One of the biggest obstacles to eating well is time. After a long day at work or running errands or shuffling to and from appointments, who wants to spend an hour washing and chopping fresh vegetables, prepping a recipe and then cooking a meal? It’s so much easier to just pull a plastic tray from the freezer, pop it in the microwave and announce after five minutes, “Dinner is served!”.
Packaged, ready-to-eat foods certainly are convenient””but relying on them on a regular basis deprives your body of the whole-food nutrition it needs. Plus, microwaveable meals are high in sodium and other additives and preservatives that can negatively impact your health.
So what’s a busy person to do? Make healthy meal preparation easy by keeping a salad bar in your fridge. Here’s how:
- Gather a bunch of storage containers or mason jars.
- Spend 10 minutes””as soon as you get home from the grocery store””washing, peeling and chopping fresh vegetables and herbs.
- If possible, hard boil and chop some eggs.
- Fill the containers and arrange them in your refrigerator.
- Use your salad bar to make fresh salads, sandwiches, soups, stir fry dishes, tacos and other healthy meals.
Also be sure to stock your pantry with natural dressings and salad toppings, too. You’ll find all the best organic and natural brands, such as Bragg, Annie’s Naturals and Organicville at Vitacost.com.