1 / 18

A Busy Person’s Guide to Meal Prep on a Budget

A Busy Person’s Guide to Meal Prep on a Budget. Lauren Cohen, RDN, LDN. Why Plan Ahead?. Prevents impulse eating and emotional eating Decreases snacking Provides us with balanced meal Takes worry away- no more “what’s for lunch?” SAVES $$. How do we save?.

vdickerson
Download Presentation

A Busy Person’s Guide to Meal Prep on a Budget

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. A Busy Person’s Guide to Meal Prep on a Budget Lauren Cohen, RDN, LDN

  2. Why Plan Ahead? • Prevents impulse eating and emotional eating • Decreases snacking • Provides us with balanced meal • Takes worry away- no more “what’s for lunch?” • SAVES $$

  3. How do we save? • The Average cost per meal is $12.75 when dining out • 92% of restaurant meals have too many calories • Also, not purchasing snacks, coffee, treats

  4. Meal Planning Tips

  5. Understanding Recommendations Strive for 3 of 5!

  6. Examples • Whole grain crackers + tuna + apple • Cottage cheese + cucumbers + tomato + banana • Whole wheat tortilla + low sodium lunch meat + carrot sticks • Instant brown rice packet + grilled chicken + steamed broccoli • Hard boiled egg + whole wheat bread + peanut butter + apple slices • Salad with nuts/seeds + cheese

  7. Desk Drawer Ideas • Roasted chickpeas • Nuts or seeds • Apples • Apple sauce • Instant oatmeal packets • Whole grain crackers • Banana chips • Trailmix • Dried fruit

  8. Creating a List • Make a list and stick to it! • Use your grocery ad, pinterest, cookbooks, etc. to create list • Be sure to overlap ingredients; how can you use an ingredient more than once? • Love on leftovers • Be realistic about your time • Remember the frozen section

  9. Overlap Ingredients

  10. Let’s Shop! MONEY SAVERS • Remember to bring your list • Don’t shop hungry • Clean 15 and Dirty 12 • Frozen vs canned vs fresh

  11. Time Savers: • Don’t over complicate! • Raw carrots, celery, cucumber slices, veggie trays- quicker than cooking a vegetable • Pre-prepped items at the store might be more expensive but they are less expensive and healthier than dining out • Choose whole fruit- apples, oranges, pears, plums, grapes, all easy to pack and involve zero prep • Choose pre-cooked grains or instant grains

  12. Storage

  13. More Storage Tips • Only prep up to 5 meals at a time • Recommend that beginners choose 1 meal and 1 snack per day • Let meals cool at room temp before storing them in the fridge • Store in airtight containers • Glass containers are best because it can go directly in the microwave • Keep your refrigerator clean and your meals visible

  14. Key Takeaways • Meal Planning/Prep = $$ saving and smarter choices  • Basing meal planning off the USDA My Plate Guidelines can ensure that you are getting balanced meals • Creating a grocery list can help to save money and visualize your week of eating • Make things easy on yourself! Meal prep doesn’t have to be fancy. • Start by prepping 1 meal and 1 snack per day • Be food safe by storing your prepared food properly • Be creative and have fun!

  15. Questions?

  16. Thank you!Lauren Cohen, RDN, LDNUC Dining Dietitiancohen-lauren@aramark.com

More Related