17 High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas That are Easy to Make (2024)

With at least 15 grams of protein per serving, these make-ahead meals are filling and nutritious choices for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Plus, with only three steps or less, these dishes are especially easy to prepare. Recipes like our Sheet-Pan Egg Sandwiches and Meal-Prep Chili Lime Chicken Bowls are simple yet nutritious ideas to spruce up your meal plan and help you stay fueled during busy weeks.

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Muffin-Tin Omelets with Sausage & Gruyère

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17 High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas That are Easy to Make (1)

With a little help from your trusty muffin tin, you can meal-prep a week's worth of protein-rich muffin-tin eggs like these with sausage and Gruyère to stash away in the fridge or freezer for those extra-busy mornings.

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Chopped Rainbow Salad Bowls with Peanut Sauce

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17 High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas That are Easy to Make (2)

Make good use of crunchy and colorful seasonal produce in these meal-prep-friendly vegetable bowls. With just 30 minutes of prep, you get four healthy lunches that are ready to grab-and-go. We use bulgur, which cooks faster and is higher in fiber than brown rice, but you could swap in quinoa (or any hearty whole grain). Feel free to add chopped cooked chicken, shrimp or tofu for extra protein.

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Meal-Prep Chili-Lime Chicken Bowls

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17 High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas That are Easy to Make (3)

Skip takeout and whip up these equally delicious and easy-to-make burrito bowls at home. They're great for a fast and easy dinner or a healthy meal to pack for work throughout the week.

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Sheet-Pan Egg Sandwiches for a Crowd

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17 High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas That are Easy to Make (4)

Hosting a crowd for the holidays or another occasion? Forget cooking individual servings of eggs and make these easy sheet-pan egg sandwiches instead. One batch makes enough bacon, egg, cheese and vegetable sandwiches to serve 12 people in the time you'd normally spend prepping breakfast for one or two people.

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Slow-Cooker Creamy Lentil Soup Freezer Pack

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17 High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas That are Easy to Make (5)

Prep the ingredients for this soup months in advance for a total hands-off meal that's ready when you are. Vegetarian lentils and vegan coconut milk make this soup creamy and pack in plenty of plant-based protein and a hearty amount of fiber. To keep it vegan, opt for vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.

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Muffin-Tin Spinach & Mushroom Mini Quiches

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17 High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas That are Easy to Make (6)

Switch up your morning routine with these easy vegetarian mini quiches. Earthy mushrooms and spinach pair nicely with rich and creamy Gruyère cheese. Serve them on a platter with a fresh fruit salad for a simple weekend brunch.

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Instant Pot White Chicken Chili Freezer Pack

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Prep all of the ingredients for this hearty soup and freeze until you're ready to cook it for a fast meal. All you have to do is pop the frozen ingredients into your multicooker and turn it on. Using a pressure cooker to make this warming pot of chili results in extra-tender chicken that's easy to shred. The addition of chopped zucchini and corn gives each bowl a nutritional boost.

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Classic Cobb Mason Jar Salad

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17 High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas That are Easy to Make (8)

Pack classic Cobb salad upside down in a mason jar for a healthy lunch that won't get soggy while sitting in the fridge all morning. Or pack it up the night before for an easy grab-and-go lunch in the morning. Choose the tangiest aged blue cheese you can find; its flavor will go a long way.

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Vegan Burrito Bowls with Cauliflower Rice

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17 High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas That are Easy to Make (9)

These meal-prep vegan burrito bowls are healthier and more flavorful than takeout. Make them early in the week for grab-and-go meals when days are busy. We use frozen cauliflower rice, a low-carb substitute for white or brown rice, to cut down on prep time.

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Spicy Ramen Cup of Noodles

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17 High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas That are Easy to Make (10)

Make your own cup of instant soup at home with this vegetarian ramen recipe. Pack several jars at once to take to work for easy lunches throughout the week.

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Tuna & White Bean Salad

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The time-honored Italian pairing of canned tuna and cannellini beans makes a super-simple, satisfying lunch. Serve over salad greens, on grilled whole-wheat country bread or tucked in a whole-wheat pita pocket.

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Buffalo Chicken Grain Bowl

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17 High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas That are Easy to Make (12)

Get the flavors of spicy Buffalo chicken wings, without frying, in this nutritious couscous bowl loaded with protein and crisp veggies.

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Chopped Cobb Salad

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17 High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas That are Easy to Make (13)

This single-serving recipe for Cobb salad swaps chicken in for bacon, which makes it a great source of protein for lunch. If you prefer another salad dressing, feel free to use that instead of our honey-mustard vinaigrette.

