Using Panda Express to meal prep

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  • corinasue1143
    corinasue1143 Posts: 7,464 Member
    COGypsy wrote: »

    The problem with slow cookers is the texture.

    Agreed. Meat eater. It doesn’t make good meat.

    One exception. I have a cheap small crockpot (I think it was $5 on a Black Friday sale) that doesn’t get very hot, but heats up quick. Heats up a can of soup in about 20 minutes. Not mushy, just hot. Great! If you have room in your kitchen for one more thing that you use about once a year.


  • mathdad41
    mathdad41 Posts: 119 Member
    To me that's a lot of sodium. As mentioned above I'd look into a slow cooker, instapot, or even the Ninja grill/air fryer.

  • COGypsy
    COGypsy Posts: 1,349 Member
    corinasue1143 wrote: »
    COGypsy wrote: »

    The problem with slow cookers is the texture.

    Agreed. Meat eater. It doesn’t make good meat.

    One exception. I have a cheap small crockpot (I think it was $5 on a Black Friday sale) that doesn’t get very hot, but heats up quick. Heats up a can of soup in about 20 minutes. Not mushy, just hot. Great! If you have room in your kitchen for one more thing that you use about once a year.


    Luckily I have a sister that periodically stocks my freezer with tortilla soup and minestrone, so I rarely have to resort to canned soup, but that would be super handy at the office!
  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,966 Member
    My grocery store has daily family meal deals. One night I think they do BBQ... (that might just be a summer thing). You can buy a tub of some type of bbq meat and some sides. Another night the grocery store does lasagna, where you get a lasagna, big salad and breadsticks... another night is fried chicken... (that one probably wouldn't be good to last the week though)

    Olive Garden has a family to-go bundle, I think it's lasagna plus salad and breadsticks.
  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,966 Member
    edited January 2020
    As for the crock pot, I used to have the same texture issues with those, but I just had my third baby in July, and in the evenings I'm on my own with all three kids, so I have basically no time to cook. I get tired of restaurant food, plus it's expensive. I'm fortunate to be able to come home at lunch and throw dinner in the crockpot and set the timer for 4 hours, so it doesn't turn into a mushy, cooked all to hell mess. I've done some easy soups (chicken and gnocci soup, one that is similar but it has tortellini and some tomato sauce) I also cook chicken thighs in there with some asian sauce, and then when I get home I put rice in the rice cooker, steam some broccoli, and thicken up the sauce. The things I let cook all day are big chunks of meat like a roast, or a pork butt. I know you hate cooking but just giving you some ideas. You could cook a roast, and then a couple sides, and then eat that all week. I also buy already prepared mashed potatoes out of the refrigerated section of my grocery store to save time, a couple bags of frozen veggies, and rolls or some type of bread. Minimal effort.
  • NicbPNW
    NicbPNW Posts: 47 Member
    edited January 2020
    Blooperss wrote: »
    Update: Purchased it today and the lady packed all of the containers to the BRIM with chicken. Man was it good! So glad I went for it, the meal was extremely tasty and satisfying! Can't wait for tomorrow's dinner already! Might even have some for lunch :smile: A week's worth of dinner prepared for less than $40. Can't complain! Will be buying some cabbage to cook and eat with the chicken. The super greens aren't enough in quantity!

    Good idea to add more veggies to it. You never know if something will work for you until you try and Panda Express is SO good!

    I do Sun Basket every week and it's pretty decently priced plus you can get some good coupons online for even more of a discount.

    Good luck to you!
  • Dreamwa1ker
    Dreamwa1ker Posts: 196 Member
    For those talking about slow-cookers - this cookbook is way better than most crock-pot recipes I have found online (which do typically have some of the problems folks mentioned): https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Slow-Cooker-Appetizers-Must-Have/dp/1940352789 It has some tips that help like using the oven broiler to crisp up things like chicken wings or to glaze a piece of meat after it is done cooking. I did also get the slow-cooker recommended out of that book when my old one broke, and I like it because it doesn't end up boiling food on low (which is not slow-cooking) as some other models I've used have.
  • FinelyFermented
    FinelyFermented Posts: 102 Member
    I've done lots of take out. As others have stated, just watch the sizing and log the *kitten* out of it. As far as PE is concerned, I'd I walk into there it'll be a 3k calories meal.

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  • allother94
    allother94 Posts: 588 Member
    edited January 2020
    I’ve been meals planning with dunkin doughnuts for months. Panda Express is pretty similar. I say go for it!

    BTW - 2lbs per week fat loss is perfectly fine. Trust me, I’m a doctor...



    ... of mathematics.

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