Who says eating healthy has to be difficult? With these 36 easy meal prep recipes, you’ll be covered for breakfast, lunch and dinner. There’s everything from stir fries to salmon to pancakes, plenty of ideas to keep you on track to meet your health goals!
Meal prep recipes are the talk of the town when it comes to being healthy and proactive with your foods. Watching what you eat doesn’t have to mean skimping on flavor and your favorite dishes. It may simply mean cutting back to smaller portions.
Meal prepping can help with that and also take the guessing game out of what to make for lunch or dinner on a whim. You’re less likely to make a stop at a fast food joint if you have a meal already waiting for you!
With these 36 easy meal prep recipes I have gathered for you, you are set for lunch, dinner, and some breakfasts for weeks to come. Another idea for prepping ahead is to plan freezer meals. These are great to make one time, meal prep them for later use and pull one out at a time when you are ready for it.
The easiest way to eating healthier is to plan in advance; with all these great meal prep recipes you’ll never get bored!
36 Easy Meal Prep Recipes
- Ginger Soy Glazed Chicken Bowls
- Honey Sriracha Glazed Meatballs
- Baked Lime Chicken Bowls
- Spiralized Pad Thai Meal Prep Bowls
- Shrimp Taco Bowls
- Overnight Oats Five Ways
- General Tso’s Chicken
- DIY Starbucks Protein Bistro Box
- Coconut Mango Chicken Bowls
What does it mean to meal prep?
Meal prep is a once or twice a week large batch preparation of meals to last for 4-5 days. Meal prep is a great way to save time because you only cook a few times a week as opposed to cooking every single day. It’s also a great way to eat healthier – you’ll be a lot less likely to hit the fast food drive through if you have a meal ready to go in the fridge. You’ll also save money because cooking in bulk tends to be cheaper, and it’s way less expensive than going to a restaurant for lunch.
- Meal Prep Almond Flour Pancakes
- Healthy Sausage and Veggie Bowls
- Meal Prep Bolognese with Zucchini Noodles
- Spicy Chicken and Sweet Potato Bowls
- Make Ahead Breakfast Bowls
- Freezer Breakfast Burritos
- Greek Chicken Bowls
- Breakfast Egg Muffins
- Beef and Broccoli Bowls
Where can I buy food prep containers?
I like to use reusable plastic containers as shown in the photos. They’re lightweight, inexpensive and hold plenty of food. I purchase these meal prep containers on Amazon. I also like to use the square plastic tupperware style containers that are sold in most grocery stores near the plastic bags and plastic wrap.
- Italian Chicken Bowls
- Teriyaki Chicken and Broccoli
- Lemon Roasted Salmon with Sweet Potatoes
- Deli Style Protein Box
- Chicken Rice and Broccoli Bowls
- Falafel Hummus and Salad Boxes
- Cashew Chicken Bowls
- Pork Carnitas Bowls
- Meal Prep Protein Waffles
How long can I keep meals in the fridge?
I typically plan on making meals for 3-4 days during my meal prep sessions, depending upon the protein I’m using. If I’m using seafood, I never go more than 3 days, and sometimes just do 2 day’s worth. For chicken and beef, I prep for 3-4 days at a time. I keep certain components like sauces separate until I’m ready to eat so that the food doesn’t get soggy in the fridge.
- Meal Prep Salads
- Meal Prep Burrito Bowls (recipe below!)
- Buffalo Chicken Jar Salads
- Meal Prep Veggies and Dip
- Thai Peanut Chicken Meal Prep Bowls
- Asian Chicken Mason Jar Salads
- Chicken Salad Mason Jars
- Honey BBQ Salmon Bowls
- Roasted Chicken and Veggie Bowls
Can you freeze meal prep recipes?
Some meal prep recipes will freeze better than others. Proteins like chicken, turkey and beef will hold up well to freezing. Typically starches like pasta do not hold up well in the freezer as they’ll be mushy when thawed. Rice and potatoes are great candidates for the freezer. Many vegetables can be frozen, but veggies with a high water content, such as zucchini and lettuce, do not freeze well.
How to make meal prep burrito bowls
The first step to making these burrito bowls is marinating your chicken. The chicken gets marinated in a mixture of lime juice, olive oil and seasonings, then grilled to perfection. If you don’t want to fire up the grill, you can cook this chicken inside on a grill pan or in a regular skillet. The chicken is combined with cilantro lime rice, black beans, corn and fresh salsa to make an amazing meal that tastes like it came from a restaurant.
These meal prep burrito bowls are highly customizable. You can add more toppings like cheese, shredded lettuce, sour cream or guacamole right before serving. You can also swap out the rice for quinoa or substitute brown rice instead of white rice. Sometimes I also add sauteed veggies like peppers and onions. The sky is the limit!
