Saving yourself endless hours of agony on a daily basis to decide what to cook for a family or even for yourself, is possible by spending a little time each week to get away from the exhausting aspect of cooking. Often times, meal prep guides seem impractical and hard-to-achieve, which transitions into bad lifestyle choices or eating recklessly. Here are some pretty basic tools to help you get started and be prepared for the week that follows.
Overlap Ingredients
While it is easier said than done, accepting that home kitchens could never compete with restaurant kitchens is one way to make this easier on yourself. Eating a few things on repeat saves you the hassle of coming up with creative combinations and meals – irrespective of whether you must do it individually or for a group of people. For example, include rice as your carbohydrate component twice or thrice a week so that you don’t have to worry about what to eat your vegetables or protein with. Similarly repeat vegetables that you enjoy or marinate a large portion of chicken three different ways to have some variety.
Time For Prep
Not only does meal prepping need to be a planned activity on your calendar, but it must also be allotted sufficient time. Setting aside conscious number of hours helps you figure out how you really want to go about planning your meals each week but also helps you factor in important events like birthdays, weddings and anniversary dinners.
Also Read:
Make A List
No matter how many times this has been said, but making a shopping list for groceries and sticking to them makes a real difference to the quality of food you consume. Buying just what you need and how much of, also helps reduce food wastage and regularly taking stock of what you already have.
Bowl Meals
Setting a basic template for the kind of meals you expect to eat helps you understand your own dietary patterns and preferences. Bowl meals are one of the best ways to measure two portions of vegetables, one of carbohydrates and one of protein and stick to a meal plan that enables you to keep a healthy lifestyle. Eating this combination diet is not just sustainable but also keeps your vitals in-check and full throughout, leaving little room for over-eating.