The Good, the bad and the ugly: Bulk food preparation

Wolfhound01

Hi all,

I set up this thread to try and learn from others mistakes when it comes to preparing food in bulk.

I've recently changed job and will be away from home for a number of days at a time.

I'm planning on preparing my food for 3-4 days (breakfast, lunch, dinner & snacks) in advance so that I can continue to eat decent food. My only fear is that i will end up cooking the same food and end up getting bored! If it's of any use, I'm currently eating to gain weight and i am aware of my macro requirements for each day.

For those of you that prepare in bulk: What foods keep well for a few days? What foods are good for 1-2 days? What foods are downright no-nos are keeping a few days?

Thanks for any replies!

WH

Golaco

Wolfhound01 wrote: »

Hi all,

I set up this thread to try and learn from others mistakes when it comes to preparing food in bulk.

I've recently changed job and will be away from home for a number of days at a time.

I'm planning on preparing my food for 3-4 days (breakfast, lunch, dinner & snacks) in advance so that I can continue to eat decent food. My only fear is that i will end up cooking the same food and end up getting bored! If it's of any use, I'm currently eating to gain weight and i am aware of my macro requirements for each day.

For those of you that prepare in bulk: What foods keep well for a few days? What foods are good for 1-2 days? What foods are downright no-nos are keeping a few days?

Thanks for any replies!

WH

I always find stews, stir frys, bolognese etc. good for this. Chuck a pile of meat, stock and veg in a slow cooker and you're onto a winner. Generally good for 3 days. 4 might just be pushing it

jenizzle

I tend to go with stews, chilli's, curries etc and slow-cooked meats that I can add in with salads. I would get a few days out of each, maybe slightly less from the solo meats. I've never had them around longer than about 3 days tbh. If I know it won't get eaten, I just freeze them then defrost in the microwave.

Slow cooker is a godsend for this stuff!

Macy0161

I've chanced stuff at 4 days, and survived, but I try to stick to 3 most of the time. I tend to do go with chilli's, stews/ casseroles/ savory mince type meals.

I get the foil trays* and freeze my batch portions, and then I can mix it up a bit day by day. It can be a bit depressing facing into the same food for 4 days on the bounce tbh!

*To microwave, they obviously have to come out of the foil trays, but the advantage I find is that you can write on the top (what's in it, when made and calories). I find that helps my rotation, I don't have a freezer guessing game and as I am tracking in my fitness pal I can copy the info in from when it was made!

Wolfhound01

Thanks for the replies. Looks like I'll have to purchase myself a slow cooker!

jenizzle

I have this one. Cheap and does a great job!