As a busy mum and business owner I know how precious time is and how little we feel we have. Also being a nutritionist I know the value of meal prep and how this can be a game changer when it comes to accelerating towards your health and wellness goals. Our Online Program members are kicking goals thanks to their meal prep. It all comes down to learning practical ways like I teach in the program you can set yourself up for success.

Switch your mindset from feeling like you don’t have enough time to making the time you have work for you.

Time Saving Meal Prep Tips

Here are my time saving meal prep tips that will save you time, money and nourish your body.

1. Schedule in 1-2 hours each week dedicated to meal prep. Block it out in your calendar so you make it happen. Try and be consistent with when works for you so that in no time at all it becomes a habit.
2. Start with a clean kitchen. If you try to do meal prep in a cluttered, messy kitchen with the sink filled with dirty dishes you will not enjoy your meal prep. Do a quick clean down of your kitchen and create plenty of bench space so you are less stressed and flustered.
3. Have a plan. Know what you will be preparing and cooking before you start. Have a clear game plan to make it an efficient and productive time.
4. Get everything out. Ingredients, utensils and meal prep containers. When you have an organised meal prep ‘station’ you start to form your flow. It helps you get in to the groove. Single serve meal prep containers are great for meals and snack so you can grab-and-go. Personally I use glass containers with one serving so can quickly pack them into my Mealami meal prep bag. Prefect for busy days especially when we are out and about.
5. Batch cook. Always cook extra than a single serve meal. Think ‘cook once, eat twice’ and you’ll save so much time cooking and cleaning from scratch every time.
6. You don’t have to cook a whole meal from scratch for meal prep. Save exra time by preparing vegetables, par-cooking vegetables in serving sizes, cooking a bulk pot of quinoa to serve as sides to dishes or roast a bulk tray of vegetables.
7. Time your meal prep just after grocery shopping. This will save a lot of time packing away food and unpacking again to meal prep. Wash and chop up veggies straight after your shop, prep meat ahead of time such as cooking bolognese mince sauce right away to freeze or marinate meat ready to cook.
8. Pick a few family favourite meals you can make rather than a brand new dish for each day. It means you’ll save a lot of time (and money as you can bulk buy) cook up a few of your favourite dishes in bulk and rotate them throughout the week.
9. Make your slow cooker work for you. Whilst you prepare vegetables, cook quinoa/rice or organise breakfasts have your meat cooking away in the slow cooker. It’s like having another spare pair of hands!
10. Cook one dish and serve three ways. What dishes can you cook in bulk and serve in different ways to save time but still feel like you’re enjoying variety? An example could be to cook mince with spices and herbs which becomes bolognese, mince in lettuce cups or taco bowls.
11. Once you’ve prepped your meals, portion them out in containers ready to grab out of the fridge when you’re on the go. I portion larger bulk dishes into large glass containers for family dinners. I then further portion lunches sizes that fit into individual serving size containers and fit perfectly into my on-the-go bag. Personally I use a Mealami meal prep bag to take my food on-the-go with me, both for myself and for taking food with me for the kids too. The bag is honestly a game changer.

Take Your Meal Prep Game To The Next Level

If you’re needing a little extra motivation to get your healthy habits on track check out our Online Nutrition Program, Nourish From The Inside Out. I’ll take you through 6 weeks of life changing tools that will help you build a healthy lifestyle you love.

Are you ready to take your meal prep game to the next level? Live Love Nourish has teamed up with Mealami to offer our community 15% off their meal prep bags. Use code LIVELOVE15 at on their website.

I hope these time saving meal prep tips were helpful! Please leave a comment below if this content was useful for you or please feel free to share your meal prep tips below. We love hearing from you as we support and inspire each other to live healthier and happier lives.

For more tips on how to eat healthy on-the-go and tips for prepping healthy lunches check out my blog post ‘how to eat healthy on the go’.

We love hearing from our community with more ideas! Please share your meal prep tips in the comments below.

Live healthy. Be happy.

Casey-Lee
Nutritionist, Live Love Nourish recipes & Online Program