Gelsons 10 Tips For Healthier Weeknight Dinner

Mastering the Art of Meal Prep: 10 Tips for Healthier Weeknight Dinners

Southern California offers plenty of delicious produce to enjoy year-round. One of the best ways to introduce healthier, stress-free meals is by preparing your food in advance. When you practice meal prep ahead of time, you’ll enjoy more free time with your family and have grab-and-go convenience whenever you need it.

Check out these helpful meal prep tips from Gelson’s Markets for healthier weeknight dinners, including the tools and ingredients you need for success, easy meal prep strategies, simple recipes, and more. 

Why Meal Prep Is a Game-Changer for Weeknight Dinners

Meal prep makes enjoying healthy weeknight dinners easier. Here’s how preparing your meals ahead of time can be a game-changer:

  • You’ll save time throughout the rest of the week. No more worrying about what you’ll make or how you’ll find the time to make it. Once the meals are prepped, you can spend that extra time relaxing and doing the things you love.
  • Pre-planning and preparing your dinner for the week makes it easy to cook a healthy meal. Everything is already prepped and ready to go. 
  • Taking time to prep your meals allows you to come up with healthy recipes. No more microwaveable dinners or fast food — simply design a recipe plan in advance, prep your food, and enjoy!
  • Meal prep can help you save money on food costs. You won’t waste excess food because everything is pre-portioned, and most of the food is frozen ahead of time, so it’s ready to eat whenever you want it.

Tools and Ingredients You Need for Successful Meal Prep

Having the best meal prep strategies in place includes making sure you have the right tools and ingredients for success. Consider incorporating these tools and ingredients with your quick meal prep ideas and weekly routine for a seamless process. 

Tools

  • A quality set of sharp knives, a vegetable peeler, and a garlic mincer
  • Stand- or hand-mixer
  • Small kitchen appliances, like a slow cooker or pressure cooker
  • Freezer-friendly food storage containers and Ziploc bags
  • Measuring cups and mixing bowls
  • A food processor, salad spinner, food chopper, blender, and vacuum sealer
  • A durable cutting board
  • Sheet pan and roasting pan
  • Spatula, whisk, and large mixing spoon

Ingredients

  • Cooked proteins like ground beef (you can also make hamburger patties), pulled pork, or chicken
  • Hard-boiled eggs (you can keep them whole or chopped)
  • Roasted veggies like carrots and Brussels sprouts or cooked potatoes
  • Grains like oatmeal, rice, or quinoa (each can be frozen after they’re cooked)
  • Pre-chopped veggies and/or fruits
  • Salads (include all of your favorite ingredients)
  • Cheese
  • Nuts and seeds

Easy Meal Prep Strategies and Ideas for Beginners

Now that you have a good idea of what you need, here are some strategies and easy dinner prep tips designed to make meal prep for beginners easier:

  • Start small and decide which meals you already enjoy eating as leftovers. This makes your meal-planning endeavors easier because you know what you’ll enjoy eating throughout the week.
  • Write down a list of a few of your favorite recipes, and practice making one or two of those ahead of time for a few weeks.
  • Keep food separated when you store it so everything stays fresh and tasty once you thaw and cook the meals. 
  • Learn which foods store or freeze well and which don’t. For example, soft fruits like berries and crunchy items like fried foods don’t re-cook very well once they’ve been frozen.
  • Pack and store ingredients individually so you have more options when it’s time to cook a recipe you like.
  • Make a weekly grocery list of the items you need for meal prep, and keep track of what you have stored before restocking.
  • Ask friends or family members who meal prep for some advice and ideas.
  • Ensure your food storage containers are airtight and leakproof to keep everything fresh and damage-free. 

Healthy Recipes for Weeknight Dinner Prep

Once you plan and know how to meal prep for the week, you’ll want some healthy recipes handy. Here are two quick, easy, and healthy recipes to get you started so you can prepare weeknight meals in advance.

One-Pot pasta

This meal is nutritious, delicious, and easy to tweak based on your favorite ingredients. Use whole wheat or quinoa pasta and add spinach for a yummy, healthy meal. Chicken is a great low-fat protein to add, too. 

  • Cook the chicken or your favorite protein until browned, then add tomato sauce, spinach, and wheat pasta.
  • Stir ingredients often until everything is fully cooked and the spinach is wilted (three to five minutes). 
  • Add one or two tablespoons of water if needed to keep the pasta from sticking.
  • Once the meal is cooked, separate it into portions, eat what you like, and store the rest in the fridge or freezer.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

This casserole is easy to make and store and has healthy ingredients like chicken, tomatoes, and beans.

  • Coat a casserole dish with cooking spray.
  • Stir crushed tomatoes, two tablespoons of cumin, one teaspoon of chili powder, and ¼ teaspoon of salt in a medium bowl.
  • Spoon ½ cup of tomato sauce into the casserole dish and arrange tortilla wedges over it.
  • Top with half of your favorite beans, half of your chopped chicken, and half of the cumin and pepper mixture. Top that with one cup of tomato sauce and ½ cup of cheese.
  • Layer the remaining tortillas, then layer with the rest of the beans, chicken, and pepper mixture. Add one cup of the sauce and another ½ cup of cheese, then layer on the remaining tortillas, followed by the rest of the sauce and the last ½ cup of cheese.
  • Cover the casserole with foil and pop it in the fridge until it’s ready to cook. It will be good for up to three days, or cook it now and freeze the leftovers.
  • Put the casserole in the oven at 375 degrees to bake for 35 to 40 minutes.

10 Tips for Healthier Dinners

Now that you have some ideas for healthy meal prep and weeknight dinners, check out these 10 tips to ensure that each meal you make and eat is as healthy as possible: 

  1. Pre-chop your veggies in advance and portion them out based on each recipe you plan to make.
  2. Batch proteins so everything is ready to add to various recipes.
  3. Pre-portion your meals to ensure you eat a healthy portion of each serving and to help with grab-and-go convenience. 
  4. Replace white-flour pasta with whole-wheat pasta for more fiber and fewer calories.
  5. Make ingredients like tomato sauce from scratch using fresh tomatoes and other ingredients from Gelson’s.
  6. Use lean proteins like chicken or fish whenever you can. If you’re vegetarian, use tofu, lentils, or beans as a healthy source of protein.
  7. Load up on veggies whenever you prep your meals to help you feel full while adding healthy nutrients.
  8. Healthy fats like avocado, nuts, and seeds help you feel full without high calories or cholesterol.
  9. Use less salt and try fresh herbs and spices instead for added flavor.
  10. Avoid sugar drinks with your meals — try green tea or a glass of water with lemon instead.

Visit Gelson’s Today!

Gelson’s in Southern California is your go-to resource for fresh, quality ingredients and easy meal-prep solutions. Our prepared food selections and recipe pages are a great starting point to help with quick and healthy dinner ideas for your meal prep goals. Visit Gelson’s today to stock up on essentials, find fresh ingredients, and get healthy meal prep inspiration!