Meal preparation or “prep” is an incredibly useful tool for anyone living a busy lifestyle. Putting together meals in advance can save you so much time by condensing your cooking time into one or two allocated sessions. By preparing dishes in batches, you’ll be dedicating attention to creating fresh food all at once, instead of spreading this through the week. In doing so, you maximise your time, reduce energy bills by not cooking on multiple occasions, and clear your schedule for other things.
Sound good? You’ll need to know a few tips to get started.
Invest in the equipment
We’ve all heard the saying ‘a bad workman blames his tools’. However, in this instance, you’ll struggle to produce the volume of food needed without the right equipment. You may be preparing multiple recipes at once for the week ahead, so you’ll need reliable induction pan sets to juggle all these elements and make the cooking process as smooth as possible.
Make sure you invest in a set of high-quality knives, as inadequate or blunt knives aren’t as efficient and may even pose a safety risk.
Create a varied menu
Variety is the spice of life and it’s certainly a key ingredient when it comes to meal prep. If you prepare one dish for every evening in a week, you’ll soon get bored. This can lead to snacking or opting for alternative meals, even when one is already there.
When starting out, pick one meal that you’ll prep for out of breakfast, lunch or dinner. Next, choose two or three recipes that are easily made in batches and that you enjoy eating. Plan to eat these dishes on alternative days in a week, making sure you don’t have the same thing two days in a row. Not only is the variety good for your health, it’ll keep you interested.
Use airtight containers
To make sure your food will last, the right storage containers are essential. They need to be airtight or suitable for freezing, depending on where you’re putting them. You may wish to freeze meals you’ll need later in the week to ensure they stay fresh.
Before putting any food in the fridge or freezer, make sure they’ve cooled and then store promptly for optimal food hygiene at home.
Stick to your list
When shopping for your meal prep, don’t be tempted to stray into popping things in the basket to give you other options. This will not be cost-effective and will likely lead to food waste from either your batch meal or unused ingredients for other dishes.
A good way to stick to your list is to never go shopping when you’re hungry and avoid the aisles with foods like crisps and confectionery.
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