Why You Should NEVER Meal Prep As A Student! (Kinda)

[@hengyang9424]

One thing you should note is that a college student (especially as a freshman/underclassman) usually doesn't have much fridge/freezer space. I had 3 roommates my sophomore year and I had the largest freezer space, which could barely hold 3 bags of frozen veggies.

[@Anderson-yo8np]

df kinda college do u go to

[@hengyang9424]

@@Anderson-yo8np It isn't necessarily about the specific college I went to, but as underclassmen college students, you get 2 options. Either buy yourself a minifridge, or you have no refrigeration. Some colleges might have communal fridges (mine didn't), but you can't put much into a communal fridge. All of my roommates had fridges, but their minifridges had no freezer section.

[@ceci6443]

​@@Anderson-yo8np until my boyfriend finished his studies and got a full time job, we had the tiniest flat, and therefore tiniest fridge ever. Maybe you were lucky enough to not have to compromise, in which case I'm sincerely happy for you, but most students don't have this privilege

[@lzh4950]

My university hostel had 1 regular-sized refrigerator for every 40 residents & you'd be charged extra rent if you wanted to bring your own mini-fridge too (probably as they have higher power consumption)

[@iemand2612]

I would say this is quite an american problem. Most Dutch students or international students in The Netherlands have a normal kitchen with freezer space

[@clippychan530]

one of my biggest tips is to pre-cut, portion, and freeze half of your fresh veggies, fruit, or even bread! I always found that towards the end of the week/ early into the next week my fresh food would get kind of funky. I'm also incredibly forgetful so a lot of it would get shoved to the back of my fridge and go bad. Freezing whatever veggies/ fruit I wasn't using that day in pre-portioned bags made me more likely to use it later in the week and made it not as much of a big deal if I forgot about it. This also works with pre-cooked meat but heating it up can turn it dry, I personally don't mind bc of the convenience but everyone is different.

[@shiny5068]

also u can like pre chop everything in the weekend and freeze it pre chopped. chopping onions to sautee is so annoying so that’s super helpful

[@Nobody-md5kt]

Agreed with you both! I thought about meal prepping, but I instead opted for prepping ingredients. Onions, garlic, marinated meats, frozen veggies, etc. Everything is chopped and stored in plastic deli containers. Makes it super easy to spin up a meal in 10 minutes. I also find the chopping to be therapeutic.

[@user-ff7nw6kn9j]

Hate the dethawing time tho

[@muffinberg7960]

this video is very nice. I have seen similar videos on prepping some "building blocks" for the prep of later meals. But this video had a ton more of those. I'll try to incorporate these in my prepping.

[@letsKWOOWK]

I’m glad it helped

[@deadlystalker7483]

@@letsKWOOWK Albert hein is better than jumbo. Change my mind.

[@deadlystalker7483]

@@Datscrazi231 thank you bro, you are a real bro.

[@iceicebebe8299]

@@letsKWOOWKyou’re so dumb. You’re using chopsticks for fried rice that don’t clump at all. 😂 Use fork just like any other westerners who won’t use the more efficient spoon for fried rice.

[@Smudgemom2003]

I went through a phase of chopping/prepping all my veggies, cooked grains & beans…placing them all in small pint jars & stored them in one large box in the refrigerator. Pull the box out & do a quick stir-fry of pre-chopped mushrooms, carrots, cabbage, greens, onions, rice & chickpeas. I ate so healthy but the prepping just caught my lazy butt. Need to get back into that…like the building blocks thought. It’s a lot like my jar system. Much of that stuff can be done at the same time. Thanks for the inspiration

[@letsKWOOWK]

🙌🙌

[@oo8962]

cutting all veggies might work for me because sometimes i got bored and do house chores just because. i can't be bothered to do anything most of the time though

[@sparkymularkey6970]

I love doing the same thing! It makes cooking so easy!

[@sajisama24]

My main problem with meal prep, is how fast I get bored of the same food. Plus the box you open the day after, is obviously more tasty than the one you open on day 5-7, if its chicken you can't even keep it for that long, and rice definitely needs rehidration after a few days.

[@WolfeWrangle]

I grew up microwaving 3-4 day old rice with a splash of water. Never had a problem with older rice because of it.

[@swiftskilly]

Use chicken thighs as they'll stay juicier longer

[@azertazerty8672]

@@WolfeWrangle bread too , if it becomes like a brick sprinkle water and put it in a panini or whatever

[@hazel3390]

@@swiftskilly they mean you probably shouldn't keep chicken when it's been a week in case it's bad

[@nehadebeed8483]

i add few drops of water to the rice before I put it in the microwave

[@Nick-dj5bx]

This is such a helpful and well explained video. I'm really lazy with cooking all the time because I always have a lot to do for university, and this'll be a lifesaver!

[@letsKWOOWK]

That’s awesome

[@shaebrown2872]

@@letsKWOOWK have you been going to the gym lately. I think I saw some gains when you were at the grocery.

[@LuisCaneSec]

You could replace student with any busy lifestyle. This is just generally good cooking practice. As much as I like to cook, I get lazy and having these building blocks for quick meals is great.

