5 Ways to Save Time Cooking and Still Eat Healthy

Let’s be honest, eating healthy can be a challenge. Especially when you have a busy job, work a lot of hours or come home late at night, you may not always feel like spending a lot of time in the kitchen to make healthy meals.

I know it can be stressful to think about your meals and worry about what to cook when you want to focus on other things instead. As a result, you may find yourself going for the quick solution and grabbing lunch at a convenience store or ordering food more often than you’d like.

Don’t you worry! In this post, I’m sharing 5 ways to save time cooking and still eat healthy.

1. Meal Prep

Do you have a busy week ahead and no time to cook at all?
Prep, prep, prep! 
Cook your meal(s) on Sunday for the upcoming week and put it in containers in the fridge or freezer. 

It will take a few hours to chop and cook your meals, but if you think about it, it is so much more efficient. Because you’re cooking in bulk, you don’t have to think about food anymore during the week and can focus on other activities, while still eating healthy. In addition, the time that you would spend cooking each evening can now be spent on doing something else, such as going to the gym or a hobby.

Meal prepping also helps you to stay on track with your healthy eating habits, as you are less inclined to quickly grab some lunch or order dinner. Whenever you’re hungry, you have your healthy meal ready that you only have to take out of the fridge or heat up. 

2. Plan Your Meals for the Week

I don’t know about you, but on some days, it takes me forever to decide what I’m going to cook. In order to avoid that, take some time on the weekend to plan your meals for the upcoming week and do your groceries accordingly. 

You can even make your own recipe book with healthy and quick recipes. This makes it even easier to choose a meal and you probably have experience making these recipes. It saves me a lot of time because I don’t have to find new recipes and find out how to make them, but it does help to switch things up.

No more stressing or worrying about what to cook! And, speaking from experience, you’re also much less likely to eat something unhealthy or order food.

3. Make Bigger Portions

Next time you’re making dinner, try doubling the portion and set half of it aside for the next day. You can also put it in the freezer, so that you have something on hand when you don’t have time or energy to cook. 

I love this trick! It takes minimum effort to make a little bit more of what you’re already making, but it can save you so much time the next day (or another day). Believe me, it is such a nice feeling to come home knowing you have something at hand that you can just heat up instead of having to cook.

4. Stock Up Your Freezer

Make sure that your freezer is filled! I like to keep a stash of frozen vegetables, such as carrots, broccoli and zucchini, in my freezer. From time to time I make a big batch of falafels and veggie burgers to put in there as well. It takes some time to cut and prepare, but it is so worth it.

It’s perfect for those days that you don’t want to spend a lot of time cooking. After all, the last thing you want to do after a long and busy day, is cutting up all your vegetables (It always takes me forever, am I the only one?).

Healthy dinner ready in no time!

5. Prepare Your Breakfast and Lunch the Evening Before

Rushing in the morning to get out of the door, no time to have breakfast and bring lunch. Does this sound familiar to you? I’ve found myself in this situation way too often in the past, especially during more stressful weeks.

Something I now do almost every day is preparing breakfast and lunch for the next day while I’m making dinner. I usually make some overnight oats for breakfast (you can make endless variations) and a salad for lunch. I also like to lay out my snacks, such as a banana or nuts.

It’s such a simple trick but can be a lifesaver in the morning. Even when you’re rushing, it’s just a grab and go.

Just one more thing…

I hope that these 5 tips will help you save time cooking. I’d love to know which of these tips you’re going to implement in your daily routine to save time in the kitchen.

Let me know down in the comments below!