With our busy, busy lives, we often turn to meals of convenience in a quick trip for lunch...this often results in some not so wise nutritional choices, full of sodium, preservatives, fat, calories and...well, crap, to be frank! Yes, we can find some not quite fast food meals at places like Chipotle or Panera Bread...do you trust the chains? We do have our Mom & Pops and we do so love them...sometimes their lines are out the door, when our lunch hour is only half of what it should be! Meal preps, courtesy of Pinterest.
Really, the only way to be absolutely sure is to do it yourself, or have a trustworthy caterer do it for you! That's what I've been working on today, for my catering clients.
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You see, what you would normally do, if preparing at home, would be to make a full recipe of your desired meal, then divide it into portions, packed separately. There are a few ways to pack your meals...
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The single compartment container is going to be the most economical. It's great for dishes like the ones I've shown you so far, where the components of the meal will be mixed together to be eaten. The top picture is one of a Grilled Shrimp Taco Bowl. It's got the shrimp on a bed of Mexican rice with the accoutrements beautifully displayed. You could enjoy this one with or without tortillas. The single compartment will also be the one you choose for your salads...a Cobb Salad makes a wonderful lunch, with enough protein to carry you through the afternoon, yet light enough to not bog you down.
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I like these for things like a Lasagna or Spaghetti & Meatballs portion and a Side Salad. Or a Sandwich Wrap and a Salad...any where you don't want the two to come into contact...
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And, for those who cannot stand for their food to touch....the three compartment! Okay, not just the no-food-touching folks...I can see this for a breaded protein with mac & cheese and baked beans...those we wouldn't want running all over each other. Whatever you select, though, make certain it's a microwave safe container!
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Now, the one problem that I see with the idea of meal prep is that you still have a whole meal to dispense with. Unless you plan on taking one lunch with you, sending one with your partner, and eating the meal twice in a week, you'll still have too much. So, what I do is offer a few selections of variety....a good week's worth, and let folks select which they want for the week. Meals will last about five days, in the fridge. Honestly, I've not tried freezing these. Unless you have a method for vacuum sealing, I'm afraid they'd freezer burn. If anyone's tried freezing these successfully, do let me know!
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The two section containers are great for a Sandwich Wrap and Salad. Wraps have come far since their genesis. We started doing Sandwich Wraps well before they became a trending item...2002 to be exact. The Atkins low carb fad had come into being all over the West Coast and in our Texas metro areas, like Dallas; the South Beach Diet was in its infancy...but, not here, yet; and, it was well before commercial low carb wraps were in every store! So, yes, I actually have made home made low carb wraps for the restaurant...but, now we have them readily available! Thank heavens!!!
Some folks do these Meal Preps for a special diet...low cal, g free, low carb, paleo, all the new buzz words. Some do it to save money, as eating out daily will seriously drain that bank account! Others, for convenience of having something ready that you can just grab on your way out the door, and reheat in the microwave in the break room. Busy moms like them cos they're like busy! Whatever the reason, it's worth looking at. You know what's in it, the salts, sugars, fats, carbs...everything!!! Control your kitchen, my friends!
And while I can't do these for you, I hope I've at least given you some ideas on running the idea through your own home kitchen! Pinterest has a wealth of ideas on Meal Preps, and I'm sure you can work your own spins on, as I do, for those I cook for! Until next time, peace, love and yumminess! Steem on!