[@murphyleigh6319]

i spend about 2 hours late at night cooking my meals for the next day, and i use a lot of these tricks to make sure i have a lot of variety, because my adhd demands it. you have a really soothing voice, so i like to cook my food while you tell us about cooking yours! tonight i made a cajun mashed potato bowl with honey garlic chicken for tomorrow’s breakfast, and since that’s a heavy meal, i made a light lunch of roasted maitake mushrooms and tomatoes with sides of peas and gluten free ciabatta rolls & irish butter, and i’m broiling some other chicken as well for a noodle dinner tomorrow night!

[@kimthegrey]

I'm a student aswell, but have my own space. This allowed me to build a pantry with the essentials like you mentioned eventhough I have a very small kitchen. My go to back up meal is dahl, because I always have lentils, canned tomatos, spices, rice and eggs. Allowes me to procastinate on groceries. Because I live on my own I usually cook for two and freeze one meal that I'll eat somewhere in the next two weeks. Saves money and time. But I don't tend to prepare anything beforehand each week or something, because that is just too much work for me

[@nostalgia545]

Having your own kitchen is such a flex as a student

[@imyabota5785]

The thing I dont like about all this meal prepping is the amount of utensils you need. Cleaning is just as important as groceries and cooking and using all these many containers is just a pain in the arse. Especially if you dont have a dish washer. I think its just a thing to always keep in mind. And also how much storage you need bcs I live in a flat with multiple people and I cant just take the whole fridge space for me.

[@sWEEc]

What works for me (and a lot of other people) is having little bags of precut vegetables in my freezer. I bought a bunch of different greens, cut them and put them in zip-lock bags. Now I just take up one bag and put it straight into the pan. It makes so many different meals. It contains, onions, garlic, a bit of ginger, carrots, cabbage, bell peppers, mushrooms, corgettes, brocccoli and aubergines. I also recommend cutting up meat into 100-150g portions and freeze them in individual zip-lock bags. I defrost them in the microwave if I'm short on time. I have to use zip-lock bags because I share a freezer with my roomie and there is not enough space for tubberware containers.

[@jennahrabeeh4446]

SMART never thought about individual serving sizes to freeze

[@priyasampat2073]

I’m not even exaggerating-this video is one of the most friking helpful videos I’ve ever seen. I never thought about meal prepping in this manner. I only had to start cooking for myself recently and with no help, I’ve been all over the place and eating a lot of take out. This is perfect, and I 100% prefer this method as opposed to just making the same meal all week. Thanks for making this video, it was well explained, especially with all the examples, and very useful for my life

[@user-ur3sj5eh1h]

As a student in engineering with a very busy schedule while also trying to meet certain fitness goals (bulking at the moment), I still think meal prepping your lunches is optimal (I prep 2 different dishes, twice a week). However, for dinners I think pairing your strategy with a slowcooker is very good. With everything prepped beforehand, in the morning you can just chuck everything into a slow cooker, set it to cook for 8 hours, and then come home to a still hot meal with plenty of room for day to day variety. Breakfast is never an issue as there’s so many things you can make in 5 minutes and in my case I also make my weight gainer shake/smoothie and get a quick 1000 cal in to help meet my calorie goals, which I drink sometime between breakfast and lunch. I’ve been hitting my goal of 3500 pretty easily this way but I’m sure this could be adjusted for just about any caloric intake.

[@srcstcgngr2905]

Yeah that’s pretty solid, what are ways you get protein in?

[@user-ur3sj5eh1h]

@@srcstcgngr2905 For breakfast, eggs, occasionally sausages and whatnot. The protein in my shake comes mainly from 1-2 scoops of whey protein so 25-50 grams of protein + the protein from 1/4 a cup of almonds + whatever else I might throw in there. I used to put 2tbsp of peanut butter but I stopped because even 1 tbsp absolutely overwhelms the rest of the flavors and I got sick of it so I opt for other nut butters and the protein in them can vary quite a lot. My lunch normally includes about 200-300 grams of chicken breast/chicken thigh. And my dinner varies quite a lot but I’d say most days it’s another 400-600 grams of meat. In terms of snacks, I really only eat trail mix and the amount I consume varies quite a lot day to day lol. I’m in a way more comfortable position atm so I can afford eating that much meat but this much is not necessary at ALL if you mix in different sources. I just really enjoy meat lol

[@filtrations]

@@user-ur3sj5eh1h whats in your shake/smoothie?

[@_Lumiere_]

.

[@jorgesotolopez204]

@@user-ur3sj5eh1h omg so you are or were eating (idk) between 600 - 900 gr of meat / chicken per day! That's a lot of money xD

[@childofivy]

My favorite cook book is the America's Test Kitchen meal prep book. It gives you a run down on what to have in your pantry, and weekly lists for each meal plan.

[@Mirsab]

Thanks

[@Darellos]

I used to do this back at college too! Got tired of eating the same food, so started just to prep stuff to mix it up together later and do different dishes. I actually got the idea because someone told me that some restaurants do that to get things fast.

[@estherhannes2483]

Having rice noodles (or wheat noodles) prepared or a simple vinaigrette is also a great idea, couscous is very quickly done as well (just add hot water). I like to have olives at hand and tomato sauce for Italian dishes and dried wakame and pre cooked shiitake mushrooms for Japanese food (quick ramen or salads)

[@ciarasomething9554]

My tip is to make 3 - 4 portions 1 for then. One for left overs then freeze the other 1 to 2. Over time you build up alot of meals

[@orcinusolive447]

Btw interesting side fact, since you haven't mentioned it: putting boiled eggs into cold water is mainly done to stop the cooking process very quickly. So if you like your eggs a bit softer and a bit liquid...y, you should totally do that.

