Meal prep ideas

katonfire1 · February 2021

What’s your favorite go to meal prep? I am a very busy mom and I work a full time job as a technician and sometimes have to work up to 80 hours in a week so I don’t usually get to cook for my family during the week days and weekends sometimes too... so DoorDash has become a usual thing and unfortunately I have gained back a bunch of the weight I had worked so hard to get off back... so looking for some good meal prep ideas to keep in the fridge/freezer so I can have them ready for myself and my family during the week 😁
Note: I also have a two year old so some kid friendly meal prep ideas would be amazing also ☺️
Much love and hope everyone hits their goals! ❤️

SuzanneC1l9zz · February 2021

I swear by my crock pot. Once a week I make a batch of soup/ stew/ chili. We eat some and freeze some so there's a variety of choices in the freezer as well. Just put it on in the morning and however many hours later dinner is served.

TheresaM787 · February 2021

Quick and easy:
I buy chicken tenders in bulk. When I get home, I make two marinades, portion out the tenders into freezer bags, pour in a marinade, squeeze out air to seal, write type of marinade and date on bag, freeze. I pull out a bag the night before to defrost. We usually grill, although baking works well also.

Favorite Marinades
Lime, pressed garlic, salt, pepper, oregano and olive oil

Honey Mustard

Ancho chili powder, garlic powder, salt and olive oil

Orange and lime juice, garlic powder, salt and olive oil

Greek yogurt, pressed garlic, salt and oregano

Pressed garlic, lemon, salt, Parmesan and olive oil

TheresaM787 · February 2021

SuzanneC1l9zz wrote: »

I swear by my crock pot. Once a week I make a batch of soup/ stew/ chili. We eat some and freeze some so there's a variety of choices in the freezer as well. Just put it on in the morning and however many hours later dinner is served.

We made a chicken taco soup in the crockpot that the kids loved. I need to break that out more.

whoami67 · March 2021

I like to do some prep work and have a list of quick meals ready to go. My sister keeps a list of about a dozen go-to meals posted on her refrigerator with a magnet. I am not an advertiser for budgetbytes, but I sound like one.

I use a ton of recipes from budgetbytes.com, really every day, I make something from the site. https://www.budgetbytes.com/category/extra-bytes/budget-friendly-meal-prep/chicken-meal-prep/

And I prep a few things. For example, I make a lot of things that use chopped onions or celery or mushrooms. I chop enough for the week at one time. I bake a whole bag of chicken breasts at a time and shred or dice them to use in recipes; even those that call for raw chicken, I just use cooked. I keep some ground beef precooked. If I'm using rice more than once during the week, I make a big pot and keep it in the fridge.

Last night's meal took 15 minutes only because I had to boil water/pasta. The sauce took about 5 minutes: https://www.budgetbytes.com/creamy-tomato-spinach-pasta/

I love the one pot meals and cook this one weekly: https://www.budgetbytes.com/one-pot-creamy-cajun-chicken-pasta/.
I pre-chop the onions and pre-cook the chicken, and everything else is already in the fridge or cupboard. Since it is one pot, cleanup is super fast and easy.

For me, the meal prep is really about having a list of fast, easy recipes and keeping the ingredients on hand to make them. There are always canned tomatoes, beans and artichokes, varieties of frozen vegetables, diced onions, cooked chicken/beef/sausages, eggs, soy and other sauces (bbq, sweet chili, etc), rice/pasta, and a well stocked herb/spice cabinet in my home. Also, cheese. I supplement with fresh spinach, fresh parsley/cilantro/lemon/lime, mushrooms, etc. I can make dinner faster than I can make a decision on what to order for delivery, and I can do it with minimal cleanup.

Some quick favorites, none of which take more than about 5-10 minutes active prep time with minimal cleanup time and few dirty dishes:

https://www.budgetbytes.com/one-pot-teriyaki-chicken-and-rice/

https://www.budgetbytes.com/tuscan-white-bean-pasta/

https://www.budgetbytes.com/beef-taco-skillet/

https://www.budgetbytes.com/sweet-chili-chicken-stir-fry-bowls/

https://www.budgetbytes.com/easiest-burrito-bowl-meal-prep/

https://www.budgetbytes.com/spicy-noodles/

wandering44 · March 2021

My slow cooker and vacuum sealer get a good workout. Even though it's only the two of us, I find that cooking in batches is the easiest. Chili, meatloaf, beef brisket, pork picnic, dishes made with rotisserie chicken, pork spareribs with barbeque sauce and canned tomatoes, boneless leg of lamb, chicken wings, sausages. We have been on keto for 2 years. I have found some ready made sauces that are low carb - i.e. alfredo sauce, salsa, chili verde. I realize you don't have much free time but spending time on research is very beneficial. Good luck. It's great that you are working to keep your family healthy. We are fortunate - we do not have a restaurant within 50 miles so eating out and/or delivery is not an option.

_jenrose91 · March 2021

I ordered some meal prep containers for my birthday, I'm so excited to meal prep!

acpgee · March 2021

Whenever I do a recipe that freezes well such as braised chicken or meat dishes, gratin dauphinoise, lasagna, I will make a triple or quadruple batch because the incremental work is non linear, especially if you use the food processor for tasks such as chopping onions and grating garlic.

I currently have just over a kilo of beef brisket in the sous vide machine mixed with a packet of store bought rendang curry paste and coconut milk. We will eat a quarter of the batch tomorrow night and portion and freeze the rest.

The recipes I typically make in large batches to freeze are:
coq au vin
chicken cacciatore
dak dori tang
boef bourgignon
beef estouffade
braised lamb shanks and osso bucco
braised curries
bolognaise sauce for spaghetti
pesto
tomato vodka sauce for pasta
chili con carne
dutch split pea soup
cassoulet
gratin dauphinoise (freeze cooked, otherwise the starch in the potato turns to sugar in the freezer)
meatballs
meatloaf
lasagna (freeze uncooked)

If I am making any of these for a recipe, I make in large batches and freeze in small containers to make weeknight cooking quicker:
chicken stock
beef stock
shellfish bisque
onion gravy
caramelized onion frozen in silicon muffin tins or ice cube trays
grated raw ginger and galangal frozen in silicon ice cube trays.

I tip I got from the Serious Eats cookbook is to make more than you need of any frequently used sauces such as salad dressings, favourite stir fry sauces and marinades and store in the fridge in squeeze bottles. Here are some I keep in the fridge.

DeterminedMummy94x · March 2021

I'm veggie, but I often batch cook using my slow cooker-

Mild chickpea and lentil curry with whatever suitable veggies I have in the house, and cauliflower rice.

Pasta bake, again whatever I have in vegetable wise is thrown in there too, freezes well and kids love it.

Cauliflower cheese is another hit in my house and again, it freezer well.

Mild korma with meat free quorn pieces, cauliflower, chickpeas, onions, bit of tomato puree and I always use the patak paste pots for quickness.

Bolognese sauce with whatever suitable veg, I use quorn mince but im sure meat mince would work too. I freeze the sauce and then I just make the spaghetti as and when I need it.

Loaded potatoes are a favourite too, I pop in crockpot with fry light, small drop of water, some powdered cheese sauce, and top with what every random bits take my fancy. Usually quorn ham, onions, garlic etc. But my friend makes it with chopped bacon and cheese etc too. I keep this in fridge, so have no idea how well it freezes.

Chilli con carne is an easy one too, mince, kidney beans, tomatoes and I cheat and use the sachet chilli sauce mix.

rajashrid116 · March 2021

Go through the https://bynature.in/pages/recipes for some healthy recipes

Meal prep ideas

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