How do you food prep?

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nawali91
nawali91 Posts: 7 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I really want to start food prep?

For those that do, what type of food do you prep? How long you keep it for? Is it effective in eating clean?

Replies

  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,017 Member
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    Do you not cook?
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
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    Sorry but this is a bit confusing? We all prep food to eat it don't we unless we have a housemad or just use microwave meals or restaurants. Please explain more.
  • moylek
    moylek Posts: 27
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    I don't even understand the question. Is "prep" the same as "cook" or "make"?
  • nawali91
    nawali91 Posts: 7 Member
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    I am so sorry. That did sound confusing. I mean do you cook for the week and keep it in the fridge to ensure you eat healthy. Ive seen people cook food for the next few days rather than cooking it everyday?
    Do any of you do that?

    I hope that makes more sense
  • peachstategal
    peachstategal Posts: 398 Member
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    I make a large pot of soup at least once a week and eat it for lunch every day!
  • FancyPantsFran
    FancyPantsFran Posts: 3,687 Member
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    When you say food prep I take it to mean making some meals ahead of time so you have healthier foods available. That is my idea of food prep. When I do it I usually make some meals for 2/3 days ahead of time and put them in my fridge. I also prelog them into my mfp too. If I don't cook foods ahead I do know what I'm eating and have ingredients available.


    Some dinners I food prep...Chicken brown rice and veggies Shrimp, broccoli pea pods and yellow peppers stirfry...I usually make this the day Im going to eat it for dinner and make extra for the next days lunch

    Some breakfast I use for the week steel cut oatmeal. Make enough for a few days.. It heats up great and you can add what ever you want to it to bulk it up... apple cinnamon banana blueberries etc
  • naturesfempower
    naturesfempower Posts: 107 Member
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    I cook a lot of food on Sunday (such as a bean soup, a pot of greens, and a pot of brown rice) and pack it in individual serving size portions to refrigerate or freeze. Sunday night I prep fresh veggies for the week (salads with dressing in a serving cup, fresh veggies with dip or hummus) and pack up nuts/seeds in serving size containers. Fruits I pack the morning I am using them. On Monday night, I usually cook enough lean meat for 3-4 meals and package them in portion sizes for the rest of the week. Then I can just grab and go for lunch or toss something in the microwave for dinner after the gym. Simplifies my life.
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
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    Yes that is much better. I myself sometimes make a soup for instance in the slow cooker on the weekend then take it to work for maybe four days for lunch. After 3 or 4 I like a change but you can put some things in batches in the freezer and take then out to change things up the next week. Otherwise I might use the slow cooker or pressure cooker and make something like a curry on the weekend so I don't have to cook one night through the week but you could make a double batch also.
  • KayLgee
    KayLgee Posts: 139
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    I too make soup, its so easy to store (I use bags) and just take it out the freezer the night before.

    You can cook meat/veg/sweet potato store it, take out what you need the night before.

    I generally chop up onions, peppers, beets etc. ready to throw on top of salad leaves, they will last in a sealed tub for a few days.
  • KayLgee
    KayLgee Posts: 139
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    I also portion nuts in bags (ready to grab and already weighted for easy logging), I clean then dry all fruit and put into tubs for ready to go grabbing.

    Being prepared is half the battle.
  • ktsmom430
    ktsmom430 Posts: 1,100 Member
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    I cook enough on weekends for meals and leftovers for the week. I put leftovers in individual portion sizes in containers and either freeze for later use or refrigerate and eat within a couple of days. I cut up raw veggies and fruits (celery, carrots, radishes, cucumbers, bell peppers, melons, berries etc.) for the week. Most prepping is done for the week this way. My husband works afternoon shift and I work days so this works out great for us.
  • WVprankster
    WVprankster Posts: 430 Member
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    I cook and portion my lunches for the week on Sunday night, storing them in plastic tubs in the fridge. I weigh out and portion my nighttime snack (usually beef jerky or jalapeno pretzel bites) from the entire package. It's easier to stay on track by just eating one container's worth than having to guess.
  • laylanthomas
    laylanthomas Posts: 1
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    I weigh, cook and pot my chicken, brown rice and veggies for upto 3 days in advance then just grab a pot out of the fridge every morning. Every Monday I take pre-packaged nuts/ fried fruits & fresh bananas to last me the week in the office. As has previously been said, if I know what I'm going to eat throughout the day I'll put it into MFP as I'm eating my eggs in the morning just so I don't forget. The same with my exercise. If I know I'm going to run for 20 minutes and then cycle for 10 , I'll also put that into MFP before I do it, just so I don't forget. I like seeing the numerical side of things.
  • moylek
    moylek Posts: 27
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    That does make more sense :)

    Yes, I prepare some food ahead of time to reduce the temptation to eat out at lunch or to make a quick supper an option.

