Top 10 Quick Meal Tips

Quick Meal Tips: Top 10 Short Cuts to Nutritious Meals

Whether your goal is to lose weight, or to eat healthfully, chances are you can use some hints on how to throw together a fast meal.

These quick meal tips will help you put a nutritious meal on the table in no time flat! As a dietitian, I can't possibly leave the notion of nutritious out of a meal, no matter how little time there is!

Tip #1

Marinate and grill an entire package of boneless, skinless chicken breasts once a week. Chop into cubes and/or strips and keep in the refrigerator to create healthy quick meals, like...

a) chicken salad with lowfat mayo, b) with salad ingredients to create a nutritious and balanced main entrée, or c) toss over whole-wheat pasta or brown rice and top with marinara sauce or salsa.

Tip #2

Buy "no-cut veggies": Baby carrots, cherry tomatoes, and snap peas are easy additions to salad greens. Don't forget low sodium jarred or canned veggies too: roasted red bell pepper (my personal favorite), hearts of palm, water chestnuts, baby corn and even mushrooms!

Tip #3

This quick meal tip is one that leaves my clients exclaiming, "What a great idea!"

Ever find yourself at 5:00pm wondering what you should serve for dinner? Take the decision work out and plan your meals according to "themes:"

• Monday = Mexican night (bean burritos, chicken tacos)
• Tuesday = Greek night (Greek salad, hummus sandwiches)
• Wednesday = pizza night (make your own nutritious version)
• Thursday = "burger" night (veggie burgers, salmon burgers, turkey burgers, tuna burgers)
• Friday = kids' choice (but limit the choices to healthy ones)
• Saturday = Italian night (lowfat lasagna or pasta with turkey meatballs)
• Sunday = Soup and Salad night (prepare soup in large quantity and freeze extra for lunch during the week)

Tip #4

"Recycle" at least one item from your dinner for the following day’s dinner.

Example: Use leftover brown rice from Monday in a rice, bean and vegetable burrito on Tuesday.

Tip #5

Hard boil a dozen eggs (or more) and use during the week in salads or as snacks (remove the yolk and fill with hummus for one of my favorite snacks!)

Tip #6

Prepare 1-2 pounds of "taco meat" (use ground turkey breast and/or ground round or sirloin). Leave in the refrigerator for the week and use for:

• Burritos
• Tacos
• Nachos
• Taco Salad

(Garden of Eatin are my favorite baked taco shells and baked tortilla chips).

Tip #7

This quick meal tip is one that I partake of every week!

Prepare a large quantity of brown rice to have on hand for side dishes, stir fries, or even cold rice salads (brown rice with tomatoes and feta cheese; drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar...yummy!).

Tip #8

Prepare a large quantity of whole wheat pasta and keep in the refrigerator to use during the week as side dishes or salads (cold pasta salad with canned tuna and kidney beans; drizzle with low calorie poppyseed dressing).

Tip #9

Bake a few sweet potatoes at a time and keep on hand for side dishes, additions to soups (dice and add to butternut squash soup) or as snacks (one of my favorites: top with cottage cheese and cinnamon).

Tip #10

Quick meal tip: Precooked rotisserie chicken = multiple meals

• Day #1: Remove the skin and pair with a salad and brown rice or sweet potato.
• Day #2: Shred leftover chicken with a fork and mix with a little BBQ sauce (Annie's Naturals Brand BBQ is my favorite brand). Serve as you would serve "pulled pork."
• Day #3: Add leftover "pulled chicken" to bagged salad and wrap up in a whole wheat tortilla to make a "salad wrap" for lunch or dinner.

Bon Appetit!

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