Good Morning Friends! How is everyone doing? I hope you had a great weekend and an awesome start to the week yesterday!
I’d like to apologize for the disappearance on the blog at the end of last week. I didn’t intend for it to happen, but I had writer’s block and couldn’t come up with anything to say. Luckily, I spent Saturday morning meal prepping for a few days and thought I should share some of my tips I’ve learned over the past couple of years! I am by no means an expert at meal prepping, but I do have 10 tips that might help you out!
Meal Prep 101: 7 Tips to Help
Plan
Before I go grocery shopping, I like to plan out what I’m going to make. Depending on my work schedule I may prep up to 5 days of meals, whereas sometimes, it may just be for 2 or 3 days. It’s also important to decide what meals you’re going to prep. Do you just need to do lunch or breakfast? Maybe you want to prep some dinner items to speed up the cooking process on the day of?
Frozen or Steam In Bag Veggies
These save me so much time! I’ll stock up when these on sale and use them daily. I usually don’t even cook them if I’m prepping for a few days since they’ll thaw out once they’re in their containers in the fridge. When you heat up your meal, they’ll cook in the time it takes for the rest of the food.
Containers
Invest in good quality containers! You don’t want to be throwing them out after a few uses. I like getting ones that stack nicely and look the same. I have two different sets that I’ve been using that include the ones pictured below.
I’ve been lusting over these ones that come with 1, 2 or 3 compartments from Amazon, but don’t see the point in purchasing more when the ones I was given do just fine. Glass pyrex containers are also a good choice and last forever!
Pre-cut Produce
I find that I’m much more likely to use my fruits and veggies if I take the time to slice them all at the same time. I’ve thrown out peppers or cucumbers because I was too lazy to cut them and they went bad. Having cut veggies in my fridge also cuts down on grabbing something that isn’t as good for me just because it’s easier!
Don’t Over Do It
You don’t have to make everything ahead of time. If I spend more than 3 hours meal prepping, I go crazy! I like to make things that are going to save on time. I don’t mind making my breakfasts every morning, but things like chicken I’ll cook all at once.
Prepare Before Dividing
I like to divide my food into single serving containers instead of just having it all in one. Before I put it into the containers, I’ll gather everything I need so I don’t need to go looking for something mid-way through my process. I like to put it into big bowls or containers, but you could also just leave it in whatever you cooked it in.
Keep It Interesting
I like to try at least one new thing every week or every other week. This week I tried purple sweet potatoes (not as good as orange sweet potatoes in my opinion) and Monique’s Healthy Pumpkin Zucchini Chocolate Chip Bread. This bread is one of my favourites now! It’s so good!
Those are my 7 meal prepping tips!
Have a great day!
Lets Talk…
Do you have any tips?
Do you meal prep?
Sweat Often Live Happy 