True confession. Our family ate unhealthy foods on a regular basis. We didn’t start out like this. I prepared delicious, nutritious meals. Then disaster and COVID crept in. My husband and son’s work schedules change weekly, making it impossible to sit down for a family dinner. I never knew when my daughter and her family would pop in for meals, changing my food prep from 3 people to 6 people. Then my mother-in-law began having health problems. I had to prepare nightly dinners for her since she could no longer cook her own meals. And she is pickier than the 5-year-old! I spent all of my free time planning meals, picking up that “one ingredient I needed,” and delivering meals. That all changed when I discovered how to batch cook. If you, like me, find yourself stuck in the kitchen, wishing for an easier way, try The Easy Batch Cooking Guide.
The Easy Batch Cooking Guide:
Simplify meals, spend less time at the store, and find foods your entire family would like? Yes, please.
What is Batch Cooking?
Batch Cooking is basically preparing a large number of meals at one time. Sometimes it is known as freezer meals or, if you’re in the South, ‘cooking a bunch of food at the same time.’ You know, like the traditional Sunday dinner at Grandma’s. Are those still a thing? Batch Cooking is also known as Meal Prep.
Why Bother with Meal Prep?
- It saves time in the long run. When you have a week’s worth of meals all you have to do is pull out what you want to serve for the day, heat, and eat.
- It saves money. No more staring at the fridge in disgust trying to decide what to cook before either a) discovering you don’t have all the needed ingredients or b) giving up and going out to eat. There are no last-minute trips to the store for missing ingredients. Plus, you can plan around grocery sales.
- It’s flexible. No matter how family schedules collide food is always available.
- It helps if you have to cook for others. Because I have to send food to my Mother-in-law, I am able to prepackage meals for a week and take them to her.
- It provides variety. You can add family recipe requests to each batch.
- It helps with food allergies. I can plan Gluten-free dishes to have on hand at all times.
- It cuts down on waste. There are no more ingredients pushed to the back of the fridge to be discovered after they’re ruined.
Downsides of Batch Cooking:
- If you enjoy spontaneously planning meals and deciding what you want to eat each night, batch cooking might not be for you.
- You must have several hours to devote to cooking one day a week.
- My personal downside- My family knows we have food so no I can’t tell them there’s nothing to cook and go out to eat or get takeout.
Does Meal Prep Take a lot of Time?
The answer is—it depends. I can usually have a week’s worth of lunches and dinners prepped, prepared, cooked, and the kitchen cleaned in four hours. I try to stick to simple recipes and place several dishes in the oven at once. If you plan gourmet dishes with long prep and cooking times it will take longer.
Batch Cooking (or Meal Prep) Tips for Beginners:
- Before you start batch cooking be sure you have enough freezer or refrigerator space to store your meals.
- Purchase freezer-safe plastic storage containers. This is the best investment I’ve made in the last few months. They’re easy to stack in the fridge or freezer. I like the square plastic Mainstays trays from Walmart. You can get a package of 12 for around $10. They can be stored in the freezer, go into the dishwasher, and are microwaveable.
- If you are a meat-eater, grab a copy of the weekly grocery ad to discover which meats are on sale. Tip: Purchase the larger packages. They’re usually cheaper. Or purchase meat in bulk from Sam’s, BJ’s, or Costco.
- Ask family members which dishes they would like prepared. Plan meals around these recipes.
- Make 3 to 4 choices for breakfasts and lunch; like smoothies, overnight oatmeal, protein bowls, and stuffed waffles or wraps, salads, protein bowls, or even, for a fancier version, a charcuterie board. Make one main dish for each dinner.
- Plan for leftovers. Either plan one night as a clean-up the fridge night or be prepared to use leftovers in new meals. For example; leftover steak could be made into steak wraps, fajitas, or beef Stroganoff.
- Make a list of all the ingredients you’ll need from the store. There’s nothing more frustrating than having to stop in the middle of cooking for an unexpected trip to the store.
- Use easy recipes the first two or three times you try meal prep. As you become more comfortable, increase the difficulty of the recipes, if you desire.
- Set out all ingredients, cooking utensils, dishes, bowls, baking pans, etc., you’ll need before you begin meal prep.
- Do all the basic chopping, dicing, and other prep before you begin preparing the recipes.
- Read through all the recipes before you begin.
- Clean as you go! It means less work for you after the food is prepared.
Sample Weekly Meal Plans:
Here are the dishes I’ve prepared for this week. I use the “Mix and Match” system for dinner. In other words, I choose whatever main dish, side dish, and dessert I feel like serving for each meal. I can supplement with French bread or a vegetable from the garden if needed. You might be able to tell there was a sale on pork from this week’s menu.
Before You Begin:
Decide if you want to prepare a meal prep plan with breakfast, lunch, and dinner, or a meal plan that just includes dinner ideas.
Breakfast Ideas:
The kids and I are not ‘big’ breakfast eaters. I could easily eat cereal each morning and the kids prefer not to eat breakfast. However, it’s supposed to be the healthiest meal of the day, so here we go.
