Meal prep

Meal prep means planning and preparing food ahead of time, usually in one session, so that the meals for the next few days are ready or nearly ready. It can mean cooking whole meals and packing them into portions, or only washing, chopping and cooking parts of meals to put together later.

How to do it

1. Plan the meals for the next three or four days. Pick recipes that share ingredients so you buy and prep less.
2. Shop for everything in one trip.
3. Set aside two to three hours. Start with the jobs that take longest, such as roasting vegetables, cooking grains and simmering beans.
4. While those cook, wash and chop raw vegetables, make dressings and sauces, and portion snacks.
5. Cool cooked food quickly and get it in the fridge within 2 hours. See cooling food safely.
6. Pack portions into containers and label them with the date.
7. Freeze any meals you will not eat within a few days.

How to store it

• Fridge: the USDA advises eating cooked food within 3 to 4 days. The UK Food Standards Agency advises 2 days for leftovers. Plan to eat the most perishable meals, such as fish and rice dishes, first.
• Freezer: soups, stews, cooked grains and baked dishes freeze well for 2 to 3 months. Flash-freeze loose items such as cooked meatballs on a tray before bagging them so they do not stick.
• Reheat only what you will eat, until steaming hot throughout, 74°C (165°F).

Common mistakes

• Prepping a full week of cooked meals. The last few days run past safe storage times and taste tired. Prep for three or four days, or freeze some.
• Dressing salads ahead. Keep dressing separate and add it when you eat.
• Choosing foods that go soggy or dry when reheated, such as fried food or thin fish fillets.
• Cooking rice and leaving it out to cool slowly. Cool it within an hour if you can and refrigerate it.

In recipes

"Good for meal prep" means a dish keeps for several days and reheats well. Cooking a large amount of one dish is batch cooking. Prepping ingredients just before you cook is mise en place.