ever-so-daunting daily question of “Mom/Dad, what’s for dinner?!”.
It is an extra step, but in my opinion – worth it! Once the plan is in place and the decisions are made – all you have to do is execute!
5. Make It Delicious
Don’t make the mistake of buying food that you won’t eat! It’s important to find recipes that are in alignment with your goals AND taste delicious to you. We are not here to force broccoli down our throats. We are here to find delicious, crave-able recipes that help us achieve our goals! Plus, there is nothing more frustrating than an ambitious grocery haul gone to waste. Am I right?!
6. Consider the Shelf Life
When grocery shopping, I buy a mix of fresh, frozen, and canned items. That way, you can prioritize the fresh foods first – but there is ALWAYS something on backup. This mix of shelf life helps ensure that you aren’t wasting food (or money) AND that you always have something on-hand to whip up.
MEAL PREP
7. Consider Your Time, Needs, & Style
Use the meal prep style that works best for your lifestyle! For example, if you are willing to get up a little earlier to make a smoothie before work, then maybe only focus on prepping lunches and snacks for the week. If you struggle to get out of bed, maybe consider a breakfast bake or prepping breakfast burritos.
Are you going to prep all your meals on Sunday? Or would you rather do a mini-prep twice per week? By the way, this could change from week to week!
Cook Once Eat Twice
I personally like the “cook once, eat twice” method. When it comes to dinner, I commit to cooking 3-4 times per week for a fresh meal, but I always make 2-3 times more than we need. Those leftovers can be used as dinner for a busy weeknight, lunch for the next day, or frozen for future use!
8. Multi-Task With Your Appliances
We already touched on this in the plan section. But it’s worth reiterating:
Instead of selecting 5 recipes that are all cooked stovetop, why not do:
- 1 slow-cooker recipe
- 2 oven-baked recipes
- 2 stovetop meals
That way, you can multitask and ultimately cut down your time spent in the kitchen. Efficient QUEEN.
9. Consider the Clean Up
We all know dishes are the worst part of cooking. When I am cooking, I try to use the least amount of dishes I possibly can. Here are a few of my best tips:
- Clean as you go and rinse dishes right away to avoid a massive post-meal prep clean-up session.
- Slow-Cooker/Air-Fryer Tips:
- Purchase air-fryer liners that you can put in the dishwasher and allow you to skip the air-fryer clean-up
- Purchase slow-cooker liners for the same reason!
- Oven Tips:
- Instead of cooking on a pan and then transferring it to a storage container, use a dish that can be used for cooking & storing! For example:
- Use foil on your pans for quick and easy whip-downs. It takes an extra second before cooking, but saves you on scrub time!
10. Prioritize & Set A Plan of Attack
Prioritize longer duration cook times over shorter duration cook times.
Example Plan of Attack:
- preheat the oven while you start the crockpot recipe
- once the crockpot is rolling, prep your one-pan meals that will go in the oven
- while you wait for the oven to preheat, get started on your one-pot meal stovetop
- throw the one-pan meal in the oven while your stove-top meal simmers
- while those sit and cook – you can wash & chop any raw fruits & veg or assemble snacks!
- clean up while you wait for everything to finish cooking
We love an efficient queen!
11. Knock It Out!
You’ve got your plan, you did your shopping, and you set your plan of attack – all that’s left is to knock it out! I promise just a few hours of your time will make your week SO much easier! Oh – and HAVE A LITTLE FUN WITH IT!
Here are my tips on having fun with it:
- put on music, a podcast, or your favorite show
- pour yourself a glass of wine or make a cup of tea
- make it double as self-care time with a hair mask or face mask
- grab a friend or family member to help out or keep you company!
I hope you feel equipt with the knowledge to become a meal prep pro. Not all of these tips will work for you, but I encourage you to mold these ideas to fit your needs & lifestyle. Once you master these things, you will always have a hot meal on hand. More than anything, I hope these tips inspire you to be in control of your food choices, take back your time, and relieve some stress!
This post was all about Meal Prep Tips.
Did you try these tips? Make sure to tag me @thespicegirlkitchen_ on Instagram or @thespicegirlkitchen on TikTok! I love seeing you CRUSH IT! I will be your ultimate hype woman!
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