Oh, no! Here comes the decision fatigue of deciding what to eat for your next meal. The tacos are more delicious on Tuesdays, but having them constantly can feel stale. You had spaghetti three times for dinner last week. If you’re tired of thinking about what to eat next, try meal prepping instead.
While going for takeout may seem easy and convenient, it’s not the healthiest decision, and it has become increasingly more expensive, especially if you’re dining out with kids who may even decide they don’t want that $10 kids meal you just bought them.
Here are 15 beginner-friendly meal-prepping tips to help you and your family start eating healthier while saving money. Meal prepping can be stressful at first, especially for beginners. To help you get started, I’ve kept this list simple, focusing on showing how simple meal prep can be when done right.
I’m just starting the meal-prepping journey as a mom of three. I will be experiencing the highs and lows of meal-prepping right along with you.
Start Small and Keep It Simple
Not every meal has to be fully prepared for the week. Try to prepare lunch for at least 3-5 days for this coming week, and then you will start getting used to prepping for the other meals. Pack a lunch to take to work, so you don’t have to pick up takeout.
Salads and sandwiches are easy and quick to make. Choose recipes you love and master them by trying different varieties. While you may love a recipe one way, it’s best to try new varieties to explore your palate and to help your children discover new food choices.
I live in a rural community, and my youngest children attend a Head Start program two towns over, while my eldest attends the township public school. Hence, I usually stay in town until my youngest two are done school at 3 pm before I come back to pick up my eldest by 3:30 pm. I’ve been getting better at packing lunches to eat between freelance writing sessions, so I don’t have to rely on takeout.
Meal Plan Before Shopping
Look up recipes online or in cookbooks, if you have them at home. Select a couple that you like best. Try new recipes that feature your favorite foods, so it’s more exciting.
Check to see what ingredients you already have. Make a list of missing ingredients to take with you to the grocery store. A grocery list helps you stay on task, reducing impulse buys. If you are feeling super adventurous, try recipescal.com. Choose from paleo, vegetarian, vegan, ketogenic, or Mediterranean. It will be more randomized if you select the “anything” option. You can customize the recipe to your desired caloric intake per meal and the number of servings you want. It’s a handy tool for portion control and mindful eating.
When I asked the generator for a recipe that provides 600 calories in one meal, it gave me the two recipes, pictured above, that add up exactly to that amount. I will be using this tool more often for meal planning before shopping.
Purchase High-Quality Food Storage Containers
Research what you think are the best BPA-free and leak-proof containers. They will help you store meal prep items, such as cut-up vegetables, or store leftovers to eat the next day. Containers with compartments help with portion control for each meal component. Glass containers are sometimes higher quality than plastic ones and can still be reheated in the microwave.
Label your meals and include the date they were stored. Look on the USDA website or foodsafety.gov to learn information about how long you should keep certain cooked foods. Once it’s past this range, discard any remaining leftovers immediately.
Do Batch Cooking For Easier Meal Prep
Cooking meal batches on the weekends when you have more time. This makes weeknight meal planning much easier. Batch-cooking proteins and grains is a great way to combine them in different meal components.
These meal components can be used to create dishes with diverse tastes and cultural influences. Grilled chicken is best for wraps, salads, and stir-fry dishes, which can be customized with fixings and sauces.
I made a steak, onion, and bell pepper stir fry one night. I put the date on it and tossed the bag in the freezer. All I have to do is prepare some rice, heat the steak in the oven, and voila! Dinner is served!
Plan Freezer-Friendly Lunch and Dinner Meals
Make extra portions of your meals to store in the freezer. Chili, stews, and casseroles freeze well and can be reheated as needed. When you are having a “meal-prepping block” and need something for dinner, grab one of these already-prepared meals from your freezer and reheat them.
Place these dishes in a foil pan so you can dispose of them when the food is all gone. Wrap with a couple of layers of tin foil or use the accompanying lid, if the foil pans came with them. On this lid, write the dish name and the date it was prepared to monitor freshness.
You can use a freezer storage bag to freeze ready-made components for a dish. I cooked extra chicken breast one night recently to make fajitas another night in the coming month.
Cut Vegetables The Night Before
When you are super hungry, cutting vegetables is a dreadful chore that will make your mouth water. Skip this gruesome feeling by being proactive and pre-cutting your vegetables the night before.
If your kids are old enough, have them help. These Kolodogo toddler and child-safe knives from Amazon are ideal for little chefs learning to cook at home.
Pre-Wash and Cut Fruit for Healthy Snacks
“Mom, I’m hungry!” I hear from my eldest two almost every time we come home from school. Usually, I hand them a popsicle, a granola bar, or a pack of gummies.
I am trying to be more mindful of what snacks my little ones eat, so I started pre-washing and storing fruits in plastic containers for easy grabbing after a long day at school. In the picture above, I pre-cut a pear using an apple corer to go with our waffle breakfast one weekend morning.
