Ryhlan Jammie is sharing her tips with us about meal prep in this article…
Now that most of us are working from home, it may seem like the need to prepare meals ahead of time is no longer there. After all, hectic mornings filled with long hours of commute and worn out, drowsy nights that make sleep much more appealing than dinner are no longer the norm these days. But even then, the endless benefits that meal prepping offers continue to be worth the effort and the minimal hassle at the beginning of the week. If you share the same view, here are some helpful meal prep tips perfect for those who are working from home:
Plan, plan, plan
Whether you’re crafting a school paper, a business proposal, or a weekly meal prep, the only way you can ensure its success is by planning. This simple trick will help you get all the ingredients you’d need without forgetting anything and aid you in working around your budget more efficiently.
An article by WebMD highly suggests starting your meal prep plans with a list of the dishes you’d want to have over the course of the week. Once your list is complete, try making a more detailed enumeration of all the ingredients each dish would need. This second trick may seem tedious but Real Simple explained that this will be your fool-proof way of making sure that each ingredient is used in the most efficient way possible.
Invest in kitchen staples
Meal prepping is not just about making meals ahead of time. In reality, it is also about finding the best way to make the best food in the most hassle-free, nutritious and efficient way possible. This is the reason why you shouldn’t just focus on getting the freshest ingredients. You should also pay close attention to the kitchen gadgets that you use. These days, modern kitchen appliances can help save you time and money (and let's face it: when you’re meal prepping, time is money).
Take, for example, the humble rice cooker. Not only can you leave it to make your perfect, fluffy rice each time, but the best Aroma rice cookers from 2020 even double as food steamers, which means you can get not just your carbs but your vegetables done too, all with one cooking cycle. Another kitchen staple that will surely be worth your money is a food processor. The best Cuisinart food processors of 2020 will help you dice onions, mince parsley, shred carrots, knead dough and grind parmesan at a much faster pace, leaving you time to do other things in the kitchen.
Mix and Match
Now, more than ever, professionals like you and I have to zoom in on our health. And there is no better way to do this than by eating healthy. As tempting as it may be to stick to meal prep favourites like chicken breast, salad and pasta dishes, make it a habit to mix and match every once in a while. Consider preparing meals that take inspiration from other cultures.
For instance, you can try your hand at making chicken shawarma and sweet potato fry bowls. According to the recipe featured in the Greatist, all you’d need are some chicken that’s been deliciously marinated in a mixture of mouthwatering spices coupled with couscous, olives, and a tahini-yogurt sauce that will surely make the flavours pop. If you are craving for some noodles, maybe you could try making some pad thai as well. Just don’t forget to get some fish sauce because, as Lauren Miyashiro from Delish explained, that will be the key ingredient that will give your dish that unbeatable punch of umami.
The office you work in may now be synonymous with the very home you rest and sleep in, but that's not a free pass to being lazy about your meals. As highlighted in our previous post 'Top 10 Tips For Working From Home', you still have to plan your meals to ensure that you get all the nutrients you'd need to stay productive.
Exclusively written for The Etiquette Consultant