Mastering Weekly Meal Prep
Wouldn’t it be nice to always come home to a fridge full of prepared meals? Imagine coming home from training knowing you have food ready that is nutritionally on point for you. It is as simple as grabbing a box out of the fridge, slapping it in a pan, oven or microwave and adding a little sauce and presto, you’re munching away on dinner in less time than it takes to key-lock a body builder. You’d never have to grumble, “Damn, I still have to cook dinner?” or “What am I going to have for lunch?” after your training session. I bet you’re thinking, “Yea, that would be nice, but I do not have a personal chef or nutritionist at my beck and call.” Well, news flash, if you take 1-2 hours out of your week, you can become your own personal chef by mastering the art of batch cooking for the week.
What is Batch Cooking?
In theory, you are preparing your food for the entire week at once. You will essentially be cooking your meals to about 95% completion so when it’s meal-time, you have minimal steps to finish the meal out before it is ready to chow down on. You will be saving yourself a ton of time and will be benefiting from having a consistent meal source that is controlled nutritionally. And, you are not eating junk in a pinch because it was easy and you did not feel like cooking. If you factor in the time we waste thinking, “What’s for dinner?” while roaming food aisles or our cupboards trying to come up with something; eliminating that alone will pay dividends in the long run.
The Benefits
Time is valuable. By spending a few hours, one or two days a week cooking, you will save a lot of time throughout the week by not having to cook a meal each day from scratch. Not to mention saving lots of money also.
Do you have a hard time staying on a diet? Well, if you prepare all of your meals in advance, you can ensure you stay on track by making them fit the mold of the diet.
Cooking in batches/bulk means you will be buying in bulk and did you know that most grocery stores are not evil and actually reward those who buy in bulk by giving a discount? Don’t be scared of a higher grocery bill to start, instead think of all the money you’ll save being able to buy in bulk.
This type of cooking is fully customizable; think of batch cooked ingredients like Lego blocks, and each meal is your badass spaceship, available to make exactly how YOU want it to be.
It is fun and rewarding. Call me crazy, but nothing is more satisfying than sitting back and looking at a fully stocked fridge of meals perfectly organized. For the more sane people, the process is rewarding because you will find yourself surprised that you accomplished so much in such a little bit of time. Then the next thing you know, every week you’ll be looking forward to your batch cooking day.
Target Acquired
When we are thinking about cooking in bulk, we need to ask ourselves a few questions. The primary being, “What meal do we struggle with the most?” For the majority, we can happily eat the same breakfast every day and have a solid lunch option at work. That leaves us with the major mealtime that everyone struggles with, dinner. This is because we are tired, worn out, hungry and already gearing up for the following day as we are nearing dinnertime. The last thing we want to do is wind down just to roll up our sleeves and start laboring over the stove for an hour just to eat in a matter of minutes before going to bed.
We will start batch cooking the same way we started our journey into jiu-jitsu, in small steps. We will master one meal time, and then before you know it, you will be able to have every meal plan covered and be left with a well-fueled body and spare time on your hands to train.
How to Get Started
Now that we have narrowed down that we want to target dinner, we need to go over a little checklist. When is the best time to get cooking? Usually, I like to do my batch cooking on a Sunday afternoon right after grocery shopping. This ensures that our ingredients are as fresh as possible, and most gyms are closed Sunday, so you do not feel like you are missing out. Now that we have a day picked out in our heads we need to come up with a quick, simple menu.
[row][double_paragraph]Common Supplies
Microwave-safe, to-go containers, Tupperware, and Ziploc Baggies.
Stove, cutting board, large bowls, crock pot, pots and pans.
[/double_paragraph][double_paragraph]Menu & Ingredients
Patience, since the first couple of times you might feel overwhelmed or lost.[/double_paragraph] [/row]
Bulk Up
It is always a plus to have certain ingredients around the house that you do not need to go out and buy every week. So, when you can stock up on dry ingredients do so. That way, when we go to the grocery store, we are focusing on the fresh ingredients because we know we have a third of what we need already back at home. For a simple meal plan you want versatility. We are going to be using the same couple ingredients as a base, but making different meals, so we are not bored eating the same thing every night. The trick is to cook a protein source, carbohydrate source, and a vegetable source in bulk and then throughout the week add a few finishing techniques to make different dishes. A trip to the local warehouse store is also a great idea to bring your cost per meal way down.
Staple Protein Sources for Batch Cooking
Chicken: Hands down the game winner here because it is lean, cheap in bulk and very neutral so a little spice here or sauce there can make the same chicken seem worlds apart when it is time to finish.
Steak: Do not be afraid of getting some of the cheaper cuts of steak for batch cooking. You should try and always get a red meat source in daily. Aim for lean steak and even frozen cooked steak strips work.
Eggs: I would pick eggs over a lot of other options because hard/soft boiled eggs are great cooked in advance for egg salads, but mainly because eggs are an essential finisher. Also, they take no time at all to cook.
Staple Carbohydrate Sources for Batch Cooking
Brown Rice: Cheap in bulk, a great source of carbohydrates and always good to have in a pinch.
Quinoa: Protein packed, ready in 15 minutes and holds up very well after cooking.
Sweet Potatoes: They hold for a long time uncooked and do so even when cooked.
Staple Vegetable Sources for Batch Cooking
Asparagus: Packed nutritionally and when bought in bulk or frozen you will be saving yourself a lot of cash-ola. Asparagus is easily prepared and cooks quickly even if you are opting for a microwave approach.
