Meal Prep (im a beginner) HELP NEEDED!!

RoxiM2016

So before christmas, i decided i was going to give meal preping my meals ago. Has anyone good ideas for meals? Things that people have found go further or easiest but still tasty to make. etc.

Or even tips and tricks? haha. i spent sunday in a pile of clutter, so i def need to get some organisation going!!

Im going to give zoodles ago... do i cook them after ive made the noodles?

Anything would be muchly appreciated

Thanks Roxi xx

kimlight2

On the day before my work week begins (sometimes Saturdays sometimes Sundays) I throw a couple of pounds of boneless skinless chicken breast in a crock pot, make a few portions of brown rice and set up rice bowls for the week. I can add beans, salsa and sour cream to make chicken taco bowls or Tikka sauce to make a curry. It gives me a base for a great variety of things.

trigden1991

Oven roasted vegetables, chicken and rice is my staple.

happyauntie2015

We make muffin tin egg cups for a weekly breakfast and they freeze well, lunches are usually chicken breast I've done in a Crock-Pot with a jar or 2 of salsa and then shredded along with spinach, FF mozzarella cheese and spinach on the side and either tortillas or multi grain scoops. The dinner meal we don't prep

RoxiM2016

thanks guys. i tried the chicken a salsa this week that was lovely. i also did the roasted vegetables and chicken..thanks guys for your ideas

deannalfisher

I try to focus on one or two proteins a week (chicken, seafood, pork) and then plan my meals around them

i'm single - so i'll make a recipe that has 4 servings, eat 1 and then save the other 3 for lunch/leftovers

breakfast is normally a egg bake with spinach and feta that I make sunday nights and then divide up into individual servings

Karbum

If you look up simple healthy crock pot idea you will have enough recipes for days!

__TMac__

http://blog.myfitnesspal.com/meal-planning-for-beginners/

This was just recently on the MFP blog.

rainbowbow

https://www.reddit.com/r/MealPrepSunday/

BusyRaeNOTBusty

gmallan

I like making things like curries, soups, stews, dhal etc. that freeze well. I always bulk them out with lots of veggies.

TigressStripes

Have you looked at EatThisMuch.com ? It takes all the thought process out of meal prep, you just follow directions and there you go.

lorrpb

I find that cooking the zoodles makes them too mushy. But I do like popping them in the microwave for 30 sec or so to get the chill off them, otherwise they were cooling down my pasta sauce too quickly. If using in a salad, I don't do anything extra.

deannalfisher

TigressStripes wrote: »

Have you looked at EatThisMuch.com ? It takes all the thought process out of meal prep, you just follow directions and there you go.

have they improved their interface because when I tried it it was horrible...i'd try to set my goal calories for a meal and would get like a piece of fish as a recommendation that was 400cal and stuff like that

mangrothian

Meal pre-prep starts with a good plan and shopping list. As a person who shops monthly (with a small shop for salad vegetables each week if needed) and does a lot of meal prep, there are questions you need to ask yourself to prep properly, because they all affect how you plan:

- Is there anything you don't eat? Are you low carb? Allergies? Keto? Or just anything that fits in your mouth? This will change what freezes well, how big the batches are (Some low carb stuff IMO doesn't freeze well).
- Are any of your meals for more than yourself?
- How far in advance do you want to shop, plan and prep? Weekly for everything? Every 2-3 days?
- Do you need to pre-prep breakfast or are you an oatmeal/toast type person in the morning?
- What do you eat for lunch? Do you have salads, or things that are reheatable? Rice? Soup? Beans?
- Dinner: Do you have the crockpot / slow cooker / oven to cook really large batches? Do you want to serve sides each night for variety? How many meals do you want out of one recipe? Is your freezer big enough to hold it all?

For my work lunches I have servings of everything I use pre-cut (protein and carbs pre-cooked usually) and either frozen and stored in the fridge. I grab 1 carb, 1 protein, any sauce/seasonings required and vegetables to fit the night before and arrange it in my bento box. Or would you prefer to make lunches for the week? For dinner I meal plan the month ahead, then cook enough for the husband and myself for 2 nights and maybe a lunch portion. Breakfast I prep 1 or 2 servings of overnight oats (when I'm going to work at least), or just have crumpets/toast.

I guess these questions also limit food waste and help you budget a little better. You'll find something that suits your lifestyle with trial and error.

zeldon919

I meal prep on Sundays, for the work week. I live alone, so I only need to cook for myself. I also rarely prep the exact # of meals. I'll make 7-8 meals, to allow for flexibility.

I don't prep breakfast, but it tends to be one of 3-4 options, so I just make sure I have that stuff on hand.

Lunch is generally baked chicken breast and cooked veg. Sometimes I add a grain or starch, but that's about 1/3 time. Any protein would work. A lot of people eat salad, but I don't like salad.

I also make something for dinner/rotate for lunch. This week it's bean chilli. Soups are a good option, stew, or a pasta ("pasta") dish, a caserole, something like that. I portion this as soon as its done, even if it's 2+ servings in a container (ie I weight it out just as meticulously, just multiplied).

For alternate dinners, I like to have some lazy options. Tired from work, forgot to split that Tupperware with 2 servings, whatever. Some carefully selected frozen meals on hand - at the moment it's SmartOnes pizza (so I do t order Dominos) and Amy's Burritos. Breakfast for dinner is another option. I also usually have some cooked protein left over, give or take a meal's worth.

If I do desert after dinner right now that's 321 mug cake or Jello Pudding (the 50cal chocolate). Whipped cream (light, cream as first ingredient) makes intermittent appearances.

I'm not much of a snacker, but I always have string cheese, a salty crunchy option (wheat thins or another whole wheat/grain cracker, light butter microwave popcorn), and a sweet option (a cookie, some individually wrapped chocolate squares, Jello 50cal chocolate pudding). Be careful of portion sizes - I tend to make my own snack packs so I don't have to think about it when I'm peckish (eating 15 whatever's out of the box when hungry is not easy).

Weekends are a free for all.

Queenmunchy

gmallan wrote: »

I like making things like curries, soups, stews, dhal etc. that freeze well. I always bulk them out with lots of veggies.

Same. No pressure to eat them quickly and you have so many options of what to eat.

TigressStripes

deannalfisher wrote: »

TigressStripes wrote: »

Have you looked at EatThisMuch.com ? It takes all the thought process out of meal prep, you just follow directions and there you go.

have they improved their interface because when I tried it it was horrible...i'd try to set my goal calories for a meal and would get like a piece of fish as a recommendation that was 400cal and stuff like that

The service is a bit clunky, I'll readily admit to that (and I pay for it!) ... but setting reoccurring foods helps, and isolating out foods you can't or won't eat (for me, sadly that's most fish - I can't afford it). I got a very reasonable grocery list this week, which keeps to my budget. Support is *pretty* quick to answer questions as best they can, as well.

RoxiM2016

brilliant thanks guys. lots of good info here. im meal preping dinners for my husband and teas for me an my husband. weekly. i dont need dinners for me as i work on school dinners. so i get a piece of protien veggies or salad everyday from there..
thanks for all the ideas guys xx