Save time, eat healthier, and reduce stress – all with a Meal Prep Weekly Plan! Learn how to cook efficiently and flexibly for the entire week, which recipes work best, and how to create your own personalized plan.
What is Meal Prep and Why is a Weekly Plan Worth It?
Meal Prep stands for “Meal Preparation” and involves planning and preparing meals in advance. The goal is to save time, money, and stress by cooking dishes for several days or the entire week. It’s about having healthy and balanced meals readily available without the need to cook daily.
With a Meal Prep Weekly Plan, you only need to focus on your meals once a week: planning, shopping, and cooking. Afterward, you’ll have the rest of the week free to focus on other things.
Meal Prep Recipes for Every Meal
Below, we’ve compiled some recipe ideas for every meal. These are presented as a kind of modular system. This means we provide the basic recipe and its properties (e.g., shelf life). You can adapt the recipe to your individual preferences and scale the quantities to suit your needs. You decide what you want to eat during the week, how much to cook, and how often to include it in your plan.
Would you like to eat the same dish all week? Prepare 3 to 4 portions and store them in the fridge, freezing the rest if suitable. Transfer the desired portions for the second half of the week to the fridge about three days later to thaw, ensuring your meals stay fresh until the end of the week. You can even extend this concept and prepare meals for two or more weeks in advance.
Meal Prep Breakfast Ideas for an Energizing Start
Here are six breakfast ideas to start your day on a sweet or savory note.
Overnight Oats
- Ingredients: Oats, milk (or plant-based drink), yogurt, fruits, nuts, seeds.
- Preparation: Mix oats with milk and yogurt in a jar or container. Add toppings like fruits, nuts, or seeds and let it sit overnight in the fridge.
- Shelf life: 3-4 days in the fridge.
Breakfast Sandwiches
- Ingredients: Whole-grain buns/toasts, ham, cheese, or other sandwich toppings.
- Preparation: Prepare sandwiches, wrap individually, and freeze. Heat in the oven, microwave, or sandwich toaster when needed.
- Shelf life: 3-4 days in the fridge, 1 month in the freezer.
Smoothies
- Ingredients: Your choice, e.g., frozen fruits, spinach, chia seeds, yogurt, or protein powder.
- Preparation: Blend all desired ingredients, thinning with milk or water as needed.
- Shelf life: 2-3 days in the fridge or 1 month in the freezer.
Homemade Granola Bars
- Ingredients: Oats, honey, peanut butter, nuts, dried fruits.
- Preparation: Mix ingredients, spread on a baking sheet, and bake at 160°C (fan) until lightly browned. Cool, cut into bars, and wrap individually.
- Shelf life: 1–2 weeks in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer.
Breakfast Muffins (Savory or Sweet)
- Savory Ingredients: Eggs, vegetables (e.g. bell peppers, spinach, tomatoes), cheese, spices.
- Sweet Ingredients: Oats, banana, honey, cinnamon, baking powder.
- Preparation: Mix ingredients, pour into muffin molds, and bake.
- Shelf life: 3-4 days in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer.
Chia Pudding
- Ingredients: Chia seeds, milk, (sweetener), fruits, nuts.
- Preparation: Mix all ingredients and let soak for 2–3 hours or overnight.
- Shelf life: 3-4 days in the fridge.
Lunch Weekly Plan – Recipes for Busy Professionals
These six recipes require no reheating, making them perfect for office lunchboxes.
Rice Salad
- Ingredients: Basmati rice, peas, corn, bell peppers, spring onions, lemon juice, olive oil.
- Preparation: Cook and cool rice. Mix with vegetables and dressing. Optionally, add cooked shrimp, grilled chicken strips, or tofu.
- Shelf life: 3–4 days in the fridge.
Wraps
- Ingredients: Tortilla wraps, hummus or cream cheese, lettuce, shredded vegetables, grilled chicken strips, or falafel.
- Preparation: Spread wraps with hummus or cream cheese, fill with toppings, and roll tightly. Wrap in foil or pack in a lunchbox.
- Shelf life: 1–2 days in the fridge.
Pasta Salad
- Ingredients: Whole-grain pasta, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, arugula, grilled vegetables, pesto, or olive oil.
- Preparation: Cook pasta, let it cool, and mix with the ingredients. Season with herbs and spices.
- Shelf life: 3–4 days in the fridge.
