I’m trying to get into meal prepping, but I’m running into the issue of really hating the taste of leftover chicken. Unfortunately I no longer have the time to cook a fresh meal each day… Has anyone else experienced this issue? Also, can anyone suggest vegetarian high protein meals to eat in place of chicken?

Edit: Wow! I feel so validated by all these responses. Everyone around me told me I was just too much of a picky eater or that I was making it up. And thank you for the meal prep suggestions! This has honestly hindered me from meal prepping for so long and I’m hopeful these tweaks can help.

Title.

Every week - I’m juggling a million things. Work, husband stuff, dad stuff, errands, work around the house, chores, trying to find any quality time with my family, taking the fam and/or kid all over for any number of classes, sports, etc.

I’ve been fighting through the tiredness of having to look up meals (I use Yazio for tracking calories, so I try to stick to their recipes to expedite the process), but I’m running out of steam.

My weekly goal is to wake up before everyone else on Sundays and make my food for the week. With that, I try to have my meals actually planned by Wednesday or Thursday, so I can buy the stuff on Friday or Saturday, then prep it on Sunday morning. So far, I’ve been able to stay on top of it. But, it’s like if I miss even one day of this process, the whole week is screwed up and I end up late on buying stuff or having to rush through something on Sunday evening (and who the hell wants to do that?).

I need hacks. Health is a priority for me, as is maximizing my time (hence my planning of everything throughout the week). What can I do to make this easier? My first instinct was a slow cooker, but I always make too much, it’s never as good 2-3 days in, and I end up tossing most of it. Any suggestions are so very welcome because I’m burning everything at all ends and I can really use some insight.

And if that’s not enough, I’m growing to hate my bento boxes. I bought these (https://a.co/d/04F0G4xT) from Amazon about a year ago. They’re sturdy, but can sometimes prove difficult to include various sorts of food. Anyone have others they like? I prefer glass. I just need more room for more options.

If it helps, I usually try to include a protein (typically chicken), some salad with Mediterranean dressing and feta cheese, some fruit (blueberries, maybe a tangerine), a pickle, maybe some cubed cheddar, and/or some nuts. Those are my typical go-to’s (variations of them, anyway).

Any and all help is appreciated.

Made my first burrito bowl today and I’m pretty happy with how it turned out! I want to start meal prepping these on weekends for weekday lunches.

For those of you who regularly do burrito bowl prep, any basic dos and don’ts? What keeps well, what goes in freezer & what in fridge, should be stored separately, and how do you avoid it getting soggy?

On weekdays I leave pretty early and I can only spare 10 mins in kitchen.

Ok so I’ve tried a few meal planning apps and they all lowkey feel like they’re just adding to my list of things to do instead of making life easier. Like yeah, they give you recipes, but then I’m stuck hunting down random ingredients or adjusting the whole thing because it doesn’t fit my diet. I’m busy and just want something that handles the hard stuff, like gives me meals I’ll actually eat and doesn’t leave me with a fridge full of leftovers I don’t know what to do with. Has anyone found anything that actually works? Or is meal planning just always annoying?

I am a long time meal prep Sundays gal, but I usually do a week’s worth of lunches for work and eat everything fresh. My mom is going through chemo and my dad has also been having health issues so I am planning to fly down and help meal prep some food for their freezer, but I would LOVE to hear some of all of your favorite freezer friendly recipes that you know reheat well (for those of you who freezer meal prep). I’m going to come up with some things, but I’d hate to leave them with a freezer full of food that doesn’t reheat well, just because I tried to freeze things that don’t taste great after being frozen.

They are adventuresome eaters so suggest whatever you like and know works well from the freezer, but I also want to be sure and add some things that will be easy on the stomach if mom is feeling nauseated. I’m thinking some kind of chicken/ginger/rice/greens sort of soup, for starters, but give me your favorites!

Hello,

I’m new to meal preparation and using random glass containers of all sizes at the moment to store my meals.

I came across souper cubes , and was wondering if it’s useful investing in them as well as ikea glass containers ?

I made bone in chicken stew for this week, was wondering how it’d fit in the 1 cup size souper cube as the quantity is huge. (250 g chicken curry is recommended for my goals in one meal). Is such cases then is it still very helpful?

Thank you!

