THE BEST MEAL PREP HACKS FOR FAMILIES

When it comes to meal time for busy families, it can be hard to find the motivation to create a meal or snack that everyone loves. Sometimes, especially for me, it can lead to procrastination, stress, and cereal for dinner. However, I know my kiddos need good nutrition to thrive, which is why I’ve come up with some awesome hacks to save time when it comes to making a meal or snack.

These different food preparation hacks make snack and meal time a breeze! These are some of the most common ways to prep fruits and veggies. Some of these might seem obvious, but they actually really help preserve the food for longer. Also, having everything ready to use/eat has been life changing!

I usually go food shopping on Mondays with my girls and use nap time to prep everything. I prep on Monday and everything is ready for the rest of the week. So it is just grab and go!

These hacks are SUPER easy, don’t break the bank, and make saving time in the kitchen super easy, especially when you’re on the go. If meal time is becoming a stressful event or you don’t really know where to begin, make sure you give these hacks a go! I bet you’ll be back to creating delicious and easy meals in no time at all.

Let’s check them out!

Plan your meals.

Planning your meals ahead of time is seriously the holy grail when it comes to meal prep. It can reduce heaps of stress, help you create a grocery list (saving money), and also make your life more efficient. Say goodbye to “What’s for dinner?” with no answer to reply with. Now, you can have everything you need, the day you need it, without added pressure of a quick run to the store when you don’t have something! Outline your menu for the week, choosing recipes that have similar ingredients so you won’t have any waste.

Cook once, eat twice.

Get the most out of your time by cooking meals in advance in bigger batches so that you can save some for later! All you need to do is double the batch (or triple it for bigger families) and find the right container to store it in! Pop it in the freezer or fridge, depending on when you want to eat it, and voila! Now you have delicious cooked meals twice without the huge prep time!

Put your lime juice in a squeeze bottle.

Instead of having to cut and juice limes and make even MORE dishes for yourself, try to just squeeze all of the lime juice you need for the week beforehand. With a little juicer, juice all your lemons and then transfer the juice to a squeeze bottle for easy and quick access when you need it!

Prepare and store your fruit, veggies, and herbs.

Prepping fruits, veggies, and herbs is the BEST way to get the most life and deliciousness out of your food. For example, take the core out of your strawberries, lay them in a container lined with paper towel, and you’re good to go! The same applies for berries, grapes, and more! You can even get a veggie chopper to help you! Avocados have a tendency to go yucky quickly, so I really like these Avocado savers for them.

You can choose to use the container they came in, or a sealed container that fits the fruit and chopped veggies.

Pre-mince your garlic.

When you pre-mince your garlic, you shave a lot of time on your meals. I find that its such a commonly used ingredient in my house, but I HATE how long it takes to prep. Instead, I chop it all up, add some olive oil, and pop it in mason jars to pull out when I need it! No more chopping and peeling every single time!

Label and date.

Labelling and dating your meal prep is yet another super important part of it. When you clearly label and date the things you’ve prepped, you make sure all of your meals are fresh and delicious. It also helps avoid confusion and makes sure you eat your fresh ingredients in the right timeframe. A little label maker is your BEST FRIEND with this sort of thing.

Create your portions.

Portion out all of your meals and ingredients to keep on top of wastage and also make sure you’re meeting all of your families nutritional requirements. This makes it so much easier to grab and go, reduces waste, and helps with portion control.

Make meal time easier than ever before!

Now, you can make meal time easier than ever before with these hacks! They are simple and super easy to implement. Which of these hacks did you already do? Tell me what’s your favorite way to food prep!