The kitchen tends to be one of the obsessions in every household. It evokes a sense of attachment and love by default. One doesn’t have to be a cook or like cooking to involve in its décor and design. You pay attention to all the small details to make it a perfect place regardless of everything. Choosing interior colors, cabinet types, islands, countertops, and everything else becomes your priority because you want to give it the best touch within the available resources. Some homeowners also try to add a small bar in one cozy corner to make it an ideal entertainment hub for the house.
When discussing a bar area, you must get all the elements right to help this space acquire the much-needed vibe. While glassware, a collection of drinks, and accessories take care of this, you can enhance its utility by installing a bar or prep sink. Make sure you don’t focus on too small or oversized options for your needs when considering a prep sink. Choose something that gives you a little more scope to perform a task without occupying a larger footprint than you can afford. It leads to a crucial question – do you cook your meals at home? Do you enjoy it or struggle in this department? Like others, you may have found an easy way to deal with this – weekly meal planning. It’s a good idea.
Planning your meals for an entire week in advance helps you eat healthy food and reduce wastage. You feel more organized as well. Busy people follow this for time-saving and better diet control. Then, it allows you to make your favorite dishes and avoid impulse shopping. Of course, the initial days may look a little overwhelming as you prep and cook. But stock your kitchen with all the essentials and prepare a list of three main meals. Will this sort out your troubles? Not yet! You have to be careful of some common meal preparation mistakes to enjoy this rewarding journey. Let’s dig into them a little.
Batch cooking goof up!
You prepare a large quantity of food to eat over a few days. While it looks tempting that you cook a dish and have it for the rest of a couple of days, people rarely enjoy having the same meal every day, no matter how much they like it. Fortunately, you can fix this quickly. Invest in different recipes and store some portions of each in your refrigerator to use them on the remaining days. It demands lots of work upfront as you make three recipes simultaneously. However, take a long-term view of this action. There will always be a backup in your freezer.
During the time crunch, you will still have something healthy to eat. Some people cook vegetables in a way that goes with multiple meals. Think of roasted veggies, for instance. You can have a burrito by mixing them in a tortilla or a nice salad with lots of greens.
Same protein addition!
Everyone loves chicken. Cooking it in different ways will keep your interest alive in the dish. So, you can be game to roast some, bake a few, boil some others, and steam the remaining pieces. But all these will soon look like a rut. The best thing is to alternate proteins, including pork and beef, as you get many options at the farmer’s market. Explore them or check for places where you get bison and venison. Some unique meats like tongue and liver can also be a great addition. Although these are not typical American diets, they make up for safe consumption in many countries. You can take a hint from them. At the same time, you can include plant-based items like quinoa, beans, and lentils for protein. All these are easy-to-cook and tasty options.
Lack of balance in the meal prep
While the classic food needs may have evolved, nothing can replace your requirement for a balanced diet. When you add a wholesome meal, your body gets all the nutrients packed with vitamins and minerals. Fruits, carbohydrates, protein, and vegetables have their place. If you don’t include one of them, you risk your immunity and wellness. But how do you make it a practice? You can check your menu during meal preparations to confirm if it has leafy greens, colorful veggies, and other ingredients. Adding seasonal fruits and vegetables can make your diet much healthy and varied too. For example, winters can be about sweet potatoes and mandarins. Summers can be full of peaches and cucumbers, while spring brings you the choice of radishes and asparagus. Fall months give you enough green beans and bell peppers.
The use of the wrong containers
Your weekly meal preparation efforts largely depend on the proper packaging. The pre-made food requires adequate storage in appropriate vessels and containers. You get the glass and plastic containers in the market. While the latter is durable and lightweight, the glass ones can be bulky in weight and costly too. These will also have durability, though. Choose quality over price and ease of use. Storing your food in tight-fitting, leak-proof, and microwave-safe materials can be the best. Some people freeze their meals in silicone bags. No matter what you buy, these should allow you to stack them properly.
If you are a single person, it’s a different thing. However, a family’s meal requirements will be more. When you take the entire planning and prepping task upon yourself, the whole thing looks impossible and burdensome. You can eliminate this negative energy by allowing your family members to participate in fixing the menu and preparing the food. Since the responsibility gets distributed between everyone, the whole week’s dinner and lunch planning become more exciting. No one will feel bored. Plus, you can add more varieties to your list. So, check your inventory, get everything stocked, and prepare for a week-long meal. Eating home-cooked food is always healthy. You don’t have to worry about hygiene. And, of course, your food bill will be lower.
