It's Sunday morning and you are looking into the face of a long week with a task list longer than the Mississippi. Most of your days are going to be filled with running here and there - work, the gym, kids activities - that lunch and dinner usually either is microwaved, called on the phone, or ordered through a funny clown face. The impact of these foods leaves you feeling overwhelmed and sometimes guilty - I know that is the case for me. How do you work to avoid all of this? A bit of planning and preparing on Sunday will help you throughout the week.
TIPS & TRICKS
KISS - Keep it Simple Sweety! Now is not the time to tackle that recipe that you've seen on Facebook but you know will take HOURS to cook. Keep your menu items simple and easy. If a recipe calls for more than 5 ingredients (aside from seasoning and staples), it is not a benefit for meal prepping.
PLAN! Sit down and determine what you are going to cook before going to the grocery store. Make a list and stick to it so that you remember all the ingredients that you need to meal prepping.
DIVERSIFY! Determine how you can utilize a protein in different ways. Chicken breasts can be served with rice or shredded and served with noodles and gravy. Cook the chicken once, make two meals.
VARIETY! All those kitchen gadgets you have - those gadgets can be very helpful with meal prepping. Cook one of the meals in a crockpot while another cooks in the oven.
INVOLVEMENT! Get the kids/spouse/roommates involved in helping. They wash, chop or mix materials together. They can help plate items together, especially if you do mix and match meal planning. There is always the clean-up to help with too.
MIX & MATCH! Make a variety of proteins and sides so you can mix and match meals. Chicken breasts in the slow cooker, pork chops in the oven with pasta and rice as sides, and green beans and corn as vegetables. Then you have 8 different variations of meals.
CASSEROLE! I love making casseroles. I can make them in a large pan, have some for dinner on Sunday and then have the leftovers for the week. These cannot usually be Mixed and Matched but do offer some variety in taste and flavor and are great for storing, popping back in the oven, and eating later in the week.
While Meal Planning/Prepping does take some time out of your day, it can be completed in just a few hours and save you a great amount of time and money later in the week.
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