Wouldn’t it be great if we could all come home from a full day at work and make a meal from scratch? But that is just a dream for many people. Life is more demanding than ever before with people having to work full time or do 2 jobs.
If this is you, then you need to stop and take a look at how can actually plan your meals. Going to the shop on the way home to grab a microwave meal is both expensive and unhealthy. Or choosing a takeaway because you are so tired. In this article, we want to share some tips and ideas on meal planning and batch cooking for beginners.
Get The Right Equipment
You are going to need some tubs with lids. You can buy them from the budget store or keep the ones from takeaway dinners. Get tubs that are all the same shape so they stack better in your fridge or freezer. You also need some stickers or permanent marker pens to write what the meal is, otherwise you will forget. Get smaller tubs rather than the bigger tubs. With smaller tubs, you can put one meal portions in them and freeze them. Then take out what you fancy that day.
The planning
Planning what you are going to eat, will help you mentally as well as physically. Physically because you will know exactly what is going into your body. You can make sure that you get enough of the right vitamins and minerals. It helps you mentally because you don’t need to stress about the meals. And then you can relax as soon as you get in from work.
Get out your diary and see if you are eating out over the next week. That will be one less meal to think about and make. Then find out who is going to be home and who isn’t. It isn’t worth cooking for people that will be out. Then you need to plan the meals, what you will make and when.
Make a shopping list of what you will need. If you bulk buy foods to make large meals, you can split the meals and freeze them until you want them. Mince is great for making loads of meals because the options are endless. You can make shepherds pie, cottage pie, spaghetti bolognese, chilli, fajitas…. the list is really endless.
Shopping For Your Food
When you have your list, take it shopping and buy what you need. Do not buy too much food, or buy things that you do not need. Check the food is fresh, by shopping for it yourself. When you do supermarket shopping online, you do not always get the freshest food. If you cannot get to the supermarket, you can always order a vegetable box from the local farmers. As the food is freshly picked, you know it will be fresh.
Cooking Your Food Up
Get all of your pans ready, your slow cooker and oven trays. Make sure you have enough to batch cook your meals. You can spend a Saturday or Sunday cooking up your meals ready for the week. Make meals that will keep in the freezer or fridge. You don’t want soggy foods as a meal in a couple of days.
When the meals are cooked, leave them to cool before you put them in the fridge. Some will keep for a few days in the fridge, and you can stack some in the freezer. You will need to label them with the food name and date that you cooked them. Chop some vegetables so you can have them as a snack with some hummus later on in the week too. Great for a healthy snack as you wait for your food to warm up.
