Make-ahead recipes

(Bob M) #1

Anyone have ideas for make-ahead recipes? Specifically, we make them on the weekend, cool them, eat during the week. My wife has a new job where she works later, so it’s harder to make meals.

Usually, I make 1 meal on the weekend that we can eat during the week. But it would be nice to make two.

I use the following, but need more.

Braised brisket. These cook in the oven, then you cool, reheat during the week. This is an example:

Not hard to make, and tastes great reheated.

Protein lasagna (a Maria Emmerich recipe):

It’s actually best if made at least a day before you want to eat it and reheated. Takes more time to make.

Paleo chili:

I usually cook this in the oven, with the lid ajar. I also make some mods. I cut about a pound or so of chuck in chunks and add to it. I add some anchovies and naturally fermented soy sauce (though you could use coconut aminos). Could also use fish sauce (which is basically anchovies).

This also takes a bit of time to make, though once it’s in the oven, there’s nothing to do.

Another one:

We use taco seasoning and back off on the butter (I know, don’t sue me).

Anyone else have recipes like these (can make on weekend, eat later)?

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #2

Any roast would probably work for the purpose. A pork picnic is practically self-basting, with that cap of fat, so it’s dead easy to roast, and then the joint lasts for quite a few meals. If you take it out of the oven slightly underdone, then you can bring a couple of slices to the proper doneness in the oven or microwave at mealtime. A tasty meal in minutes! The bone is great for making broth or stock with afterward.

Fully-loaded cauliflower also reheats well. Make enough, and you’d be set for days. Maria Emmerich has a similar recipe in one of her books, only using Brussels sprouts instead of cauliflower. Yummy!

#3

I do cheap and easy keto meal preps based on the proteins that are on sale in a given week.

My meal preps are a variation on sheet pan meals, with a nod to slow cooking via crockpots.

#4

I would roast a bigger amount of nice fatty pork and boil 30 eggs but I like simple when I am not in experiment mode :smiley: I would pickle some of the eggs…
But a big pot of stew sounds good to me as well.
(I personally would make different type of food as well, I am used to a bigger variety but pork and eggs could work for a while, I am very much into both. Obviously other meats are good options too and any high-calorie nutritious keto food one can make a big amount of. If eating a stick of butter or a coffee with lots of cream is an option, leaner meat is fine too.)

I make zillion things in a muffin mold but only my cheesy sesame seed muffins (eggs, sesame seed, cheese, spice, simple) contains enough calories to last for more than one meal. Quiche is nice but we eat it up right away. Maybe it works better for others, I have a mini oven and as I wrote I use my muffin mold so the amount isn’t huge…

(Jane) #5

Big pots of stew and soups reheat well. I also like to keep things in the fridge when I don’t feel like cooking but need something keto to eat. Pimento cheese, chicken salad, cauli-egg salad (sub cauliflower for potato in potato salad), pot roasts, pork shoulder into pulled pork. I bake Lavash bread into crackers for the pimento cheese and chicken salad for a crunchy delivery system. Season with homemade ranch dressing mix and olive oil spray - excellent. Have to keep a close eye on them in the oven - they go from perfectly browned and crispy to burnt in a New York minute!

(Jane) #6

Pork belly roasted keeps well in the fridge. Nuke to reheat and just as good as when fresh

(Bob M) #7

Thanks for all the ideas. I’ll take a look and see what we can use. I’ll report back.

Two weeks from now is the first full week of school, kids in two days per week, out three days (schooling from home). Wife at work all five days, me at home for two days (technical support), but trying to work too. We’ll see how it goes.

#8

Pulled/shredded slow cooked meats are ideal for this, as you can use them “oven fresh” the first night with a buttered vegetable side, then in taco salad, then in a vegetable bake with cheese, then refried with bacon, chilli sauce and scrambled eggs… if there’s any left by that point! Eg.

BBQ Pulled Pork, sugar free, no sweeteners, a truly delicious recipe:
https://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes/barbecued-pulled-pork-cauliflower-cream/

Or Balsamic Beef, with a couple more carbs (leave the honey out, the balsamic is sweet enough)

Here is another recipe I cook all the time - you can marinade for a few days, then just chuck it all on a sheet pan, very easy:

Sheet Pan Chicken Tikka