Making Weekdays Easier with Meal Prep
As we get back to routine this month, we’ve been assessing habits that are working for us and those that aren’t. We love building in habits that make life easier and our weeks smoother. If you’re like us, sometime around Wednesday or Thursday, you may have lost all motivation to pack a lunch or make dinner. Weekly meal prep has grown in popularity, but cooking all weekend to get ahead for the week sounds like an overwhelming prospect. However meal prep doesn’t need to invade the whole weekend to benefit your week. For many, meal prep can help them meet health goals, stay organized, and stick to a budget. It can also help busy families through the middle slog of the week. Setting aside a little time during the weekend or at the beginning of the week can pay dividends on a busy Wednesday night when the thought of cooking feels like too much. Today we’re breaking down meal prep into an easy plan you can incorporate into your week!
Quick Clean Out & Assess
First decide how much time you want to spend in the kitchen. Base your plan on how much time you have. We like to start by cleaning out the fridge. Empty produce bins and shelves and give everything a quick wipe down. Organize and label the remaining food and compost anything that has expired. If you have produce that needs to be used up, pull those things for prepping, chopping, and cooking. Assess what needs to be used and build your meal plan for the week around utilizing those items first. Use your meal planning pages in your planner to map out the week.
To begin meal prepping, we suggest tackling one item for each meal time. Think of one thing you can prep to help with breakfasts, something to make lunch easier, and a dinner item to make evenings easier. Jot down a list of what you want to prep, put on a fun audiobook or podcast, and get to work!
Longest Cooking Time First
Start by cooking the items that will take the longest. Pots of beans and rice can be a great resource throughout the week (think breakfast burritos, taco bowls, etc). A pot of steel cut oats makes winter breakfasts easy. Quinoa and farro are also great grains to make ahead. A simple pot of soup can provide a week’s worth of satisfying lunches. Hard boiled eggs will keep through the week and make a great snack anytime of the day.
Oven Hot? Take Advantage!
Get your oven preheating and take advantage by baking or roasting multiple items. Roasted sweet potatoes or other root vegetables can supplement lunch and dinner during the week. A simple quick bread or muffin can help with breakfast and snacks and utilize overripe fruit. You can also roast a chicken or other protein to use throughout the week.
Jars of Goodness
Having a few jars on hand of go-to sauces and toppings will make your meals more exciting throughout the week. It’s amazing what a simple jar of homemade salad dressing will do. With a container of washed salad greens and a jar of delicious dressing, you can make a salad in minutes. Pickled onions have become our secret ingredient. They are so easy to prep and we put them on everything; grain bowls, burgers, salads, and tacos! Making an easy sauce, such as this tahini one is perfect to spread on wraps with veggies and a protein at lunch time.
Washed & Ready
When you clean out your produce drawers you might see vegetables you can roast and others you can wash, chop and store for easy snacks and to pack into lunches. Chop carrots and celery and store in cold water. Wash lettuce and greens and spin dry and store in reusable bags or containers. Preslice heartier vegetables such as brussel sprouts or cabbage. Place these containers front and center in the fridge so you are sure to use them. You can also wash berries in a simple vinegar and cold water wash (one cup white vinegar + 3 cups of water) and gently dry to extend their life in the fridge.
Extra Credit
If you’re feeling extra motivated, you can prepare a meal nearly all the way through and have it ready to pop in the oven later in the week. Hearty dishes like lasagna, enchiladas, and casseroles can be assembled and baked off later. Alternatively you can prep and freeze to bake later on. Soups, curries, meatballs, and marinara sauce can also be cooked through and frozen until you need them. If smoothies are your thing, prep bags of ingredients and store in the freezer. Iced tea and coffee and can also be made ahead and stored for the week.
We hope this inspires some meal prep for your week ahead. Let us know in the comments what you cook! What are your favorite meal prep tips?