k.o. kidz welcomes guest blogger, Venessa Rodriguez, Certified Holistic Health Counselor (CHHC) and Founder of Unveiled Wellness, to provide her helpful tips on ‘HOW TO Eat Healthy Without Spending Too Much Time in the Kitchen’!
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I know it can seem nearly impossible to cook meals at home for some folks… I totally get it. Not enough hours in the day, between work and kids and extra curriculars and exercising, who wants to think about food prep and cooking??
But here’s the thing: Cooking will save your life.
In his latest book Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation, food expert Michael Pollen says:
“Research supports the idea that home cooking is a better predictor of a healthful diet than social class… A Journal of the American Dietetic Association found that poor women who routinely cooked were likely to eat a more healthful diet than well-to-do women who did not.”
Eating out or consuming packaged foods is not only killing us slowly (literally), it’s creating a system that’s unsustainable. So how do we juggle the demands of our day with time in the kitchen?
First is to prioritize cooking and consuming healthy food – for you and your family.
It’s the stuff that feeds our cells – “you are what you eat” (or more accurately, you are what you absorb from what you eat, but that’s for another blog). We have the power to change the future of our health – and it starts with picking up a fork. If we start feeding ourselves good healthy foods, then our hospital bills will be way lower in the long run.
Second is to find a routine or plan that works for you and stick with it.
I have found that the best possible way to live a healthy lifestyle and have healthy and delicious meals all week long is by meal prepping once for the whole week. It saves me time, money, and stress, all the while allowing me to stay on track with eating healthy.
Here are some steps that I take to make sure I stay healthy and optimize my time in the kitchen:
STEP 1: PLAN & SHOP
I begin meal planning by making a list of recipes and meals for the upcoming week. I create a list based on what I will have for breakfasts, lunches, snacks, and dinners. I use a weekly shopping list as my guide and then I’m off to the store!
Having a list is KEY (and make sure you don’t go to the store hungry either – could be very costly). I focus on the list, put my blinders on, and get to business. That is, unless I have the time and extra cash to peruse and try new things. Variety is very important in diet so make sure you try something new once in a while!
STEP 2: PREPARE THE FOOD
When I get home from the store I keep the items that I plan to use for my meal prep out. I pull up my meal plans and get to washing and cooking! Throughout the week, I typically have a protein filled green smoothie for breakfast and make them the same morning. Did I mention that smoothies literally take less than 5 minutes to make? And they’re great because you literally consume a big bowl of veggies in one glass (and they taste delicious). Done and done.
For lunch and dinner, I generally prepare big batches of veggies. I start with washing the greens, then set aside to dry and move onto slicing, dicing, and dividing veggies into containers for use in cooking and salads. When a recipe calls for a protein like beans or sautéed chicken, we cook it in big batches in a big pan or crock pot.
The crock pot has been a godsend! It’s my second favorite kitchen tool after my beloved Vitamix. How easy is it to throw a bunch of veggies and protein in with some water and spices, turn it on and walk away? Pretty darn easy. In this way, I’m cooking once and eating multiple times! Store any extra in the freezer for use later.
STEP 3: PUT EVERYTHING TOGETHER TO MAKE THE RECIPES
To keep it simple, I make a large salad in advance and then add the extras when I’m ready to eat it. If I’m taking it to go, I divide it into containers or use as leftovers.
For dinners, I typically make two favorite main dishes, which allows me to prepare and freeze in advance making it easy for during the week.
STEP 4: PUT IT ALL AWAY!
After all the food is prepped and the recipes are made, I put everything in containers and place it in the fridge! That way, I have delicious, fresh, whole foods for all meals during the week in minutes. Usually I eat pretty simple foods and I save the gourmet/experimental meals for weekends or special occasions.
Once you start on the path of eating fresh whole organic local foods, you’ll find that the simplest food can blow your taste buds away! If you’ve ever tried a ripe juicy heirloom tomato from the farmer’s market, there ain’t NO comparison with any “tomato” from the regular grocery store. Try it out!
First published on www.unveiledu.com
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