I’m in college which automatically means 2 things: I’m broke and I’m busy. Enter the perfect solution: meal prep. I know it can seem really intimidating, but it’s literally my first day and it has been a lifesaver. So before we delve into what I ate and how I prepared it, we’ll talk about why you should food prep. (Also, I got my containers from Walmart 15 for $10!) Food prep is just cooking your food for the next 3-4 days in advance so you don’t have to cook later in the week. This is important to any boss lady who has too much to do. It also forces you to eat healthily (if that’s the kind of food you want) and stops the incessant eating out. There’s something so satisfying about knowing there is always amazing food in the fridge pre-portioned and ready for you to eat. The important thing to remember when meal prepping is to leave anything that may spoil out and to always check how long things stay good in the refrigerator.
Breakfast
So for my first experience, I prepped three different breakfast options (four of each, two for me, two for my man). I went with smoothies, parfaits and waffles and bananas. The parfaits and smoothies were both prepped in Mason jars, whereas the waffles were prepped in regular meal prep containers. This was the easiest part of my meal prep experience mainly because I had my boyfriend handle that part. I made the batter myself, but he constructed the parfaits and smoothies. The granola was not put on the parfaits because it would get soft, that’s added later.
Lunch
For lunch, I did three different options as well. Stuffed meatballs on rice, Chicken Alfredo with broccoli and a chicken rice bowl. These entrees were accompanied by corn, asparagus and green beans. It’s so amazing because you know every time you eat something, it’s going to be delicious. All you have to prepare is whatever drink you want; I prefer tea. The meatballs were prepared on high in a Crock-Pot while I prepared the chicken in the oven and the noodles and the rice on the stove. All the vegetables were prepared very quickly, and a quick wash of the pan made that pan my designated vegetable pan.
Dinner
For dinner, I made spaghetti, chicken parmesan and jerk chicken. Yellow rice asparagus and corn also accompanied these dishes. An important factor is to create meals with ingredients that can also be used for many other meals. When buying all of these supplies I only spent $100 at the store on the groceries. And it will feed me for 5 days? If you aren’t a stickler about certain types of noodles and rice, there are lots of ways for you to save money, and that’s the purpose of meal prep. Meal Prep makes me very excited and if you’re very busy, it comes in super clutch.
All in all, my Meal Prep experience thus far has been amazing. I hope if you ever give it a try, you have just as much fun!
HCXO!
“It is so sad that it takes so long for people to understand what needs to happen in order to be free.”
-Faith Ringgold