Meal prep dinners help you avoid takeout and make weeknights less stressful. Good meal prep dinners keep well in the fridge and reheat without losing their taste.
Here are 30 healthy batch cooking ideas. You can mix and match proteins, grains, and sauces to make them more interesting. Most of these scale well, so you can cook once and eat for several days.
Cooked leftovers keep 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator, according to USDA FSIS.
Chicken
Sheet Pan Chicken
Sheet-pan dinners work well for meal prep because everything cooks at the same pace and cleanup is quick. Prepare the roast chicken alongside robust vegetables such as broccoli, carrots, and red onions, drizzling everything with lemon juice at the end.
Pair it with brown rice, quinoa, or roasted potatoes, according to your preference. It keeps for several days, and extra lemon wedges on the side help.
Chicken Fajita Bowls
Fajita-style chicken keeps its flavor after reheating, so it can cover weekday lunches and dinners. Prepare chicken strips with peppers and onions cooked in a smoky spice blend, and pair them with rice or cauliflower rice. To keep veggies crisp, pack salsa on the side. Top with avocado just before eating.
Mediterranean Chicken Salad
It keeps for days and needs no more cooking once the chicken is done. Chickpeas, cucumber, tomatoes, and herbs hold their texture, especially if you store the dressing separately. Feta is optional. This dinner suits warm evenings because it is not heavy.
Garlic Lime Chicken
Garlic and lime keep the chicken’s flavor fresh after a few days in the fridge. After cooking the chicken, divide the portions and serve with cauliflower rice and either some peppers or some zucchini.
Keep the lime wedges separate. Squeeze the juice just before eating. This is a low-carb dinner served over cauliflower rice.
Chicken Shawarma Bowls
Cumin, paprika, and turmeric season the chicken. For juicier results, roast or pan-cook the chicken thighs, and then portion them with rice and diced salad veggies. A garlic-yogurt sauce keeps the bowl from tasting dry. If you prefer a more intense flavor, separately pack the pickled onions.
Pesto Chicken
Pesto adds a lot of flavor with little effort, which helps with meal prep. Prepare chicken as desired, mix with pesto, and serve with roasted cherry tomatoes that break down into a sauce. Include a complex carbohydrate such as quinoa or whole wheat pasta to complete the meal. Keep some pesto on hand if you wish to revamp the dish after reheating.
Chicken Fried Rice
Fried rice uses up leftover rice and any vegetables you have. It can be made healthier by using brown rice, increasing the amount of vegetables, and using less oil to prevent sticking.
You can also add in scrambled egg for additional protein, and season it with soy sauce and a bit of sesame oil. It’s a one-container meal and doesn’t need a side dish.
Salsa Chicken
This is as hands-off as dinner gets: chicken plus salsa plus time. The result is tender chicken that shreds with a fork, which you can utilize in bowls, salad, or tacos for the next 3 to 4 days. Pick a salsa you like, because most of the flavor comes from it. Also, keep toppings like cilantro and diced onions separate so that everything tastes fresh when you serve it.
Balsamic Chicken
Balsamic vinegar adds sweetness and tang, so there is no need for a heavy dressing. Chicken is best cooked until juicy and brussels sprouts should be roasted until each edge is caramelized.
Lightly glaze with balsamic reduction at the end. Because the flavors are bold and savory, this dish tastes even better reheated. To make this dish more filling, add a small serving of quinoa or potatoes.
Thai Peanut Chicken
A peanut-style sauce will prevent the chicken from drying out after reheating. To make the sauce, mix together some peanut butter, soy sauce, lime juice, and garlic, and then use a little warm water to thin it out. Combine this sauce with chicken and broccoli, then serve it with some rice. Store some lime wedges on the side so that you can add a bit of acidity just before you eat.
Chicken Noodle Soup
Homemade chicken noodle soup is warm and gentle on the stomach. For added fiber, it is suggested to use whole wheat noodles. You can also top this soup with an abundance of carrots and celery.
When meal prepping, be sure to store the noodles separately. Otherwise, the noodles absorb the broth and the soup turns thick and soggy.
Turkey and beef
Turkey Chili
This chili tastes better after sitting overnight in the refrigerator. Lean ground turkey offers a lighter option, and black beans add texture.
If you want to incorporate more vegetables without altering the essence of the dish, consider adding bell peppers and zucchini. Divide the mixture into separate storage containers and keep toppings separate until it is time to serve.
Beef And Broccoli
This classic meal can be prepped in advance as long as you keep the sauce balanced and not overly sweet. Sear thinly sliced lean beef and then combine it with broccoli in a garlic and ginger sauce. Cook the broccoli to be tender and crisp so it doesn’t get mushy while reheating. Combine with rice or quinoa and add sesame seeds right before serving.
Turkey Meatballs And Pasta
Turkey meatballs are simple to batch bake, and they freeze well if you want longer-term prep. Simmer the vegetables with marinara sauce to keep them tender, then serve them with whole wheat pasta or spaghetti squash. You can add roasted zucchini or sautéed spinach on the side to increase the veggie portion. Add herbs like basil at the end so their flavor stays fresh.
