As much as we might want to, busy professionals can’t always be whipping up elaborate meals and foods for their families as they do in tv shows.
Life gets in the way, and between work, social commitments, extracurricular activities, and so on, finding time to get creative in the kitchen can be a struggle.
While I fully subscribe to a mise en place routine in the kitchen, I have also picked up a few helpful hacks from my husband (a cooking extraordinaire tbh!) I’m excited to share some easy ways you can cut down on kitchen time while still making healthy meals and delicious treats every day of the week.
Prepped Ingredients
Quite honestly, one of the best ways to save on meal prep time is to buy pre-prepared foods such as veggies and fruit. Chopping and cutting up your ingredients can be time-consuming; however, if they’re already done, you can simply add them to the pots or your recipes with little fuss.
You can buy pretty much anything pre-prepared these days, depending on your preferences but there is no denying that this is a handy tip for busy parents in the kitchen.
Sheet Pan/One Pot Meals
What is more enticing than being able to throw everything together and leave it to do its thing? From using sheet pans in the oven to One Pot’s and slow cookers, there are multiple ways you can cut down on the prep and cooking time as well as the clean up afterward. After all, who wants to be tied to the sink after cooking a delicious meal?
All you need to do is to get all the ingredients in the recipe together, add them to your cooking method of choice and let it cook until ready. You can find many different one-pot or sheet-pan recipes online to help you out too.
Microwave & Airfry
The microwave and airfryer are quite possibly one of the best inventions for the kitchen in recent years. You will be surprised to learn how many different things you can make or heat in the microwave.
From the ever-popular mug cake recipe, you’ll love and even making sweet potato chips, there are so many doors you can make or prepare in the microwave to help you cut down on kitchen time and still serve up delicious meals.
Meal Prep
There seems to be a love-hate thing going on in recent years with meal prep. For those who it works for there are many benefits to meal prepping. However, not all families have the space or resources to do so. Meal prepping is basically preparing your meals ahead of time and storing them in a fridge or the freezer to heat up when needed.
It can save a lot of time and effort on busy days however it does involve being uber-organized and having the initial time to make and prepare all the foods to store, especially if you have a big family. Easier options include making more food when you make a meal such as soups or stews for example. Then freeze the leftovers to use.
Meal Plan
Lastly, meal planning can be a lifesaver on busy days. Knowing in advance what you are making can ensure you have shopped for all the required ingredients and allows you to simply pull everything out and get it without umming and ahhing over what to make.
Plus, if you know what is coming up, you can prep some of their steps ahead of time, e.g. preparing veggies on a previous day if you’re already using the same for another day’s meals, or making sauces ahead of time to pull out on the day.
Conclusion
These are just some simple ways you can take some of the time and effort out of preparing meals each day to make your life easier. As busy professionals and parents, finding ways to cut back on the workload is vital to allow you to spend more time doing the things that you love without compromising too much.
