Meal Prep Tips

I frequently get asked how I find the time to prep a week’s worth of meals for my boyfriend and myself. My answer is usually that I really don’t have time, I make the time. I give up a portion of my Sunday every week to grocery shop and then chop, slice, saute whatever goodies I bought that morning. Each week I create a menu, rotating through my arsenal of about 30 easy meals that we’ll eat for the week.

If none of that sounds appealing, it’s probably because it isn’t. But it also took me six months to figure out how a system that would work for what I wanted to accomplish for the week. I’m doing a bad job at convincing you to start, aren’t I? Well if you’re still reading, stay tuned the secrets I’m about to share.

Tip #1

Do the math. How many people are you prepping for? How many meals do you need? Do you want breakfast, lunch, snacks, and dinner prepped for the week or are you only concerned about lunches? Do you want to prep Monday through Friday or only a few days? Once you figure out how many meals you want and when, move on to finding recipes that will offer the number of servings you want. I quickly write on a post-it note Monday-Sunday and determine if I want 1-2 meals prepped per day and then multiply it by 2 because that’s how many people I prep for.

Tip #2

Start small. I repeat, START SMALL. Start with prepping for one or two easy meals for the week. I recommend starting with a skillet or oven recipe and a slow cooker recipe. Get the slow cooker going and then start working on the skillet meal. Meal prepping is a lesson in multi-tasking.

Tip #3

Cook things you’ll actually want to eat. I repeat: COOK THINGS YOU LIKE TO EAT. Pinterest is a great tool for finding recipes, but it can also be overwhelming. Prepping an entire week’s worth of meals and then not wanting to eat any of it at the end of the day is expensive and time consuming.

Tip #4

Enlist a buddy to help you chop, slice, and julienne. Every week Kevin becomes my sous chef and helps me prep several pounds of vegetables before I cook them. When you cook for more than one person, it saves time and sanity to have a kitchen buddy.

Ready to get started? Each week I’ll post more tips about meal prepping and trying out new recipes. Stay tuned for more!

 

Buffalo Chicken Chili

This recipe shows up on the menu with more regularity than most of my other meal prep recipes. It’s delicious and it’s absurdly easy. Recipes like these let me enjoy my meal prepping Sundays. Just throw everything into the crock pot and let it go for a few hours.

Ingredients:

• 5 cloves of garlic, chopped (minced works just as well)
• 3 medium onions (roughly 2 cups), chopped
• 3-4 large carrots (roughly 3 cups), chopped
• 2 cups of celery
• 2 15 oz cans of beans, drained and rinsed (I like to use Great Northern and generic chili style beans)
• 1/3-1/2 cup Frank’s Buffalo sauce
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 28 oz can diced tomatoes (I like to use two 14 oz cans w/ chiles)
• 2 lbs chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
• Cooking spray

Directions:

1. Preheat a large skillet on medium heat and spray with cooking spray. Add garlic, onions, carrots, and celery and saute for 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Transfer the veggies to a large crock pot.
2. Adding remaining ingredients through the tomatoes to the crock pot. Mix to combine. I always add just a little more spice at the end.
3. Add chicken breasts, let them sink into the mixture, and cover with the rest of the ingredients. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours.
4. Remove chicken breasts, place in a separate bowl, and shred with two forks. Return chicken to the crock pot and cook for another 15-30 minutes.
5. Serve hot with crumbled feta or bleu cheese and chopped cilantro or green onion.
6. Enjoy!