[@giulio7918]

Isnt it to make them peel easier? I mean if you want them to stop cooking you can just pull em out earlier

[@Skund79]

@@giulio7918 It's both

[@Gabebox]

@@giulio7918 Yes but also no, because the residual heat continues to cook the egg long past the time you've removed it from the boiling water.

[@lzh4950]

Also read a guide that if you wanted to save energy to be more environmentally friendly, you could stop boiling the eggs earlier & then let them continue cooking under their residual heat

[@JRCSalter]

One of the things I do to prep is to freeze a lot of food. Yes, this does require a large freezer (mine's about the same size as my fridge), but when it's just you on your own, it makes things so much easier. Not everything can be frozen, but most one pot meals can be, as well as oven baked dishes such as lasagne or pies. I individually portion them into foil takeaway containers and so I can just take it out the freezer and put it in the oven. I dislike using the disposable containers though, and so am on the lookout for individual oven proof dishes with lids; most of the ones I find though are just a bit too large for my needs.

[@KityKatKiller]

I basically do the same. Mostly with stewed stuff. Chillis, Gulasch, etc. What also works great is basically everything you put into broth. Set up a pot of broth, throw in the frozen stuff and you've got a meal as soon as the broth cooks. This also means I don't have to prep everything in a single week. One week I'll make a big portion of one thing, the other week something else. And if there's a busy week I can afford to not make anything for that week.

[@wyvernofred]

One of my favourite "building blocks" is pork shoulder. Really cheap (about $3CAD/kg where I am) and delicious. Throw it in a slow cooker with some liquid and flavourings overnight, pull it the next day, and bam, freezable, versatile, delicious pulled pork. You can also use the leftover bones to make stock

[@wyvernofred]

It will make a LOT however so it's best for if you have other people eating it as well. It is quite versatile though not strictly necessary. My favourite use is to make pork noodle bowls. Literally just stir fried pork, noodles, and whatever veggies you like (I typically go with carrots and napa cabbage), seasoned with soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sriracha. Super tasty

[@lukehp7431]

this video is so much better than the usual “MEAL PREP THAT MAKES YOUR MUSCLES GROW EVEN WHILE YOU’RE ON THE SHITTER” i just need some meal prep as a regular student who eats regular stuff not aimed at muscles or anything in particular, just food

[@faqi4302]

This channel is so underrated. MAN, IM SO LUCKY I FOUND YOU ! Im a 11th grade high school student, who live in my grandpa house, cuz my parents house is too far from the school, and by that I need to be independent. Cuz im aware of my health, and i wanna do some work out too, i need to find meal prep that has, as you were said in the video, the goal of prepping. Before I saw this, I was kinda confused for something like, what basics meal I have to make, what type of food are them, how do I prepare them, etc. AND YOU REALLY HELP ME WITH IT. But sadly, I live in Indonesia, and there's some of the food that is hard to find, or gonna have a bit expensive price, so I have to modify some of the ingredients. But then again, thank you so much for making this video KWOOWK 💯 (sorry idk what's ur real name)

[@Fubzo]

Been following this for a year, so useful and I've really improved my skills from 0 to being a decent cook now! This video has definitely been the most helpful for me

[@nickycat101]

This is probably one the best meal planning videos i've seen so far. It really feels like you're just talking about it from a realistic point of view and I love it.

[@yaril9191]

One thing i really like to do with using the rice cooker is to put in some eggs in there. Once the rice is done, the eggs are perfectly hardboiled as well (tried it with 3 different rice cookers and works always), an easy thoughtless way to prep some extra food while you're already using it for making rice ^^

[@Blowyourtop]

Look at it as ingredient prep rather than meal prep :) This is a really helpful video for people living independently for the first time; learning how to cook, budget but make sure you're eating food that's nourishing your body. Thank you Kwoowk!

[@sonipitts]

One great option for a quick and fairly healthy "frozen dessert": Blend the frozen fruit of your choice with a light sprinkle of sugar or drizzle of agave and just enough dairy or nut milk to make it come together into a thick, ice-cream-like product. Freshly blended, it's basically a soft serve that tastes amazing and is mostly just fruit. I'll often whip a bowl up when it's hot and disgusting out and I really need to cool down and it literally takes minutes to throw together. And you can always prep it ahead of time and refreeze it if you want something more like a hard ice cream without all the unwanted extra ingredients. Frozen aging bananas definitely come in clutch here, since you can blend them all by themselves to create a very respectable, smooth and tasty "ice cream" base, and then just add other fruit for flavor. And of course, fresh or frozen fruit cooked down into a sauce is a great prep-ahead topping for your fruit 'ice cream' sundaes. 😉

[@ddelta02]

I’m a senior in high school and I’m about to go into a very busy year. Last year I really fell out of love with food, I didn’t have an ed or anything but I was just eating to stay awake or to distract myself and it was a disaster. This year I want to plan out my meals for the week and make them the night before and this video was very helpful, thank you!