Broccoli/Cauliflower: When I think of batch cooking I always have to have roasted vegetables. They are easy because you can throw them in the oven first thing while you do the rest of the prep, and they take care of themselves. The depth of flavor is a huge switch because we all need a little sweetness. Broccoli and Cauliflower are the power players here because they are cheap, nutritious and can fit into most all cuisines.
Spinach: Similar to eggs for the protein sources, spinach is an excellent finisher. A big bag of spinach is under three bucks, cooks in a matter of seconds, but also is a great addition mixed into your quinoa/rice when preparing it for the week.
How Much?
When you are setting out your game plan for the week you should factor in how many meals you plan to make. Then take into account that you want to have roughly 1 cup of carbohydrates, 8 oz of protein and 1-2 cups of vegetables in each meal. With that knowledge, we know that we need to cook at least 5 cups of carbohydrates, 2 ½ lbs of protein and 5-10 cups of vegetables. These numbers seem confusing at first, but a good trick is to lay out your containers and place in the raw vegetables into each and get a feel for it. What do 5 cups of asparagus stalks look like? It looks like a small handful x5. Don’t over complicate it. Let’s look at a sample menu and grocery list for a week.
Tip: Quinoa and Brown Rice multiple in volume 4 times from dried to cooked. So 1 cup of dried of either will equal 4 cups cooked.
[row][double_paragraph]Meal Plan Idea
When I am working on batches of meals for the week I like to do three different meals two times a week. That means six total meals. I alternate them to keep from being bored or feeling like I am eating the same thing I had the night before.
[/double_paragraph][double_paragraph]Fresh or Frozen?
When you are cooking in batches you will find that it might even be easier to buy precooked frozen protein, such as grilled chicken breast or steak strips. These are perfectly fine to use and reheat well in the to-go containers with asparagus.[/double_paragraph] [/row]
This is the part of the article where I’d typically give you a recipe or two to follow thanks to my vast culinary background. However, since Mike is out in California and he’s the one creating the photos for this article he thought he’d show you one of his favorite menu’s for batch cooking.
Grocery List
2 lbs Chicken Breast
1 package (only need 1 1/3 cups) Quinoa, uncooked
1 large bunch Asparagus
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
1 small tomato
1 small onion
1 clove garlic
Olive oil
No sodium seasoning
Grilled Chicken
How many meals you want to cook will determine how much chicken you want to prepare. For this example I prepared 2 lbs of fresh chicken breast.
Prepare the chicken by removing any of the fat or parts that don’t look very appetizing.
Next season, I like Ms Dash. She comes in a variety of flavors, has almost no sodium or other questionable ingredients. Season depending on taste.
Transfer the chicken over to a medium grill and cook covered for 5-6 minutes per side. As you see the edges turn white on the first side then you know it’s ready to flip. Don’t over cook your chicken or it will get dry and won’t be very tender.
Once removed from the grill don’t cut right away, give it a few minutes to cool down and let the juices lock in.
Spanish Quinoa
This is Mike’s personal recipe that he came up with by simply substituting quinoa for rice with his mom’s family recipe.
1. In a medium shallow covered pan pour a 1 1/3 cups quinoa over a medium heat. Quickly add 2 Tbsp of olive or your favorite cooking oil. With a wooden spoon stir the quinoa constantly as it browns. It will brown quickly and burn even quicker if you’re not careful.
2. Keeping track of the color notice as it darkens, as soon as you see that most of the quinoa has turned a shade darker from where you started reduce the heat to low and SLOWLY add a cup of water to the pan. Avoid hot oil splashing on you so pour water in carefully.
3. If you’re not too concerned with sodium you can ad a cube of beef bullion at this point, but it’s not necessary.
4. From here you’re going to add an 8 oz can of tomato sauce. If you like spice go with a chili flavored sauce like “El Pato” or regular tomato sauce.
5. Now’s the time to add your veggies, you can add a quarter of a chopped onion, some garlic, a whole chopped tomato are all good choices. If you don’t have those items handy some chunky natural salsa is a good alternative.
6. Stir everything together and cover with a low heat. Check occasionally with stirring the bottom of the pan so nothing sticks.
7. Total cook time will be about 15 to 20 minutes covered. You’ll know it’s done when the quinoa has a nice fluffy texture.
Steamed Asparagus
For this one we went steamed although you can also blanch your veggies. I like to do these fresh each day, however you can also cook in advance, just be careful not to over cook your veggies.
First wash then remove the stalks. Transfer to your steamer and let steam for between 4-5 minutes.
Don’t let them over cook and go from a nice bright green to anything less vibrant. Color is key. Once you’ve got the right doneness remove from the heat so they stop cooking.
Plating
You have a couple options here, you can either store in bulk and prep each plate when it’s time to eat, or you can plate single meals. Either works although I’ve found plating at once when you’re not starving will make it easier to ensure that you’re keeping your portion control in check. Use a small cooking scale to measure out your protein and quinoa if you’re trying to restrict calories.
Conclusion
You are not limited to these ingredients or just to dinner. Once you get the hang of how to cook in batches, you will be tempted to prepare every meal this way and have a fridge of stacked containers ready to grab and go. When you are working in bulk, think about how not all foods will hold up very well, you do not want to cook salmon on Sunday for Wednesday. Just make a second trip to the grocery store on your way home Wednesday and get your salmon then and use it as a “finisher.” Using this technique, you will find your nights will be a lot less stressful and a lot tastier. There are a ton of recipe ideas and food reviews on my site GrapplerGourmet.com that work well into this method. Use your head, don’t over complicate things and ultimately, eat well, train hard. OSS.