Family Meal Prep Hacks That Cut Dinner Time in Half

Between sports practice, homework, and everything else you have to fit between getting off work and going to bed, figuring out what’s for dinner is one of the most difficult things ever. What do you mean I have to cook dinner every night?! No one should have to live like this!

Short of hiring a live-in cook (please?), the best way to save yourself time in the evenings is to meal prep. It sounds intimidating, but not all meal prepping involves eating the same meal five days in a row or batch-cooking a week’s worth of food in just a few hours. That can actually be more of a hassle than it’s worth!

For me, the best way to meal prep is by making small adjustments that drastically save time in the kitchen — and take out the nightly guesswork. Check out a few meal prep hacks for families below.

Start Slow

Just a few changes can make a big difference in your meal prepping. Some ways I meal prep for my family include making enough dinner for leftovers the next day, pre-washing and slicing cucumbers, strawberries, and other fruits and veggies for lunches, and stocking up on ingredients that work across multiple meals.

I love being able to plan just three dinners a week instead of six, knowing we’ll eat the leftovers the next day. Having the fruits and veggies ready to go — along with easy grab-and-go items for kids’ lunch boxes — makes packing lunches before school a breeze.

There’s freedom in knowing it’s not all or nothing in meal planning. Even the tiniest adjustments can lower your stress levels and make life easier.

Pick One Meal to Start

Ready to level up your meal prepping? Pick the meal that is the most difficult for you. For my family, dinner stresses me out the most. So instead of trying to plan ahead all lunches for the week or bake ahead a ton of breakfast options, I just focus on prepping dinners for the week.

This could look like making a big batch of dinners and freezing them, or getting meal ingredients ready ahead of time to make whipping something up easier.

If breakfast or lunch is harder for you, then you can make a batch of muffins to keep in the freezer or pack a week's worth of lunches to keep in the fridge. Just keep in mind food safety guidelines: most leftovers should be eaten within three to four days if stored in the fridge; anything you want to keep for longer should be frozen.

Choose Easy-to-Plan-Ahead Dishes

Another part of meal prepping is already having the meals you want to make picked out for the week. Don’t wait until Tuesday after work, when everyone is tired and cranky, to try to put together dinner. For my family, we know certain nights are always for tacos and certain nights are always for baked chicken. That way, we don't have to think — because sometimes that’s the biggest hurdle!

If you need recipe ideas, check out our quick and easy dinner recipes, many of which can be made in 30 minutes or less. And if you have to get takeout on some nights, don't worry about it! Prep all you want, but being flexible is important too.

Stick to a Schedule

No, you don’t have to have the same food every single week or themed nights if that doesn’t work for your family. But what you should schedule is when to meal prep.

On the Meal Prep Sunday subreddit, people shared the schedules that work for them. Many people suggested planning the meals for the next week on Thursday, shopping for the food on Friday (before the weekend rush!), and cooking, chopping, and prepping the meals on Saturday and Sunday. That way, you have more time to fit it in over the weekend, and it doesn’t feel as big a commitment as doing it all on Sunday night — or trying to squeeze it in at the beginning of the week when you’re most likely the busiest.  

Meal prepping doesn’t have to be terrible. Once you get used to it, it’ll just be a regular part of your week — one that makes life so much easier.  

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