Simplify your meal prep with this buffet style lunchbox hack that combines different proteins, starches, veggies, and sauces to create 4 lunches! Each has its own unique flavors for an easy meal that is healthy and delicious.
If you've been slacking on your meal prep lately because it has felt like "too much," or you've just gotten a bit tired of counting macros, don't worry; we've got you covered today!
When life gets busy, or we need extra time to recharge on the weekends, we always turn to buffet style meal prepping. This style of meal prepping takes less time on the weekends, keeps our meals varied during the week (hello, no food boredom), and allows us a mental break from macro tracking so we can spend some time intuitively eating. It's an all-around win because we know that if we skip meal prep altogether, we won't feel good mentally or physically by the end of the week, and our wallets won't be happy with us either.
Insert this Easy & Delicious Buffet Style Meal Prep to save the day! The key to being successful with this is to pick ingredients that can either be bought pre-cooked or can be cooked up quickly. And when it comes to intuitively eating, it's Meal Prep Containers that will save you! Not only do these bento box-style containers help you keep everything organized and easy to transport, but they also have separate compartments for your ingredients, so things don't get mushy by the end of the week. Each container has a small and large compartment, plus a removable tray to keep sauces and dressings separate. You could also use them for additional snacks or dessert. You can always count on us to include dessert!
Now that you know what you need to be successful with this prep let's look at the ingredients and then dive into some of the combinations we created!
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Easy & Delicious Buffet Style Meal Prep Ingredients:
- 4 oz. sliced cooked Italian sausage
- 4 oz. baked chicken strips
- 4 oz. baked tofu, cubed
- 2 oz. cooked gluten-free pasta
- 1 ½ cups cooked rice
- ½ cup drained chickpeas
- 1 cup roasted broccoli
- 1 cup roasted golden baby potatoes
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes
- ⅓ cup guacamole
- ⅓ cup salsa
- ⅓ cup marinara sauce
- ⅓ cup tahini sauce
- ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- Meal Prep Containers
Box Combo #1
Chicken-Based
white rice + baked chicken + salsa + guacamole
Box Combo #2
Tofu Based (vegan-friendly)
white rice + tofu + tahini + cherry tomatoes + spinach
Box Combo #3
Meat-Based
pasta + sausages + pasta sauce + spinach + parmesan cheese
Box Combo #4
Chickpea-Based (vegan-friendly)
roasted potatoes + chickpeas + tahini + spinach + cherry tomatoes
Of course, feel free to make any ingredient swaps you'd like!
- Hate white rice? Use brown rice, quinoa, or couscous instead!
- Chicken can be subbed with tofu or more beans to make it lant-based, as can the sausages.
- The tofu and chickpeas can be swapped for chicken, beef, or shrimp.
- Roasted potatoes can be subbed with sweet potatoes, rice, or pasta.
- Any combination of veggies can be used.
- Unsure of tahini? Use a dressing that you like instead!
This is the great part of buffet-style meal prepping; you can mix and match what you and your family members alike, so everyone gets a meal that meets their nutritional goals!
Are you ready to start prepping? Grab your containers, head to the store, and then tag us on YOUR easy combos you make!
Ingredients
- 4 oz. sliced cooked Italian sausage
- 4 oz. baked chicken strips
- 4 oz. baked tofu cubed
- 2 oz. cooked gluten-free pasta
- 1 ½ cups cooked rice
- ½ cup drained chickpeas
- 1 cup roasted broccoli
- 1 cup roasted golden baby potatoes
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes
- ⅓ cup guacamole
- ⅓ cup salsa
- ⅓ cup marinara sauce
- ⅓ cup tahini sauce
- ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- 4 meal prep containers
Instructions
To make lunch boxes: Combine a protein, starch, veggies, and sauce from each bento box or use the following combinations to create four unique lunches.
- Before preparing, make sure that your pasta, rice, chicken, sausages, tofu, potatoes and broccoli are cooked if they weren't purchased pre-cooked or frozen.
- Box 1: pasta, marinara, and Italian sausage in large compartment + spinach and shredded cheese in small compartments.
- Box 2: rice + chicken strips in the large compartment, salsa + guacamole in small compartments.
- Box 3: potatoes, garbanzo beans, tahini in the large compartment, roasted broccoli + cherry tomatoes in small compartments.
- Box 4: rice, tofu, tahini sauce in the large compartment, spinach + cherry tomatoes in small compartments.
Notes
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