5 simple meal prep recipes for complete beginners
I'm new to cooking and meal prep seems overwhelming. Can someone share really basic recipes that even a complete beginner can't mess up? I'm talking "if you can boil water you can make this" level.
5 foolproof recipes:
- Overnight oats: Oats + milk + protein powder in a jar. Fridge overnight. Done.
- Sheet pan chicken + veggies: Chicken breast + any vegetables + olive oil + salt. 400F oven, 25 min.
- Rice cooker rice: Literally just push a button.
- Canned tuna salad: Tuna + mayo + celery + crackers. No cooking.
- Slow cooker anything: Meat + salsa in slow cooker for 6 hours = shredded meat for tacos/bowls/wraps.
Start with these 5 and you have breakfast, lunch, and dinner covered.
The slow cooker salsa chicken is literally the first thing I ever meal prepped and I still make it weekly. Two ingredients. Dump and go. And it's legitimately delicious.
Scrambled eggs are the most beginner-friendly protein. You literally cannot mess them up (overcooked eggs are still eggs). 3 eggs + cheese = 24g protein in 3 minutes.
Buy a meat thermometer ($10). Take all the guesswork out of cooking chicken. 165F internal = done. No more dry or undercooked chicken.
For plant-based beginners: canned black beans + frozen corn + salsa + rice = a complete meal with zero cooking skill needed. Add avocado if you're fancy.
The slow cooker chicken is happening this Sunday. Two ingredients?? I can handle that. You guys are making this seem way less scary than I thought.
Smoothies are the ultimate beginner food. Frozen fruit + liquid + protein powder. Blend. You genuinely cannot mess it up. Even if ratios are wrong it still tastes fine.
Get one good non-stick pan and learn to cook chicken breast in it. That single skill covers like 50% of basic meal prep needs.