This is a hot topic at the moment, it seems that everyone I talk to wants to do this but don’t know just how to put it together.
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Organisation and planning is the key to get you started.
I break my meal prepping up in two days over the weekend so it doesn’t take up one whole day. During the week I work out my menu and what I want to eat for the weeks ahead.
I shop on a Saturday and prepare and cook on a Sunday afternoon. I make a shopping list and take my recipes with me to the grocery store. I only buy whats on the list!!!!
Start with a plan: Make a list of everything you want to prep for the week. Use your weekly menu if you have one or decide on basic staples that can be used in a variety of meals (like meat, beans, grains etc). Try dividing your list into sections like oven, stove, no-cook etc so you have a clear picture of what needs to be done in each area of the kitchen.
Multi-task: The best way to ensure you get the most out of your allotted food prep time is to make sure you’re doing multiple things at once. You could, theoretically, have something in the crockpot, something in the oven, a couple things on the stove and be chopping vegetables on the counter all at once.
This is where your list comes in handy. Think long term and start crockpot and oven items first. Since baking typically takes the longest, I always make sure I have something on-deck, ready to go into the oven when the previous thing comes out.
Then I fill in the remaining time by working on this on the stove, counter, etc.
Double the recipe:If you’re making something like soup, patties or casseroles, I actually times my recipe by four putting half in the freezer for later. It won’t be much extra work for you and it’s an easy way to make sure you have food on hand for busy weeks when you don’t have time to food prep.
Target your trouble times: Think about what time of the day you struggle most with healthy eating. Do you have a tough time eating breakfast but usually do fairly well with dinner?
Focus your prep time on the meals that are the hardest for you. Mine is dinner time as I like to have something on hand after a long day a long session and don’t have time or is too late to cook dinner.
For more information regarding food prepping contact Trine on her Facebook page The Active Chef with Trine Gall.