Top 10 Meal Prepping Tips + Meal Prep Series

Introducing our NEW Weekend Meal Prep Series + our Top 10 Meal Prepping Tips

Our mission is to help you spend less time in the kitchen so that you have more time to do the things you love.

We are committed to sharing time saving recipes and tips that will make your life easier and healthier. Meal prepping, also known as bulk or batch cooking, is something that we do almost every weekend! And you can too! On February 23rd, 2017 we are launching our FREE Weekend Meal Prep Series: Real Food, Real Fast! We’re beyond excited to offer this service to you and our hope is that it will inspire you to give meal prepping a try, add variety to your meals, try new foods, eat healthier, be more organized, learn new kitchen skills and hacks, and to help you feel more at ease during the week knowing that you have a fridge full of ready-to-eat, healthy foods. In addition, meal prepping helps to reduce food waste, brings awareness to what you have on hand, helps you dine out less and as result of all of these, you’ll save money.

Weekend Meal Prep Menus

Weekend Meal Prep Series on the blog includes:

• 5 delicious Real Food recipes for you to make during the weekend. Some of our own as well as some from our favorite foodie bloggers!
• At least 1 of the recipes will be freezer-friendly. That way you can double the recipe and freeze half for a future meal.
• A printable, done-for-you grocery list so that you know exactly what to purchase for your weekend meal prep.
• Time saving tips specific to that weekends meal prep.

We don’t want you to miss this! Sign-up for our newsletter if you’re not already on the list so that you can be the first to know when the Weekend Meal Prep is posted. You’ll also receive our FREE Recipe eBook just for signing-up for our newsletter!

Before we begin our Weekend Meal Prep Series, we want to share our Top 10 Meal Prepping Tips.

We want you to be extra prepared for the fun that’s about to go down! Following these tips will help make your meal prep go much smoother. Over time you’ll develop a system that works for you; you’ll create your own meal prepping groove!

Join our Eat Clean. Live Well. Be Awesome. Together! Facebook group where you can count on continued support, encouragement and meal prep inspo!

Top 10 Meal Prepping Tips

1. Take inventory of what you have on hand, throw out any foods that are no longer edible and then decide which recipes you’re going to make OR follow our Weekend Meal Prep Series menu which will be available weekly beginning February 23rd, 2017. We recommend choosing at least 2 proteins (this could be in the form of a one-dish recipe), 1 veggie recipe, 1 breakfast or lunch recipe and 1 snack recipe.
2. Create a grocery list so you know exactly what you need OR simply print out the one that we’ll create for you each week. If prepping on Sunday, grocery shopping on Friday or Saturday works best so the produce is fresh and in good enough condition to last the entire week.
3. Choose some options that you can freeze. Consider doubling recipes like burgers, sausage patties, soups, stews, muffins, energy bites, pancakes etc. We like to choose at least 1 freezer-friendly recipe. This will help you save time for future meals.
4. Set aside at least 1-2 hours of uninterrupted time for your meal prep and keep it simple – Choose no more than 4-6 recipes unless time allows.
5. Wash your produce and pre-chop veggies the day before your meal prep. This will save you a considerable amount of time on meal prep day.
6. Start with a clean kitchen and have all of your dishes washed and put away before you start prepping and cooking. Clean up as you go so you don’t end up with a disastrous kitchen that requires hours of cleanup at the end and make sure you have plenty of storage containers cleaned and ready to be filled with delicious food. We like pyrex containers and glass jars with lids.
7. When all of the food is prepped, organize your refrigerator so that the prepped meals are in-sight and easy to grab-and-go.
8. If you’re pressed for time, keep it short and sweet by choosing very simple foods to prepare such as, chicken or canned tuna or salmon salads on top of salads, grilled chicken, hard-boiled eggs, baked sweet potatoes, chopped raw veggies, roasted veggies, quinoa or rice, and fresh fruit. We call this a power hour meal prep. In a few weeks, will share tips on how to complete a meal prep in an hour. It can be done! 
9. Cooked foods that are destined for the freezer should be placed in the refrigerator to cool completely before you transfer them to the freezer. This prevents excess ice crystals from forming on the food which increases the risk of freezer burn and can alter the texture of the food once it’s thawed.
10. Start with the items that take the longest. These are typically the foods that have to bake or that are made in a slow cooker.

Grab a water bottle and put on your favorite music or a podcast. We like upbeat music because it keeps us going and sometimes you just gotta stop and bust a move or two to keep things fun.

So there you have it! Our Top 10 Meal Prepping Tips that will help to make you’re Weekend Meal Prep a breeze!

Comment below if you liked this post and let us know if you have any questions! If you’re excited for our Weekend Meal Prep Series, please share with friends! We’d so greatly appreciate it.

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About Stacie Hassing

Stacie is a Licensed and Registered Dietitian from rural southern Minnesota where she, her husband and daughter reside with their two pups. She’s a co-founder of The Real Food RDs and content creator of simple and wholesome recipes. She loves all kinds of fitness and has a passion to inspire as many as she can live a healthier and happier life both in and out of the kitchen - the driving force behind the co-development of the The Real Food RDs brand.