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Start small: plan 3 lunches and 2 dinners from a few shared ingredients and cook basics on a set day. Cooked food keeps 2–3 days in the fridge; freeze the rest.
With meal prep you cook less often, shop with a plan and know in advance what's going on your plate. Here's an easy way to start, with a weekly plan, a shopping list and the most important food safety rules.
Meal prep means preparing meals or building blocks for several days. These can be complete dishes in containers or just basics such as rice, roast veg, pulses, dressings or breakfast components.
For beginners, the second option is usually easier: you keep combining a few building blocks in new ways and can respond better to your appetite and your plans.
Glass or stainless steel containers last a long time, but plastic ones are fine to start with. For reheating, glass or ceramic is the better choice – more on this in Reheating food in plastic: what's really true. What matters most is that the containers seal tightly and fit in your fridge.
Don't plan all seven days straight away. A small start is more practical:
Cooked food only keeps for two to three days in the fridge (BfR, the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment). For the second half of the week, freeze individual portions straight after cooling or plan a short top-up cooking session.
Choose a few dishes with shared ingredients – for example oats for breakfast, rice as a base for bowls and veg for two dinners. An easy breakfast to start with is overnight oats with oats, blueberries and walnuts.
Sort it by section: fruit and veg, protein, carbs, chilled, store cupboard, spices. That way you forget less.
Cook similar components together: cook rice and quinoa side by side, roast the veg together in the oven, prepare the pulses, blend the dressing.
Fill containers with meals or building blocks and label them with the contents and date.
Let cooked food cool within a few hours; to do that, divide larger amounts between shallow containers. Then into the fridge (7 °C at most, ideally below 5 °C) or the freezer. Eat cooked food from the fridge within two to three days. If in doubt, use it up sooner and check the smell, look and texture.
Whatever you cook on prep day, eat by Wednesday at the latest. Thursday and Friday come from the freezer, the store cupboard or a short top-up cooking session.
| Day | Breakfast | Lunch | Dinner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Overnight oats | Rice bowl with roast veg and chickpeas | Roast veg with herb quark or a tahini dip |
| Tuesday | Overnight oats | Rice bowl with roast veg, feta or tofu and a lemon dressing | Quick veg stir-fry with rice |
| Wednesday | Overnight oats | Lentil salad with cucumber, pepper, parsley and leftover roast veg | Tomato and lentil soup |
| Thursday | Yoghurt bowl or porridge | Frozen portion of chilli or curry | Baked potatoes with an avocado topping |
| Friday | Yoghurt bowl or porridge | Leftovers bowl from the freezer or store cupboard | Omelette or scrambled tofu with veg |
For the overnight oats: oats, natural yoghurt or a plant-based alternative, chia seeds or linseed, blueberries and walnuts.
A guide for 1 person and 5 days – adjust to your appetite.
One base, three versions:
Toppings such as pumpkin seeds, walnuts or fresh herbs change a dish quickly. Alternate hot and cold meals. More ideas: vegan recipes and breakfast recipes.
Meal prep stands or falls on clean working. Wash your hands before and after cooking, use clean boards and cool food quickly after cooking before you seal it.
There's no single shelf life for every dish, because it depends on the ingredients and how they're stored. As a rule of thumb, the BfR recommends eating leftovers from the fridge within two to three days. That also applies to cooked rice, pulses, roast veg and soups. For the second half of the week, freezing is therefore the safer option.
An odd smell, sliminess, discolouration or pressure building up in the container are clear signs not to eat something any more.
As a rule of thumb, two to three days at 7 °C at most, ideally below 5 °C (BfR). Whatever you want to eat later, freeze straight after cooling.
One set session a week is enough to start with, ideally with a short top-up cooking session midweek.
No. Many people find it easier to prepare rice, veg, dressing and protein separately and combine them later.
Overnight oats, bowls, roast veg, soups, curries and lentil salads. Soups, chilli and curries also freeze well.
Yes, especially with basics such as roast veg, potatoes, rice and dips in larger amounts.
To start with, all you need is a few dishes, a clear shopping list and two hours of prep. Cook building blocks rather than lots of recipes, eat chilled food within two to three days and freeze the rest.