30 Make-Ahead Meals that are Quick & Easy

We are just coming off another stretch of solo-parenting while SoldierBoy was off training.  It was yet another reminder to me that one of the most difficult parts of those days is mealtime!

When the kids were younger, they were thrilled with multiple nights of sandwiches.  And even going out for fast-food was a regular occurrence because they were pretty cheap to feed.  These days, neither of those are true!  I love to cook but my time is even more limited than it is when he isn’t away.

How I plan solo-night meals

When SoldierBoy is away, I try to keep dinners pretty simple with a few guidelines.

• More real/whole food than not when balanced over the week
• Allow myself to use shortcuts without any guilt (jarred spaghetti sauce, bagged salad, etc.)
• 1-2 sides a week that I can multiply and serve for a few nights (Two nights of Mexican or Italian so, for example, I can use one batch of Mexican rice or garlic pasta each time.)
• Most nights, meals need to be make-ahead dishes
• The other nights must be quick to put together
• Other sides consist mostly of baked potatoes, fresh fruit & veggies, and pretzels.
• Sandwiches & leftovers once a week, usually at the end of the week

I go down the list and pull one idea from each category.  That takes care of 5 nights.  (If I want to plan one side dish for two nights, I just pick two from one category or plan one at the end of one week and the other at the beginning of the next week.) One more night is designated for leftovers.  For the seventh night, I leave it loosey-goosey.   We may do more leftovers, we may order a pizza, maybe I’ll pull something out of the freezer.  I always plan something but know that it may change.

Every weekend, I block off at least an hour to do as much preparation as I can.  Two one-hour long blocks can mean that most of my week’s meal prep is done, including dicing veggies, putting ingredients together, etc.  It can be hard to find these hours some weekends but they are critical! 

Make-Ahead Meal Ideas

I have grouped similar items together, so you can choose a couple meals that you could serve one side dish for both. In addition to the favorite side dishes listed, I always serve some type of raw fruit and/or veggie with dinner.   I have also included make-ahead notes.

Tex-Mex
{Favorite side dishes include Mexican rice, yellow rice (homemade or store-bought), baked hush puppies and/or pineapple.}

1. Enchilada soup {This soup freezes well & keeps in the fridge. I think it out with chicken broth or water when I’m ready to serve it.}
2. Frozen burritos
3. Nachos with taco ground beef {Taco meat can be made ahead and it freezes well.}
4. Chicken soft tacos {We like these ranch tacos & these lime tacos, both of which go in the slow-cooker & freeze well.  Alternatively, we like shredded beef & pork carnita soft tacos, as well.}
5. Latin pork kabobs

Italian
{Favorite side dishes include garlic pasta, salad with pepperoni on it, garlic drop biscuits, grilled polenta slices, Italian seasoned pretzels (which stay good for a couple weeks), MORE}

1. Meatball subs {We love the meatballs from Costco.}
2. Italian pork roast
3. Lasagna soup {This soup rests well in the fridge for a few days ahead, just wait to add the pasta & optional cream until you heat it up to serve.  I also freeze it with those same directions.}
4. Easy ravioli bake  {You can prep the ravioli bake earlier in the day, just cut back the cook time.  Biscuits can be made ahead & frozen.}
5. Easy Parmesan Chicken Bake  {Minus the bread crumbs, this can be prepped earlier in the day or even frozen.}
6. Chicken carbonara
7. Pizza chicken
8. Lasagna roll-ups{These roll-ups freeze beautifully, so you can take out just how many you want.  You can adapt your family’s favorite lasagna recipe to this method.}
9. Spicy Italian pork cutlets

Asian
{I always use brown rice for extra nutrition, just plan a little further ahead!  Pineapple & sugar-snap peas are favorite sides.}

1. Stir-fry {The sauce we like best can be made ahead or even frozen into smaller portions.  Buy store-bought cut veggies to save even more time.  I also make stir-fry kits for the freezer.}
2. Korean beef {Korean beef can be made ahead or made ahead & frozen.}
3. Teriyaki or bourbon chicken {There is no actual bourbon involved!  Both of these sauces freeze well or can be made ahead.  Warm gently & toss with the chicken.}
4. Mongolian beef  {Again, this sauce freezes well or can hang out in the fridge for several days.}

Sandwiches
{If I want to make sandwiches seem a little more exciting, I upgrade the bread to Hawaiian rolls, little sub rolls, etc.  My kids are so thrilled when I buy those.  Favorite sides include fresh fruit & veggies, tater tots cooked in the waffle maker, Triscuits, and pasta salad.}

1. Hamburgers {Hamburger patties can be shaped & frozen raw or made up to a day ahead.}
2. French dip {Slow cooker, which also freezes well, or made with deli roast beef.}
3. Hawaiian roll sliders {I make these in the morning or at lunchtime and pop them into the fridge until dinner.  Here are a few ideas: barbecue chicken or pork, ham & swiss, pizza)
4. Slow-cooker barbecue {beef, pork, chicken…}
5. Slow-cooker shredded meats {Some of our favorites are Italian beef, chipotle pork, and adobo pork.)
6. Turkey sloppy joes {If I don’t want to use that recipe, I buy Manwich.  A couple alternatives my kids love are pizza joes & Tex-Mex joes.  Both of those recipes are very adaptable to your family’s tastes.  All of these freeze well or can be made a few days ahead.)
7. BBQ Chicken Wraps {The chicken can go into the marinade the night before or in the morning.  If I make a double batch, I freeze one half to use in these wraps another night.}
8. Slow-Cooker buffalo chicken ranch sandwiches

Anything Else

1. Whole-wheat waffles, bacon or sausage, grain-free banana muffins & smoothies.  {I make large batches of waffles to freeze.  The meat will stay good in the fridge for a couple days or frozen after cooking, as can the muffins.  Smoothies can be frozen also, either in smoothie kits or prepared and frozen.}
2. Chile lime chicken kabobs
3. Mississippi roast over egg noodles {Lovingly called hurricane roast in our home, watch the video to find out why!}
4. Honey citrus chicken on a big salad {I’ve marinated the chicken up to 24 hours in advance as well as frozen it in the marinade.}
5. Costco meatballs, soft pretzels and red sauce.  {The pretzels freeze well.  Sometimes I sprinkle garlic powder on the pretzels.  My kids love to dip the pretzels in the red sauce.}