For many of us that have been working from home, it might feel like all we've been cooking much more often than before. Although tuning into our inner chef can ignite creativity and new skills, it can also become tiresome pretty quickly. As individuals continue to work from home or transition back into an office setting, here are some tips to meal prep to ensure you have flavorful variety in your meals without having to use every dish in your kitchen everyday!

What is meal-prepping?
Meal-prepping is the concept of preparing whole meals or dishes ahead of schedule. Having pre-prepared meals on hand can also help stick to desired portion sizes and help you reach your nutrition goals. With meals already prepared in your fridge, you'll avoid unhealthy options, especially when overwhelmed or exhausted.

Here are a few tips to help you get started!

• Commit one day of the week to shop for and prep your ingredients. By just making sure that all your fresh produce has been washed and/or cut before putting it into the fridge can time time off your daily meal preps and provide fresh snacks with zero prep time!
• Choose ingredients that can be used for a variety of dishes. Eating the same meal everyday can get boring so play around with different type of meals (rice bowls, salads, soups) and the common ingredients used in each.
• Grab your containers. Having containers ready to pre-package items can help save time too. As you are cutting up your veggies for the week, pre-package them into easy to grab snack size portions so you don’t have to think twice when hunger strikes.
• Switch up your sauces and spices! Experiment with different sauces and spices to give dishes a new twist each day.
• Use your Crock-Pot, Instant Pot or freezer to your advantage. Making large batches of freez-able meals is a great way to have a quick dinner later in the week if you get busy! This helps eliminate the need to stop and pick up food on the way home.

Meal-Prep Ideas
If you are looking for a few fun recipes to try, these are some of our favorite meals to make in bulk and throw in the freezer for later:

• How to Meal Prep 12 Easy Vegan Recipes in 90 Minutes for a Beginner from Goodful
• Vegetarian Lasagna from thekitchen.com
  Tip: when cooking with fresh zucchini, cut it how you need for the dish and lay it out on a paper towel. Sprinkle it with salt and let sit for 5-10 minutes. Pat with another paper towel. This will eliminate excess moisture and make a more delicious re-heated dish.
• Simple Veggie Curry from Tasty 
  Tip: Buy pre-made brown rice from the grocery story as a kitchen staple. If you freeze your curry, you can pull it out and have a fast dinner by microwaving and pouring over your rice.