Cristyb111 Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 I'm pretty proud of myself... Got my roast ready for the crockpot by parting dry, removed major fat parts, cut up veggies, seasoned and even seared the meat! (Never do e that before) thankfully I'm off work today... This whole process took me over 45 min. And I still haven't had breakfast yet ... Starting that now! I'm really starting to see that whole 30 will be successful in major part to pre-planning and always staying ahead of the days meal. I think I should be planning for next weeks meals now!! Anyone else finding difficulties with just planning and changing this part of your life...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Real Food Y'all Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 YES. I just started my second Whole30 (on day 3). During my first Whole30 (over a year ago), my biggest complaint was not about all the treats I was missing out on, but the constant planning. I felt like I was thinking about nothing but food. And I live with people who want nothing to do with paleo, so I have to eat something different than what they're eating, and prepare my food while they're preparing theirs, cramped into a tiny kitchen. Fridge and freezer space is a huge issue too. It just gets really, really old, and I don't feel like I ever got used to it enough to keep doing it, and just went back to eating whatever my Mom cooked. Very frustrating. I'm hoping to get the hang of it this time. Which will be difficult as I'm working more hours now.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LauraLish Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 It is difficult at first, but in time it becomes second nature. I automatically know what staples to reach for in the grocery store (eggs, butter for ghee, avocados, etc.) but I also keep a running list when I stumble upon a good recipe. You will develop your own methods in the kitchen to start saving time. For example, if I need an onion in a dish I go ahead and chop 2 or 3. I make sure after each step I move the used dishes to the dishwasher so I never have a sink full of dirty dishes. And great job on the prep this morning, now you'll come home to a perfectly cooked meal tonight! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cristyb111 Posted January 7, 2014 Author Share Posted January 7, 2014 Thank you.. LauraLish, anyone else have some easy recipes for sides? I'm only on day 2 ... Starting to feel the headache hangover starting as I sip my black coffee.. :/ still getting used to this... I made a great sweet potatoe bake... This is for my lunches that I pack for the week, but what about more dinner side options with your meats? By the way, I've been on this forum for a week, just reading and researching and it is absolutely a life saver to get on here and read what real people are going through, successes and learning lessons. I so don't feel alone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angekfire Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 I came up with an awesome asparagus dish a while back that was super simple and delicious. Works best with asparagus tips if they are available. I wouldn't recommend cooking in advance and saving them though. -1/2 a bundle of asparagus -2 minced garlic cloves -Squeeze about 1/4 of a lemon for juice directly into pan -cook in a pan at medium heat with olive oil for 5-7 minutes, or until they are tender. -Finish wish a light drizzle of compliant balsamic vinegar, salt & pepper to taste. For garnish, lightly toast some almond slivers in oil at low heat until slightly brown. I recommend hazelnut or coconut oil, but olive oil would work fine too. I recommend it as a side to fish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mchavez Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 My suggestions would be: Never make just enough for one meal. Double (at the least) everything. We pack it for lunches, eat it for breakfast, or freeze it for another time. Make at least one whole chicken a week. Crock pot or oven. Then you have chicken for a few different meals and bones for broth. When I do a major prep day, I keep all the bits and pieces of veg that don't get used in a bag in the freezer. Carrot ends, tomato cores, pepper tops, onion ends and the like. Then when it comes time to make broth, just dump it in. Also very handy to have for emergency veg stock, I have actually used it twice recently, once when I was sick and could not eat a thing and once when I found out the stock I had on hand had honey in it! Keep lightly cooked veg in the fridge in a variety, then you can stir fry, saute or roast whatever suits you. I have diced veggies to mix with eggs, brocoli florets, chopped cabbage and sliced red peppers all lightly steamed right now, plus two fully cooked super large sweet potatos, diced sweet potatoes already fried, blanched kale, a thawed out box of chopped spinach and raw carrot sticks and cucumber sticks in my fridge right now. Sounds like a lo, but it is not! Hope this is helpful! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anzadel Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 First whole30 for me, but I've been doing batch cooking for a long time. I enjoy cooking and meal planning, I look forward to my shop/chop/cook day but I am weird like that! Lots of good tips here already but another thing I try to do is that if I have the oven on, I look for anything else that might need to be cooked. For example last night I was making sweet potato fries for dinner. So I looked int he fridge and thought "hmm...what else can I cook off?" I grabbed the bag of beets in the fridge tossed them in a pan. Got all my bell peppers and put them on a pan as well as a bag os sunchokes. I line my cookie sheets with tin foil, so when I take them out of the oven, I let it cool, wrap up the foil and toss the pack in the fridge. I love root veggies so I will often roast enough for a few days at a time. A lot of recipes have 'down time' which is when I will either do the dishes or look for other small kitchen tasks I can do since Im in there anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reimrno Posted January 8, 2014 Share Posted January 8, 2014 You might check out this blog from the author of Well Fed: http://www.theclothesmakethegirl.com/2014/01/04/whole30-2014-week-2-food-plan/ I love the recipes and the approach of doing one day of serious meal prep per week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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