Meal prepping (or preparing the key elements of a dish – or even the entire recipe!) is a popular method of recipe planning that often leads to healthier, faster, and stress-free eating. Deciding which meals you’re going to be eating in advance will help you get a head start on the week, amongst other great benefits. Keep reading for everything you need to know about meal prepping, including how to meal prep for the first time.
Why Do People Meal Prep?
Meal prepping has become popular in recent years due to a variety of reasons.
- Healthy choices make it easier to monitor weight – When you’ve already set the menu in advance (and chosen nutritious dishes) you’ve got something healthy to reach for at your fingertips.
- Save money – With takeaways almost a third more expensive than eating in restaurants, buying ingredients in bulk and planning ahead can quickly benefit your bank balance.
- Feel more prepared in general – Deciding what to eat every day can be difficult and overwhelming for many people. When you meal prep, you only have to make this decision two or three times a week, rather than per day.
- Be more adventurous with food – Not having to rustle up a dish in a short period of time can make you feel more relaxed in the kitchen and encourage you to cook something a little bit different. Whether it’s roasted chicken and veggies, or a taco chilli in a pressure cooker, meal prepping can open up a world of new recipes.
What Do You Need To Meal Prep For The First Time?
If it’s your first time meal prepping, it’s important to have the right things on hand, like proper food containers and the correct cooking utensils.
The correct food storage containers
Keeping the food you’ve cooked fresh for the week is essential when meal prepping. Investing in containers like these can pay dividends:
- Airtight containers for ready-to-cook ingredients
- Stainless steel containers to keep ingredients crisp and foods fresh
- Washable, reusable silicone bags to store ingredients in the fridge
- BPA-free microwavable containers to warm up your food
- Freezer-safe containers to limit freezer burn and the loss of nutrients from your food
- Leak-proof, compartmentalized containers for mixing ingredients at the last minute
Good-quality cooking utensils
Using the proper tools and equipment to cook can heavily impact the quality and the taste of the dishes you’re preparing in advance. For example, sharp knives for chopping and cutting up, induction pan sets for cooking on the hob, and precise weighing scales for weighing ingredients. By using the right cooking utensils, you can be more confident in the kitchen, more precise in your cooking techniques, and actually enjoy the time you spend meal prepping for the week.
There are plenty of positives to meal prepping. Why not give it a chance today and see just how meal prepping can benefit your lifestyle?