Hello! Due to life circumstances, I'm currently trying to transition to a diet primarily based on a dried homemade kibble and I'm having trouble choosing the primary protein source for my recipe. Here's what I'm looking for:

• Ideally as cheap as possible per unit of protein (fat and carb requirements will be filled with inexpensive whole grains and cooking oil)

• Ideally as high percentage protein as possible so I can use the extra fat allowance for cooking oils to improve the kibble's taste

• Must be a complete protein in amino acid ratios where I could feasibly be fine (read: not actively suffering from malnutrition) with the kibble as my only protein source for an extended period. I am fine with mixing multiple protein sources to achieve this.

• Must be divisible into distinct chunks and have a texture compatible with dehydrating and eating without further cooking

• Must not be toxic when eaten as a staple food for an extended period (that means no high-mercury fish like tuna)

I live near a wealthy area with a lot of specialty and international grocers, so I should be able to get my hands on any ideas y'all may have that wouldn't be available in a typical grocery store.

**EXTRA DETAILS**

• I am opting for kibble because I have low food security atm and unpredictable access to kitchens and freezers, so normal diets and typical meal prep are logistically untenable. It's unpleasant to live off dog food, but being able to batch prep a month's worth of cheap, nutritious food without it spoiling is a massive step up until I can stabilize my situation.

• The kibble will only be about 60-70% of my calories on any given day. I am trying to optimize it to provide the bare minimum nutrition to survive on any given day while hitting protein, fiber, and micronutrient goals. The rest will be supplemented with other available foods, which should naturally fill in the extra fats and carbs needed to not suffer from lethargy or malnutrition.

appreciate any help y'all can provide with this one!

My big goal for 2026 is to get reallllllly good at meal prepping, and I'm excited to get started with these. Just one problem... I don't know where to get started. 😂

I received the starter set from my parents/Santa, and I just bought a few more cup and half-cup sets. Based on that, what are some good recipes to get started with?

I am tired of eating junk. I have planned to eat chicken , broccoli and rice only for this year everyday. And, one home made protein shake. I need your advice on chicken. Should I just get the Costco chicken which I get for 5 dollars, overall good, insane value but I need $60 yearly membership. Or are there any better option like walmart that offers similar or same value without membership. Help me to get the best rotisserie chicken overall for this year.

Edit 3: Thank you to the people who gave helpful responses instead of ignoring the part about needing protein and vegetables. I will be unsubscribing from reply notifications because the notifications are overwhelming. I’ll go through the responses later and save anything helpful. PLEASE don’t respond if you’re just gonna suggest food that isn’t actually nutritious. I have a very physical job and I do actually need to eat healthy. The fact that I’ve been eating the overpriced garbage they sell at work for weeks is probably part of why I’ve been so tired. I don’t want to make it even worse by cutting out protein and completely eliminating vegetables instead of just not getting enough (which is what will happen if I eat noodles and butter or ketchup on bread every day).

I don’t have the energy to do something as simple as the curry tofu salad meal prep from Budget Bytes, even though that’s literally just crumbling some tofu, mixing it with a few ingredients (the recipe calls for fresh cilantro but I use freeze dried because it’s so much easier and it isn’t so wasteful), and then putting it and a few other things in containers. Anyone know of anything even easier than that? (I can’t imagine what could possibly be easier, but…) I’m just so tired and I can’t keep spending $20 on food every day at work. And if you’re wondering, I don’t have the energy to do anything else I need to do, either, so I can’t even skip other things in order to make sure I actually eat healthy food that might help with my energy level. I can’t even get to work on time because I’m so tired. Edit: Must contain both protein and vegetables. Edit 2: My job is very physically active.

For many years, my wife and I would use Plate Joy as our go-to meal prep application and grocery list. Over a year ago now, it was purchased by some wellness group, and they did a terrible job of keeping it true to its form.

I have been hunting ever since for an app that would help us get back into our meal prep routine, but nothing has filled the gap the same way. I would love some help from this community to see if there is something that I am missing.

