Free Meal Prep Plan! {Prep Once, Eat x5}

This Meal Prep Plan will allow you to prep for just one hour on Sunday, and then cook 5 meals fresh during the week in just 15-20 minutes!

The meal plan

• Monday night: Chicken shawarma fries
• Tuesday night: Chicken wonton tacos
• Wednesday night: Mini chicken curry pot pies
• Thursday night: Shrimp fried rice
• Friday night: White cheddar truffle mac and cheese + a side of steamed broccoli

If you're enjoying this meal prep plan and want another free one, download it here. 

What containers you need

I recommend getting an assortment of containers of different sizes with lids like this Anchor Hocking set. You may want to purchase two sets, including one with smaller containers. You can also use plastic or silicone freezer bags, or mason jars of different sizes.

Here's some other equipment you might need for the recipes:

• I use 14 oz ramekins for the pot pies and mac and cheeses (you could use regular bowls for the mac and cheese) – you could also just the chicken pot pie filling to a regular pie pan and use a large sheet of puff pastry to cover it
• Consider getting a rice cooker for the shrimp fried rice, it'll make your life easier!
• Grab some glass meal prep bowls to store your leftovers

The meal prep plan

Follow this prep ahead plan on Sunday in the order in which everything is listed (eg the rice gets prepped first, then veggies, sauces, cheeses and proteins last). You will then pull your prepped ingredients out for each night's recipe and cook the recipe fresh. This will cut your nightly cooking time in half!

If you're enjoying this meal prep plan and want another free one, download it here. 

Grains

1. Make the rice for the shrimp fried rice by adding 1 cup of rice, 1 1/2 cups of water, 1 pinch of salt and 1 tsp butter to a rice cooker or pot on the stove and cooking until the liquid has absorbed. Let cool for about an hour, then transfer to a container or add the rice cooker container right into the fridge.

Veggies

1. Chop 2 tomatoes, 1 cup of parsley and 1/2 a cup of red onion. Store all in the same container for your shawarma fries.
2. Add bag of coleslaw to a large container with a lid, then slice up 4 green onions and add them in. Add 1 tbsp sesame oil, 1 tbsp rice vinegar, 1 tbsp soy sauce and 1 tbsp honey. Mix well to combine and now you have the coleslaw for your wonton tacos.
3. Dice 1 yellow onion and mince 4 cloves of garlic for your mini chicken pot pies, storing in a medium container.
4. Dice potato for the mini chicken pot pies, then store in water in a medium container (this will prevent the potato from drying out and going brown). Drain the water the night you go to add it.
5. Mince 2 cloves of garlic for the shrimp fried rice and store in a small container. Slice 1 bunch of green onions for the fried rice and store in a medium-size container.
6. Wash and chop up one head of broccoli and add to a large container or freezer bag for the mac and cheese side dish.

Sauces

1. Mix together 1/2 cup of mayo, 1 tsp lemon juice and 4 cloves of minced garlic in a small container or mason jar to make the sauce for the shawarma fries.

Cheeses

1. Grate 1 1/2 cups of white cheddar cheese and grate 1 cup of Swiss cheese for the mac and cheese, storing in a medium to large container.

Proteins

1. Defrost and peel your shrimp (if needed). Store in the fridge until you cook the fried rice.
2. Cut 2 chicken breasts into 1 inch pieces and add to a container. Add 1 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp nutmeg, 1 tsp coriander, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp smoked paprika, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, 2 tbsp lemon juice, 2 tbsp olive oil and 4 cloves of minced garlic. Stir well to combine and let marinate. Now your chicken is ready to go for the shawarma fries.
3. Cut 2 chicken breasts into 1/2 inch pieces and then add to a container. Add 2 tbsp hoisin sauce, 1 tbsp sesame oil, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 2 cloves minced garlic and 1 tsp minced ginger. Stir well to combine and let marinate. Now your chicken is ready to go for the wonton tacos.
4. Dice 2 chicken breasts and store in a container for the mini chicken pot pies.

Grocery list

Here is your grocery list. What I recommend you do is copy and paste this list into a Word doc and then erase the items you already have on hand. I know it looks like a long list but I've included everything except for salt and pepper.