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Pesto Chicken & Cannellini Bean Soup

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This healthy, Italian-inspired chicken soup recipe is loaded with fiber-rich vegetables and beans and gets an extra boost of flavor from a swirl of pesto at the end. To get a homemade stock flavor using store-bought broth, we simmer bone-in chicken breasts in the broth before adding the rest of the soup ingredients.

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Instant Pot Split Pea & Ham Soup Freezer Pack

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Prep and freeze all the ingredients for this homey classic ahead of time, and it will be ready to cook and serve any night of the week--no lengthy simmering needed, thanks to the multicooker. Freezing the ingredients in a round container creates the perfect fit for an easy transfer into your pressure cooker without having to thaw first.

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Chicken Freezer Burritos

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Transform leftover chicken into a hearty burrito filling! You will be thrilled to have a stash of frozen burritos on hand that you can microwave for an instant healthy lunch or on-the-go dinner for a busy night.

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Meal-Prep Curried Chicken Bowls

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Curry doesn't have to take hours to prepare. With the help of our sheet-pan meal-prep chicken (see associated recipe) and some cooked whole grains, you can make these meal-prep bowls in just a few minutes! Keep them in the fridge for an easy dinner on a busy weeknight or for healthy grab-and-go lunches throughout the week.

17 High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas That are Easy to Make (2024)

FAQs

What is the best protein for meal prep? ›

Low-fat meat like chicken breast (without skin) or lean beef are the best for protein-rich meals. They don't contain as much fat as other types of meat and can be fried or stewed.

What is the easiest protein to cook? ›

Fish and Seafood. Small and tender shellfish like scallops, clams, and mussels are perfect for busy weeknights because they cook up in no time. Scallops sear, broil, or sauté in just minutes for go-with-anything Garlic-Lemon Scallops and pan-seared Balsamic-Glazed Sea Scallops.

What is the most filling high protein food? ›

On the satiety index, fish scores higher than all other protein-rich foods, including eggs and beef. Fish had the second highest score of all the foods tested ( 3 ). Another older study compared fish, chicken, and beef protein. The researchers found that fish protein had the strongest effect on satiety ( 25 ).

What is a very high protein meal? ›

You can reach 100g of protein per day by choosing protein-rich food options with each meal. This can include Greek yogurt, chicken breast, and a salmon fillet. Plant-based sources to help reach your goal can include peanuts, beans, and tofu.

What are the 10 highest protein foods? ›

Top 10 Protein Foods
  • Fish.
  • Seafood.
  • Skinless, white-meat poultry.
  • Lean beef (including tenderloin, sirloin, eye of round)
  • Skim or low-fat milk.
  • Skim or low-fat yogurt.
  • Fat-free or low-fat cheese.
  • Eggs.
Mar 6, 2022

What are 7 foods rich in protein? ›

High protein foods
  • Salmon. Salmon is a fatty fish, meaning it is full of omega-3 fatty acids. ...
  • Chicken breast. Chicken breast is a lean source of protein. ...
  • Beef. Beef offers high amounts of protein per serving. ...
  • Tuna. Tuna is an excellent and widely available source of protein. ...
  • Bison. ...
  • Pork. ...
  • Turkey. ...
  • Halibut.

Which food gives instant protein? ›

5 Protein-Packed Foods for Healthy, Meatless Meals
  • Eggs. Eggs are a great source of protein. ...
  • Tree Nuts. Tree nuts include walnuts, almonds and pecans — don't confuse them with peanuts, which are legumes. ...
  • Legumes. Legumes include a range of beans and peas such as black beans, chickpeas and lentils. ...
  • Soy. ...
  • Yogurt.

What protein is easiest on stomach? ›

5 Common Sources of Protein That Aid Digestive Health
  • #1 White Meat Poultry. Chicken and turkey breasts are highly accessible sources of animal protein. ...
  • #2 Fatty Fish. Salmon, tuna, sardines, and herring are all excellent sources of protein. ...
  • #3 Pork. ...
  • #4 Beef. ...
  • #5 Eggs. ...
  • GI Doctor in Austin, TX.
Dec 24, 2021

What is the best protein for batch cooking? ›

Ground and pulled meat and poultry, such as pork, chicken, turkey, beef, or bison are some of the most-versatile protein sources, which makes them great for batch cooking.

What's the most protein you can absorb in a meal? ›

From a nutritional standpoint, the term “absorption” describes the passage of nutrients from the gut into systemic circulation. Based on this definition, the amount of protein that can be absorbed is virtually unlimited.

What is the best form of protein to take? ›

Whey protein and whey isolates are your best options. Lose weight: For weight loss, choose shakes with no added sugars or dextrins/maltodextrins (sweeteners made from starch). Don't choose those with added branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), as they help promote muscle growth and weight gain.

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