In case you did not know… We have a big family! Lots of kids. Six to be exact. Plus, me and my very husky, muscle man. And you know what that translates too? A LOT of food and a lot of energy to keep up with!
When I say a lot, I mean we HAVE to have a meal plan with the fridge and freezer stocked! Going out to eat with our big family costs way too much to do it more than a couple times a month.
Not eating out for lunches is a another way we save on our food budget as well as, fueling ourselves to keep up with our big, crazy family.
One of the best habits my husband and I have to help us stick to our grocery budget is to meal prep lunches for the week.
Both my husband and I feel so much better during the week if our lunches are full of protein. It’s amazing how having a better for you lunch can make such a big difference in your day.
I like meal prepping three different lunches for us each week. The other two days we take leftovers for lunch.
We go to Sam’s Club at least once a month and stock up on essentials like Jimmy Dean Delights® for breakfast and Tyson® Frozen Chicken Breast for easy lunches and dinners. Sam’s Club shopping is a necessity for my big family!
I love the Tyson® Frozen Chicken Breasts! Since they are individually frozen you can pull out as many as you need AND you can cook them frozen. No thawing necessary!
Either Saturday or Sunday, I pull out 405 chicken breasts and get them cooking in a pan on the stove while I chop veggies and pull out ingredients and containers for our lunches for the week.
You can season your chicken breasts with a “universal” seasoning of salt, pepper, and garlic powered while cooking. This makes the chicken really flavorful and moist. After the chicken is cooked and sliced I can then season each portion for each dish.
Tip: If you need to cut even more prep time out buy a bag of Tyson Grilled and Ready® Chicken for these recipes and more!
Italian Chicken Salad with Parmesan Balsamic Vinaigrette
Layer the following ingredients in a “To-Go” container.
- Romaine Lettuce (Lettuce at the bottom.)
- Cherry Tomatoes
- Banana Peppers
- Olives (black or green)
- Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
- Cucumbers
- Sliced Salami
- 1 cooked Tyson® Chicken Breast, sliced
Parmesan Balsamic Vinaigrette:
Use small, well0sealing containers for vinaigrette. Shake well before pouring over salad just before eating.
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 1/4 Ground Black Pepper
- 1/4 tsp Honey or Sugar
- 1 Tbsp Grated Parmesan Cheese
Curry Apple & Chicken Salad with Crackers and Veggies
Serve this chicken salad with crackers and veggies (i.e. carrots, cucumbers, celery)
- 1 cooked Tyson® Chicken Breast, shredded
- 1/4 cup Mayo
- 2 tsp Curry Powder
- 1/4 cup Apple, diced (any firm variety of apple will do)
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients and store in sealed containers.
Pesto Mozzarella Chicken Pasta Salad
- 6 oz. Elbow Noodles, cooked & drained
- 1 cooked Tyson ® Chicken Breast, diced
- 2 tbsp Pest0
- 1/4 cup Greek Yogurt
- 2 tbsp Mayo
- 1/2 cup Olives (black or greek)
- 1/2 cup fresh Mozzarella, cubed
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients and portion into lunch containers.
And within an hours time… I have 6 delicious, better-for-us lunches ready for the busy week ahead!
I cannot tell you how much a little meal planning and a few Tyson® Chicken Breasts have done to save my sanity and improve my week.
If I could encourage you to make one change next weekend, it would be to do a little meal prep and check out the advantages of having a good protein in your daily diet!
Ashley says
Tyson’s Chicken makes meal prep so easy! I love that it can be used for such a variety of meals as well.
Lois Alter Mark says
Those salads sound amazing! I love how easy it is to get my protein in with Tyson’s Chicken.
Alicia says
Those look like light and healthy lunches! I love that you can prepare a whole week in advance – no more slaving at midnight for the next days sandwiches.
Alicia says
I also think the Ironman mug is great