Why i keep trying vegan meal prep even tho i suck at consistency
honestly? i got tired of feeling like garbage after eating fried stuff every night. also my bank account was like “bro stop”. couple months ago i did one big shop at trader joe’s and decided to force myself into vegan meal prep ideas that weren’t instagram-perfect. no spiralized zucchini nonsense. just normal food i won’t hate by wednesday.
big thanks to minimalist baker and love & lemons for recipes i keep coming back to—they’re forgiving when you mess up measurements like i do. check their vegan meal prep roundup if you want something less chaotic than my version.
The lazy framework i actually follow (most weeks)
one grain batch, one protein batch, roast a ton of veggies, make a sauce in like 30 seconds, breakfast jars. then mix match eat repeat until i get bored or it goes bad (usually the former).
breakfast – overnight oats that are edible 80% of the time
oats + oat milk (califia farms bc it doesn’t separate weird) + tablespoon chia if i remember + little maple + pinch salt. shake jars. forget in fridge. top later with whatever fruit isn’t moldy.
monday-tuesday: frozen blueberries + pb wednesday on: apple chunks + cinnamon because blueberries ran out
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once i forgot the milk and just had dry oats with fruit on top. still ate it. send help.
mine never look this cute but close enough
Lunch – chickpea veggie bowls mostly
roast whatever veggies were on sale (broccoli sweet potato zucchini peppers onions) at 425° with oil salt garlic powder. sometimes i add cumin or chili flakes if i’m feeling extra. quinoa or farro base (farro is cheaper lately idk). chickpeas – drain rinse toss with whatever seasoning. lazy tahini sauce: tahini lemon garlic water salt – whisk till it looks edible.
eat warm first couple days. cold or room temp later. sometimes i roll it in a tortilla when i’m over bowls.
inspo from cookie and kate’s roasted veggie bowls but i skip half the steps.
Dinner – reheats or quick pan stuff
tofu scramble if i pressed it (i usually don’t and it’s watery… still good). or ginger soy veggie stir fry with whatever’s left. lentil soup when it’s freezing out – i make too much and freeze half then forget it exists.
The part where i admit how much i mess up
labels? sometimes i write “chickpea” and nothing else. ate three-day-old mystery quinoa once. roasted veggies burnt black on the bottom because i answered a work text and forgot the timer. smoke alarm screamed. dog next door barked. classic.
by friday i’m usually like “this is close enough to vegan” and add cheese to something. don’t judge. baby steps.
still… doing vegan meal prep ideas like this has cut my takeout bill in half and i don’t feel like absolute trash every afternoon. small wins.
