Learn the art of meal planning

Ok, so who here feel like they could use some more meal planning in their life? It’s been one heck of a summer, society opening back up after 1,5 years in lock down. Now I don't know if I can speak for anyone else but at least on my end there has been more restaurant meals and 3 am post bar fast-food stops in these past 3 months alone that there has in the past 2 years, not to mention the endless parties and camping. I am ready to recover and get my life back on track. And the easiest way to do that - MEAL PLANNING!

For those of you who know me, knows that I looove meal prepping and cooking, I can stand for hour in the kitchen whipping up delicious meals and snacks. But not everyone are like that, and the less time they need to spend on cooking every day the better. When doing meal preps the right way, you only need to worry about cooking one day of the week, more or less. This requires, as the name suggests, a bit of planning, and the better your plan the more successful your week and goals are going to be. Meal prepping not only saves you precious time in your busy day, but it also saves you dolla bills yo! And this is a really effective way of tracking your food if you are on a wellness journey or trying to reach a specific weight goal. When you have your mind set on something and prepare yourself for the week to come, you are much less likely to cave in to cravings, unhealthy snacks, binging, skip the dishes, and hitting the drive-through on your way home from work.


Meal prep essentials:

  • One full day dedicated to planning, shopping, and cooking.

  • Easy recipes that don’t require chef Ramsey in the house.

  • Bulking up on pantry staples - this saves you so much money in the long run!

  • Good quality, leakproof tupperware for leftovers and meal portioning.

  • A freezer - I highly recommend investing in a small deepfreeze, this saves so much space. I didn’t know how much I had missed out until I got one.

  • A sodastream - a fantastic and cost-effective way to reduce your sugar, money, and bottle consumption.


When preparing meals for a whole week it’s important to take into account how many people will be sharing those meal preps. For me who is alone for most of the time when my partner is away at work, i’m perfectly happy with eating the same thing 5-6 days in a row. But I know not all people are like that and need some variation in their life. Below I have included a small list of different staples that I always have on hand in case the craving hits or I want to switch things up. When you have all of the basics already in your pantry, all you need to focus on for your weekly shopping are your perishables, like fruits, veggies, meats, dairy (or non-dairy), bread and maybe the odd ingredient you need for a specific recipe. You obviously don’t need all of the items in the lists, these are just my personal favourites that I use the most and like having on hand.

Spices:

garam masala spice mix

curry spice mix

cajun spice mix

italian herbs

5 Chinese herbs

coriander

sweet paprika

garlic powder

onion powder

Himalayan pink salt

pepper corn blend

Condiments:

olive oil

toasted sesame oil

coconut oil

apple cider vinegar

rice wine vinegar

balsamic vinegar

soy sauce

agave syrup

vegan mayonaise (or regular)

fish sauce

chili paste

Canned:

black beans

chickpeas

tomato sauce

tomato paste

coconut milk

Legumes + nuts:

mung beans

puy lentils

red lentils

almonds

cashews

pine nuts

peeled pistachios

pumpkin seeds

sesame seeds

hemp seeds

almond butter

peanut butter

tahini

Grains:

jasmine rice

wild rice

quinoa

pearl barley

millet

oats

pasta

soba noodles

granola

Healthy snacks:

trail mixes

granola bars

raw bars / energy balls

dried fruit

dried seaweed

glutenfree crackers


 

Now you just need decide on a yummy recipe, figure out how much to buy and make based on the recipe size and how many people are going to be eating and for how many days. So if a recipe yields 4 servings and you’re 2 people eating for 5 days, use this formula to figure out how much to increase the recipe by: 5 days / 4 servings X 2 people = 2.5. So in my case I would need to increase my recipe by 2.5 to make it last 5 days for 2 people. I have been doing this for a long time and I have my go-to recipes that I love and rotate between over and over, many of which I have shared here on my blog in the past.

I personally love making soups and casseroles for the share simplicity of it. But I will link my public recipe page from pinterest below with healthy delicious recipes that I have gathered over the years and still keep going back to regularly. When you are new to meal planning I strongly advice you to measure up your meals into tupperware containers for easy access and so you don’t over/under eat, and this way you can also grab one with you to work if you know you will be working late and run the risk of ordering takeout. If you love making assembly type meals (salads, sushi, burritos, flat breads…) I highly recommend chopping and organizing all your ingredients and storing them in separate containers in the fridge for easy access and assembly come dinner time.

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