7 Meal Prep Tips You Can Actually Follow

Meal prep can save you loads of time on daily meal preparation and cooking. You just have to be in tune with your health as well as lifestyle in order to make meal prep a habit. Otherwise, you are bound to fall off the wagon.

As much as you can pre-cook your weekly meals, you can also order in from healthy meal prep and delivery services. It does not matter where you are, these services are nowadays many and in almost every city. Therefore, if you want healthy home delivery meals in Toronto, you can get it in no time.

Anyhow, here are some meal prep tips you can actually follow and stick with.

1. Creating Meal Prep Time 

Meal prep is not something you wake up and decide to do, without proper planning. Therefore, check your calendar and the week ahead, in order to know what you will make and how much you will make.

This is because going out on a date, birthday dinner or having a business lunch can affect your weekly meal prep plan. So consider those days you will not be at home for your meals, whenever you make your weekly recipe and shopping list.

2. Making a Shopping List 

Once you are done making your recipes for the week. You can check your fridge, pantry and even freezer for some of the ingredients you will need to make your weekly meal. After which, you can proceed to make a shopping list of the remaining food products you will need for your meal prep.

A shopping list is always essential, as you cannot cram all the food produce in your head. It makes shopping easier and you will not forget a thing since everything on it is as per the recipe. 

3. Keeping Your Preferences in Mind 

You should always consider your meal preferences for the week when making your shopping list. This makes it easier to cook large or small batches of food.

For instance, if you prefer to eat a variety of food products from vegetables to proteins and grains, then you will need to make a small-organized meal board to follow, as you do your shopping and even pre-cook your meals.

Some people may prefer to eat the same food every other dinner, and that is ok. You just have to prepare it enough for the week. 

Therefore, even as you would like to eat healthy meals. Eat what you want and do not force something that does not fit your lifestyle or body down your throat. 

4. Embracing the Bowl 

Do you want to eat healthy, even if it means being part of the meal-prep bandwagon? Then you are best suited with a bowl combination of one or two vegetables, one protein plus one starchy carb to keep your energy and blood sugar stable. You can add some sauce or dressing to make it even yummier. 

5. Paying Attention to the Overlapping of Ingredients 

Always check for overlapping ingredients while making your weekly meal prep recipe. This can save you loads of time in preparing different batches of food, as you would now prepare just one big batch enough for the days of the week it reoccurs.

6. Investing in Top-Quality Storage Containers

You should invest in quality containers for storing your pre-cooked meals. This way they last for the recommended time. The food containers should function well and be appealing, to make the meal prepping and eating fun. Besides, you are bound to get more joy from looking at and eating appealing food produce. 

Some top-quality containers are often made from stainless steel, glass, or BPA-free plastic with locking lids. You can use them for storing different food produce. As for salads and soups, they are often better in mason jars. 

7. Organizing Your Refrigerator

You will need to create some storage space in your fridge. Therefore, you will need a storage system, since you will be prepping loads of different food produce for the week.

You can put the food you will eat first on the front, together with fresh and roasted vegetables. The food you plan to eat later on in the week can go in the back together with proteins. 

In addition, separate ethylene producing vegetables and fruits like avocados, bananas, and apples from those that are ethylene sensitive like yams, carrots, and eggplants. This way your groceries do not ripen quickly.

Also, keep your fridge clean, you can do a weekly clean up.

Conclusion

In conclusion, meal prep is not that easy. It takes time and needs proper preparation. The more you become consistent with it, the easier the weekly meal prep becomes.