Mediterranean Snack Platter
- Ingredients: Flatbread, hummus, olives, veggie sticks (bell peppers, cucumbers, carrots), cherry tomatoes, hard cheese, or dried sausage.
- Preparation: Arrange all ingredients in a lunchbox.
- Shelf life: 3–4 days in the fridge.
Couscous or Quinoa Salad
- Ingredients: Couscous or quinoa, chickpeas, chopped vegetables (bell peppers, cucumber, tomatoes), fresh herbs, lemon juice, olive oil.
- Preparation: Cook and cool couscous or quinoa and chickpeas. Mix with the remaining ingredients. Optionally, add feta, nuts, or dried fruits.
- Shelf life: 3–4 days in the fridge.
Asian Rice Rolls
- Ingredients: Rice paper, rice noodles, vegetables (e.g., carrots, cucumbers, bell peppers), tofu or shrimp.
- Preparation: Cook rice noodles and optionally shrimp. Moisten rice paper, fill with ingredients, and roll up. Optionally, bring a dip (soy sauce, peanut sauce).
- Shelf life: 1–2 days in the fridge.
Healthy and Quick Meal Prep Recipes for Dinner
These six recipes are ideal for dinner as they can be quickly reheated, providing a warm meal after a long workday.
Stews
- Ingredients: Customizable, e.g., lentils, vegetables (e.g., carrots, celery, potatoes), broth, spices.
- Preparation: Simmer all ingredients together in a pot. Cool and portion.
- Shelf life: 3–4 days in the fridge, 3 months in the freezer.
Chili con Carne (or Vegetarian with Lentils)
- Ingredients: Ground beef (or lentils), kidney beans, corn, tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, tomato sauce, spices.
- Preparation: Sauté ground beef or lentils, add vegetables, and simmer with tomatoes, sauce, and spices.
- Shelf life: 3–4 days in the fridge, 3 months in the freezer.
Lasagna (Classic or Vegetarian)
- Ingredients: Lasagna sheets, ground beef or vegetables (e.g., zucchini, eggplant), tomato sauce, béchamel sauce (flour, butter, milk), cheese.
- Preparation: Sauté ground beef or vegetables and simmer in tomato sauce. Prepare béchamel sauce. Layer Bolognese, béchamel, and lasagna sheets in a baking dish, topping with cheese. Bake and cool before portioning.
- Shelf life: 3–4 days in the fridge, 3 months in the freezer.
Curries
- Ingredients: Can be customized, e.g., coconut milk, vegetables (e.g., sweet potatoes, cauliflower, spinach), curry paste, protein source (e.g., tofu, chicken, chickpeas), and rice.
- Preparation: Simmer all ingredients together, cooking rice separately. Cool and portion curry and rice separately.
- Shelf life: 3–4 days in the fridge, 3 months in the freezer. Note: Grainy rice varieties like jasmine or basmati rice are better for freezing.
Stuffed Bell Peppers
- Ingredients: Bell peppers, rice, ground beef or lentils, tomato sauce, eggs, onions, spices.
- Preparation: Sauté ground beef or lentils, mix with eggs, onions, and spices. Hollow out bell peppers, stuff them, and cook in tomato sauce. Cook rice separately. Cool and portion (rice portioned separately).
- Shelf life: 3–4 days in the fridge, 2 months in the freezer. Note: Grainy rice varieties like jasmine or basmati rice are better for freezing.
Pizza Rolls or Mini Calzones
- Ingredients: Pizza dough, tomato sauce, cheese, fillings of choice (e.g., ham, vegetables).
- Preparation: Fill the dough, fold it over, and bake.
- Shelf life: 3–4 days in the fridge, 3 months in the freezer.
Meal Prep Weekly Plan Template – Easy Planning
To make your week easier to plan, we’ve created a Meal Prep Weekly Plan template. You can download the one-page PDF here.
Conclusion: Prepping for the Week with the Optimal Meal Prep Weekly Plan
A Meal Prep Weekly Plan is the key to stress-free, healthy, and efficient eating. With the right recipes and a bit of planning, you’ll save time, money, and energy in your daily life. Whether it’s breakfast, lunch, or dinner – with a flexible plan, you’ll enjoy varied meals that perfectly suit your lifestyle. Start your personalized Meal Prep Weekly Plan today and discover how simple healthy eating can be!
