Making Meals Ahead

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Jim and I are working the evening shift at our job this season. This means that on Sunday, Monday, and Thursday, we get off at eight o’clock. On Friday and Saturday we don’t get off until ten o’clock, and that will change soon to eleven o’clock. It also means that we are not eating the way we should, mostly because I don’t feel like cooking anything when I get off work so late. This is made even harder since I am a diabetic and also recently changed to a gluten free diet.

Today I took a couple of hours to do some things in the kitchen so that we can have a light meal when we get home, or that we can grab on the run when we get a slow minute on the job.

First, I cooked three days worth of meats, packed them in plastic containers, and put them in the fridge. I made our favorite “Chicken and Salsa”, then just cooked some ground beef and some italian sausage. Making “Gluten Free Chicken and Salsa” is easy. You just skin your chicken pieces, brown them in some olive oil, add a jar of your favorite salsa, cover, and simmer for about 25 minutes. Served over rice, it is a delicious and filling meal. It is really quick to make, but even this is too much to attempt when you don’t get off work til ten o’clock. It keeps well in the fridge, then just microwave for a couple of minutes at meal time.

Next, I cooked up a batch of rice. I have found that when I store cooked rice in a ziplock bag in the refrigerator, it keeps well and heats up fast. I made enough rice to last four or five days. I can serve it with anything and it is gluten free.

After that, I chopped up tomatos, mushrooms, red onions, green onions, and lettuce. I made a big salad with some of it, then put the rest of each item in plastic containers in the refrigerator, so that we can make a salad quickly when we need one. I also boiled a dozen eggs, peeled them, and put them in a ziplock bag in the fridge. They’ll be gone way before they have a chance to go bad.

Now that all that is done, I can make a quick batch of chili or ghoulash with the ground beef, and spaghetti with the italian sausage (gluten free noodles, of course). I can have a side salad with a meal, or I can make us a chef salad with boiled eggs, turkey or ham on top. It only took a little time to do this, and it will help us eat better this week.