Tried batch cooking on Sunday versus cooking fresh each night, batch won by a mile

I spent 4 hours last Sunday making a giant pot of chili and some shredded chicken. Saved me about 45 minutes each night this week when I got home from my shift at 11pm. Has anyone else found a meal prep routine that actually sticks?

3 comments

3 Comments

charliestone9d ago

...and honestly I was skeptical at first because I love cooking fresh but man the time savings just got real fast. I started doing this thing where I cook a big batch of rice and beans on Sunday, then just toss in different proteins and veggies during the week. It's not fancy but it works because I don't get bored since I swap out the add-ins. The key for me was keeping it stupid simple, nothing that takes more than an hour of prep. I tried doing like five different recipes one week and ended up throwing half of it out cause nobody wanted to eat the same stuff again. So now I just focus on one or two base things I can mix up fast.

dakota_patel987d ago

Yeah I do pretty much the same thing as @river320 with the base and mix-in method, it really does keep things from getting stale. For me the game changer was doing all the chopping and prep on Sunday too, because having the veggies ready to go makes it way easier to just throw something together on a Wednesday night when I'm tired. It's not glamorous but honestly who cares when dinner is on the table in ten minutes, you know?

river3209d ago

This is exactly what I do with my Sunday afternoon. I cook a big pot of brown rice, roast a sheet pan of sweet potatoes and bell peppers, and make a simple vinaigrette. Then all week I just throw that together with canned black beans or chickpeas and whatever leftover chicken or tofu I have. It sounds boring but the vinaigrette really makes it feel different each day.