Are you overworked and pressed for time? Do you want to eat well, but aren't sure what that really looks like? Or, maybe the idea of making dinner after a 10-hour day leads you straight to take-out?

If you answered yes to any of the questions above or if you simply want to find a sustainable way to eat and live — batch cooking is for you.

It allows you to eat well and reach your health goals by assembling real, balanced meals when you're pressed for time.

So, rather than placing that order on Uber Eats or grabbing lunch out every day, try preparing whole foods in bulk a few times a week. It’ll make mealtime incredibly easy, all while taking the guesswork out of “what’s for dinner?”

Batch cooking will also improve your food environment and help you build healthier habits.

You see, habits often appear to be decisions we’re making daily, but more than 40% of our daily decisions aren’t actual decisions — they’re habits (Duhigg, 2012). Forty percent — that’s a lot of opportunities to change!

And, when it comes to changing your diet, your food environment is a great place to start. What and how you eat often comes down to habit and environment. As simple as it sounds, if you change your food environment, your habits will shift and your intake will change. Think about it — if chips and cookies are around you’re more likely to eat them. If you have fresh fruit, nut butter, and yogurt in your fridge you’ve already increased your chance of eating well. The same goes for meals.

We’ve all been there — it’s the end of the day and you’ve reached decision fatigue, your willpower is low, and you’re most susceptible to making poor decisions. Having prepared food on hand will undoubtedly help.

Here’s what batch cooking looks like

Step 1: batch cook 1-2 x wk for an hour or two (think a few complex carbs, 1-2 proteins, some vegetables, and maybe a sauce or two)

Step 2: assemble meals (grab and go breakfasts, packable lunches, assembled dinners)

Step 3: enjoy balanced, homemade meals in no time (we’re talking 5-10 min)

Repeat to instill new behaviors and shift your diet. It can all start with one habit change, like having breakfast or packing lunch. And batch cooking will help you succeed. It’ll also reduce your food waste and lower your food costs.

Here’s a sample dinner menu

As you can see, most of the cooked items (couscous, chicken, meatballs, zucchini) are re-purposed. Even the tomato sauce used Friday comes from Thursday’s shakshuka dish. And since it’s all prepared ahead of time, dinner can be plated in < 10 minutes. All it takes is a little planning and some creativity. Proof, once again, that batch cooking is a lifesaver during the week.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How does batch cooking work?

A: As the word implies, batch cooking is a method of meal preparation that implies cooking in batches – more food, less often. You make a meal plan (typically for a week), do the shopping and the preparation, and dedicate a few hours of your weekend to cooking most of the meals you will eat that week.

Q: How long does batch cooking last in the fridge?

A: You can continue to meal prep and store your batch-cooked items as leftovers for quick and easy meals throughout the week. Just remember to use refrigerated foods within four days.

Q: Is batch cooking worth it?

A: Yes! Batch cooking saves money and time. It also reduces stress around ‘what’s for dinner?’ Once you batch cook for the week, all you need to do is assemble healthy, filling, and nutritious meals. And with batch cooking, you can make healthy, filling, nutritious meals that are cheap to prepare. By cooking in bulk, you can make use of bulk food offers and repurpose ingredients. This is great because buying food in bulk is cheaper than buying small items.

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This post was written by Kelly Powers, MA, RDN. Kelly is a Registered Dietitian and Culinary Nutritionist who takes a holistic approach to nutrition and health. She is a recipe developer with a food blog highlighting whole foods, simple recipes, and her life in San Francisco. Kelly is the creator of Weeknight Dinners, a weekly meal plan program that helps users get back in the kitchen and feed themselves well. Kelly specializes in meal planning, the Mediterranean diet, and sustainable behavior change, helping her clients reach their health goals while improving their relationship with food.

References

Duhigg, C. (2012). The power of habit. Random House: New York, NY.