[@servantofjesuschristthekin5291]

Hey❤️ I may not know you personally however I care about you deeply because I know how much you mean to Jesus Christ The King of ALL CREATION . I want to tell you that Jesus Christ loves you so much, he died for our sins so that whoever believes in him wouldn’t have to perish in hell but instead have eternal life in heaven. You need to understand that HEAVEN and HELL are 1000% REAL they aren’t imaginary , and hell is a horrible place I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. God doesn’t want you to end up there he wants you in heaven and so he is giving you a chance to accept the sacrifice of his son Jesus Christ and be saved. Day by Day the world is falling apart because we are literally living in the last days of Earth there is no doubt or debate about it, Jesus Christ is coming faster then you think to bring judgement to the world and to destroy it. This really is URGENT, it’s NOT A JOKE ,Tomorrow isn’t promised to anyone, you can be alive one minute and gone the next, please take this opportunity to be on the side of Mercy confess your sins and wicked ways to Jesus , sincerely REPENT/turn away from them, ask for his forgiveness, and be baptized at a real bible believing church- ask him to enter your heart and to be your Lord and Savior before it is too late , truly believe in him and he WILL do it because it is his promise. It’s important that you seek the righteous and Holy path of the Most high God so that you may inherit eternal life and be spared of Hell fire. You can begin a new life in Christ and have a genuine relationship with him, please repent. Jesus changed my life and he will change yours too🥰, He is coming NOW! not SOON- when you least expect it!, therefore repent and make sure you are prepared. May the Lord be with you eternally💕🙏🏾

[@noajurcevic]

I like to cook 2 days worth of food, so I still have a lot of variety while eating and I don’t have to worry what to cook for the second day. And if I don’t have time, it’s nice to have food prepared in advance and you can live with less stress, even if I love cooking.

[@renanguidolinmarcato5004]

Your content is so comforting and rich! Thanks for getting me into cooking :)

[@naomililith9350]

Also preparing a soup will be good, healthy and quick. It lasts in the fridge for about three days, and you can also freeze it quite easily.

[@anzinurnaharshamantha]

thank you so much for saying that meal prepping is unnecessary. i have always wondered how a week-old meal-prepped stale food is appetizing because it isn't

[@Janne_Mai]

This sauce looks SO GOOD. I'll have to get an immersion blender soon. Also, good tips in general! I already usually freeze half of what I cook (pasta sauces, soups...) so I can have more variety, as I cook for myself, but I should absolutely prep some potatoes or rice! I personally also like to marinate tofu and fry it as needed - I guess I could also fry it in advance!

[@awwwkitteh]

great tips! pickling veggies enhances a lot of meals, i usually make kimchi or soy-sauce cucumber to eat throughout the week. Kimchi is super versatile and goes great in fried rice. A more exciting version of boiled eggs is the marinated soft boiled eggs that is used in ramen or the chinese tea eggs. These are so good in noodle and rice dishes. As you get used to cooking, a simple dinner could take less than 30 minutes to make. I tend to cook extra for dinner and take leftovers for lunch. I definitely can't eat the same thing everyday.

[@chris582]

Excellent points with practical examples. I still do the multi day meal prep, but I freeze them. Like you, dinner Is the meal I cook for. But some days, there’s just zero energy to cook, and more importantly, clean up. So they usually last a few months as emergency rations that are near indistinguishable from something I sat down to cook for.

[@smoshfan1234]

Hey could you let me know what recipes you use as emergency rations ?

[@erazn9077]

Can you share the recipe?

[@GrangerBabeGaming]

I dont have a specific recipe for you - but anything pottable you can freeze easily. I do meal prep but for like 2 weeks at a time (~20 portions) and freeze them so i can just pick variety from what i got in the freezer. Stews, soups, sauces w protein (just make some fresh pasta/rice/quinoa on the days you want to eat it), some gratins are viable too.

[@erazn9077]

@@GrangerBabeGaming thank you thank you! I somehow didn’t notice op wrote that he freezes meals; thought it was a specific recipe

[@albertcatana4571]

Perfect representation of what mealprepping should be. Love your channel bro! Greetings from a fellow Romanian🇷🇴

[@luizagalli1892]

Man I'm addicted to this channel. I'm a brazilian student and this helps me giving me so many insights of how to prep meals. Also, too tired of eating the same stuff everyday. Thank you a lot!

[@emili3200]

I LOVED this video!! I agree that the enjoying cooking and eating is important so I never meal prepped but all of your ideas were amazing!✨ I would definitely do the mixed spice and the veggies:)

[@letsKWOOWK]

I’l glad I could help

[@silviamagda]

I really like that nutrition is really important to you. I can see that in the videos you're making. That's important for me too. And I can take a lot of meal ideas from you.

[@Lepralocura2005]

Because of how great the video was I didn't even skip the sponsor like most. Thanks for the idea, it's a far better way of meal prep, you're a cook master. Greetings

[@toothfairy430]

This is a really inspiring video. I love how it is all vegetarian friendly. It's all reasonable and makes sense. Very thorough thought put behind the whole process from start to finish. Excellent! Thank you for putting so much effort into this video to create a realistic way to cook at home for people who are short on time and money. An essential life skill.

[@Prochaska97]

An alternative to rice and quinoa is couscous imo. It's also really easy to prepare and you can do a lot with it.

