If you’ve ever found yourself roaming the aisles of your local supermarket, confused about what to buy for the day or week, you’re not alone. Meal preparation makes life easier than ever; you can even create weekly grocery lists utilizing pre-cooked and pre-packaged delivery services or smartphone apps.
If you find yourself eating the same pasta with red sauce or turkey burgers week after week because they are convenient and comfy, meal preparation can push you out of your comfort zone and into the beautiful world of food. While preparing, think about cultural variations, spices, and flavors. Switch it up every week to keep things new and avoid food weariness. More than half of all homes throw food waste every week. Meal planning will help you reduce the amount of food that sits in your refrigerator before being thrown out if you’re concerned about food waste. When you know exactly what you’re intending to make, you can buy the right components in the right quantity.
Meal prep can be done with any food that stays well in storage and tastes excellent after a few days in the refrigerator. Cooked meat, roasted vegetables, soups, sauces, nuts, and sturdy raw vegetables can all be used in meal prep recipes. You can’t, however, plan ahead of time for everything. Soft vegetables, sliced fruit, and crunchy goods like crackers will soften in the refrigerator, making them unsuitable for meal prep.
Without preparatory time, meal preparation is impossible. Plan on preparing your meals once or twice a week. If you can multitask a little, you’ll save even more time (for example, by using your oven and stove top to prepare many foods at once). You can also save time in the kitchen by roasting large batches of food on a sheet pan. And here is when kitchen appliances such as the Instant Pot or Air Fryer, as well as the tried-and-true slow cooker, might come in handy.
While preparing the same meal every day for a week can save time, it can also become boring. If you become tired of eating the same recipes over and over, try small tweaks to your meal prep to make each dish a little different. Change up the vegetables, sauces, and garnishes in each container to keep things interesting. A variety of recipes can also be prepared and frozen ahead of time. Then thaw one or two containers in the refrigerator each day to have a variety of dinners throughout the week.
You can also cook your treats in advance for the week, by making your own treats you can know exactly what is in them and make healthier versions of your favorites. You can also add lots of good stuff into treats for kids so they are getting the good stuff without realizing it. You can do this with things like sweet potato brownies, applesauce, banana, and chia seed cookies and frozen banana ice cream. Meal prepping can save you a lot of time and a lot of money, so why not give it a go.
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