Ingredient Prep June 23rd

RecipesHealth
Written By Jessica Trapp

A friend of mine asked me recently if I wanted to begin meal prepping with them, but in a different way than most people do. You see, the way most people meal prep is they fully plan, prep, and cook their meals all in one day and then reheat what they’ve made throughout the week. My friend’s suggestion was that we only prep the ingredients. I was a little skeptical at first with this approach, but decided to give it a try.

Leading up to the day of prepping most of our conversations focused on the sauces we wanted to prep. From there we could build the different fruits, veggies, and other staples we need to get. With my friend being a vegetarian it was up to me to prep the meat for myself and her husband. She told me that her husband really likes chicken, but is picky about the way it is prepped. I told her I was as well and shared my methodology, which aligned with his. Score! We are on the same page, which makes my life easier.

The day of we started out at the farmer’s market and then made our way to a market that has great deals on international and local foods. We bought and prepped:

  • Protein

    • Chicken

    • Eggs

    • Tofu

  • Fruits

    • Peaches

    • Nectarines

    • Lychee

    • Strawberries

    • Rainier Cherries

  • Vegetables

    • Broccoli

    • Red & Orange Bell Peppers

    • Yellow Squash

    • Cucumbers

    • Tomatoes

    • Avocados

  • Herbs

    • Cilantro

    • Dill

  • Other

    • Pita Bread

    • Plain Greek Yogurt

After returning home we took a break for lunch and then hopped into the kitchen and began our prep. While I worked away at the chicken my friend washed and cut all of the produce. Once we both finished are respective jobs we dove into making the sauces, which, in my opinion, was the most fun. We got to taste test and get creative with the different directions we were going. We chose 5 different sauces to be our staples and they were:

It took us around 7 hours total to shop and prep. As I headed back to my apartment I could feel the excitement I had for the week ahead. I’ve been saying for a while now that I need to change my eating habits and cook more at home. This ingredient prepping I could feel was going to be a game changer.

Throughout the week I snacked on my fruit and ate three different meal options from the rest of the items. I made a pita bread topped with tzatziki, chicken, grilled yellow squash, and avocado. I took the miso marinated tofu and sautéed it up with broccoli. Lastly I grabbed some spinach wraps at the store, cooked up some taco meat, and threw the avocado cilantro crema, taco meat, tomatoes, and bell peppers into a wrap. Then I topped that with the cilantro chutney.

All in all it was a great first week filled with yummy food. I had food to grab from the fridge and graze on, as well as pre-prepped items to quickly throw together and make healthy meals out of. Having gone from eating out all of the time, to eating more fruits and veggies than normal + mindfully choosing the moments I would eat out this past week, I can honestly say I feel better and am proud of myself.

If meal prepping has been hard for you, give this method a try and see how much easier it makes your week ahead. Bonus points if you grab a buddy to do it with 😃✨!

Love always,

Jess

Jessica Trapp
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