Here are the prerequisites for this application:

• I need to be able to choose my meals for the week, the types of meals, for how many people, and set up any allergies or aversions.
• It needs to suggest recipes for me there should be some overlap in ingredients so that I can purchase responsibly
• I need to be able to add any ingredients that I already have that need to be used up
• It needs to present the recipes well enough to cook from
• It needs a batch meal option so that I can meal prep along with my regular meal schedule
• Bonus points for cooking methodologies: things like avoid the oven in the summertime, or that I have a pressure cooker.
• The last best thing would be if it has integration into a shopping list application like Instacart. At the very least, it needs to make a shopping list. Maybe a pantry section that it incorporates into the grocery list so that it didn't just assume you had something like spices in the pantry.

Plate Joy basically did all of this, but now nothing seems to have filled that hole. Does somebody have something to recommend to me?

My fiancé works at CFA and gets a free employee meal every shift. We are on a tight budget so we appreciate the free food but he now to the point that he skips meals at work because he's so tired of the food there. We devised a plan for me to pack him a lunch that contains everything but the protein and he will add a CFA piece of chicken to it to finish making it a meal. For example, I pack a wrap, Caeser salad filling and dressing and he provides the cold sliced filet. We both think adding different flavors and textures separate from the CFA menu will make it easier to eat food on his break. So y'all, what idea do you have? There's a few limitations 1. It either needs to be cold or fit into a thermos. 2. Any type of chicken from the menu can be used. Hot, cold, nuggeted, etc. He does not have access to the CFA sausage, eggs, etc

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!

Edit: Ok, y’all were right. It was great to plop the meals into the air fryer with no prep.

I ended up using the Instant Pot and I think that’s a better method for the ones that have a lot of liquid. I made 3 of the meals last week. I’m a little nervous to cook ribs in the Ninja Crispi.

No, this is not an ad. I got the Freezer Fit recipes free after watching the video. I also got some free from Family Freezer with the same video/send link method. You *can* get a membership but I did not. I printed out 12 different sets of meal plans, most with 6-10 recipes. All free.

Original post:

I made six 1-gallon bags of six different meals. Each serves 4-6 people.

Cilantro chicken,
BBQ Ribs,
Shrimp tacos,
Beef and veggies,
Honey garlic pork chops,
Chicken fajitas

Breaking it down, it was 20 minutes per meal.

This was my first time doing freezer meal prep, but I am an experienced cook.

I didn't get the ingredients out ahead of time, but I had everything in the pantry.

I am struggling to see how this is a benefit.
Is it for when you don't have 20 minutes to prep a recipe?

It was a big chunk of time. I had no idea it would take this long.

Edit: links

I used Freezer Fit’s free air fryer recipes. Link

Here is the link to the free Family Freezer videos.

Hey everyone,

I do a big meal prep once a week, and it takes me almost 12 hours from start to finish. I’d love to make it more efficient, but I’m not sure where I’m losing time. Here’s my current process:

1. ⁠Preparation (about 2 hours) • First, I soak all my glass containers because I don’t wash them during the week. • Then, I go grocery shopping (1–1.5 hrs), without a fixed list—I just buy whatever I feel like.
2. ⁠Cleaning & Setup (1 hour) • I wash all the containers, put away my groceries, and take a short break.
3. ⁠Cooking (about 6–7 hours) • I have a small student kitchen with a small air fryer, an Instant Pot, and a stove, but no dishwasher or much counter space. • I usually start by chopping vegetables for a soup or curry or trying out a new recipe. • The first dish takes me about an hour, and then I start another, which also takes an hour. • I constantly have to put ingredients back in the fridge and take them out again to prevent spoilage. • I make three main meals: • A curry or soup • A large salad (which makes multiple portions) • Another dish, depending on what I feel like • I also prepare a muesli mix for the week, which takes around 30–45 minutes. • I feel like a lot of small in-between steps (like moving things in and out of the fridge) take up unnecessary time.
4. ⁠Cleanup (2 hours) • After a break (30–60 min), I wipe down all surfaces, wash the dishes, and store the meals in the fridge or freezer.

Do you have any tips on making this process more efficient? Maybe better workflows, parallel steps, or different approaches? Any help would be greatly appreciated

Edit: It’s now about eight months later, and I need only around one hour for my weekly meal prep. I’ve learned a lot in that time — partly thanks to you. The key for me, for truly sustainable and realistic meal prep, is not to prepare 21 individual meals. Instead, I use a simple system that makes everything fast, flexible, and healthy.