Meal Prep Burrito Bowls
Ingredients
For the chicken:
- 1 1/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/3 cup lime juice
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
For the cilantro lime rice:
- 3 cups cooked rice brown or white, or you can use quinoa
- 1/3 cup chopped cilantro leaves
- the juice of 1 lime
- salt and pepper to taste
Remaining burrito bowl ingredients:
- 1 15 ounce can black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 cup corn kernels thawed from frozen or canned
- 1 cup fresh salsa
Instructions
- To prepare the marinade, pour the lime juice, olive oil and water into a large resealable bag. Add the garlic, honey, salt, cumin, smoked paprika, onion powder and chili powder.
- Seal bag and shake to combine. Add the chicken to the bag of marinade, seal and place in fridge - marinate at least 30 minutes or up to 8 hours.
- Preheat a grill, grill pan or skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 5-6 minutes on each side or until cooked through.
- Chop the cooked chicken into bite sized pieces.
- Place the rice or quinoa in a large bowl; add the cilantro, lime juice and salt and pepper to taste; toss to coat the rice evenly.
- Divide the rice between 4 meal prep containers. Arrange the chicken, beans, corn and salsa on top. Cover and store in the refrigerator until ready to heat and serve.
Supriya Kutty says
These images are just wonderful all the dishes look so yummy and I will surely try some of these out as I want to make it for myself and husband thanks for the great share of information
Gladys Marron says
I tried this exactly how it tells you to and it came out amazing ! I made my own pico de gallo and once it is all mixed it tasted just like chipotle.
Sara says
So glad to hear you enjoyed it, thanks for reporting back!
Stephanie Dallaire says
This was absolutely delicious and easy to do! Thank you so much!
Laura says
You always post the best looking recipes right after I come back from the grocery store. 🙄 Putting this on the menu for two weeks from now.
Janessa says
The recipe does not call for chili powder but the instructions do-how much?
Sara says
I fixed the recipe, thank you so much for pointing that out!
Flora P. says
I have a question regarding the nutrition for the burrito bowl. It reads that there is 1g Fiber – is this true or a typo? I thought for sure that the black beans would pack a hearty fiber punch.
Thank you,
Flora
Sara says
I ran the numbers again and you’re right!!! Nutrition label has been updated.
Anosa malanga says
Wow! So many great recipes! I would love to make them all! New year and new recipes to try on. I hope I can successfully make all of it.
Our Family World says
Your burrito bowl looks fantastic. We have been trying to have healthier meals since middle of last year. Sometimes it is a challenge, but this year, we are putting more effort into it. Thanks for sharing these really great tasting, healthier meal ideas!
Cheryl says
I’m a big believer in batch cooking! I sometimes prep a weeks’ worth of meals at a time and reheat and eat during the week. You have a lot of great looking recipes that I’m looking forward to trying out.
taylor says
OMG you’re making me hungry…so much inspiration for the work week! Thanks for including a couple of my recipes! 🙂
Nikka shae says
I definitely need to start meal prepping as I have to cook everything when I eat. I’m on a Very low sodium and plant base diet.
Vanessa Palma says
You just did all the hard work for me! I’ve been wanting to meal prep for a long time.
rosemary palmer says
I used to plan more when my son was home but just for 2 of us, we aren’t big eaters.. I still cook extra for lunches and freeze extra meals when I don’t want to cook.
Jenn @ EngineerMommy says
All these recipes look so delicious and surprisingly easy. I would love to meal plan more in the new year. It would be a wonderful way to save time and money.
Tim B says
We eat out way too much because often making meals at home becomes overwhelming with my wife and I’s busy work schedules. This post was very helpful in providing some nice suggtions for making preparing meals more feasible. I appreciated the ones you selected had portioning taken into consideration too. We have to work on portioning as well as healthier ingredients when it comes to what our family is eating. Very nice article…thank you!
Chubskulit Rose says
You made it sound so easy and they all look delicious! I always cook our meals everyday but sometimes I struggle with meals ideas and these are perfect !
Emily says
Woah, this is seriously amazing! I was actually just telling my husband I wanted to do a ton of meal prep for my breakfast and lunch so I can focus on eating healthier. There are so many yummy ideas here!
Pam says
I need to get better at meal prepping again. This is some great inspiration for me to get back in the swing of things.
Debs says
These are all really great ideas! The only meal I prep is breakfast, but these may just change all that.
Chrisy says
LOVING all of these options! I see more than a few I already can’t wait to make!
Amber Myers says
I am drooling over all of these. They would all make a fantastic meal. I need to make some. I know I’d love that burrito bowl!
Jenny says
That’s a ton of recipes and so glad that they are healthy. I usually meal prep every Sunday for my lunch for the week. It makes things so much easier and steers me away from grabbing junk food and gives me more time, on my lunch break, to get other things done.
Sarah Bailey says
I am all about easy prep so I am going to have to sit and go through all these meals and see which ones I can look to make myself and the other half!
Jeanette says
Oh I am totally planning this! I am always trying to find more meals that are easy to make and I can just grab and go. These all look delicious.
Joanna @ Everyday Made Fresh says
I don’t meal prep, although I really should. These all look and sound fabulous! I really need to print a few recipes and do this this weekend.
candy says
I always like to say cook once eat several times. I always make extra of whatever meal I am fixing. You can freeze so many great meals and cake, pies etc.