If you have a well-stocked kitchen, then you will be able to strike most pantry staples off the list, such as the spices, oils, broth and condiments; possibly even butter, eggs, onions and milk as well!

If you're enjoying this meal prep plan and want another free one, download it here. 

• 2 vine tomatoes
• Chopped cilantro, to serve (optional)
• 1 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 cup diced red onion
• 2 bunches green onions
• 1 yellow onion
• 1 large russet potato
• 16 cloves garlic
• 1 tsp minced fresh ginger
• 1 bag coleslaw
• 1 head broccoli
• 16 Wonton wrappers (these can usually be found near the produce section)
• pickled turnips or pickled red cabbage (consider making your own pickled turnips using fresh turnips)
• 4 tbsp flour
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 can coconut milk (full-fat)
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup light mayo
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp truffle oil (skip this if you don't like truffle or want to save money)
• 1 tbsp curry powder
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp coriander
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 lb macaroni
• 1 cup white rice
• Sesame seeds (optional garnish)
• 4 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp hoisin sauce
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• Sweet chili sauce (dipping sauce – optional)
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 cups aged white cheddar cheese
• 1 cup Swiss cheese
• 3 cups 2% milk
• 7 tbsp butter
• lb shrimp
• 6 chicken breasts (about 3 lb)
• 1 bag frozen mixed veggies
• 1 bag frozen fries
• 1 sheet puff pastry

Recipe substitutions

All of these meals can easily be made vegan.

Please see the substitutes – if you want to cut back on your grocery costs (and buy less chicken/shrimp), then I would recommend making the following swaps for one or all of the recipes.

If you're enjoying this meal prep plan and want another free one, download it here. 

Chicken shawarma fries:

• Use crumbled tofu or cooked lentils in place of the chicken
• Use any veggie toppings you'd like – this is a great way to clear out your vegetable crisper
• Vegan mayo can be used

Chicken wonton tacos:

• Use crumbled tofu, cooked chickpeas or cooked lentils in place of the chicken
• Use brown or coconut sugar in place of the honey
• The sweet chili sauce, cilantro and sesame seeds are optional garnishes that can be left out

Mini curry pot pies:

• Use cooked chickpeas or other legumes in place of the chicken
• Use coconut oil in place of the butter
• Use vegetable broth in place of the chicken broth

Shrimp fried rice:

• Use tofu in place of the shrimp
• Use canola oil in place of the butter
• Leave out the egg or use a vegan egg substitute such as Just Egg

White Cheddar Mac & Cheese

• Use vegan cheese
• Use vegan milk
• Use canola oil in place of the butter

What to do about breakfast and lunch

Generally, what I recommend is that you only prep what you know you absolutely need to prep ahead of time. Trying to do too much, especially at first, will become unsustainable for you in the long run.

Meal prep breakfast

Breakfast in particular is not usually a meal I recommend prepping right away if you're new to meal prep as most breakfasts can be made in just 5 or 10 minutes each day.

It's something I recommend adding once you have really developed meal prep as a habit and if you feel that it would be helpful to you. Browse my meal prep breakfasts here.

Meal prep lunches

You don't need to prep a set of lunches for the week. It really depends on how large your household is.

Browse my meal prep lunch recipes here and consider picking a recipe to make on Sunday while you are prepping your ingredients if you are cooking for a family of 3+ people.

Here are my recommendations:

• For households of 1: If you're only cooking for yourself, you can still cook all the recipes for variety! What I recommend you do though, is to cut the recipes in half so you're only buying half the ingredients and then you can enjoy one serving of food for dinner, and another for lunch the next day.
• For households of 2: Follow the meal plan, and you each get a serving for dinner, and a serving for lunch. This is the perfect amount of food for two people!
• For households of 3-4: You will all get a serving for dinner, so this is where I recommend prepping a separate set of lunches.
• For households of 5+: This is where you could consider doubling the dinner recipes, and then prepping a separate set of lunches as well.

If you're enjoying this meal prep plan and want another free one, download it here.