Tips to help you “take overwhelm out of meal prep”

Do you get anxious and overwhelmed when you see all the gorgeous containers of colorful, healthy and picture-perfect meals on social media?
Me too!

You Either:

• Get motivated and order containers on Amazon immediately;
• or think I can’t make food like that or even have the time to try;
• or get an overwhelming feeling of guilt as you are not feeding your family such beautiful and healthy food.

Meal prep is the shortened name for meal preparation. Meals are usually eaten in the day for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Plus snacks in between. Preparation is the action or process of making something ready for use.

We can say Meal Prep is the process of making food ready to eat.

Meal prep doesn’t have to give you anxiety. We all MUST eat and feed our family.
So let’s make Make Prep work for us.

Feeding my family was much simpler when it was just me and my husband. I became more aware of what I consumed and fed my family when I got pregnant with my first daughter.

Did this happen with you too? You became more conscious about food and nutrition when you started having kids?

I wanted to make sure I was eating food that would help me stay/get strong and healthy as an expected mother. And I also wanted to eat food that would help my baby grow and develop well.

Steps to Help You Create Your Plan of attack for Meal Prep

If you want to meal prep and just the thought gives you anxiety –
START WITH YOUR WHY.

Go back to your “why” for wanting to meal prep. How will meal prep help you and your family?

My Whys Include:

• I want to feed my family food that is healthy and yummy.
• I need to save money.
• I need to save time.

My husband and I got back to budgeting over a year ago. When we first sat down and went through all our debit and credit card charges,
I was frankly embarrassed at my spending. I was out of control – especially with how much I spent on food!

I went organic and did not look too close on prices.

After getting over my shock and embarrassment, I researched how to save on grocery shopping.

I was looking for ways to feed my family food that was healthy, tasted good that would keep me within my budget and not have me in the kitchen for hours.

Achieving Your Whys

After figuring out your “whys for meal prep” break down how you can achieve them.

Research Was My First Step.

I wanted to see what worked for other people. Where were they shopping and saving money? And where I could purchase organic food and not blow my budget.

I found that people shop at a combination of supermarkets, large wholesales, and farmers markets. You will have to check your local areas.
I save money by shopping at Aldi, our local grocery store, Trader Joes and Costco.

I am constantly refining my process.

Check Your Fridge & Pantry Before You Shop.

Make a list of the essentials you need such as salt, pepper, oil, and cilantro.
This will help you to not run out of essentials and not purchase things you do not need.
Each family’s essentials will be different.

I  take this time to give the fridge and pantry a quick clean and organize.
It makes it easier to add the food you buy when the spaces are ready.

Plan & Shop.

I started out by planning all my meals for the week – including breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. And then I would use my meal prep sheet to make my grocery list.

This took me more time than I wanted or had.

My current strategy is to shop for food that is on sale and in season and then plan what I will make based on the food I have.

I try to keep it simple, even though my kids are constantly changing what they “like or eat and not eat”.

I keep track of our everyday staples as they go low and add them to my list.

Prepping Food Doesn’t Have To Be Complete Meals.

Depending on my time and how I feel after grocery shopping I clean and prep my fruits and veggies.
I will put everything away in the fridge or put them aside on the counter and come back later to wash, cut and package accordingly.

In the mornings I can serve fruits right from the fridge to the plate without having to wash and cut.

I can open a bag of veggies and steam, bake, stir fry – prepare them however quickly.

We can also snack on fruits and veggies that are ready to eat.

Clean & Season Your Meats Before Freezing.

When you plan the meals, you are going to make, you can season/marinate the meat ahead of time.
Clean, season and package the meats in storage bags or containers.
Keep what you will cook first (soon) in the refrigerator and freeze the rest.
If you’re not sure about how you want to cook the meat, just clean, cut (If needed) and package.

Making Food Doesn’t Have To Be On Sundays for half the day.

If Sundays work for you – then go for it. Choose a day and time that fits your schedule.
You can break up the time and days too.

I make a variation of pancakes, waffles, bread, puddings and omelets each week for breakfast.

