Nikki Boswell, Nutritionist for the 28 Day Weight Loss Challenge provides some tips on which foods and ingredients are great to prepare ahead of time to make meal prep as easy as possible:
When it comes to preparing quick healthy meals, there are a few sneaky cooking hacks that can be used to save you loads of time.
- Ingredients like rice and quinoa can be cooked ahead of time, cooled under cold water, portioned into individual serves and stored in an airtight container in the fridge for about three days or in the freezer for several months, but remember food safety is particularly important with high moisture foods such as these, so only ever reheat them once and be sure they are heated to steaming.
- Keeping cooked chicken on hand can also be a huge time saver and used in a huge variety of healthy recipes. Be sure to completely cook the chicken (I like to bake or poach it), let it cool and store in airtight containers in the fridge or freezer just the same as rice or quinoa (three days in the fridge or several months in the freezer). If using cold, use straight from the fridge or if using hot, be sure to reheat to steaming. I like to finely dice cooked, cooled chicken in the food processor and keep it on hand in the fridge for quick sandwich fillings, tacos, frittata, to stir through pasta or top pizza.
- Overnight oats and puddings are not only delicious and nutritious, they are a total time saver. They are quick to throw together the night before, pop into a spill proof container and have as a breakfast (or morning tea) on the go the next day.
- Of course cakes, muffins, slices and bliss balls are great to have on hand in the fridge or freezer, and as low moisture products can be kept for up to a week in the fridge or several months in the freezer.
- Learning to love lentils, chickpeas and beans will not only give your nutrition a boost but save you time (and money) as well. Keeping canned (no added salt) varieties of lentils, chickpeas and beans in the pantry can save a huge amount of time when preparing a healthy meal. There is no need to worry about getting things out ahead of time to defrost, no need for soaking or even cooking, just rinse, drain and enjoy in a salad, thrown through some pasta or whip up quick nachos. Chickpeas also make a great base for a variety of dips which can be made days ahead of time and stored in airtight containers in the fridge or frozen for several weeks. Just remember to defrost in the fridge.
Nikki Boswell, Nutritionist