With summer now here, pre-washing and cutting fruits in advance is great for outdoor play in the backyard or for taking on family picnics at your local park.
Freeze Fresh Meat (If Not Used in 48 Hours)
Here’s a money-saving tip: purchase discount meat and freeze it that night. Well, only freeze it if you won’t use it for that night’s meal. As expensive as meat already is in today’s economy, purchasing discounted meat on a manager’s special, as long as it smells and looks right, helps save money at the register.
I instantly placed this discount rib-eye round steak into the freezer after getting home from Walmart. I found it on sale in the meat department. I was so happy because I was already planning to make a steak, pepper, and onion stir-fry for the upcoming week.
Prep and Freeze Breakfast Meals
You save so much more money by making breakfast meals at home rather than buying the frozen, pre-made versions in the grocery store. Breakfast casseroles and burritos freeze well and require only a short amount of time to prepare. Here are other breakfast ideas you can make and freeze ahead of time:
- Muffin tin egg bites
- Pancakes
- Waffles
- Baked oatmeal squares
- Breakfast quesadillas
- Breakfast sandwiches with English muffins
The possibilities are endless! My favorite breakfast dish to prepare and freeze ahead of time is waffles. I have a regular waffle maker, a heart-shaped one, and a gingerbread one. I have them all going at once so I can make waffles faster to feed my three little ones on a weekend morning. I always bulk up on the batter so I can make extra waffles to freeze for the coming week ahead.
Stock Your Pantry Ahead Of Time
Think about the dishes you love to cook most. Consider what recipes you want to try over the coming month. Write your grocery list with the ingredients you need for these dishes so you have them in your pantry ready to go. Purchase the perishable ingredients, such as fresh herbs and meats, closer to the day you want to cook a specific dish.
I always keep our pantry stocked with primarily beans because we love meat chili with beans. These protein-packed little dudes also make a great side for tacos.
Use a Meal Prep Journal Or App
Instead of coming home wondering what to cook for dinner, start planning meals with a journal or meal-prepping app. Write down the day of the week and what you plan to do for each meal.
You can utilize a resource as simple as the Notes app on your phone. I saw a couple of meal apps that required a monthly subscription, which I didn’t want to pay for. These are the meal ideas I brainstormed for a week using only my notes app.
On weekdays during school and work, heat the breakfast meals you cooked and freeze them ahead of time. For an even faster meal solution, have yogurt, fruit, granola bars, and cold cereals available at a breakfast bar for everyone to grab before heading out the door.
Designate One Meal Prep Day Per Week
Set aside one day each week to dedicate to meal preparation on your calendar. Pre-cut the vegetables, make breakfast meals, and wash the fruit for snacking and dessert dishes.
Label each container with assembled ingredients, its contents, what dish it is for, and what day you plan to make it. Say that you cut strawberries and want to make a strawberry shortcake on Friday. Label the container as “Strawberries for Strawberry Shortcake on Friday”.
Rotate Recipes for Enhanced Engagement
Eating tacos every Tuesday and soup and crackers every Thursday can get a bit boring after a while. Rotate recipes so you and your family feel more engaged during meal time.
On Tuesdays, instead of tacos, you can try quesadillas, enchiladas, and pastelitos with rice and beans. For Thursday’s soup night, consider rotating with other dishes, such as casseroles, stews, chili, and pasta bakes.
Invest In a Spice Rack
I live in an old house from the 1800s, and cabinet storage is limited. My spices have been sitting in a very narrow rectangular cabinet. I just invested in the HuggieGems 4-pack magnetic spice rack from Amazon that magnetically adheres to my fridge. It keeps my most-used spices within arm’s reach and is conveniently positioned to the left of my kitchen’s main meal-prepping counter.
That small change has already made a huge difference in my meal-prepping experience. Instead of shuffling through a narrow cabinet, I can now access all my go-to spices quickly and efficiently.
Pre-Portion Snacks
Pre-portion snacks ahead of time to easily grab and go, or to streamline lunch packing. Purchase Greek yogurt in a 32-ounce tub and pre-portion it into smaller serving cups. It’s such a money-saver rather than buying those kids-themed yogurt cups or tubes.
Other snacks you can portion into plastic bags or containers include:
- Animal crackers
- Potato chips
- Nuts and seeds
- Roasted chickpeas or edamame
- Trail mix
- Popcorn
- Rice cakes
- Pretzels
- Pita chips with hummus
- Round or square crackers with cheese cubes
Meal-prepping is an exciting activity that will make you feel more accomplished and proactive throughout the week. We all need to eat to survive, so why not plan out our meals? Planning meals means smoother weeknights, getting the kids fed, showered, and in bed. Weekends can be more carefree with less time spent slaving over a hot stove and washing a bunch of dishes.