I adjust how I prep based on what I have going on and how I’m feeling.

For Pancakes…This is the recipe I use as a guide… I use whole wheat and coconut flour, almond milk, organic brown sugar, more cinnamon and chocolate chips to taste…I have used apple sauce and ripe bananas as my sweetener as well…have fun and make them your own…

I sometimes measure out all my dry ingredients the night before or early in the morning.
And that will be my prep. All I need to do when I’m ready to make the pancakes is to get the wet ingredients ready and mix everything together.

I double the ingredients and get about 18 to 24 pancakes depending on the size.

For Omelets…I put out or cut all my ingredients before.

The base of my omelets is eggs.
I add a variety of veggies and cheese depending on what I have. Green onions/scallion and cilantro are what adds the flavor. I have been adding a lot of basil lately as well because we have it in our
garden.

I get my kids involved when I can and they love to cook and bake and have such a sense of accomplishment that they made the food they are eating.

Follow Meal Prep Pages On Social Media for Inspiration.

I do try my hand at making the beautiful meals I see on social media as well. It makes it easy to pack our lunch.

I also make large portions of meats and sides and put them in separate containers and heat as needed.
I will make a good portion of chicken breast and use it in different recipes thought out the week.

Example: Salads, tacos, wraps, stir-fries and with sides.

Don’t Be Afraid to Get Help!

You don’t have to make all your food from scratch. Get help!
I make most of the food I eat and feed my family from scratch. However, I have my back up meals for the days this mama is just plain tired and needs a lifeline.

 

These Are Some Of My Shortcuts For Meals:

• Buy pre-cut veggies such as broccoli or carrots.
• Buy a rotisserie chicken. You can use it as the main course, in a salad, in tacos, for wraps, in soups…
• Have one or two days that are meatless.  I use beans or tofu.
  Can chickpeas and northern beans are my go-to. I love them curried with coconut oil.
• Buy some meals or parts of meals frozen.
  My kids are loving spaghetti and meatballs at the moment.
  I keep frozen meatballs handy in my freezer for the days I can’t make them from scratch.
  You can whip up spaghetti and meatballs with veggies in a few minutes – and even add garlic bread if you want in a small amount of time. You can find organic, gluten-free, vegetarian, vegan and just about any type of meal frozen.
• Meal Delivery Services!
  These services have been growing over the last few years and I honestly have not looked too close because all I can think is – they must be pricey. However, it’s on my to-do-list to research more and see if I can get one within my budget. This link takes you to a website that’s comparing the “top 10” meal delivery services.
  If you are interested in organic delivery meal services – you can check this link.

My biggest advice for you as you get started with meal prepping is to take baby steps. 
Don’t compare yourself to other people who have been meal prepping for a while.

Have fun and make meal prep work for you, your budget and schedule.

Remember to start by asking yourself why you want to meal prep. Use your whys to guide you.

A Quick Recap
8 Tips to Help You  Take Overwhelm Out of Meal Prep:

1. Figuring out your “whys”
2. Do  your research, and figure out your meal planning process and method
3. Check,  clean and organize your fridge and pantry – to help you make your grocery list and get ready for the food you are about to buy
4. Plan and Shop
5. Clean and prep your fruits and veggies
6. Meal prep on the days and times that work for you
7. Follow meal prep pages on social media for inspiration
8. Don’t be afraid to get help – for the days when you need a lifeline

Meal Prep is the process of making food ready to eat. It also helps us be intentional about what we eat.
We’re all trying to eat and feed our families healthy and tasty meals. While saving time and money as we all have busy lives.

Really think about how meal prep will benefit YOU and YOUR family – or if it will benefit you and your family.
Then put the steps in place that will help you fulfill the goals you plan to achieve by meal prepping.

Don’t make the process too big and complicated. We can be our worst culprits of bringing the overwhelmed on ourselves.

I hope this post will really help you. I am constantly refining my process as the season of life changes.
Please do share your tips and tricks for meal prep.

Thanks so much!
Cheers to tasty and healthy meals!

 

Yamiek, aka, Tallawah Human