I've had many people ask for specifics on this topic so I'm really excited for this post and hope that others will find it useful! Thank you to those of you thus far that have texted me pictures of your Sunday meal preps or posted them online and have tagged me - I'm glad to have been able to help you so far! :)
I've started making sure to dedicate at least 1 - 1.5 hours each Sunday to prepare meals for Eric and I for the upcoming week. I don't necessarily have every single meal for every day of the week planned out (because that would be boring!) but having the majority of the work done so that you can easily grab it and throw it in the microwave at work, or at home when you're by yourself and in a hurry, or when you're on the go running from one place to another - has been a huge time saver for us!
In addition to how much time it saves me and gives me back each night, it also helps with portion control, cuts back on unnecessary and unhealthy snacking, adds so much more time to your day that would typically be spent cooking and cleaning up the kitchen, and it saves so much money that would typically be spent on buying snacks, lunches or dinners while out (who wouldn't love to have that extra cash in the bank?!) Don't get me wrong - we love our dinners out here and there but with our busy and conflicting schedules, meal prepping has been a huge help for our crazy lifestyles!
The meals I typically prep are the meals that we aren't home to enjoy together - lunches and the majority of dinners. If we are home together during a week night or on the weekend, we'll usually cook together or grill (we love to grill!) and every once in a while, we'll treat ourselves to a meal out!
How to start?
Review your calendar for the week
The first thing I do is take a look at my calendar to see what we have going on in the upcoming week. How many part time shifts or overtime shifts does Eric have this week? Do we have plans with friends or family? Are we having people over? How many nights will we be home together? What nights do I have events or other plans after work? All of these questions will lead to determining just how many meals and snacks you'll need to prep for. When you're hosting, or going to a friend's house - you'll want to plan to have the ingredients for whatever dish(es) you're going to be making for that, as well. I try to only make one trip to the grocery store per week (typically on Sunday mornings) - it has saved so much money and is an obvious time saver, so being prepared for your shopping trip is key!
Take inventory
I take an inventory of what's in my freezer, refrigerator and pantry so that I'm not buying anything we don't actually need or won't end up using. It makes me cringe to throw out food that has either gone bad in the refrigerator or expired in the pantry. We usually already have a lot of the items that I need for the week's meals, as I tend to stock up on our most used items when they are on sale or when I have coupons and can get them for a great price. (The most common sale items I stock up on are fresh meats, rice, frozen vegetables, mix for dips, salad dressings, canned items, cheese, yogurts, etc.)
Check your local circulars
I typically start planning my grocery list for the upcoming week around Thursday or Friday when the sale ads for grocery stores come out. I receive copies via email and some are mailed to my home. Regardless, all circulars are typically published or received by Thursday/Friday each week - so make it a habit to look over your weekly ad for the stores where you typically shop. Also keep in mind the coupons you already have while looking over the circular so that you can maximize your savings. I keep my coupons organized (maybe an upcoming blog topic?) so that I can easily review and pull the coupons I plan to use for that week's shopping trip.
Once you're done reviewing your calendar, taking inventory of what you already have and making notes on what items are on sale after browsing your local store's sales flyer, you're ready to plan your meals!
Planning your meals
I typically aim for some kind of salad for lunches and a meat/rice/vegetable combo for dinners. For snacks, I like to have fresh fruit and vegetables readily available too. You'll notice I haven't mentioned breakfast. We typically either have egg whites, omelets, cereal, etc. for breakfast and those don't require much effort to make or prepare, so I don't worry about breakfast while meal prepping (but I do keep breakfast in mind while preparing my grocery list).
(I had originally begun typing this post a few weeks ago when things weren't so busy with work and the numerous weddings/parties that we've had over the past few weekends. I haven't had time in the last few weeks to finish or continue writing, so this meal prep plan is actually from a few Sundays ago).
For this week, I only had to prep my own meals for lunches and dinners. Eric still had lots of leftovers to choose from (which thankfully, he loves) along with lunchmeat for sandwiches and we had plenty of snacks.
For lunches, I decided to make caesar salads with crab cakes.
For dinners, I decided to bake old bay chicken with spiced rice and steamed broccoli.
For snacks, I had grapes, cantaloupe chunks, and bell peppers sliced.
For my grocery list I had to purchase the following:
- Fresh fruit (grapes and cantaloupe were on sale that week)
- Romaine lettuce (also on sale that week)
- Yogurt (also on sale and used coupons)
- Bell peppers (also on sale that week)
- Bread (also on sale that week and used a coupon)
I knew that I was having a few girlfriends over one night that week, so I also planned to make a veggie tray, buffalo chicken dip and jalapeño poppers. After doing inventory, I realized that I only needed to buy:
- Carrots (also on sale)
- Cucumbers
- Broccoli (also on sale)
- Celery
- Sour Cream (also on sale and used a coupon)
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I had all of the other ingredients at home to cover the rest of the ingredients for my meals.
Time to get started!
