The issue with this is that many people tend to spend a lot of time in the kitchen when they start showing an interest in creating homemade meals.
The balance of work, leisure, hobbies, home projects, and cooking can sometimes lead to losing track of time, which will set you back days, weeks, and even months.
That's why instead of cooking everyday 2-3 times a day, it's best to get into a weekly routine of meal prep.
In the long run, you will save yourself a lot of time by prepping meals first. Plus, unbeknown to most, not all meal prep has to be boring either!
You can spice things up with various recipes from around the world that take little to no time to prep and will save you hours in the kitchen!
Let's take a look at a few different recipes from around the world that are fantastic options for delicious grab-and-go weekly meal prep.
1. Peru - Causa Rellena
A great country with interesting culinary developments, Peru utilizes many different flavours in its cuisine. Banana Pepper (Aji Amarillo) is one of the main ingredients in a lot of Peruvian dishes. A great dish that takes no time to make and will keep for 3-4 days in a refrigerator is Causa.
Causa is in some ways similar to a casserole/lasagna, but it's normally served cold. Made with mashed potatoes mixed with Aji Amarillo this dish packs a slight kick and most definitely keeps you coming back for more.
In between the layers of potato (top and bottom layer), there is a layer of tuna, red onion, cilantro, and mayo. If you're not massive on mayo, lime juice, and olive oil work nicely as an alternative as well. Moreover, if you love avocados as we do, add some slices on top of the tuna layer for extra flavour profiles.
2. Thailand - Asian Slaw
With one of the most beloved cuisines in the world being southeast Asian, we couldn't leave out Thailand from this recipe roundup. The fresh, sweet, savoury, and bitter flavours are packed into healthy and quick meals that everyone will enjoy.
Let's face it, we all know that we need to eat our vegetables, and throughout the year there are many great ways of doing so. Nevertheless, once the warmer months of spring and summer come back around your body tends to crave light yet flavorful dishes.
Using fresh vegetables as the foundation, this Asian Slaw is very versatile and easily keeps in the refrigerator. The best part is if you want to add chicken or other protein options to the Slaw you can!
Another wonderful element to add to this recipe is mint leaves, which will deliver an extra touch of freshness in every bite!
3. Vietnam - Rice Noodle Salad
Third, on our list is another fresh salad that will keep you satiated throughout the day and doesn't actually take that long to prepare. However, the meal prep for this salad is slightly different.
Instead of completely preparing this dish all in one day (which will make the noodles go mushy after 24 hours), the best way to prep this salad is by cutting all the vegetables ahead of time.
Once the noodles are ready, simply combine all the ingredients together, and the meal should be ready in under 10 minutes. Now that’s what we call healthy fast-food!
That way when you get hungry and want a quick healthy salad option all you'll need to do is sling some hot water on the boil and place your vermicelli noodles in the pan to cook.
4. Russia - Potato & Beet Salad
Though this may sound unappetizing, it's truly one of those recipes that you can't knock until you try it. This dish is fantastic because the vinegar-based dressing will keep it fresh and, in fact, enhance the flavours as time goes by. Making it an ideal recipe for weekly meal prep.
This Russian salad recipe will save you time, money and will definitely leave you feeling satiated. Simply place some potatoes and beets in boiling water and cook them until soft in the centre.
While those ingredients are cooking you'll need to thinly slice some red onion and place them into a Tupperware with white wine vinegar, salt, and olive oil.
Once the potatoes and beets have finished cooking, allow some time for them to cool off before peeling. Then dice the root veggies into even cubes and place them into the large Tupperware container with the onions and vinaigrette mixture.
Make sure to toss the contents and cover all ingredients with the delicious vinaigrette. Then place the Tupperware into the refrigerator and let it cool for 2-3 hours.
Ingredients: 3 beets, 4 medium potatoes, 1 red onion, 3 tbsp white wine vinegar, salt to taste, 3 tbsp olive oil, and Ground Pepper (optional) to taste.
Conclusion
The beauty of meal prepping is that it can be adapted to fit your lifestyle, cooking expertise, and personal dietary requirements.
Plus, it unquestionably doesn't need to look like a professionally plated Pinterest or Instagram-worthy food masterpiece. The most important thing is the flavour profiles, making sure the dishes taste great, and the peace of mind during last-minute rush meals.
The truth is, none of these problems will even become concerns if you're meal prepping correctly.
Failing to plan is planning to fail
The popular saying above is a bit corny but also try, so if you're serious about spending less time in the kitchen, saving money on takeouts, losing weight, or simply adding more veggies into your daily routine for that extra health boost, then meal prep is the perfect solution.
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