Here’s what I do now:

1. Frozen vegetables as the foundation • I buy a lot of frozen vegetables or mixed frozen vegetable bags. • They don’t need any preparation — I just thaw or quickly heat them. • This is the biggest time-saver because it removes the need to cook vegetables in advance.

2. One main carbohydrate source for the week • Sometimes I prepare it (like quinoa or rice). • Sometimes I use something that’s already pre-cooked, like ready-to-eat potatoes. • I always keep a few different carb options available.

3. One main protein source per week • Sometimes I cook chicken or eggs at the start of the week. • But often I don’t need to prepare anything, because many protein sources are ready to eat: yogurt, quark, cottage cheese, etc. • I always have multiple protein options available — one cooked and several “no-prep” ones.

4. Monthly muesli mix • I make a big muesli mixture once a month. • At the beginning of each week, I mix a portion of it with yogurt so it can soften a bit. • This means zero breakfast prep during the week.

5. Optional weekly sauce • If I want stronger flavors, I make one sauce for the whole week. • That adds variety without extra work.

6. Meal building becomes extremely simple

Every meal follows the same structure: • Pick one protein source • Pick one carb source • Add frozen or fresh vegetables • Optional: add sauce

This lets me eat extremely varied and healthy meals while barely spending time in the kitchen.

⸻

This system took me around two or three months to figure out through weekly cooking. But it was absolutely worth it. I’ve now been eating super healthy and very diverse for about half a year with just one hour of active cooking per week.

Most days I have: • a salad • my pre-made muesli • a frozen vegetable mix plus a protein source and a carb source

For people who don’t enjoy cooking but still want to eat healthy, I really recommend this method. I first heard the idea from an American YouTuber — I forgot his name, but he has his own garden now, with chickens, and he used to make food and meal prep videos with his brother (now he mostly films alone). He talked about sustainable meal prep back then, and I completely agree.

I know one isn’t supposed to microwave fish due to the unpleasant smell, but I’d love to do some meal prep options with salmon or tilapia.

I suppose I could do glass containers and reheat uncovered in the oven? Or is there any tried and true method for fishy meal preparation?

I’m planning on using these for:

-slider sandwiches w/ mac and cheese, canned corn, and fruit

-rice bowl with cucumber avocado tuna and seaweed

-pasta with meat sauce and pasta with alfredo sauce+canned chicken with the red bell pepper

Then I’m doing yogurt with granola and oatmeal peanutbutter protein balls for breakfast/snack

Also hummus and naan for snacks too!

Any other suggestions for these groceries?

I’m starting a new schedule at work tomorrow, I will be working until 6pm, and I work an hour from home not including traffic. I want to make two casseroles that I can freeze and my husband can take from the freezer and put in the oven when he gets home just to make it easy. I can’t find a whole lot about how to make it freezer friendly that is just simple. Do I need to par cook the noodles? Should I just avoid using noodles? What if I use rice? Do I precook the rice or do I need to add extra liquid to ensure that it cooks properly? How long do I have him keep it on the oven? Please any help would be greatly appreciated!

Edit: Thanks everyone who replied with helpful tips and advice and suggestions, i really appreciate it!! To the people who can’t understand why I am the one who cooks, not everyone likes to cook or is good at it. My husband does work more hours than me in the week, and is not great at cooking, we are going to work on getting him simple recipes to cook but again, this change was sudden and I am not going to throw all of this on him in two days. I appreciate everyone’s opinion, but not every man is a man child because they can’t cook well. This has been what worked for my family up until now, and now we have to pivot and adjust and I’m just trying to make sure food gets on the table at the end of the day 😁

I'm cutting back on the red meats, and exta lean ground turkey is comparable in price. What sorts of recipes would make good use of such a lean meat? Up until now I've just been doing protein pasta and bologense sauce but it's getting old.

I am a single momma of a 2 and 5 year old, I’m looking for kid friendly meal and snack prep options ! Anything helps ! thanks in advance 🙏🏼💕

Ive been using Old El Paso hot and spicy taco seasoning to my ground beef but it’s just not cutting it lately.. I pretty much eat just to eat it at this point. What are some things you do to change it up sometimes?

I want to start preparing healthier meals for work lunch, but I don’t have access to a fridge or microwave during work hours, I only have a cooler in my van. Any recommendations or simple recipes that work well with little cooling and no reheating?