When starting, you'll want to pull all of your ingredients out of the refrigerator/freezer/pantry to come up with your plan. The best thing to start with is whatever will need to be cooked (and start with the item that requires the longest cook time). During these stretches when something is either on the stove, oven or microwave - you can get the smaller, non-cooking preparations finished while waiting for those items to cook. I started with my chicken. I had thawed out 3 pieces of chicken earlier that morning, so I pulled them from the refrigerator, rewashed and dried them and put them in a pyrex dish to bake. Once I sprinkled old bay over the tops, I threw them in the oven for 40 minutes.
While the chicken was baking, I decided to also get my broccoli out of the way. I typically stock up on frozen broccoli at Giant when they are having a sale. I think the last time I stocked up, I purchased 5 of the 16 oz. bags for $4.00 total. I popped a bag of broccoli in my Pampered Chef steamer, and steamed it for 8 minutes.
While the oven and microwave were both being used, I started washing and cutting all of the romaine lettuce for the salads. To fill all 5 containers, I usually have to buy one large pack of romaine lettuce (6 stalks) or, if the smaller packs (containing 3 stalks) look more fresh, I'll purchase 2 of those packs instead. Once it was washed, semi-dried, and cut into smaller pieces, I divided the lettuce up between 5 empty containers, placed a paper towel on the top of each and put the lids on each of the containers. (Putting a paper towel in the top of the container helps soak up the excess water from washing, from the lettuce and keeps it nice and fresh for the entire week).
To go with my salads for lunch this week, Eric had made baked crab cakes (one of my favorites!) with crabmeat that we had from when I had purchased the meat on sale from Costco. They were easy to make and were already cooked, so this was another thing off my to-do list for meal prepping!
Once my broccoli was finished in the microwave, I pulled it out of the steamer, drained the broccoli and divided the broccoli up between 5 new empty containers. (I usually aim for about the size a handful for each of my sides for my dinners. When prepping meals for Eric, I give him bigger portions for his sides). Once the broccoli was finished, I was ready to move on to the rice.
I'm a huge fan of Uncle Ben's Ready Rice. Why? They have a ton of different flavors and varieties to choose from and they only take 90 seconds to make! (Not to mention, they are so good!) My favorite flavor is the Long Grain & Wild Rice with 23 herbs and seasonings. When these go on sale, you can usually get 3 packs for $5. After using coupons with the purchase, they usually come out to be about $1.30/package (which is cheaper than the Giant brand ready rice). I pull 2 packs of rice out of the pantry and place each of those in the microwave, one at a time. When they're finished, I'll divide the rice between the 5 containers currently filled with broccoli - and I already have 2 of my sides finished for my dinners.
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As soon as my chicken is finished, I will typically let that stand and cool for a few minutes before cutting each of the chicken breasts. I like to completely cut each chicken breast into pieces for easy re-heating and eating. Each container will end up getting about half a chicken breast, and once the remaining space is filled in the containers - that completes the dinners for the week.
Here is what my lunches and dinners looked like once everything had been prepared and packaged up in my containers:
For snacks this week, I mentioned that I had prepped grapes, cantaloupe chunks and bell pepper slices. The easiest thing to do while prepping your actual meals, is to make sure that you're also prepping your snacks for the week as well. When you already have them washed, sliced and pre-bagged, it makes it so much easier for you to grab when needed. Also, this cuts back on the chance that you may be feeling a little lazy or you won't have time to wash and cut the fruit/vegetable that you already have in the refrigerator, and will help eliminate the chance of choosing a not-so-healthy snack for the sole fact that it's more convenient.
Containers
My favorite containers to use are from Costco. They look like to-go containers from a restaurant. They are microwave and dishwasher safe (makes life even easier) and they're extremely cheap - about $8-9 for a 30 pack.
Some of our other favorites from different weeks
Baked Salmon/Rice/Steamed Broccoli (Eric actually did these on his own, and has been doing them more recently for his dinners for work. He likes to have some kind of fish or chicken with rice and broccoli).
Buffalo Chicken Salads with sliced strawberries and sliced watermelon for snacks (all packaged up and ready to be placed in the refrigerator).
There are many resources available to help you prep your meals - When I have more time, I plan to use Pinterest and other blogs that I follow to get more ideas and to see what other families find easy to prepare for their weekly meals.
I hope that this information helps you in prepping meals for your busy and on-the-go family! If you have any questions - please ask! And as I said before, if you start meal-prepping (or have already been meal-prepping for your family), let me know - I love seeing what everyone else likes to do! :)
(I had originally begun typing this post a few weeks ago when things weren't so busy with work and the numerous weddings/parties that we've had over the past few weekends. I haven't had time in the last few weeks to finish or continue writing, so this meal prep plan is actually from a few Sundays ago).
For this week, I only had to prep my own meals for lunches and dinners. Eric still had lots of leftovers to choose from (which thankfully, he loves) along with lunchmeat for sandwiches and we had plenty of snacks.
For lunches, I decided to make caesar salads with crab cakes.
For dinners, I decided to bake old bay chicken with spiced rice and steamed broccoli.
For snacks, I had grapes, cantaloupe chunks, and bell peppers sliced.
