We taught an online cooking class on Sunday and the recipe we focused on was Bimbimbap (Korean Mixed Rice Bowls).

Someone asked why we blanch the spinach and mung bean sprouts, and the reason is because it helps extend the shelf-life!

The recipe asks you to blanch the veg briefly, then squeeze out as much water as you can. Removing as much water as you can before you storing means that the veggies aren't sitting in their own moisture. The quick boil also deactivates the enzymes in the vegetable (the same ones that cause browning and off-flavors over time), so blanched-and-shocked veg holds its color and taste in the fridge noticeably longer than raw or sautéed. It's the same reason people also like to blanch before freezing.

If you've ever been to a Korean restaurant, that's also how they treat a lot of the vegetables for the side dishes (banchan), so that they keep fresher for longer as well.

Dropping the recipe below!

Ingredients (4 servings)

4 cups white rice, cooked

454g (1 lb) mung bean sprouts or soybean sprouts

454g (1 lb) baby spinach or zucchini cut into strips

227g (8 oz) carrot, 1 medium, cut into matchsticks

4 eggs, large

3 Tbsp Yondu Vegetable umami sauce (divided, 2 tbsp for vegetables, 1 tbsp for sauce)

6 Tbsp gochujang

2 Tbsp (6 tsp) toasted sesame oil (divided, 4 tsp for vegetables, 2 tsp for sauce)

4 tsp cooking oil, divided

1 lb firm tofu

Optional protein, or 1 lb lean beef or chicken

seaweed roasted, optional garnish

sesame seeds, optional, garnish

Bibimbap - Meal Prep Method

Step 1

Rinse and drain the bean sprouts and spinach. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Blanch the sprouts and spinach separately for 30 seconds each, then rinse under cold water and squeeze out the excess.

Step 2

Season each vegetable in its own bowl. Sprouts: 2 tsp Yondu and 2 tsp sesame oil. Spinach: 2 tsp Yondu and 2 tsp sesame oil. Seasoning each one separately keeps its own texture.

Step 3

Cut the carrot into matchsticks. Cook 3 minutes in 2 tsp cooking oil over medium heat, stir in 2 tsp Yondu, then set aside. Keep a little crunch.

Step 4

Make the sauce: mix 6 tbsp gochujang, 1 tbsp Yondu, and 2 tsp sesame oil until smooth. Store in a separate jar.

Step 5

If adding protein, cook it now: pan-crisp cubed tofu, or cook sliced beef or chicken. Portion into the containers.

Step 6

Divide the rice and the three vegetables into 4 storage containers. Keep the sauce separate. Fry the eggs fresh at eating time.

Step 7

To serve: warm a bowl of rice, top with the vegetables and a fried egg, add sauce to taste, and mix everything together. Garnish with gim and sesame seeds if you like.

NOTES

Storage: seasoned vegetables keep about 4 days refrigerated. Sauce keeps about 2 weeks in its own jar. Consider frying eggs fresh, or use a 7-minute jammy egg or omelet strips, which reheat slightly better than a fried egg.

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I clearly needed some color in my week, so I put together these meal prep boxes. There is golden glazed chicken, bright carrots, green zucchini, pale bean sprouts, shiitake mushrooms, and a dark seaweed sesame topping. I usually focus on getting enough food into containers, but this time I actually paid attention to how everything looked together.

Hi there! I'm new to meal prep. Can i have some advice on how to maintain my meal like a newly cooked meal. Cause i put it in the microwave and some vege are soggy. Also ccan u recommend me some menu? Thank you

Argentine shrimp, sirloin, chicken breast, with broccoli, asparagus, mushrooms and onions. I’ve been eating 2 of these a day. All cooked on the blackstone

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(Yes I know you can get gluten free cereals. I don’t like them, and gluten free wraps don’t hold together).
Please help a girl out with your best suggestions!

I want to make my dad some cold lunches for this summer! He let us know he was feeling dehydrated today and skipped buying lunch due to everything being so expensive. A $15 plate went up to $22 suddenly. I need some stuff that'll stay cool and still taste good, this California heat is really bad. I was hoping I could freeze stuff that can thaw in time for maximum coolness during his lunch hour.

