INDIAN WEEKLY MEAL PLAN AND PREP!
26 May 2022 | DIYA RAJGURU
Busy mornings, cranky kids, crazy work deadlines, demanding chores, these leave us strapped for time. Here is where meal prep comes in. It is a boon for all of us, whether we are new mothers, mothers with corporate jobs, stay at home mothers, or practically anyone who wants to be efficient in the kitchen.Meal planning and prepping are the bedrocks of good health. And good health can never be store bought. Good health is actually made in the kitchen and served up on the dining table. Behind every good meal, a healthy snack or a satiating dish, is a whole lot of prep.
Depending on your food culture, go ahead and make a plan for the week. Include the favourites of all family members, and make sure you include yours too. You could meal prep ahead, with a few generic ideas given below, that will suit most plans.
1. Idli Dosa BatterThis one is a life saviour and lends itself to so many avatars. Idlis, podi idlis, idli fry, dosa, masala dosa, oothappam, and what not! 4 portions of idli rice, to 1 portion of Urad dal, along with a handful of methi seeds. Grind it into a smooth batter, let it ferment, and you have a wholesome breakfast or dinner sorted.
2. Boiled potatoesBoiled potatoes come in handy whether you are planning chaat, aloo paratha, aloo gravy, or a simple curry. Potatoes are a cook’s best friend!
3. Green chutneyGoing green begins in the kitchen. Make a paste of coriander leaves, mint, roasted jeera, chaat masala, black salt and lemon juice and refrigerate it. This is sure to come in handy for sandwich spreads, paneer tikka, pani puri and what not!
1. Idli Dosa BatterThis one is a life saviour and lends itself to so many avatars. Idlis, podi idlis, idli fry, dosa, masala dosa, oothappam, and what not! 4 portions of idli rice, to 1 portion of Urad dal, along with a handful of methi seeds. Grind it into a smooth batter, let it ferment, and you have a wholesome breakfast or dinner sorted.
2. Boiled potatoesBoiled potatoes come in handy whether you are planning chaat, aloo paratha, aloo gravy, or a simple curry. Potatoes are a cook’s best friend!
3. Green chutneyGoing green begins in the kitchen. Make a paste of coriander leaves, mint, roasted jeera, chaat masala, black salt and lemon juice and refrigerate it. This is sure to come in handy for sandwich spreads, paneer tikka, pani puri and what not!
4. Tomato pasteThis one is a real boon. Whenever you have about 30minutes in a day, take about 3 kilos of tomatoes, make a puree, add oil, and cook the puree till oil separates. Once cooled, refrigerate in small jars, and you are good to go. Any gravy needs tomato paste, and you will save a good 50% of your cooking time. 5. Pizza sauceTreat yourself to cheesy pizza once in a while. Add a dash of colour and good health to the sauce by pre prepping this base sauce. All you need is a few chunks of beetroot, carrot and capsicum. Pressure cook it without much water, blend, add oregano, tomato sauce, italian spice mix and refrigerate. When Pizza is on your mind, the sauce is in your fridge! What a relief that is! 6. Three Lentil combinationHaving lentils at least thrice a week is absolutely important. So soak 3 lentils of your choice. Once soaked, refrigerate two and cook the third. Use this the next day in any of your menus, be it chole, chana chaat, rajma chawal, or anything else. Use the other two in the subsequent days. Because they are soaked they will take very less time to cook. 7. Dry nuts powderThis one is a must-have if you value good health above all else. Dry roast almonds, cashews, pista, grind them along with a inch of nutmeg and cardamom. You could stir this in, in warm milk, along with pre-cut slivers of cashews and almonds. This is a meal in itself, and will keep your kids full and happy. 8. SproutsMake sprouts part of your weekly plan. Loaded with essential nutrients, they are easy to make at home, and lend themselves to so many interesting dishes. Simply soak whole moong overnight, drain and cover with a damp cloth and leave it to sprout. Once sprouted, refrigerate, and use as necessary. You could prepare sprouts gravy, sprouts chapati rolls, sprouts fried rice, and what not! Go ahead, get creative. You could grind sprouts along with a fistful of rice, jeera, ginger, salt and water, and make dosas. 9. Other interesting battersBesides the regular idli dosa batter, why not try out other batters like ‘Adai’, or even vada batters? Adai is a staple south Indian dish, full of nutrients. Soak one cup rice along with half cup Toor dal, ¼ cup each moong, chana, urad dals, a few red chillies, ½ piece ginger, hing, curry leaves. Grind into a smooth batter,, let it rest for about half and hour and make delicious adais. Similarly you could grind the batter for vadas and store, for those saturday afternoon vada cravings. 10. Snacks prepRoast makhanas, seeds, or peanuts for a crunchy rainy day snack. You could top up soups with a dash of roasted seeds, for that extra boost of good health. 11. Idli powder or gunpowder!Dry roast one cup urad dal, one cup chana dal, half cup red chillies, along with ¼ cup sesame seeds. Grind into coarse powder with salt and hing. Spoon up some, add a teaspoon of sesame oil, and enjoy along with idli, dosa or adai. You could even add this to curries for that unique flavour! 12. Spinach pureeBlanch and puree spinach ahead. This will come in handy when you feel like having Palak Paneer, a healthy green smoothie or a Spinach patty. 13. Make paneerMaking Paneer at home is an easy peasy way to have goodness on your platter whenever you need it. Simply squeeze lemon to boiling milk, tie up the milk, and place a heavy object on it, and voila! You have paneer. You can even add seasoning or spices to the curdled milk, and you have masala paneer at your disposal! 14. Tamarind chutneyFor Sambhar / Rasam or any dishes with a huge helping of tamarind, soak and strain tamarind ahead and refrigerate. Saves you a whole lot of time, and offers up so many options of dishes. 15. Garlic chutneyPeel and crush garlic ahead of time, along with oil and red chillies, and you have a super delicious chutney to go well with Vada Paav, or any other dishes as appetisers. 16. 3G pasteThis is indeed a life saviour. Make a paste of green chillies, ginger and garlic and freeze it or refrigerate it as per your usage. Rest assured, it is like Aladdin’s magic lamp - at your service when you need it. 17. Ginger cubesWhy keep reaching out for ginger, grating it and pounding it when you can make a paste and freeze it at one go. You can drop a small cube into anything you prepare for like chai or the morning weight loss drink. 18. HummusThis is a fabulous, nutrition packed delicious spread that you can make ahead. Soak, cook and make a paste of Chickpeas along with a generous drizzle of Olive oil and garlic and coriander leaves, and you have a dip and a spread ready for a quick breakfast or snack option.
Meal Prep also involves making the right use of resources. So if you have some leftovers, save time the next day by reusing or repurposing them. A simple plan will also work wonders - For instance, chart out a meal plan by Friday, buy groceries on Saturday and prep the basics for the week ahead on Sunday. This way, the following week will be loaded with nutrition, and your time in the kitchen will be efficient and productive.
Have meal planning and prepping essentials handy, like ziploc bags, calendars, air tight containers, freezer friendly bags, etc. Read all about them here.
Meal prepping will offer a plethora of ideas, so you can keep your family interested and curious about what’s cooking in the kitchen. Your mindset will change from “omg what do I cook today”? to “OMG there’s so much to look forward to this week!”
Do let me know what your favourite meal prep ideas are, and how you go about your meal prepping, in the comments section below. Happy meal prepping, happy relishing and here’s to a great many healthy weeks ahead!
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