As we head back to school and back to the busy routines of Fall, let Le Creuset help you master meal prep during this bustling season with our formula for stress-free meals. It follows this simple 1 + 1 = 4 equation:
1 Do-it-all Dish + 1 Protein = 4 Delicious Meals
This method can be used on any large format protein, including a turkey breast, pork shoulder or beef roast. All you really need is an oven, some staple ingredients, and one large do-it-all dish – like a Dutch Oven, Chef’s Oven, Braiser, Roaster or baking dish like the Heritage Rectangular Casserole. Using this strategy, the bulk of cooking is done once, allowing you to get mileage out of the meals all week long. It will help you start the week feeling prepped and ready for anything.
The most versatile and easiest place to show how to implement this method is with a whole chicken. Start with a simply prepared roast chicken over the weekend, and then use the meat in four different delicious meal options throughout the week.
Variation #1: Weeknight Dinner
The first step is to cook the protein in a large Dutch Oven. Large cuts of meat such as a pork loin or shoulder, side of salmon, whole fishes, and turkey breasts can all be found in markets year round and can be used in multiple ways. To get the most out of your meat, season the protein simply, with salt, pepper and maybe a little garlic or onion powder. This way the meat can be incorporated into many different cuisines, from Mexican to Chinese to Italian. For the first night, plan to enjoy the meal as is, hot out of the oven. And if you roasted the meat with vegetables or potatoes, your side dish is already made as well for the easiest one-pot meal.
Get the Recipe: Whole Roasted Chicken with Potatoes and Carrots
Variation #2: Weekday Lunch
After doing the bulk of the cooking, a crunchy, fresh salad is the perfect quick and easy option for a weekday lunch. With meat cooked simply with salt and pepper, you can go in any direction with the flavors so that it feels like a brand-new meal. Stock up on a variety of mixed greens, cabbages and crisp, pre-cut veggies in the fridge so that you can mix it up each week. And by making a few different salad dressings during your weekly prep time, you can pull together dinner in less than 5 minutes. This Crunchy Cabbage Chicken Salad features a Ginger Soy Vinaigrette that could also be multi-tasked later in the week on grain bowls, seared fish or steamed veggies.
Get the Recipe: Crunchy Cabbage Chicken Salad with Ginger Soy Vinaigrette
Variation #3: Make Ahead Meal
Homey, comforting pot pie is a crowd-pleasing way to repurpose any cooked protein. Easy to make ahead of time and reheat at dinner, pot pie can be made with lobster, turkey and of course our hero: chicken. No matter the meat, the basics of this recipe are the same. Sauté veggies, make a light roux, then create a creamy sauce. Add in some vegetables and bake under a buttery crust. And if you’re trying to save time in the kitchen, flaky puff pastry is a delicious choice for topping a pot pies made in a traditional Heritage Pie Dish, small Dutch Oven or individually in Mini Cocottes. In any format, pot pie is a great way to stretch small amounts of meat into a complete meal. Add a simple side salad and dinner is done.
Get the Recipe: Lattice-topped Mini Chicken Pot Pies
Variation #4: Make a Soup or Stew with the Rest
Soup and stews are hearty ways to feed a crowd with leftover cooked meat, especially in the case of a whole roasted chicken or turkey. The remaining bones are also still useful and it’s a simple task to extract every bit of flavor in them into a stock. The flavorful liquid can then be used with the last bits of meat to make a heart-warming soup or stew. Make sure you remove all the meat before simmering the bones or all of that delicious flavor will be lost to the liquid. Since the meat is cooked ahead of time, you simply add it at the end of making a soup to quickly reheat. Bonus that you can use the same stockpot for the stock, as well as the finished soup or stew for easy cleanup.
Get the Recipe: Spinach and Lemon Chicken Soup with EggTips for Meal Prep Success in the Kitchen
With the right tools and strategy in the kitchen, the 1+1=4 method can be used in a wide variety of ways. Here are some tips to optimize meal prep so you can be confident that you are minimizing your time cooking, and spending more time with your family.
- Invest in a large format enameled cast iron Le Creuset Dutch Oven, Chef’s Oven, Braiser or Signature Roaster, as well as plenty of sizes of baking dishes. With our legendary superior performance, these pieces will allow you to cook a substantial volume of food all at once with perfect results and easy cleanup every time.
- Choose large cuts of meat. Keep an eye out for sales so that you can get whole turkeys, pork loin and chickens and freeze. Have them on hand so that you not only save time but money as well.
- Make a meal plan each week for how to best utilize the cooked protein in as many ways as possible. Cooked meats can be incorporated into family meals at home as well as work and school lunches to-go.
- Store leftovers with labels. That way no one else in the house eats leftovers that were intended for another meal.
- Use a ‘no-recipe’ concept with leftover protein. You can easily add cooked chicken, shrimp or turkey to quesadillas, omelets, wraps and simple salads for endless variations using what you have on hand.
- Designate a shopping and cook day where you get all the ingredients and prep for the week. Cook the main protein, mix up any sauces or salad dressings, wash and chop any veggies and cook pasta and grains for adding into salads and soups.
