5 Tips To Better Food Preparation

So, you have just returned from the grocery store with your shopping bags full of healthy, beautiful and colorful produce, inspired by good intentions and a desire to have all of your food prepared for the week ahead (yay!).

Did you know that in order to turn these good intentions into working realities, you must not put your groceries directly into your refrigerator? – at least, not yet!

Preparing your food begins the moment you bring your groceries home.

Here are some tips to help you prepare your foods ahead of time so that when you are hungry, nutritious food is accessible and available.

Remember, it can be so easy to reach for something healthy (so long as you have it on hand), and so much better for you.

1. Clean and cut up all vegetables (carrots, peppers, celery, radishes) and divide them either into individual containers or mix them all together and put into containers for grab-and-go convenience.
Extra Tip:
It might be worth it for you to buy pre-cut veggies, or even purchase a Cuisinart as this process only takes seconds to perform.

2. Plan your meals ahead of time in order to prevent last minute scavenging.  Consider keeping an easy-to-follow guide on hand that allows you a starting point, and every week you can tweak it by using a variety of different herbs, spices, vegetables, grains, sauces, etc., to keep it fresh and new.
For Example:
Monday is Italian, Tuesday is Soup and Salad, Wednesday is Stir-Fry, Thursday is Wraps and Rice, Friday is Mexican, Saturday is a Surprise, Sunday is Slow-Cooker and food prep day.

3. Wash all lettuces thoroughly, pat dry and roll up in paper towels.  Put into a large zip-lock bag leaving the zip partially unlocked to allow air to flow through. The paper towel will absorb any excess water thereby acting as a “humidifier”, keeping the greens fresh and crisp for a longer period of time. Taking a few extra minutes to do this right away makes it easy to put together wraps, salads, soups, sandwiches, anything later on - it is all clean and ready to use.

4. Cook large quantities of various grains (quinoa, millet, amaranth, brown rice) and portion-out half into family-size or individual-size serving bags, and freeze for future use.
Extra Tip:
Cook once, eat twice (or even three times).  This is great if you live alone, or if you have a family to feed.  It cuts down on a lot of time, and frozen grains can be added to hot vegetable broth to thicken soups and add extra protein.

5. Never dress your foods all together – by leaving the dressing aside until you are ready to serve and eat individually, allows leftovers to be stored and recycled for another time.  Once you have dressed your foods, they will not last as long.

Taking just a little bit of time out of your weekend to make a few preparations for the coming week can prevent you from making those unplanned stops at the nearest coffee chain or fast-food restaurant.  Incorporating even one of these tips will help you get on track with your healthy lifestyle.

Bon Appétit from My Wellness Counts!

For further cooking tips, click here: Vegetable Cooking Tips