How to Enjoy Healthy Meals when You Hate to Cook
Set your menu for a week in advance., Plan your shopping trips around your meals., Keep your pantry well-stocked., Pick fruits and vegetables that are in season.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Set your menu for a week in advance.
Sitting down and creating a menu for an entire week allows you to shop more efficiently and avoid being paralyzed by indecision when mealtime comes.
It also ensures your meals are balanced and healthy.You may want to include options for some meals in which cooking and prep time is minimal.
For example, if you typically have a bowl of cereal for breakfast, you might also give yourself the option of having a bagel or a smoothie to change things up.
Remember to have basic staples available.
Eggs are a quick, healthy, and versatile option you should keep on-hand.
Milk or a milk substitute and your favorite condiments are other items you should always have stocked.
Assuming you work during the day, typically most of your cooking will occur for your evening meal.
As you plan, think about the leftovers and how you can incorporate them into a healthy lunch the next day.
For example, leftover salad can be stuffed into a pita. -
Step 2: Plan your shopping trips around your meals.
Once you've set your menu for the week, go to your kitchen and figure out what you need that you don't have.
Add basics that you regularly consume, and you have an efficient list that ensures you won't have to run out to the store every other day.Knowing what you need also enables you to shop around for the best deals and the best quality ingredients.
For example, you may want to go to a local farmer's market for fresh produce, then to a regular grocery store for everything else.
The other benefit of doing this is that if you go to the grocery store less often, you'll typically spend less money.
This is especially true if you're the type of person who always comes home with a half-dozen items that you didn't really need, but that looked good or were on sale. , Unless you're sensitive to gluten, grains are part of a healthy diet.
These can be bought in bulk to save you time and money, and are found as staple ingredients in many different dishes.Brown or wild rice, whole wheat pastas, and oats are more healthy than white pastas and breads that have been refined.
Make sure you have all the herbs and spices that you use on a regular basis as well.
For example, if you like to eat Italian food and pasta dishes regularly, you probably want to stock up on garlic, oregano, and other Italian seasonings. , There's nothing wrong with frozen fruits and vegetables — provided they don't have a lot of added sugar and preservatives; however, they still won't taste as good as fresh fruits and vegetables grown locally.This is particularly important if you find you don't like certain foods, but you've only ever had them frozen or canned.
Prepackaged foods are grown on industrial farms that may grow crops year round, then processed in a factory.
The entire process causes them to lose much of their flavor.
Experiment with fresh foods, even things you've never liked before or had any interest in eating — you might find yourself pleasantly surprised.
You won't hate cooking as much if you're smelling something that you know you love to eat.
There are many vegetables that will stay fresh for days in the refrigerator, such as cabbage, cauliflower, peppers, carrots, and beets. -
Step 3: Keep your pantry well-stocked.
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Step 4: Pick fruits and vegetables that are in season.
Detailed Guide
Sitting down and creating a menu for an entire week allows you to shop more efficiently and avoid being paralyzed by indecision when mealtime comes.
It also ensures your meals are balanced and healthy.You may want to include options for some meals in which cooking and prep time is minimal.
For example, if you typically have a bowl of cereal for breakfast, you might also give yourself the option of having a bagel or a smoothie to change things up.
Remember to have basic staples available.
Eggs are a quick, healthy, and versatile option you should keep on-hand.
Milk or a milk substitute and your favorite condiments are other items you should always have stocked.
Assuming you work during the day, typically most of your cooking will occur for your evening meal.
As you plan, think about the leftovers and how you can incorporate them into a healthy lunch the next day.
For example, leftover salad can be stuffed into a pita.
Once you've set your menu for the week, go to your kitchen and figure out what you need that you don't have.
Add basics that you regularly consume, and you have an efficient list that ensures you won't have to run out to the store every other day.Knowing what you need also enables you to shop around for the best deals and the best quality ingredients.
For example, you may want to go to a local farmer's market for fresh produce, then to a regular grocery store for everything else.
The other benefit of doing this is that if you go to the grocery store less often, you'll typically spend less money.
This is especially true if you're the type of person who always comes home with a half-dozen items that you didn't really need, but that looked good or were on sale. , Unless you're sensitive to gluten, grains are part of a healthy diet.
These can be bought in bulk to save you time and money, and are found as staple ingredients in many different dishes.Brown or wild rice, whole wheat pastas, and oats are more healthy than white pastas and breads that have been refined.
Make sure you have all the herbs and spices that you use on a regular basis as well.
For example, if you like to eat Italian food and pasta dishes regularly, you probably want to stock up on garlic, oregano, and other Italian seasonings. , There's nothing wrong with frozen fruits and vegetables — provided they don't have a lot of added sugar and preservatives; however, they still won't taste as good as fresh fruits and vegetables grown locally.This is particularly important if you find you don't like certain foods, but you've only ever had them frozen or canned.
Prepackaged foods are grown on industrial farms that may grow crops year round, then processed in a factory.
The entire process causes them to lose much of their flavor.
Experiment with fresh foods, even things you've never liked before or had any interest in eating — you might find yourself pleasantly surprised.
You won't hate cooking as much if you're smelling something that you know you love to eat.
There are many vegetables that will stay fresh for days in the refrigerator, such as cabbage, cauliflower, peppers, carrots, and beets.
About the Author
Evelyn Hayes
Committed to making crafts accessible and understandable for everyone.
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