[@mary-1210]

Great video! Personally, I would refrain from cooking the grains (especially rice) or pasta in advance because the properties of rice/pasta make it very susceptible to growing bacteria (which can be difficult to notice --> potential food poisoning).

[@User-vz4xm]

I agree. Fridge is not that safe for cooked rice. In Japan they usually freeze the rice instead.

[@kiaranyoom]

agreed! i just cook for the next day only

[@riryamoon2315]

oh, yes, a student dorm with an oven, rice cooker and a blender...

[@zanebecker-byrd436]

Rice cooker and blender feel reasonable to have in the dorm room, and did y'all not have a shared kitchen in the building? All of our dorm halls have ones, even the one built in 1920.

[@bigmanmccheez5342]

Would be good if you've got a communal kitchen to use. Though if you only have a microwave and kettle, you can still do a lot of cooking.

[@ha3908]

Girl we don't have a fridge 😭

[@JordanII.]

​@@ha3908 how the hell do you live without a fridge 😭

[@ha3908]

@@JordanII. I was like are you kidding me NO FRIDGE but like actually the hottest day was 27°c in this place like literally I can manage without one

[@elitessmess9222]

Thanks so much for so many useful tips I have one too: safe the rice water. It's so nutritious, at least water your plants with it 😊

[@maximecordero4020]

I really love this channel, it's so accessible and down to earth. These vidéos really help me appreciate cooking during my studies. And i really like the fact that KWOOWK makes cooking fun and accessible while having fun himself

[@dantemustson]

Man I glad that your shorts popped up in feed a couple of months ago. I like how you talk about food and I even "snatched" some recipes. Keep doing your work, you are awesome, Kwoowk!

[@elvinshoolbraid84]

Hey! I recently started keeping some sushi rice sauce in the fridge and it's super useful for obviously making sushi, but also is quite good for adding to any meal you want that kind of flavour profile for. The recipe I found is just simmering 4 parts rice vinegar, 2 parts sugar and 1 part salt for like 1 minute.

[@leowzhilin]

Tip for those who still wanna mealprep, 1) Get an instant pot from China. The kind which has 2 tiers/layers. (not sure if that's what they're called) 2) Put 1 dish with all ur mealpreped meats & veges on 1 tier. 3) & uncooked rice & Water in a dish on the 2nd tier. 4) Set pot to cook both in the morning & warm the food after. 6) Eat half of each dish for lunch & other half for dinner. - U'll always have warm food. - Doesn't require u to cook at all on weekdays. Ate this way for years. Hope it helps someone :)

[@johnmin3821]

I'm a uni student and although I don't live alone I would love to get into cooking. This channel really helps me see cooking as not an arduous task but something I can plan ahead for and have fun with. Love your content!

[@avf326]

Thank you for taking time to show slowly how to cut the veggies. I’ve bought cauliflower in the past and it intimidated me to even touch it, to take it apart. I really appreciate it. It kind of reminds me of the show don’t tell method for teaching kids something new.

[@TheSpecialJ11]

Something I like to do to inject a little variety into my cooking is buy fresh vegetables that are in season. Easiest way to do this is shop at a farmers market if you have one nearby. Buy any vegetable you can see yourself eating and find a way to cook it. You only "don't like it" when it doesn't taste good well seasoned and sauced. Do this enough and you'll know what vegetables you want to grow when you finally start that garden you've talked about for years.

[@nehadebeed8483]

as a very busy mother with two kids where food has to be nutritious for them and fast for me. I am experienced and relatively fast at making our food but i can tell you that your idea is Genius. making the basic ingredients and go as the mood go with these. I like the idea alot and definitely i am setttig down now to decide on which are my basic ingredients to prepare..i can see cooked minced beef...marinated chicken cubes...cooked pasta ...basic tomato sauce that can go with veggies or pasta or meat...two salads like hummus and green beans ...and your king ingredient is definitely the pickled onions ...looks so yummy i am definitely making them

[@meiyuc22]

another tip is always having veggies that don't require cooking, like tomatoes, cucumbers and celery.

[@esxivy1944]

Really loving your videos. I discovered you with the reels and those are great, but I think these longer videos are even better. My biggest skill upgrade when it comes to cooking is doing simultaneous things at the same time. Cleaning some dishes while i am waiting for something to boil or cutting veggies. Really really optimal

[@Mayeoli22]

