When it comes to meal prepping your biggest concern is probably what you’re going to eat. But have you ever thought about how you store your meals? After all, your meal prep containers are probably the most important part of the whole exercise – without containers, there’s no way to carry your food…
So we asked the question for you and dived into the big, bad world of meal prep containers to figure out what you need to look for to find, the one.
Material
There are so many choices of containers:
- Metal
- Silicone
- Glass
- Plastic
But really, it’s about your personal preference and what will best fit in to your lifestyle.
Are your containers packed up and carried around with you all day? Are you commuting on public transport? If that’s the case, then sturdy plastic containers are probably better than glass or metal. What if you need something that doesn’t take up a lot of space – maybe you’ve got a tiny kitchen or no where to keep things at work…check out a stackable, reusable silicone container as they take up minimal space when empty.
What about reheating your meal while it’s still in the container (after all, who wants to make more washing up)? Glass or BPA-free plastic is your best bet.
Speaking of washing up, always opt for dishwasher safe materials to make your life easier!
Size
Yes, size does matter.
No one wants to be carrying around more than they absolutely have to so you will probably want to be able to fit your meal into one container so always keep in mind how much food you are packing to take with you.
When you’re prepping your meals make sure you are tracking your portion sizes; you don’t want to end up making too much food and wasting it or overeating and trashing your macro counts. If you buy containers that are too large you’re more likely to pack a larger meal than you really need.
Shape
Maybe you need a container with compartments to keep meat and vegetables separate from grains or to keep your snacks separate from your dip. Maybe you want a bowl for your soup or something with multiple levels. There are so many options.
Just keep in mind, dividers take up room in the container, so you might need to go bigger to be able to fit every bit of food in.
Top it off.
Sometimes it’s worth paying a little more for your meal prep containers because you definitely want leak-proof lids! After all there’s nothing worse than the day your gym bag ends up swimming in Peri Peri sauce.
If it all sounds like a bit too much then remember, prepping is worth. Having a prepared healthy meals waiting at home for you after a long day can take away a lot of your stress and once you get into a routine, there are lots of meal prep hacks to speed the process…or you can make your life even easier and get your meal prep delivered.
