EASY 30-MINUTE DINNERS FOR THE WHOLE WEEK: 5 MACRO-FRIENDLY RECIPES
The term “meal prep” can sometimes feel overwhelming and is often misperceived as a loaded concept. I think a big reason for this is we often feel like we have to have a lot of time to do it “right” or it has to be boring and flavorless to be effective.
Most of us aren’t excited by the idea of eating the same thing every day. So, what’s someone to do if you’re working towards health and nutrition goals but struggling to make meal prep work for you?
In today’s post, I’m sharing 5 meal ideas that use 5 totally different flavors to create 5 easy, high protein meals for your lunch or dinner meals this week. The idea here is that you’ll prepare your proteins at the start of the week and take just 30 minutes to make your meal each night.
Whether you’re cooking just for yourself or your whole family, these simple, high protein 30-minute meal ideas can easily be scaled for multiple servings and most use easy freezer and/or pantry ingredients that you may already have on hand!
PROTEIN PREP IN 3 EASY STEPS
For the meals below, we recommend using boneless, skinless chicken breast or thighs or extra firm tofu. For each meal idea, the marinades are for four servings, so choose your amount of protein based on your needs.
Prep your chicken by trimming and rinsing or pressing your tofu.
Make each marinade per recipe below.
Combine your protein and marinade in a large ziploc bag and place in the refrigerator until ready to use. If using chicken we recommend freezing the flavors you’re not using within three days and defrosting when ready to cook.
While these marinades take about an hour to prep all at one time, it sets you up for at least 5 days of lunch and/or dinner meals with 5 totally different flavors. If you’re cooking for yourself or less than 4 people (like most of the recipes call for) making the whole recipe and using the extra servings for lunch the next day is a great way to stretch your meal prep efforts and really get the most out of the time you’re putting in!
MACRO-FRIENDLY MARINADES + 5 EASY MEAL PREP IDEAS FOR THE WEEK
1 - UMAMI SHEET PAN MEAL
MARINADE:
120g Allegro’s Hot and Spicy marinade
1 tsp Trader Joe’s Umami seasoning
MEAL IDEA: Use this combo to make a yummy sheet pan meal with roasted green veggies and garlic smashed potatoes; if using tofu, we recommend cubing the tofu and baking it alongside the veggies. You’ll note that the ingredients and instructions here are not specific, allowing you to adjust this meal to your preferences and your carb needs (how many potatoes vs. green veggies you want).
INGREDIENTS FOR SHEET PAN MEAL
Yukon gold potatoes
Green veggies of choice
Parmesan cheese
Garlic salt
Cooking oil spray or olive oil
HOW TO MAKE THIS SHEET PAN MEAL:
Remove chicken from zip loc and place on one side of a sheet pan. Coat potatoes cooking oil spray or a minimal amount of olive oil and arrange on the other side of the sheet pan. Bake for 15 minutes at 400 degrees fahrenheit.
After 15 minutes in the oven, remove the sheet and gently smash potatoes with a fork, season with garlic salt and spray with a little more cooking oil spray. Add other (faster cooking green veggies) to the sheet pan alongside the potatoes. Bake until the veggies are tender and chicken is good through, reaching 165 degrees internal temp. (about 15-20 more minutes)
For garlic smashed potatoes: add parmesan cheese when ready to serve for some extra yumminess.
2 - ASIAN STICKY CHICKEN STIR-FRY
MARINADE:
60g Coconut aminos
15g Lime juice
2g Fresh thai basil
2g Minced garlic
MEAL IDEA: Add your sticky chicken or tofu to an easy stir-fry dish like this pineapple “fried rice” below, or use a frozen option like Trader Joe’s frozen fried rice with extra steamed veggies.
PINEAPPLE FRIED “RICE”
600g Riced cauliflower, fresh or frozen
150g Pineapple, fresh or frozen, chopped into small chunks
125g Frozen peas
200g Red pepper, diced
150g Mirepoix (diced carrots, celery, onions)
1 Egg
5g Coconut oil cooking spray
Green onions, chopped, for garnish
Fresh Thai basil, chopped, for garnish
WHAT TO DO:
Spray a large skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat.
Add chicken thighs or crumbled tofu and remaining marinade to the pan. Using a spatula, move around in the pan until thoroughly cooked, about 8-10 minutes. Use water to deglaze the pan as needed.
In a separate large skillet or wok, spray with cooking spray and scramble egg on medium heat and set to the side.
Sauté mirepoix and red peppers until tender. Add in the riced cauliflower and cook until the cauliflower begins to brown.
Add peas and pineapple, constantly stirring until mixture is well combined and veggies are cooked through. Stir in scrambled egg.
Remove from heat and garnish with chopped green onions and fresh basil.
3 - PARMESAN PESTO PASTA
MARINADE: Use a pre-made pesto like this one here for ease and sake of time; we recommend using 1 TBSP per serving of protein. If using chicken, chop chicken into bite-sized pieces first before coating in pesto and then add to a ziploc bag.
If making a plant-based version of this meal idea, we recommend using a “veggie” pasta, like Banza and mixing the pesto with the rest of the bowl instead of using it as a marinade. If using tofu, crumble tofu first. Add pesto, then add to ziploc baggie and marinate until ready to cook by sautéing in a pan to add to your bowl-style meal.
MEAL IDEA: Cook your pesto marinated protein, then add it to a dish of Banza pasta, Trader Joe’s frozen zoodles, TJ’s cauliflower or kale gnocchi, OR TJ’s spaghetti squash nests; combine with frozen peas and/or spinach and top with parmesan cheese.
4 - CUBAN JERK BOWL
MARINADE:
1 ½ tsp Garlic powder
3/4 tsp Thyme, dried leaves
1 ½ tbsp Lime juice
3/4 tsp Allspice, ground
1 ½ tbsp Brown sugar
1/8 tsp Cayenne
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Pepper
1/2 tsp Salt
3/4 tbsp Olive oil
Combine all ingredients for the marinade using a whisk or an immersion blender and pour over the chicken or tofu and place in a ziploc bag
MEAL IDEA: This marinade is from our Cuban Bowl recipe HERE. Use this delicious, spicy chicken in a bowl, with rice and beans, or however else you see fit.
5 - PEANUT SAUCE VEGGIE WRAPS
MARINADE:
1/4 cup Peanut butter
2T Powdered peanut butter
2t Sriracha
2T Lite soy sauce
2T Rice vinegar
1T Maple syrup
⅓ C Water
⅓ C Lite coconut milk from a can
1T Toasted sesame oil
1t Garlic, minced
1/2 t Ground ginger
Combine all ingredients for the marinade using a whisk or an immersion blender and pour over the chicken (chopped) or tofu (crumbled) and place in a ziploc bag.
MEAL IDEA: For both chicken and tofu options, we recommend sautéing in a pan to cook and continue to soak up the flavor from the sauce. Add this yummy protein to a veggie packed wrap with fresh spinach, red peppers, matchstick carrots, cilantro and green onions. You can find a full recipe for a high protein Peanut Noodle Bowl here.
I hope the takeaway here can be that you have options when it comes to fueling your body in a way that aligns with your goals (whether those are fat loss/maintaining a calorie deficit, better performance, or improving your health and habits) and your food choices don’t have to be boring and flavorless just because you’re focusing on your nutrition.
Instead of using the same boring meals all week or spending hours in the kitchen every Sunday, make eating easy with our Batch Prep Guide.
Learn to streamline your meal planning with our practical and productive batch prep approach.