I got this in my recommended videos and i saw the title. It made me a bit mad because to me, meal prepping saves time, but when you get the hang of things. I meal prepped in university and it helped me, but ultimately it did get repetitive and boring, like you said. I am so glad i watched this video because it really does help to have the essentials and building blocks to make your meals rather than making 4 plates of the same meals. I also agree that chicken, broccoli, and rice are boring when you eat them every day. You need variety to get your nutrients. Also yeah, a buff guy making meal preps can be annoying in my personal opinion. I digress. Anyway, i love this video. You gave great examples of versatile ingredients that you can use for different dishes. This kind of reminds me of a comedian skit where she described the ingredients of 3 Mexican dishes and they all had the same exact ingredients, and it makes me think we Mexicans are pretty flexible and creative by using tortillas, beans, cream, salsa, chicken, in like 4587 different dishes LOL. And that's essentially what you're doing in this video and i love it. Thank you for sharing this video! As a side note: the way i used to meal prep was to bake chicken and fish, cook quinoa and rice, roast vegetables, and make salads in small containers. I would mix and match, in a way. One day, I'd have chicken with the roasted vegetables and quinoa. The next day, I'd have fish with rice and other roasted vegetables, next day chicken with rice and veggies, next day fish with quinoa and veggies. (The vegetables were different, I'd roast 4 different veggies and mix them up). Plus one of the salads. That kept the meals from getting boring. If i only bought chicken breast, i would stuff it with cheese, mushrooms, tomato, spinach, for a different day, like Monday cheese with mushrooms, Tuesday spinach and tomato, etc. I would also buy a whole baked chicken and would use the breast as portions, I'd use some of the chicken for soups and I'd dump as many vegetables and spices as i could into the pot and that would serve as "comfort food", I'd get some of the chicken to make a chicken salad. On the side, I'd make like. Lentil soup because i love it, and I'd have side soup with my meals or have the soup for dinner. It's getting the hang of it that can be the tough part, but once you get into it, it becomes fun. Sometimes, to spice things up, I'd get chick fil a sauces to add to my food and that would make a big difference LOL. Get creative everyone!

[@vornamenachname9662]

Way more helpful and less overwhelming than all the meal prep videos I’ve seen yet 👌

[@CharlesA24]

I love your videos. I just made that tofu and veggies on rice. Really good. This is real next level tricks too. You are so right, if you stop cooking on a daily basis you become lazy and eat take out. Thanks again. btw I pre-ordered your book :)

[@ahlimahs]

I meal prep ingredients, wash & chop vegetables, marinate meat or tofu, basically do the steps that I'm unlikely to do on a week night. I also prep one soup and one entrée that freeze well & I rotate those through the month. It takes 3-4 weeks to have a good selection in the freezer but once I have that, I only have to cook for a couple of hours on the weekend to keep up that rotation

[@kevinle5460]

An instant pot is also a godsend for students. So versatile. You can steam vegetables, hard boil eggs, make curries, cook beans/rice, make pasta sauces, stews and more. At most it just requires you to saute some onions/garlic, then add spice and all your ingredients to the pot and hit the button. You can do your student stuff and come back in 30 mins and your food is all done. No need to stand by the stove to mind your creation.

[@Caiahar22]

I think you kind of missed the point of meal prep As an engineering student I barely have free time as it is, the point of it is to have a ready made lunch (especially if you commute) easily without any time spent trying to decide what you want and making it. And I know I spent too much time trying to decide what I want to eat or make. You can still have nutrition and tasty meals with meal prep

[@User-vz4xm]

Cooking a whole week worth of meals is called batch cooking. Meal prep is getting ingredients or components of the meal ready for quick cooking.

[@shadarearapt3020]

The only thing I'd do different is not sharpen the knife over the food and rinse the knife after to avoid microscopic metal shavings getting into the food.

[@adrienrenaux6211]

My favorite easy breakfast lately has been tamago kake Gohan. You microwave a bowl of rice, crack an egg in it, add seasoning and soy sauce, mix it all vigorously with chopsticks and you're done. It takes 3 minutes if you made your rice in advance

[@notequalto5179]

I started doing this over time before watching this video when i realized the ingredient prep gave me flexibility. It's fun seeing some recipe ideas here!

[@SkeleOfNi]

I always make bologna, pea soup, red pork soup and so on. at the start of the month in to the freezer. So I usually have around 20 packages of food packed there ready to go. I don't eat them every day and I've got a few options to choose from. I don't get fed up this, so the trick is to pick a few meals you can eat every other day without boredom. And it's always pretty much as good as it was the day it was made. Just need to remember to pick it out of the freezer at the start of the day. Adjust your meal prep strategies to fit you.

[@SkeleOfNi]

Making pea soup from scratch is a a bit of a hassle, takes 6-9 hours to boil, it needs to cool and you can put it the fridge then, usually end up waiting pretty long in to the night for my 10 liter pot to cool. Also you need to show it the laddle every 20 mins or so so it doesn't burn to the bottom. But, the price of 800g of dry peas, few carrots, cellery, onion and a little bit of mince meat for this pot is roughly 5 euros. And it makes 14 portions. Way worth it for me, since it comes to around 0.35€ per portion. Healthy and delicious with bread.

[@vaniareis5748]

You're something else ! This is exactly what people from the fit content needs to hear. I also find cooking a place to flourish my creativity . Your channel is quite important to make young people more conscious about quality of food and the right way to healthy and getting out the idea that meal prep sounds "fit". I agree with you cooking your food and see what we sometimes have left on the fridge it is a way to save money and eat a bunch of different flavors and best part: improvise! I am southern European and I love food: For me would be such a depressive week if I have to eat on Friday something I cooked on a Sunday afternoon ahahaha. wishing you loads of success to your project, Keep creating good food content ideas for us!

[@ThisIsAutumnAlex]

I meal prep for my 5 work days. I make 5 dinners, 2 different ones, I alternate which one I have for dinner throughout the week. My lunch sandwich rolls are the same everyday though. A seeded/wholemeal roll (the big fat ones), buttered, lettuce, ham, mature cheddar cheese, sandwich pickle spread, a fat long pickle slice and some salt and pepper. I change the dinners I make each week so I don't get bored. I like variety and my method works for me as it gives me just enough variety. I wouldn't be able to have the same thing everyday for dinner.