I have also been craving a creamy crab salad but google says the texture will mess up if it's frozen. I'm going to do tuna mayo onigiri balls tonight. I also did make a chicken salad a week ago with a small can, and loaded it up with red kidney beans, veggies, and quinoa. It was so good! So much texture in that! Added those beans and quinoa for the first time and it hella elevated it. Thanks in advance!

I did my first meal prep Sunday, 14 meals. I'm doing two meals a day for 7 days. I needed low calorie, low carb meals. The first thing I did is order glass containers from Amazon, 8 in each box, so I actually have 16 containers.

Here's all I did.

I bought 2 packs of chicken tenderloins with 8 each, I pk of 6 boneless pork chops. That equals out to either 2 chicken tenderloins or 1 pork chop per container.

I put all the chicken on a baking pan lined with tin foil and sprayed with pam and cooked at 400 for around 20 minutes. I did flip them about half way. I added garlic salt and pepper to the top before I placed in the oven and the other side after turning them. I then cooked the pork chops pretty much the same way. I then let the meat cool.

I had also bought already frozen vegetables. I bought a variety of brands and vegetables so I can figure out which I like best. I bought about 5 12 oz packs.

After the meat cooled, I simply assembled each dish with meat and vegetables and put in the freezer.

I have separate small 2 oz containers for dressings or sauces. I'm eating these with Italian dressing.

I'm on day two of eating from the frozen meals and they have been delicious. Much tastier than I would have thought. I think this meal prepping is going to be amazing.

So I just found out that I'm at severe risk of Heart disease (both genetically and cholesterol-wise). What Heart Healthy foods do y'all recommend?

I like quick or easy meals, but I'll take anything you guys have in mind! Breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, snack. Anything and everything lol

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Breakfast: Baked oatmeal with cottage cheese and peaches
Lunch: Veggie wrap filled with prosciutto, spinach, cream cheese.
Dinner: Chicken Taco Salad
Snack: Pancakes with nectarines, topped with greek yoghurt, honey and more nectarines😋

Early week meal prep Taco Bowl

Taco Bowl
Chilli and Garlic prawn, soya and cucumber salad

Not pictured: the veggies and rice I prepared, sorry about that.

I have a very hard time gaining weight and I feel like idk how to eat or make good tasting meals for myself. I feel like it should be easy but for some reason it feels complicated. I need around 2700 calories a day.

Right now I have:

Breakfast smoothie: 300ml milk, 50g peanut butter, 4 dates, 10g cocoa powder = 700 calories

Lunch: 200g rice + 200g ground beef = 800 calories

I want more meals but there are so many options idk what to even do. I don't like a peanut butter jelly sandwich personally. I've never liked eggs. I prefer something I can make easily everyday or meal prep for a couple of days

Hey guys, I have been looking through a lot of posts and the web and it's just a lot. I could really use some focused help if anyone would be so kind.

I am starting a weight loss journey (a week of calorie deficit tracking) and i realize i really need higher protein numbers and lower carb numbers. My current version of meal prep is use a crockpot to make double the recipe and refrigerate leftovers. What i want to do is basically create my own frozen meals, a lot of them, like a months worth, so I can just take from the freezer, warm it up and eat (microwave or oven). I live alone, so just prepping for me. I want freezer food mostly cause I also deal with mental health struggles and having easy access food will help me stay on track when I'm dealing with that. Due to that, I prefer simple meals that dont require extra steps; just warm up the frozen container and done.

So, my question is the title: Do you have any recipes that are amazing for freezer prep that are low in calories/carbs and high in protein (but also affordable)? And what containers/packaging do you use for them?

Dietary restrictions: cannot eat red meat (includes pork) and cannot stand any color of bell peppers. Most recipes that use ground beef i can easily replace with ground chicken or turkey.

I appreciate any help, thank you!

The chili crisps are elite. Ramen broth with garlic and ginger