Bastien Meal Prep
Meal prep is the practice of cooking and portioning meals or meal components in advance (typically 2–3 hours for the week ahead) to save time, money, and reduce food waste by 40–60%.
Meal prep is the practice of planning, cooking, and portioning meals or meal components ahead of time, typically on a single day for the entire week. It transforms cooking from a daily chore into a once-a-week effort, saving time, reducing food waste, and making healthier eating the path of least resistance.
The concept is straightforward: spend 2-3 hours cooking on Sunday (or whatever day works), and you have ready-to-eat or ready-to-finish meals for the rest of the week. No more "what's for dinner?" decision fatigue. No more takeout by default. No more wilting vegetables forgotten in the back of the fridge.
I started meal prepping out of necessity. Between work and evening commitments, I was ordering takeout four nights a week. After my first Sunday prep session, I had five lunches and three dinners ready to go. That single shift cut my weekly food spending by roughly 40%.
What are the types of meal prep?
Full meal prep
Cook complete meals, portion them into containers, and refrigerate or freeze. This is the most hands-off approach during the week. Just grab a container and reheat. Works best for lunches and meal prep ideas where you don't mind eating the same thing multiple times.
Component prep (building blocks)
Prepare versatile base components that mix and match into different meals throughout the week. This is the most flexible approach and the one I rely on most. It prevents meal-prep fatigue from eating identical meals.
Common building blocks:
- Proteins: Roasted chicken thighs, seared tofu, poached chicken breast, baked salmon
- Grains: Rice, quinoa, farro, couscous
- Vegetables: Blanched broccoli, roasted sweet potatoes, raw salad ingredients
- Sauces and dressings: Vinaigrettes, tahini sauce, chimichurri, peanut sauce
- Basics: Cooked beans, hard-boiled eggs, washed greens
Ingredient prep
Wash, chop, measure, and organize raw ingredients so assembly during the week takes minutes instead of the full cooking time. This is essentially doing your mise en place for the entire week.
Freezer prep
Prepare meals or meal kits designed to be frozen and cooked later: soups, braises, casseroles, marinated proteins, and sauce bases. Freezer prep extends the benefit from one week to one month or more. Learn how to store food properly so nothing goes to waste.
How do you start meal prepping?
Plan your meals
Decide what you'll eat for the week. Focus on 3-4 recipes that share ingredients to minimize waste and simplify your shopping list. Don't try to prep every meal. Start with lunches or the meals you're most likely to skip or replace with takeout. A weekly meal plan makes this step painless.
Make a consolidated shopping list
A single grocery shopping trip with everything you need eliminates midweek runs. Group items by store section so shopping is efficient. Fond generates this automatically from your meal plan.
Batch cook strategically
Cook the things that take the longest first. While a protein roasts in the oven, cook grains on the stovetop and blanch vegetables. Layer your cooking to use all burners and the oven simultaneously. For a deeper look at this approach, see our batch cooking guide.
Store properly
Use glass containers with snap-lock lids for reheating and long-term storage. They don't stain, don't leach, and last for years. Wrap tightly before freezing to prevent freezer burn, and always leave headspace in containers for expansion. Label everything with the date. You will forget what's in that container by Wednesday.
What are the best foods for meal prep?
| Category | Preps well | Doesn't prep well |
|---|---|---|
| Proteins | Chicken thighs, pulled pork, hard-boiled eggs, baked tofu | Seared fish (gets rubbery), rare steak |
| Grains | Rice, quinoa, farro, pasta (slightly undercook) | — |
| Vegetables | Roasted root vegetables, blanched broccoli, raw salad components | Dressed salads (wilt), avocado (browns) |
| Sauces | Vinaigrettes, marinades, curry sauces, pesto | Cream-based sauces (can separate) |
| Soups/stews | Almost all (often better the next day) | — |
| Baked goods | Muffins, energy balls, breakfast burritos | Crispy items (lose texture) |
Foods that get better with time: Soups, braises, marinated proteins, and bean dishes often taste better after a day or two as flavors meld. I've noticed pulled pork hits its peak on day two, once the spice rub fully penetrates the meat.
Foods to prep separately: Keep wet and dry components apart. Store grains, proteins, and sauces in separate containers and assemble at meal time. This prevents soggy meals.
Meal prep for different goals
For weight loss: Portioning meals in advance removes the "I'll just have a little more" temptation. Use a kitchen scale for accurate portions. Prepping makes calorie tracking straightforward since you know exactly what's in each container. Focus on lean proteins, complex carbs, and plenty of vegetables.
For high-protein diets: Cook chicken thighs, turkey meatballs, baked tofu, and hard-boiled eggs in bulk. Portion by weight using a kitchen scale so you hit your daily protein target without guessing. Pair with grains and roasted vegetables for balanced meals.
For busy families: Component prep works best. Kids and adults can assemble different combinations from the same base ingredients. Prep snacks (cut fruit, vegetable sticks, hummus portions) alongside meals.
For fitness: Focus on protein-forward components and complex carbohydrates. Use recipe scaling to hit your macro targets. Cook proteins in bulk and portion by weight.
For budget: Meal prep reduces food waste dramatically. Plan meals around what's on sale. Buying whole chickens, dried beans, and seasonal produce in bulk saves money compared to daily shopping.
What are common meal prep mistakes?
Start with 2-3 recipes, not 7. More recipes mean more ingredients, more cooking time, and more waste if you don't eat everything.
Some foods don't reheat well. Crispy items soften, dressed salads wilt, and overcooked pasta turns mushy. Slightly undercook pasta and grains for meal prep. They'll finish when reheated.
Build variety through sauces and toppings. The same chicken and rice becomes four different meals with chimichurri, peanut sauce, salsa verde, or a simple vinaigrette.
This raises the internal temperature, putting other food at risk. Cool containers at room temperature for 30-60 minutes, but don't leave food out more than 2 hours total.
Eat fish and delicate preparations early in the week, heartier stews and one-pot meals toward the end. Plan your eating order when you prep.
Meal prep ideas for lunch
Lunch is the single best meal to start prepping. It's the meal most people skip, replace with expensive takeout, or cobble together from whatever's in the office kitchen.
Meal prep in Fond
Fond's meal planner automates the hardest parts of meal prep. Plan your weekly meals, and Fond generates a consolidated shopping list grouped by store section. The recipe scaling feature adjusts portions automatically, and the app tracks what you've prepped so you know what to eat first. When recipes share ingredients, Fond highlights the overlap so you buy the right total quantity.