[@InsertMyChineseUsername]

I've been meal prepping for a couple months and it's been a blast. At home, I was always feeling sick from my parents adding sugar to everything, but now i can do whatever! I've been eating mostly the same things but I don't really get bored of yummy food

[@abdisasho]

I'm getting heavy old-school brothers green vibe, and I love it.

[@mishkaatrawjee1271]

Loovee this video! So simple and so intuitive. Regular meal prep is so boring. I prefer this method way more!

[@vanessaramirez7993]

pasta or noodles are also great! very easy to do and flexible. if you have time, you can look for a recipe online but if that's not your case it's very easy to make your own sauce with ingredients you probably already have in your fridge or just throw some store bought sauce in it. You can also mix it with veggies or protein to make it a full meal!

[@cantaloupe_9419]

we only have a small fridge in our room of three, so i only meal prep meat, some cooked veggies and maybe a side dish as rice or potatoes, but i always spend around 15 min cooking my every meal since i love to enjoy the process and make something different each day. this is literally like a meditating ritual

[@GaleGrim]

3:31 *clears throat* Don't stir. close the lid on the jar and shake and spin. Saves time and reduces spillage if the jar is just a little bit too full.

[@ayanoaman3179]

I'm picky about many of the things you made here, like pickles and cauliflower, but I love that your video is made to be suited to everyone's own taste! I'm still in school so my mom cooks for me, but since sixth grade I've asked her to let me prep my own lunchbox for school because I love being in charge of my own food. I've been sort of worried about college because I'm really hoping to go abroad and I thought I would be forced to depend on university food places which I can't be sure are halal. I'm also a great fan of meal planning (or any sort of planning XD). I really hope I have a freezer in college though (wish me a good spot!). Thanks for being awesome! :)

[@TheHabibOfMankind]

Wherever you go abroad make sure you do a quick scan of the area to find all your local shops, and don’t be scared to speak to people and ask them about groceries. Don’t worry too much, Allah will facilitate for you and you’ll be safe 🙂

[@sadlad5258]

If you do end up going abroad, I definitely reccomend checking the website of your university + sending an email to the contacts listed on the page to ask about campus/cafeteria food, so you can know in advance what your options are. Aside from that, looking up your dorm area in Google Maps and checking which nearby restaurants and markets have options that accomodate you may prove to be very useful. Hopefully it doesn't end up being too much of a hassle and you're able to enjoy the college experience to the fullest!

[@ayanoaman3179]

@@sadlad5258 thanks! I did look up the two colleges i was interested in but of course stuff may always happen. I was happy to see they did in fact offer halal food. I'll do that in the case of others too :)

[@ayanoaman3179]

@@TheHabibOfMankind inshallah...sounds like you speak from experience, where was the area of college you went to btw? How was the whole thing

[@TheHabibOfMankind]

@@ayanoaman3179 I’m planning on studying Islam in Yemen later this year and of course I have to learn to speak Arabic, but my teachers have all said once you find your house then you should speak to everyone you see and memorise the land. What country are you looking to travel to?

[@rosesaredead697]

Man I love you, you're a life saver... I hope you get the recognition you deserve ! 💖💖💖

[@sparkdorable]

Nice Video. My building Blocks is : basic spice paste (garlic,shallot,coconut oil) .store in the fridge and easy to cook many many meals

[@potatopotatoeOG]

I just do it for 2-3 days cause I’m in a very tiny, shared!!, space with one sink (for everything !) and a ‘messy’ roommate. So yeah me prep/starvation(fasting really) between meals is the way for me.

[@miminski126]

(if available) hot tip: for affordable fruit and veggies, go to a market. for affordable spices, go to an oriental or turkish store of some kind.

[@diamondzieman5508]

Your essentials are so simple but it feels so complete that I will have to take notes and buy all that for this week to see how it works out for me and my preferences

[@JJL3EE]

I absolutely love this! I think alot of meal prep videos mis the idea that by Wednesday your OVER the set meals you've decided on on Sunday. To prep elements of your meals always you to be flexible which is nice. I'm going to take these foundation into the new year.

[@yoyo3257]

3:36 we call this dokaa أو دُقة It also a salt and what ever you like of spice and we put it in fries, chicken, in food generally.

[@Raczyna]

Yeah, I saw few meal preps in this gym version. It's not that bad, but I prefer something like those in Domestic Geek channel here on YT, she has wonderful ideas, and then Dawnshiftology and her prep and serve ideas. And they are very delicious.

[@rishisharma5827]

I never knew meal prepping meant to make food for the entire week. I just cut my veges and store them so I don’t waste time on them later. I also have a weekly food plan which is quite tasty

[@roymarshall_]

This is definitely another way of doing things, but I think another huge advantage of meal prep is the complete removal of mental load. I don't have to think about food at all for an entire week, which is really valuable to me. I just get my nutrition while doing other things. One issue I have with this is that I just don't want to think at all about what I'm going to cook on a weekday night.

[@danielkelsosmith]

You should put baking powder on your chicken before cooking it in the pan. Stops the chicken from drying out. Chinese restaurants do it to keep their small strips of chicken moist. Just a tip I learnt in china. 0.5 Teaspoons per breast.

