If salads are your jam, you know that a quality salad can cost you twice as much as a burger. Oops! That price not only takes a toll on your wallet, but also your motivation to eat the salad instead of the burger.
If you’re looking for convenient food…that’s healthy…saves money…AND tastes great…you might be wondering if you’re asking too much. But with meal prep, you can tick all of those boxes!
It is simply to make healthier food choices and save money as you prepare for the week.
But can you Really Got the perfect lunchtime salad to take out of the fridge? Yes!
If you want to keep your salads fresh and crisp for days, here are some tips on how to best prepare salads.
HOW TO PREPARE SALADS FOR THE WEEK
It’s true, a typical salad that sits in the fridge for days tends to get soggy and gross.
But we have a few salad meal prep tricks and tips that will keep your salads fresh.
Here is your easy step-by-step salad prep guide.
- Start with leaf salads
Not all greens are created equal when it comes to meal prep. If you want your salad to last several days, choose heavier greens for your base salad so you don’t end up with soggy salads. You must use vegetables such as kale, romaine lettuce, cabbage, or Swiss chard. If you want to add softer veggies like spinach, wait and add those tender leaves closer to the time you’re going to eat the salad.
- Add firm vegetables
To add great flavor and nutritional value to your salad, add a variety of veggies. The best vegetables for prepped salads are firm and hold up well after washing and slicing. Add vegetables as paprikaBroccoli, onions, snow peas, celery, carrots, cauliflower and corn. Be sure to use a paper towel to pat the veggies dry after washing. Any extra moisture will result in a soggy salad.
- Add proteins
Make sure your salad is a complete meal by adding some protein. Quinoa, lentils, black beans, chickpeas, or chicken are great ways to make your salad more filling. Fully cook and chill your proteins before adding them to the salad.
- Prepare salad toppings and salad dressing
The biggest tip for keeping your salad prep fresh for a week is to keep your toppings and dressing separate from your salad. Salads that stay fresh all week Use separate containers for toppings and dressing to keep crunchy foods crunchy. Prepare the toppings and dressing so the entire salad is ready when you need it—just mix the containers together before eating.
Meal prep salad is similar to the build of a salad you would eat right away. The biggest difference when you want salads that last a week is choosing the right ingredients and controlling the moisture levels to give your salad a longer shelf life.
HOW DO YOU KEEP SALADS FRESH EVERY WEEK?
Here are our tricks to keep the salad fresh all week:
- Choose firm leaf salads. You need to skip the baby spinach and use stronger leaves like romaine lettuce or kale.
- Hold the bandage. Adding the salad dressing just before eating is the best way to keep your salad fresh and crisp.
- Build it upside down. If you want the dressing in the same container, pour the dressing into the bottom of the container before adding the other ingredients. Next add the protein, fruits, and veggies, then add the veggies. When ready to eat, shake your container or use a fork to toss everything together.
- Shallow containers are better than tall containers. The mason jar salad looks pretty on Pinterest, but salads in mason jars can crush the greens and make a mushy salad. Using a larger, shallow storage container will help distribute the veggies and weight. If you go for the mason jar, build your salad upside down.
- keep it dry You will wash most of the ingredients in your salad before assembling the salad. This added liquid, as well as any liquid that’s naturally found in food, can leave your salad swimming in a gross mess by the end of the week. Make sure you pat dry all washed items or use a salad spinner. And avoid slicing juicy ingredients like cherry tomatoes, grapes, or berries. Choose vegetables that are naturally drier, like carrots and broccoli.
- Avoid the heat. You can enjoy a quinoa salad or a steak salad, but don’t add these ingredients while hot unless you want a wilted salad. Cool all cooked ingredients before adding them to your vegetables.
Prepare salads and keep them fresh with these simple tricks.
BATCH PREPARATION VS. INGREDIENTS PREPARATION FOR SALAD
You can choose from two main methods of preparing salads. Both save you time and money and give you quick access to a healthy meal.
One method ends up with the salads in individually portioned containers and the other method leaves final assembly until later in the week.
Here are the details for both methods so you can choose which one works best for you.
Method 1: Batch Prep Salads
You’re probably more familiar with batch preparation than you think. If you ate leftovers, that’s batch prepping!
Batch prepping is when you prepare an extra large batch of food and eat it for multiple meals. For salads, this would be like making a jumbo Caesar salad to eat as a side with all your dinners throughout the week. Or how to make a big batch of couscous and bean salad and have lunch to go for a whole week.
The advantage of batch preparation is that your dish is completely ready to eat. Whether you’re portioning the dish into individual containers or storing it in a large container to serve later, you’ve mixed all the ingredients together and it’s ready to go. Just add toppings and dressing.
Method 2: Ingredient Prep Salads
Ingredient prep is another form of meal prep. This method involves washing, cutting, and cooking the ingredients in your dish. But instead of assembling the meal, you pack each ingredient into its own storage container and assemble the dish later in the week.
The benefits of ingredient prep include flexibility in your menu and increased freshness. Your menu is flexible as you can make many different meals with a handful of pre-prepared ingredients. You are not required to eat a single meal several times a week. If you have veggies, black beans, chicken, and quinoa in the fridge, you can mix them up with different dressings and toppings to make everything from a salad to a TexMex bowl. Keeping your ingredients separate in meal prep containers can also help your fresh ingredients last longer.
Choosing a method
Both methods are great for meal prep. Choosing a method depends on your personal preference. As with all aspects of meal prep, do what works for you!
If you are a meal prep beginner, we recommend starting with Batch Prep. This method is easy and cuts down on midweek steps. Once you’ve mastered making a few recipes ahead of time with batch prep, experiment with ingredient prep. Then the choice is yours from there!
THE BEST VEGETABLES TO USE FOR THE PREPARATION OF SALADS
Not all vegetables stay fresh in your fridge for a week after you wash and cut them. Think about avocados – you don’t want to eat a brown avocado that you cut up a week ago.
So, to avoid brown avocados and slimy cucumbers, try these veggies for meal prep salads:
- beets
- cherry tomatoes (do not slice)
- Grated carrots
- paprika
- Grated Brussels sprouts
- Red onion
- Green Onions
- Roasted Sweet Potato
- Snappeas
- celery
- radish
If you want to add other veggies or toppings to your salad that don’t stay fresh as long, plan to add them to your salad on the day of the meal. You’ll still save a lot of time when you have your salad ready to go. With just a minute or two of prep to add the remaining ingredients, you’re ready to eat.
Salad dressings perfect for meal prep
Bring your bowl of leafy green goodness to life with some flavorful dressing!
If you’ve never made your own dressings before, you’re missing out. The salad dressings you buy in the supermarket are often full of unhealthy fats. When you make your dressing at home, you know exactly what you’re getting with every bite.
Try homemade salad dressings. You’ll be surprised how easy they are to combine with ingredients you probably already have on hand.
When you make a beautiful vinaigrette with olive oil, you can avoid a dressing that’s loaded with cholesterol, sodium, sugar, or carbs.
Start with these recipes:
Mix and match your dressings and toppings to create a new flavor every day. The same greens and veggies never get boring when you infuse your salad with these popping flavors!
SALAD RECIPES TO START WITH MEAL PREP
Salads are fun, tasty, and filling when done right! Don’t settle for a simple pile of lettuce topped with just a grated carrot — it won’t motivate you to eat your veggies every day.
If you need some salad inspiration, try one of these delicious recipes that will get you going for the meal.
You can find more inspiration for preparing salads and meals on Youtube.
