We all strive to prepare healthy and delicious meals while juggling the demands of work, school, and social life in our busy lives. However, cooking often takes more time than we anticipate. Fortunately, there are a few effective ways to save time in meal preparation, allowing you to create wonders in the kitchen while making efficient use of your time. Here are some tips to help ease your meal prep!
1.Make a Weekly Meal Plan
One of the most effective steps in saving time is creating a weekly meal plan. By planning out the types of meals you’ll make at the start of the week, you can simplify shopping and avoid wasting time every day wondering what to cook.
- How to Do It? On Sunday or at the beginning of the week, create a weekly meal list. Decide which meals you’ll make on which days. Shop according to this list and keep all the ingredients ready. This way, when you start cooking, you won’t have to think about what to make.
2.Prepare Ingredients in Advance
The most time-consuming part of cooking is often cutting and preparing the ingredients. By prepping ingredients in advance, you can reduce this time.
- How to Do It? According to your weekly plan, you can chop some ingredients and store them. For instance, you can chop onions and keep them in the fridge, or slice vegetables to quickly start meal prep. You can also portion out meat or chicken and store it in the fridge.
3.Use Your Freezer
The freezer can be a lifesaver that helps you save a lot of time in meal prep. By freezing meals you’ve prepared in advance, you can just heat and serve them when needed.
- How to Do It? Soups, sauces, pastries, and even some main ingredients of meals can be stored in the freezer for a long time. For example, you can prepare a meat sauce, freeze it, and use it whenever you make pasta. This way, you cut the cooking process in half.
4.Opt for One-Pot Meals
Instead of making multiple dishes, preparing a one-pot or oven-baked meal can minimize both the prep time and dishwashing.
- How to Do It? One-pot meals are especially great for busy days. You can cook meat, vegetables, and legumes together to create a delicious and nutritious meal.
5.Keep Your Kitchen Organized
One way to save time is by keeping your kitchen organized. Being able to easily find what you need will speed up the cooking process.
- How to Do It? Keep your spices, oils, knives, and daily-use ingredients in a reachable spot. Make sure your knives are sharp; a good knife will make cutting much faster.
6.Utilize Kitchen Appliances
Kitchen appliances provide great convenience in meal prep. A blender, food processor, microwave, and pressure cooker can save you time while cooking.
- How to Do It? A pressure cooker can quickly cook meat or legumes, while a blender can prepare soups or sauces in minutes.
7.Use Ready-Made Ingredients
It’s not always possible to make everything from scratch at home. You can shorten the meal prep time by using ready-made ingredients.
- How to Do It? Canned products, ready-made spice mixes, or frozen vegetables can speed up your cooking.
8.Cook Enough for Two Meals
When you prepare a meal, you can save time by cooking enough for the next day or a few more days.
- How to Do It? Make extra food for dinner, and you can use it for lunch the next day. This way, you won’t have to cook for every meal.
9.Simplify Recipes
Another way to save time is by simplifying recipes. Instead of complicated dishes, opt for simpler and quicker meals.
- How to Do It? Look for recipes that use five ingredients or less. These dishes are usually fast and practical to make.
10.Meal Prep Ahead of Time
One of the most effective ways to save time in meal prep is to prepare your meals in advance. With this method, you can plan what you’ll eat throughout the week and prepare these meals ahead of time.
- How to Do It? Do a big prep session once a week and divide your meals into containers.
11.Plan Cooking Order
You can make efficient use of time by planning the order in which you cook. Doing several things simultaneously can speed up meal prep.
- How to Do It? For example, while waiting for soup to boil, you can prepare the salad, or while the main dish is cooking, you can get started on side dishes.
12.Repurpose Leftovers
You can repurpose leftovers from the previous day’s meal to create a new dish. This not only prevents waste but also saves you time.
- How to Do It? You can use leftover rice in soup or as stuffing for dolma.
Saving time in meal prep is possible with good planning and practical tips. Making a weekly meal plan, prepping ingredients in advance, and utilizing kitchen tools can significantly reduce the time you spend in the kitchen.