- Peach and Pineapple Smoothie Recipe — Smoothies can be placed in the freezer and then thawed overnight in the fridge
- Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Stuffed Waffles– freeze these. When ready to serve, wrap them in a damp paper towel and microwave on high for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Warning: Filling will be hot.
- Savory Cheese and Waffle BLT’s– Freeze the waffles and the cooked bacon. Chop fresh tomatoes and store them in an airtight container in the fridge. Assemble the sandwiches in the morning. Or just eat the Waffles and Bacon separately.
- The Best Sausage Breakfast Casserole Recipe: freeze individual servings. Microwave them on high, wrapped in a damp paper towel, for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes.
- Easy Ham and Cheese Crepes Recipe: Wrap the crepes individually to freeze them. Microwave each crepe on high for 1 minute. Microwave filling for 30 to 45 seconds. Assemble the crepe.
- Overnight Oats
- Chopped fruit bowls
- Cereal
Lunch Ideas:
If you, like me, prefer something light for lunch, here are some of my picks for make-ahead meals. Note: Most salads don’t freeze well but will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- The Easiest Crab Salad Ever
- Blue Cheese and Bacon 7-layer Salad
- Copycat Wendy’s Apple Pecan Chicken Salad
- Chicken Salad Club Sandwich
- Copycat Panera Broccoli Cheese Soup Recipe
Dinner Ideas:
Dinner is our “family meal” of the day. I’ve included main dishes, side dishes, and desserts. If you want to freeze the main dishes, I prefer not to cook them in advance. Instead, I prepare the recipe and place it in a coantainer that is both freezer and oven safe. I allow the dish to thaw overnight in the fridge (or all day in the fridge) before cooking at dinnertime.
Main Dishes:
- Gluten-Free Spaghetti Sauce using Fresh Tomatoes
- Southern Style Meatloaf
- Cider-Glazed Pork Chops You can use pork or chicken in this recipe.
- Barbecue Pork
- Chicken Casserole
Side Dishes:
Desserts:
- Buttermilk Pie
- Old Fashioned Fudge Pie — This pie freezes well.
- Easy Peasy Fruit Salad Recipe
- Southern Style Banana Pudding
- Easy Banana Nut Bread Recipe– This bread freezes well and can be enjoyed as a quick breakfast or snack too.
Meal Prep and Batch Cooking have made my life easier. Do you have any questions you’d like to ask about meal prep? Let me know in the comments. Tell us your favorite recipes you prepare in advance. We’re always excited to find new recipes.
Have You Seen Our Cookbooks?
I really need to try this. I know it’d be good for the family to have things prepared so we don’t eat as unhealthy. I’ve been at least trying to create a menu for the week to stick by.
I think batch cooking has so many benefits. This is especially true during the weekdays when I am super tired from working. It’s nice to have an easy way to get a delicious meal on the table fast.
I’d love to do more batch cooking! Your tips for beginners are awesome! This cooking method is perfect for families of all sizes.
Batch cooking is how I get through sports seasons while working. I need to make a plan and get on with it.
I have never tried to do a batch cooking but it sounds like a great idea most especially if you will be having an unexpected visitor during that day, no need to cook just reheat it and serve.
We are actually investing in a separate freezer so that I can do more meal planning and batch cooking. Loving all the things you pointed out here, because it’s things that I have to keep in mind when we finally take the plunge!
I love cooking, so this is some great info. All these photos are making me hungry too. I’ll have to start trying batch cooking. Never done it before.
I have never really done batch cooking but I would be willing to try. Always love to pick up a new recipe or two!
I love trying new recipes, am gonna try this too.
Batch cooking is one very effective way. I know many people who does it and is still doing it. I git hungry just looking at the pictures.
I used to try batch cooking, and it worked well! I just kept stopping. I love that you shared the easy batch cooking guide to help others. Perhaps I’ll get back into it when we find a home.
This is a great idea. I used to freeze some of my leftovers a long time ago. I’m going to start doing that again because like you said it saves time and money. I haven’t tried batch cooking and it isn’t for me personally. Not because I don’t want to it’s just hard for me to carve out that much time and stand in the kitchen to cook. I deal with chronic pain so I have to factor that into my meal planning. But I will implement your idea just not on a large scale. Lasagna, soup, and a few other recipes are good after being frozen.
I so need to do this for busy weeks in our family. This would save me so much time and stress
I never really do batch cooking, but I feel pretty inspired now! I don’t mind cooking regularly but this would veritably free up some time!
You guys are knocking it out the park today with these recipes. I am loving all that you are showing. I love to cook and try and find new things to do at home. These are great
I really should start doing this. I HATE cooking, but if I did this, at least I wouldn’t have to cook something new every night. I’d have something ready to go.
I never tried anything like this I do not have too much freezer space but it sounds like a good idea. It probably saves time because you do all your cooking at once.
I’ve tried batch cooking a couple of years ago and love it. It really does simplify cooking daily.