For my grocery list I had to purchase the following:
- Fresh fruit (grapes and cantaloupe were on sale that week)
- Romaine lettuce (also on sale that week)
- Yogurt (also on sale and used coupons)
- Bell peppers (also on sale that week)
- Bread (also on sale that week and used a coupon)
I knew that I was having a few girlfriends over one night that week, so I also planned to make a veggie tray, buffalo chicken dip and jalapeño poppers. After doing inventory, I realized that I only needed to buy:
- Carrots (also on sale)
- Cucumbers
- Broccoli (also on sale)
- Celery
- Sour Cream (also on sale and used a coupon)
I had all of the other ingredients at home to cover the rest of the ingredients for my meals.
Time to get started!
When starting, you'll want to pull all of your ingredients out of the refrigerator/freezer/pantry to come up with your plan. The best thing to start with is whatever will need to be cooked (and start with the item that requires the longest cook time). During these stretches when something is either on the stove, oven or microwave - you can get the smaller, non-cooking preparations finished while waiting for those items to cook. I started with my chicken. I had thawed out 3 pieces of chicken earlier that morning, so I pulled them from the refrigerator, rewashed and dried them and put them in a pyrex dish to bake. Once I sprinkled old bay over the tops, I threw them in the oven for 40 minutes.
While the chicken was baking, I decided to also get my broccoli out of the way. I typically stock up on frozen broccoli at Giant when they are having a sale. I think the last time I stocked up, I purchased 5 of the 16 oz. bags for $4.00 total. I popped a bag of broccoli in my Pampered Chef steamer, and steamed it for 8 minutes.
While the oven and microwave were both being used, I started washing and cutting all of the romaine lettuce for the salads. To fill all 5 containers, I usually have to buy one large pack of romaine lettuce (6 stalks) or, if the smaller packs (containing 3 stalks) look more fresh, I'll purchase 2 of those packs instead. Once it was washed, semi-dried, and cut into smaller pieces, I divided the lettuce up between 5 empty containers, placed a paper towel on the top of each and put the lids on each of the containers. (Putting a paper towel in the top of the container helps soak up the excess water from washing, from the lettuce and keeps it nice and fresh for the entire week).
To go with my salads for lunch this week, Eric had made baked crab cakes (one of my favorites!) with crabmeat that we had from when I had purchased the meat on sale from Costco. They were easy to make and were already cooked, so this was another thing off my to-do list for meal prepping!
Once my broccoli was finished in the microwave, I pulled it out of the steamer, drained the broccoli and divided the broccoli up between 5 new empty containers. (I usually aim for about the size a handful for each of my sides for my dinners. When prepping meals for Eric, I give him bigger portions for his sides). Once the broccoli was finished, I was ready to move on to the rice.
I'm a huge fan of Uncle Ben's Ready Rice. Why? They have a ton of different flavors and varieties to choose from and they only take 90 seconds to make! (Not to mention, they are so good!) My favorite flavor is the Long Grain & Wild Rice with 23 herbs and seasonings. When these go on sale, you can usually get 3 packs for $5. After using coupons with the purchase, they usually come out to be about $1.30/package (which is cheaper than the Giant brand ready rice). I pull 2 packs of rice out of the pantry and place each of those in the microwave, one at a time. When they're finished, I'll divide the rice between the 5 containers currently filled with broccoli - and I already have 2 of my sides finished for my dinners.
As soon as my chicken is finished, I will typically let that stand and cool for a few minutes before cutting each of the chicken breasts. I like to completely cut each chicken breast into pieces for easy re-heating and eating. Each container will end up getting about half a chicken breast, and once the remaining space is filled in the containers - that completes the dinners for the week.
Here is what my lunches and dinners looked like once everything had been prepared and packaged up in my containers:
For snacks this week, I mentioned that I had prepped grapes, cantaloupe chunks and bell pepper slices. The easiest thing to do while prepping your actual meals, is to make sure that you're also prepping your snacks for the week as well. When you already have them washed, sliced and pre-bagged, it makes it so much easier for you to grab when needed. Also, this cuts back on the chance that you may be feeling a little lazy or you won't have time to wash and cut the fruit/vegetable that you already have in the refrigerator, and will help eliminate the chance of choosing a not-so-healthy snack for the sole fact that it's more convenient.
Containers
My favorite containers to use are from Costco. They look like to-go containers from a restaurant. They are microwave and dishwasher safe (makes life even easier) and they're extremely cheap - about $8-9 for a 30 pack.
Some of our other favorites from different weeks
Baked Salmon/Rice/Steamed Broccoli (Eric actually did these on his own, and has been doing them more recently for his dinners for work. He likes to have some kind of fish or chicken with rice and broccoli).
Buffalo Chicken Salads with sliced strawberries and sliced watermelon for snacks (all packaged up and ready to be placed in the refrigerator).
There are many resources available to help you prep your meals - When I have more time, I plan to use Pinterest and other blogs that I follow to get more ideas and to see what other families find easy to prepare for their weekly meals.
I hope that this information helps you in prepping meals for your busy and on-the-go family! If you have any questions - please ask! And as I said before, if you start meal-prepping (or have already been meal-prepping for your family), let me know - I love seeing what everyone else likes to do! :)
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