    My wife and I* make a big pot of chilli most weekends: that does most of our lunches for the week plus a lazy supper or two (often combined with an omelette).

    I like to cook up a six to ten sausages - Italian or German, not breakfast - on the weekend, too. Those can be easily reheated - or not - and served with a quick stir-fry of onions, peppers, cabbage, etc.

    * let's be honest: it's mostly my wife.
  • FoxyLifter
    FoxyLifter Posts: 965 Member
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    My food prep includes boiling a bunch of eggs and cooking meat. I cook salmon filets for breakfasts and chicken breast for lunches. The eggs are for snacks. :)
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,741 Member
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    My husband actually does more of our cooking than I do (although I do cook, and bake) but we tend to make stuff that only serves 2 or 4, so we either eat a lot or just have leftovers for one more meal. When I was living alone, I enjoyed doing what many have mentioned here...making a big pot of soup, or batch of other foods, and eating it all week. Very convenient and budget friendly!

    Some of the stuff we prep in advance though...produce, in many cases. After we do our main weekly grocery shop it is common for us to chop up a whole pineapple, stem and slice strawberries, chop an onion, slice cucumbers, shred lettuce, etc. If we buy a big block of cheese, we'll pre-shred. Black beans are cooked in advance, or if using canned, rinse & drain and store in a reusable container in the fridge...you get the picture!

    We use this stuff in all kinds of different recipes and some of it (like fruit) is just really convenient to have on hand, and encourages healthier & sometimes "cleaner" eating - for example, I might not have time to cut up a whole fresh pineapple in the AM but I'll sure throw 4-5 chunks onto my plate with my eggs and toast, or whatever. Much better than having a little prepackaged bowl of fruit with sugary solution "juice" (to me anyway). Some of this is also in the interest of saving time. When I come home on my lunch hour it's nice to have a washed potato ready to be baked and 3-4 healthy toppings ready to go - or some leftover lentils, or whatever. I'm more likely to grab baby carrots, cucumber slices & celery sticks and some hummus when everything is neatly cleaned and ready to go.

    I like to prep refrigerator oats also. I have only made them up to 24 hours ahead of time (usually 10-16 hours ahead) and I know a lot of people use tons of liquid in theirs, but I like mine with just plain Greek yogurt, a small amount of oats, and some frozen fruit and/or honey and then maybe stir in some nuts and cinnamon when it's time to eat. The texture is different than just eating oatmeal or yogurt - but I love it.

    Pretty much the only thing I NEVER prepare in advance is avocado and banana...they turn brown, yuck.
  • MyM0wM0w
    MyM0wM0w Posts: 2,008 Member
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    I am so sorry. That did sound confusing. I mean do you cook for the week and keep it in the fridge to ensure you eat healthy. Ive seen people cook food for the next few days rather than cooking it everyday?
    Do any of you do that?

    I hope that makes more sense

    Some stuff I do and some I don't prep. For instance I usually make a pot of soup or something in the crock pot/a casserole. I divy it up into serving containers and freeze part of it for later in the week (or the following week if I dont want to eat the same thing every day!). I almost always make a small loaf of artisan bread on Sundays to last me the first part of the week.... oh and I make sure I always have homemade pizza dough in the freezer in single servings baggies (I made a batch today and that will last about a month). I also always keep mozzarella and homemade marinara in the freezer as well. This way I can always throw together a pizza if I'm in a pinch and don't want to cook.

    Other things have to wait for the night before. A fruit salad for snacking on, measuring out milk into a glass container and the cereal into a baggie (so I just have to dump the cereal into the container) etc....

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