Cooking dinner is often the last thing on our minds. After a long day at work, you probably just want to order in and put on your favourite TV show.

But takeout meals come in large portions, and are filled with hidden carbs, salts, and unnecessary calories. Yuck. When you cook your own food, you are the controller. You control what goes into your food and as we all know, food is fuel. So fuel

You are in control of what you cook, so no excuses! You control what goes in your food and, as we all know, food is fuel. So fuel your body with only the best foods and ingredients.

You’re probably wondering how some people work a long day and still whip up a tasty dinner in under an hour. It used to baffle us, too!My friend, they have mastered the tricks to prepare weekly dinners and stayed sane. Lucky for you, we will share those tips with you so you can master it yourself!

My friend, they have mastered the tricks to prepare weekly dinners to remain sane. Lucky for you, we'll share those tips with you so you can master it yourself!

Here are five time-saving life hacks for weeknight dinners, just for you.

 

Create Your Weekly Menu

Remember: you are the controller and the cook. Start by creating your own weekly menu on Sunday. By making your own menu you decide which recipes to try out and what you need to buy at the grocery store ahead of time.

To save some time, we suggest that you organize your grocery list by categories such as produce, dairy, and so on. This will let you zip through the grocery store without stopping to wonder what else to buy.

Pro Tip: Do your weekly groceries all in one day to clear your list with precision. It's nice to see the fridge fully stocked, too.

Need some recipe ideas? Check out our 9 Tasty And Quick Meals With Two Servings of Vegetables!

Cook and Prep in Batches

If you have a super busy week ahead of you, try cooking and prepping your food in batches. Spend some time on Saturday or Sunday to pre-cut all your vegetables, sorting them into containers or plastic bags. This keeps you tuned into your remaining supplies when you are cooking throughout the week---plus it will save a ton of space in your refrigerator.

Cook in batches. That means making one dish that you can enjoy for a few days, and maybe even lunches. Slow cooking, tuna salad, and hard-boiled eggs are examples of ways to cook efficiently. 

Learn How to Cut

This may sound like a silly hack, but it goes a long way toward saving time in the long run. Have you ever come across a recipe that says it will only take you 15 minutes, but actually took you an hour to make? That’s because prepping your food can be tedious if you don’t know how to use your knife properly.

We suggest taking a knife cutting course so you know how to cut some of the basic food items to reduce your prepping time.

Pro Tip: Practice, practice, practice!

 

It’s 2017. Use Those Apps!

There are plenty of food apps that will help you save time when it comes to weekly dinners. We suggest downloading an app where you can input your groceries list so it's safe on your phone (and convenient, too)! Who else has dropped their handwritten grocery list in the puddle?)

More than a few of us have dropped our handwritten grocery lists into a puddle at least once. Another app worth downloading is a food substation app. When you are on a roll making dinner, and suddenly realized you forgot an ingredient, not to worry. A food substitution app can help you resolve that issue so you don’t have to pause on dinner making.

Also worth downloading is a food substitution app. Who hasn't been on a roll making dinner just to realize some ingredients are missing? A food substitution app can help you keep the good times rolling---and your meals, too!

Set up Your Kitchen

To save time when you are cooking, prep your kitchen so it's meant for your cooking style. That means doing a few small things that keep you from scrambling to do everything at the last minute:

• clearing your counters
• emptying the dishwasher
• placing all ingredients on the counter

Next, set up a trash station so you don’t have to walk back and forth to the garbage can. This will allow you to dump everything in at once.

Lastly, stay organized. Group together ingredients in your cupboards and refrigerator so you can fully see how much food you have to work with.

Pro Tip: Staying organized is key to making a quick dinner.

 

Prepared Meals

Let’s face it: there are going to be times where you won’t have time to cook. You might be working late, taking the kids for a game, or just pining for sleep. Hey, it’s okay to have days like this! Luckily we have just what the doctor ordered for this situation.

At Meal In A Jar, we create prepared meals (in jars) so that dinner or lunch can be conveniently heated up and eaten without wasting a moment! On weekdays where you don’t have time to whip up dinner, just heat up one of our meals. Not to mention that you can also incorporate our meal plans into your weekly planned dinners. 

Those are our top five time-saving hacks for weekday dinners. Tell us how you cut down on time and if you have tried any of these tips before. Good luck, and happy eating!

Browse our Meal In A Jar flavours!