[@abhishekm3752]

The biggest issue is in my home country, food was made on fire on a gas stove. And In America, the room has no kitchen, just a microwave (which I only knew, so far, was just for heating left over meals). So I don't know how to cook with just a microwave. Add to that, I am not allowed to get an oven or cooktop etc, in short not allowed to cook.

[@reddeer1758]

Ummmm. I struggle to afford some of those 'staples' and I haven't been a student for many years (hence why I clicked on a video for students - they often feature affordable meals). I think making the same meals every day is what makes it possible for many people (including students) to eat well. I could buy in bulk and therefore buy slightly more expensive ingredients, but nothing crazy. I look at what you make and think, where does he get the money to afford that? I was a student in nz 10 years ago and flatted with 6-7 other people, but my general budget was about $80 nz for a week's worth of food. There would be no way I could afford to buy fresh coriander, tahini paste, quinoa, blueberries, cherry tomatoes, etc. Not saying there aren't some great ideas here (I love the idea of making a sauce for the whole week) but for me personally I'd have only been able to afford it when I stopped being a student and started working fulltime. Thanks for the ideas though!

[@livelife2324]

Maybe it's cheaper where he lives is the only answer I can think of, but I totally get where you are coming from

[@neptunians]

Exactly. Thank you. Its the same for me and I am not even from US.

[@imyabota5785]

ayy thats around the same budget as me. While berries etc are extremly expensive you can just change recipies. I have like 4 recipies which cost 20 Euro worth of ingredients and I can make a 4 day meal. While this is more like meal prep, although all of these recipies have barely any drop in taste and quality. The only 2 "bulding block" I use are primary, chicken breast (hella cheap compared to other protein), legumes, tortialla for leftover wraps and most importantly rice. As an Asian I cant tell you how good rice is, because you can slap it into anything that has some liquid in it making it freakin delicious. Like curry, beef stew etc.

[@oatmilkplays]

@@livelife2324 groceries in the Netherlands are expensive (especially if shopping at Albert Heijn or Jumbo like he did in the video)

[@jeremyn.4753]

speaking as a student here. idk about you but the money allocated in food is also about choices, maybe you can prioritize putting more money in food ? tahini paste can be expensive but then if you find the right one you don't need to put a lot of it in anything to have the taste, so its a buy one and keep it for a long time thing. berries are expensive when bought fresh, but u can get them frozen and the price drops dramatically and so does the concern of wasting them because you forgot about them. finally the biggest cost that you can cut is meat. even chicken is expensive when compared to plant-based alternatives like tofu or seitan. also canned legumes like chickpeas or red beans are very cheap and good protein sources.

[@darkelf444]

I do the same but for like 3 to 4 days to maintain the food fresh, I do my all purpouse tomato sauce that i can use for tomato soups, pizza sauce, shakshuka or bolognese sauce, yogurt base sauces, or pasta sauces in advance like vodka sauce or pepper sauce, the only things i have to cook are beef or some protein sources cause I prefer them fresh.

[@lucassuffo2770]

Been working in kitchen for a lot of time and men, really enjoy your videos.

[@iamtheone23]

the most realistic cook on yt. my respect.

[@rustydynamo1088]

Ok yeah cool idea, not sure about the cheap part though. Like stuff like avocado , tahini and others and other extras are definitely luxury flods for students in my country

[@silviamagda]

You can change things up according to your budget. In some parts of the world avocado and tahini are cheap. It depends on where you live and what's more affordable to you.

[@sammie9639]

I've been following you for a while and just came back to this video for inspiration again, now noticing that this was literally shot in a building right around the corner from my school haha, I love how small the world can be

[@niftybaker5967]

I can not explain how valuable this is. Thank you so much!

[@svantewiktorsson]

My meal prep is making food and then eating all of it. Sometimes it provides 6 meals, sometimes 1.

[@ammi1766]

for baked potatoes you can also just microwave them! it takes like 10-15 minutes and you get basically the same results

[@cansaruhann]

bruh. This just happened to me. I prepped my dinners and my breakfast is fruit,oat and yogurt. As you said i ordered food every weekend. Now i just prep the base of the food without any flavor but i add sauce afterwards that how i can change it everday and it is working.

[@milkhitkyu]

for me it’s also important to have comfort-eating meal(?) i mean i don’t want to smear all my face and hands with smear or keep falling out of sandwich vegetables… some meat/fish/chicken with garnish (buckwheat, fried or mashed potatoes) and dressing are just perfect

[@armandosierra731]

The way you serve that egg in cottage cheese it threw me off in a positive way man I didn't expect that that's a must try especially like one of those days where I'm not like really feeling anything that really like that threw me off for one of those days

[@void568]

i've already heard these tips because i hyperfixiate on baking/cooking/meal prepping but i stayed because your cinemaphotography.

[@shipuku0305]

for homemade tortillas, i recommend putting them in a plastic bag if you are going to put it in the fridge cuz if not, they become hard and brittle. And if you do get brittle tortillas, i just cut them into pieces, fry them with a little oil, and then, pour in eggs. Very tasty (Softer tortillas will taste better than the brittle ones). I then add some beans, chicken, or lettuce on the side and a scoop of canned chipotle. (I put homemade tortillas in the fridge because the house ants like eating them.)