Mind & Body
Become a Meal-prep Pro with Our Dietitian’s Advice
Customizing Your Meal Prep Diet
“Meal prep” takes on a variety of meanings and elicits various reactions depending on your propensity for getting food ready in advance. For the recipe-loving kitchen commander in your home, it’s a welcome reprieve from the busyness of life. Plug in your favorite podcast and spend a few hours slicing, dicing, combining, cooking and freezing, and you’re ready to go for at least the next week, or maybe the next major snow storm. For those of us who don’t clamber toward the kitchen with that same gusto, hearing the words “meal prep” can evoke feelings of dread or simple helplessness in the face of a week’s long demand for pre-made meals.
Not to fear. Wherever you fall on the meal prep spectrum, there are some great ways and kitchen hacks that make making meals that much easier. Putting in the time one day a week can mean the rest of your seven-day stretch is that much less stressful. Here are a few tips and dietitian recommendations to make meal planning an enjoyable, healthy and helpful journey.
Meal Prepping Methods
Choose the method that’s right for you. Do you love reheated lasagna? Can you spread a single savory sauce over three day’s worth of food? Do you crave grab-and-go snacks and easy lunches? There are a variety of ways to prepare your meals and choosing the method that works best for you is the quickest way to make meal planning stick. Here are a few different ways to meal plan:
Make Ahead Meals
This is a favorite among busy parents. Choose one of your family’s favorite re-heatable meals. Enchiladas, healthy, veggie-packed casseroles, lasagnas and potato bakes are quick, easy and tasty. Make the dish at the beginning of the week and then reheat for lunches or dinners. Change up accompanying sides and sauces for variety.
Individual Portioned Meals
This is where mason jars or your favorite Tupperware containers come in handy. During your chosen meal prep time during the week, prepare fresh meals and portion them into individual grab-and-go portions that can be easily refrigerated and eaten or reheated in the coming days. These are great for an on-the-go lifestyle or a healthy alternative to the workplace cafeteria.
Ready-to-Cook Ingredients
If you’re the spontaneous type when it comes to your meals, this is a great option. Instead of preparing an entire entrée or must-eat dish at the beginning of the week, opt for healthy, fresh ingredients instead. This allows for some creativity and nice variety throughout the week. Mix and match ingredients and sauces. Add pre-chopped root veggies to your favorite salad greens, or quickly stir up your favorite side dish and serve with a healthy protein from the grill.
Have Meal-ready Ingredients On-hand
Stocking your pantry with easy staples is a great way to help ease the demands of on-demand meals. Combining some pre-cut veggies with brown rice makes for a fresh, family-friendly stir fry. A flavorful batch of pre-made, plant-based sauce is the perfect way to dress up canned beans and quinoa. To maximize your meal planning, it’s wise to have these ingredients at the ready:
- Whole grains: brown rice, quinoa, oats, polenta, whole wheat pasta, bulgar and farro
- Oils: olive, avocado and coconut
- Legumes: (these can be canned or dried, just keep in mind that dried legumes can take a good chunk of time to soak and cook) black beans, garbanzo beans, lentils and pinto beans
- Canned goods: (opt for low sodium if possible) broth or stock, tomatoes and tomato sauce, artichokes, hearts of palm, olive, capers, corn, tuna, salmon and chicken
- Baking essentials: baking powder, baking soda, flour (whole wheat and white) and cornstarch
- Condiments: mayonnaise, vegenaise, ketchup, mustard and hot sauce
- Miscellaneous: nut butters (almond and peanut), mixed nuts and dried fruits.
- Embrace the spice. Individual spices, fresh herbs and spice blends are a quick and easy way to elevate any meal. Make sure to have a variety of your favorites—and even some that might be more experimental for your style of cooking.
Remember Your Food Groups
It can be easy to default to carb-loaded starchy foods when you’re making dishes in advance, but it can be just as easy to infuse your meals with a healthy mix of foods to ensure your meal planning packs a healthy punch. Aspen Valley Health Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and RN, Kristy Bates, emphasizes the importance of a well-balanced diet. “Nutrition can have a significant impact on the quality of your skin, hair and nails. Improved dietary choices can also quickly help treat symptoms of digestive discomfort or chronic digestive conditions. In addition, controlling portions, avoiding alcohol, enjoying a balanced breakfast each morning and choosing healthy snacks can boost energy and confidence, prevent mid-day “crashes” and improve concentration.”
Jot it Down
When the piles of prepped food on your kitchen counter become overwhelming, simply make a list of the week’s meals. Map it out meal by meal and day by day. If you’re storing ready-to-eat portions in the fridge, label containers (use masking tape to avoid writing directly on the container if you need to, or fun stickers that make it easy for kiddos to identify their meal or snack).
Find Whatever Works for You
When it comes to meal planning, finding the right groove for your lifestyle is an excellent place to start. From there, experiment, add and subtract until you land on the best approach. And after all that, if coming up with a healthy, hearty, wholesome game plan for a week’s worth of meals seems like too much, turn to the experts, like Kristy Bates! Aspen Valley Health’s Dietitian Demos offer a bounty of advice, tips, and tricks for a variety of needs.
Kristy has a closing piece of advice on the topic:
“As far as time goes, you can actually save time once you get in the habit of cooking your own meals rather than eating out. Plus, home-cooked meals are almost always healthier and more affordable than restaurant offerings, and preparing food can be so rewarding!”
