I don’t meal prep every week. It’s not that I don’t love doing it (I do), it’s just that I cook quite a bit so I’m usually working through a leftovers backlog that makes meal prepping kinda unnecessary. That being said, I enjoy a good meal prep about twice a month: as much as I love leftovers, I enjoy being able to prepare something a bit lighter for lunch (a girl can only have eggplant parm or skillet enchilada pie so many times before she just wants a darn salad, ya know?)
Typically, when I meal prep, I pick a meal and stick with it: I’ll make a week’s worth of breakfast, lunch or dinner at a time, as opposed to preparing all three. I see the value in gettin’ 21 meals out of the way before the week even begins, but that type of regimen doesn’t work well for me: I like a bit more flexibility in my diet, so preparing one meal’s worth of food for a week usually does the trick, and means I’m less liable to end up wasting food once I get sick of eating the same thing day after day. I use this recipe for lunch meal prep because lunch is the toughest meal for me when it comes to healthy food that fits into my schedule. Having something nutritious and fast to grab midday is a huge help for me, so most of my make-ahead meals are lunch-themed. That being said, this meal prep could definitely be used for dinner prep (I’d suggest doubling the amount of chicken if you’re going to use it for dinner).
This meal prep was inspired by a marinade I’ve really been diggin’ lately, and I recently used it to make some chicken and veggies that came out tasting great. In fact, they were so amazing as leftovers that I decided to build a meal prep sesh around ’em, and so here we are. The only difference is that, for the meal prep version of the dish, I’m subbing store-bought, microwaveable cauliflower rice for homemade sweet potato noodles, to save some time and effort.
This recipe makes 4 individual meals, is easily doubled without the need for more marinade or longer cooking time, and it comes together in no time flat. I prep the chicken and veggies in the morning, and by early afternoon they’re ready for the oven. They roast at the same temp for the same amount of time, and while they’re doing their thing, I microwave the cauliflower rice. I pop everything into storage containers, let it all cool, and keep it in the fridge. That’s it: about a week ‘s worth of lunch or dinner, and only about half an hour of actual effort. Here’s how I do it.
Ingredients:
The ingredients for the marinade are linked here.
1.5 pounds chicken breast tenders
2 bell peppers, any colors {I use a red and an orange}
2 12-oz bags chopped broccoli
1 large red onion
1 16-oz bag microwavable cauliflower rice
3-4 tbsp avocado oil
Mirin seasoning, sesame oil, soy sauce, and salt & pepper, to taste
If desired: lime wedges, handful chopped cilantro and handful chopped peanuts
Directions:
Prepare the marinade and pour it over the chicken in a zip-top bag. Refrigerate for 6 hours. Cut the peppers and onion into slices and store in the fridge with the chopped broccoli and the chicken {veggies in one bag, chicken in another} until ready to cook.
When chicken is done marinating and you’re ready to cook, preheat an oven to 375 degrees and spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray or line it with aluminum foil and spread the veggies and chicken out on the baking sheets. You’ll need at least two baking sheets for this amount of food.
Dress the veggies with the avocado oil, salt and pepper and roast the chicken and veggies for 25 minutes.
While the chicken and veggies roast, prepare the bag of cauliflower rice according to package instructions. I like to add a drizzle of sesame oil, Mirin seasoning and soy sauce to the finished rice.
Place everything into storage containers and let it cool before refrigerating. I garnish mine with a lime wedge, some cilantro and a few chopped peanuts. Store in the fridge until ready to eat. Can be served hot or cold. Enjoy!
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Yield: 4 meals
Serving Size: 1 meal
Calories: approx. 200 calories per serving
Dietary Info: Gluten Free.