I had asked on Instgram if you all would be interested in seeing a post on my favorite meal prep recipes and many of you expressed that you would! I started meal prepping an about a month ago and have been loving it! It's SO easy and great for those nights when I come home and the last thing I want to do is cook a meal. This has also saved me so much money and kept me eating a healthier diet.
As you can probably tell when looking at these recipes and how to prepare them, I'm not by any means "Master Chef" standards. Most of my "cooking" involves me popping things into the microwave... But yeah know. it works. Also, you may notice that vegetables make up 90% of my meals and that I don't really eat meat. This is what works best for me and feel free to add/take away any items you may not like to adjust to your dietary needs! I have also linked a few recipes I have loved from fellow bloggers/websites that I followed or tweaked to give you all more options as well!
*Disclaimer: I am no way a health expert, nutritionist, dietitian, expert on food, etc. I simply go off on making food choices based on my personal research, preferences and dietary needs. This is what I consider to be "healthy" and you are more than welcome to tweak each recipe to meet your dietary needs/restrictions/preferences.
1. Easy Mexican Rice Bowl
Ingredients:
- Brown Rice (sometimes I use cauliflower rice if that's what I have on hand!)
- Frozen Corn
- Taco Seasoning
- Lettuce
- Salsa (pineapple salsa from Trader Joe's is my favorite!)
- Tortilla Chips
- Black Beans
- Any other preferred toppings (tomato, shredded cheese, sour cream, avocado, lime, etc.)
Instructions:
1. Prepare your rice. This is going to be the longest thing to cook so I always do it first. I typically get the Uncle Ben's rice and pop the bag into some boiling water.
2. Prep the rest of your ingredients. I typically pop my corn in the microwave along with my beans. I then chop up my lettuce, tomato, avocado, and lime.
3. Once the rice is all cooked I drain it, and pop the rice back into a skillet and mix in some taco seasoning. I typically use 1/4 to 1/2 of the packet. After that's all mixed together I throw in my corn and beans.
Once everything is combined I typically throw the rice mixture into a big Tupperware container and heat up as much as I need throughout the week. I pre-cut my lettuce, tomato, and lime and throw them in a separate container and throw them on top of my rice after it's done heating up. I am big on texture so I love eating this meal with tortilla chips and feel free to add whatever toppings you like such as salsa, sour cream, cheese, etc. when you serve! This usually lasts me about 3 days.
**Bonus**
You can also grab a large tortilla wrap and make this into a burrito. Some days I'm just not feeling a rice bowl and I would just throw everything into a big wrap and heat it on the skills for a few minutes. Super easy!
2. Prep the rest of your ingredients. I typically pop my corn in the microwave along with my beans. I then chop up my lettuce, tomato, avocado, and lime.
3. Once the rice is all cooked I drain it, and pop the rice back into a skillet and mix in some taco seasoning. I typically use 1/4 to 1/2 of the packet. After that's all mixed together I throw in my corn and beans.
Once everything is combined I typically throw the rice mixture into a big Tupperware container and heat up as much as I need throughout the week. I pre-cut my lettuce, tomato, and lime and throw them in a separate container and throw them on top of my rice after it's done heating up. I am big on texture so I love eating this meal with tortilla chips and feel free to add whatever toppings you like such as salsa, sour cream, cheese, etc. when you serve! This usually lasts me about 3 days.
**Bonus**
You can also grab a large tortilla wrap and make this into a burrito. Some days I'm just not feeling a rice bowl and I would just throw everything into a big wrap and heat it on the skills for a few minutes. Super easy!
For more structured instructions check out these recopies:
2. Japanese Veggie Fried Rice
Ingredients:
- Brown Rice or Cauliflower Rice
- Zucchini
- Broccoli
- Mushrooms
- Carrots
- Soy Sauce
- 3 Eggs
- Black Pepper
Instructions:
1. Prep your rice. Like the Mexican bowl I typically just use the Uncle Ben's rice and boil my rice in the bag or heat up a bowl of cauliflower rice in the microwave. Whatever I have on hand. I also boil a large pot of water.
2. While the rice is cooking I prep my vegetables by washing them and cutting them up into bite-size pieces.
3. Once the water comes to a boil, I toss in my carrots and broccoli and boil until desired tenderness. In the meantime, I start prepping my "Hibachi Style" veggies. I have been following this recipe I found on Pinterest, just minus the butter. All you need to do for the veggies is heat your pan up to medium to medium-high heat, add in a little oil (I use olive oil), toss in your veggies and a bit of soy sauce and pepper to taste then saute till golden brown. Super easy!
4. Once everything is cooked, combine all together and divide evenly into your containers. This usually makes about 3 servings for me.
2. While the rice is cooking I prep my vegetables by washing them and cutting them up into bite-size pieces.
3. Once the water comes to a boil, I toss in my carrots and broccoli and boil until desired tenderness. In the meantime, I start prepping my "Hibachi Style" veggies. I have been following this recipe I found on Pinterest, just minus the butter. All you need to do for the veggies is heat your pan up to medium to medium-high heat, add in a little oil (I use olive oil), toss in your veggies and a bit of soy sauce and pepper to taste then saute till golden brown. Super easy!
4. Once everything is cooked, combine all together and divide evenly into your containers. This usually makes about 3 servings for me.
Once everything is cooked, combine them together in the pan and add some soy sauce and black pepper to taste. Super easy and yummy!
3. Sweet Potato + Pesto Brussels Sprouts Box
3. Sweet Potato + Pesto Brussels Sprouts Box
Ingredients:
- Sweet Potato (cubed)
- Brussels Sprouts
- Hard Boil Egg
- Salt
- Pepper
- Pesto
- Cumin
- Lemon
- Olive Oil
Instructions:
1. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees
2. Lay out your cubed sweet potatoes on a baking sheet and drizzle some olive oil and toss to evenly coat them. Next season with some pepper, salt, and cumin. Set aside your tray of sweet potatoes and start cutting your Brussels sprouts in half. Once they're cut in half, combine with your pesto, salt, and pepper to taste. Spread them on a baking sheet and drizzle some olive oil on top so they can get nice and crispy. Once the oven is done preheating pop them in the oven for 30 minutes flipping them halfway.
Here is the original pesto Brussels sprouts recipe I've been following just minus the cheese!
3. While the sweet potatoes and Brussels sprouts are in the oven I'll hard boil some eggs. I typically make one egg per box and like to pack soy sauce and black pepper to eat with them when they're done!
**Bonus**
Sometimes I switch my box up and add in broccoli instead of Brussels Sprouts. For the broccoli, I'll just boil a bag of chopped broccoli and season with salt, pepper and a lemon wedge. Super easy!
4. Once everything is all cooked and ready I just divide up everything and place them into Tupperware. this usually makes 3 servings for me.
Original Recipe here:
http://thisbeautifuldayblog.com/weekend-meal-prep/
What are your go-to meal prep recipes? Let me know in the comments down below! Also, let me know if you want more food-related posts on the blog. Like I said, I'm not master chef, but I've been having so much fun trying new recipes in the kitchen! I hope you all have a wonderful day and if you try any of these out send me a photo on Instagram!
xoxo,
Amy
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