Stuffed Peppers
Stuffed peppers feel like a “real dinner” but they’re built for portioning. Combine the cooked turkey with brown rice, diced tomatoes, onions, and spices, then stuff the mixture into halved peppers and bake until the peppers are tender.
Once cooked, the peppers reheat well and maintain their shape in your container. If you would like to add more bulk to your meal, you can serve it with a salad or additional veggies.
Greek Turkey Bowls
These bowls go together quickly on busy evenings. Season the turkey with oregano, garlic, and a dash of lemon, and then allocate it with rice and diced vegetables.
To prevent mushy bowls, keep tzatziki on the side. Add a couple of olives or a little feta if you like.
Egg Roll Bowl
This has the flavors of an egg roll with no wrapper and no deep frying. Sauté the ground turkey with garlic and ginger, then add cabbage and carrots and cook until tender (don’t overdo it). Finish with a splash of soy sauce and rice vinegar. It doesn’t need extra sauce and reheats well.
Turkey Bolognese
Turkey bolognese is a batch-cooking classic, and it goes over zucchini noodles for a lighter dinner. To prevent excess water from being released, keep the zoodles a little undercooked. If possible, store the sauce and zoodles separately so the zoodles don’t get soggy by day 3. Add a little Parmesan when serving.
Turkey Egg Muffins
Egg muffins also work as a dinner option, especially on nights you don’t want to cook again. Combine the eggs with spinach and diced, pre-cooked turkey. Pour the mixture into a muffin tray and bake until set. They also work as a grab-and-go lunch because they reheat quickly, and they can be paired with a salad or roasted veggies. To keep it interesting, try making two different flavor combinations.
Fish and shrimp
Salmon Rice Bowls
Cooked salmon holds up well for a few days and pairs easily with simple add-ins. Prepare bowls containing rice, fresh cucumber, edamame, and soy-ginger dressing packed on the side.
For some heat, you can mix chili paste into the dressing rather than pouring it all over the bowl. Add lime juice before eating.
Shrimp Quinoa Bowls
Shrimp works when you’re short on prep time because it cooks quickly. After seasoning and cooking the shrimp, combine it with quinoa and roasted veggies since they will be fine after a couple of days in the fridge. Just before you eat, a quick lemon-garlic drizzle will freshen everything up. For the best texture, don’t overcook the shrimp on the first day.
Tuna White Bean Salad
This high-protein dinner is assembled and chilled, with no cooking. Combine the tuna with cannellini beans, diced celery, red onion, parsley, olive oil, and lemon. It can be eaten on its own or served over some greens, or with whole grain crackers on the side. If you are meal prepping, make sure to keep the lemon juice separate until the day of consumption.
Baked Cod
The fish’s mild flavor goes well with the bold toppings of tomatoes, olives, capers, and lemon. Bake the fish until it can be easily flaked and spoon the relish on top just before packing. This is a lighter dinner, so pair it with green beans or roasted asparagus.
Beans, lentils, tofu and vegetables
Lentil Curry
Lentils hold up for meal prep because they’re inexpensive and reheat well. Sauté the sweet potatoes, spinach, and other vegetables with tomatoes and curry spices until they are all soft. You can add coconut milk, or leave it out if you want a lighter curry. The flavor improves after a day in the fridge.
Teriyaki Tofu
Tofu is affordable and absorbs sauce well, which makes it good for prep. Bake or pan-sear some cubed tofu until firm, then toss them in teriyaki sauce. You can lighten the sauce by using less sugar. Green beans are a better option than more delicate greens because they hold up better to cooking. If you prefer your bowls glossy, pack extra sauce separately.
Sweet Potato Taco Bowls
The natural sweetness from roasted sweet potatoes complements the spices in the tacos. Assemble containers with cubed sweet potatoes, black beans, corn, and separately packed tomato salsa. To keep the dish fresh, plain yogurt or avocado can be added at the time of serving. It is a meatless option built on sweet potatoes and black beans.
Roasted Veggie Grain Bowls
Roasted vegetables are a useful base for meal prep because they combine with almost any other ingredient. Roast a large batch of cauliflower, carrots, and red onions, and pair the mix with some quinoa or farro. For added protein and creaminess (without the hassle of a sauce), toss in some hummus. For a fresh element minus the wilting, keep a few leaves of greens separate.
White Bean Soup
Soups are a good meal prep option since they heat up evenly and do not need to be watched. White beans make this one filling, and kale holds its texture better than many other greens. At the end, add lemon juice. Once you portion the soup into containers, dinners are ready to reheat.
Burrito Bowls
Burrito bowls are versatile and fit well into meal prep habits. Layer rice and beans, followed by cooked peppers and onions, corn, and some basic salsa. Store liquid components separately to maintain a good texture. If you get bored easily, switch up the sauces: a day of salsa verde, a day of chipotle yogurt.
Tikka Bowls
This plant-based prep uses cauliflower and chickpeas. Roast some cauliflower and chickpeas, then add some tikka-style spice so they’re browned. Portion that over some rice or quinoa. Add some yogurt, or separate it with a yogurt-lime sauce for some creaminess.
