Preparing meals can take a lot of time each day. Many find it hard to spend an hour or so every day to make food. They end up ordering at restaurants just to avoid the chore and continue with their day. This is especially true today when parents are burdened by their work at home while they take care of the children who cannot go to school due to safety reasons. However, buying ready meals every single day can burn a hole in your pocket. Consider searching for simple recipes that will make the activity faster and easier. You can also try batch cooking during the weekends to prepare all the meals across the week. Below are some strategies you can use for this project:
Buy Seasonal Fruits and Vegetables
Get versatile vegetables that can be used in a large number of recipes. Staples such as onion, garlic, tomatoes, potatoes, bell peppers, gingers, carrots, spinach, and cucumber should always be on-hand. You can should also add whatever is in season because these are sure to be fresh, tasty, and cheap. You can save a lot by buying what is plentiful at the farmer’s markets rather than insisting on getting the rare items. This will also ensure that you can look forward to different dishes throughout the year.
Use a Food Processor
Knives are versatile but they can be difficult to use for certain items and cuts. For example, no one wants to cut a large amount of onions for batch cooking. This makes people’s eyes tear up and their hands smell all day. By using a food processor, they can chop onions into smaller pieces in just a few seconds. They might set this aside as is or caramelize it before placing in the fridge. The can also process other vegetables in this manner, especially ones that are hard to slice. Use a crusher for garlic cloves, a mandolin for slicing large veggies, and other specialized kitchen tools to save time.
Consider Spoilage
Food will spoil if you leave it for a long time. If you are batch cooking, then you should definitely use the refrigerator to prolong their shelf life. Even then, things like rice meals might only be good for 4 days before they start to go bad. If you want them to stay fresh longer, then place them in the freezer. Then they could last for a month or more. Just be sure to cool them down after initial cooking before placing in storage.
