3 Tips for Easy Meal Prep

Raise your hand if the question “What’s for dinner” drives you crazy! Plus, if you cook for a family and you try to eat anti inflammatory for yourself, it can be really tough to even know where to start! Wouldn’t it be great if you had easy tips for a unique kind of meal prep? Read on!

In my house we have a lot of different palettes. My daughter, Suraya (almost 4), likes to eat salmon, rice, and roasted cauliflower. (I know! Don’t ask me how we got a kid who likes to eat that!!) When Jack (21) stops in for dinner he wants BBQ ribs and cornbread (hold allll the veggies). My husband, Asim, likes spicy foods – the hotter the better!

And me? I keep a very tight anti inflammatory diet. I don’t eat gluten, dairy, soy, or refined sugar. I also limit my nightshades (peppers, eggplant, tomatoes), and can’t tolerate spicy foods.

As you can see, there are a LOT of needs in just one kitchen!

When I first started my anti inflammatory journey, cooking became a chore that I didn’t like. (Which was too bad, because I used to love cooking!) I was working at a fast-paced tech start up, and commuting 2 hours a day. At the time, I only had one child (my son, Jack). He was a picky eater, but loved meat. It was exhausting to spend all day at work, take the long drive home, and then have to battle over what I was making for dinner.

I was determined to figure out a way to cook for myself without cooking an entirely separate meal for my family. I barely had time to cook one meal, let alone two! That’s when I decided to get creative with how I approached meal prep in the kitchen.

Now, to be clear – the approach you’ll read about here is not your typical meal prep. Who wants to spend 3-5 hours on a weekend coming up with recipes/meal plans? Then, batch cook a bunch of meals, pack them in the fridge and freezer, and do all of the clean up? No thank you! Besides, with all the different mouths to feed in our house, one-dish meals definitely don’t work.

Component Cooking for Meal Prep

My number one tip for easy meal prep is to adopt Component Cooking. The idea here is that you have a bunch of “parts” for a meal. Everyone in your family can choose their favorite parts, and create their plate.

I organize my components by proteins, carbohydrates, and vegetables. You can add in fruits and healthy fats through toppings, sauces, and snacks.

Let’s look at a few examples:

Meal Prepped Pizza OR Mediterranean Chicken Bowls

Here, I was craving a Mediterranean Chicken Bowl. It’s full of flavor, I love the saltiness of the olives, and it definitely fills me up! My bowls usually include chicken (or leftover salmon burger), red pepper, red onion, kalamata olives, and shredded carrots. I put this over a bed of quinoa or short-grain brown rice. Adding roasted broccoli on the side added an extra punch of veggies and color!

These same ingredients worked perfectly for my family’s pizza, which meant I didn’t need to make an entirely separate meal (yes!!) They love the frozen pizzas from Costco. I usually buy the cheese version, so we can add our own toppings. I pulled one out of the freezer and topped it with red pepper, red onion, and kalamata olives. I added nitrate-free turkey pepperoni on my husband’s half, too.

Tuna Melts Meal Prepped TWO Ways

Tuna melts are a quick and easy weeknight meal in our house! If your schedule is anything like mine, you have about 30 minutes to get a quick dinner on the table. Then, it’s a quick family meal, and off to tackle the schedule for the evening!

Tuna melts to the rescue! And this one is super easy! Tuna salad is made with plain coconut yogurt and assorted seasoning (salt, pepper, dill, onion, garlic, etc.)

For my meal, I nestled the tuna salad on a bed of baby spinach. Topped with red peppers, and added roasted cauliflower on the side. If I had needed to add some carbs for the day, it would be easy to tuck some short-grain brown rice or roasted potatoes on the side.

For my family, they ate the same tuna salad, piled on top of whole-grain buns. (Dave’s Killer Bread buns are a family favorite!) I added sharp white cheddar cheese on top, and broiled until the cheese was melted. The family also had roasted cauliflower.

So you see, if you pick your meal and ingredients first, you can always get your family’s meal from the same ingredients. No need to prep and cook two separate meals!

For Easy Meal Prep: Learn to Love Your Leftovers

My number 2 meal prep tip is to learn to love your leftovers! Growing up, my mom called them planned aheads (so smart, Mom!)

Whenever I cook, I try to double or triple the recipe. That means that we’ll have leftovers during the week. Or, I can package and freeze some of the leftovers for another time. (Having a deep freezer is great for these leftovers!)

So that leftovers don’t get lost in the fridge, be sure to pack them in glass containers (these are my favorite!). If you can see through the container, it’s easier to know what food you have left to eat! Label the containers with the food item, and the date made. Be diligent about planning your meals around your leftovers, and nothing will go to waste.

If you’re packing leftovers in the freezer, double bag in freezer zip-top bags, and label well! I like to label the first (inner) bag, then tuck it in another bag. This way the label won’t easily come off.

My Favorite Take Out is My Easy Meal Prep

It happens. Meetings run late. Sports practice runs over the dinner hour. Or you’re just entirely too worn out to cook one night.

No worries, don’t let that derail you from your plan! Pick 2-3 restaurants that offer anti inflammatory options (gluten and dairy free, at the very least). This way, you have an easy go-to meal if your component food runs out, you don’t have any leftovers, or you just simply need a night out.

Our family favorites are Modern Market and Bubu. Both restaurants are fast-casual, and offer selections for everyone! Modern Market has gluten and dairy free options, and they are great when you ask for substitutions to fit other food sensitivities. Bubu offers Paleo bowls that are sooo delicious! Even my husband (who can eat all.the.things) loves the bowls at Bubu, including the Paleo one.

Make An Easy Meal Prep Plan + Keep It Simple

Above all, keep things simple when you’re planning meals for the week. It’s ok to have the same thing twice. It’s ok to ask your kids to learn to like new ingredients. It’s ok to encourage your spouse to support your healthy, anti inflammatory way of eating. If everyone is being nourished with good food, there will be smiles all around!

Take 45 minutes on the weekend to plan your meals for the following week. Highlight your component items, and make note of when you’ll make those. (Pro tip: cook a big batch of short-grain brown rice while you’re meal planning…and then you’ll have one component done for the week!)

I’d love to know what you think of the Component Cooking approach. Let me know if you try it with your family!