The words meal prep often bring to mind images of seven identical tupperware containers filled with super healthy, flavorless meals, the kind of stuff that bodybuilders eat. While this approach might work for a small number of people, it routinely fails most of us because it gets incredibly boring to eat the same meal over and over. When I used to meal prep this conventional way, I literally never made it past day 3. I have vivid memories of tossing out my office lunch or dinner only to chow down on takeout (and cookies). Talk about wasting time, money, and food! But, over the last few years, I’ve developed a better, smarter way of meal prepping: the building blocks method. I focus on prepping certain categories of foods that I can use to build my meals (e.g., brown rice for grains, chickpeas and tofu recipes for protein, a couple different sauces, etc.). Then, throughout the week, I mix and match these foods in different combinations. I get to eat something new every day, which makes me so much more likely to actually eat the food I prepared. The focus of my prep are nutrient-dense whole foods and pantry staples, all of which are so affordable at ALDI. But as you can see from these photos, that does NOT mean the meals are boring. Anything but! Doing this takes a decent amount of organization and planning, even more if you want to make it a budget-friendly meal prep. Luckily, I’ve done all the work for you! In this blog post, I share (1) my tips for doing vegan meal prep on a budget + (2) the grocery list for this meal prep + (3) the meal prep instructions. If you want to dive deeper (and get all this content in a more printer-friendly format), I suggest signing up for the free PDF guide below! In the guide, you’ll get:1. the meal prep grocery list + pantry staples list (all vegan + gluten-free)2. the recommended meal prep order of operations 3. the meal prep instructions 4. 10 mix and match meal ideas When I grocery shop specifically for meal prep, I tend to organize my list into these six categories: (1) grains, (2) fresh veggies, (3) proteins, (4) healthy fats, (5) flavor booster, and (6) convenience foods. I always consult my pantry before shopping to see what I already have that can fit these categories. It takes just two minutes (okay, maybe five minutes, if my pantry is a hot mess), and it’s a great way to save money and minimize food waste. When it comes to convenience foods, I typically limit this to a couple items that I know will make a big difference in adding variety to my diet. In this week’s meal prep, I opted for linguine and Earth Grown Classic Meatless Meatballs from ALDI. These two items alone enabled me to switch things up quite a bit from the standard “vegan bowl” dinner (and they were very popular with my omnivore partner Max).
3. Stock up plant-based staples at ALDI
And when you shop at ALDI, even foods that are typically pricy—say, avocados and organic produce, or cashews and cold-pressed oils—are always affordable. So if you’re trying to meal prep on a budget, making whole foods the bulk of your grocery list will definitely save you money. And of course, it’ll help you eat a healthier diet. Win win! If shopping organic is important to you, here are a few of my go-to organic products from ALDI: Simply Nature Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Simply Nature Organic Coconut Oil, Earth Grown Extra Firm Organic Tofu, Simply Nature Organic Chopped Kale, Simply Nature Raw Cashews, Simply Nature Organic Black Beans (and Pinto Beans), and Simply Nature Organic Creamy Peanut Butter.
4. Get creative
Just because you’re eating healthy and on a budget, it doesn’t mean you need to eat a bland diet! Even some really basic, everyday ingredients can be used as flavor boosters to make your meals more interesting. For instance, in this meal prep, I roasted a whole head of garlic and an onion to add a subtle sweetness to the cabbage sauce; together, that cost me less than 75 cents at ALDI. A couple other examples: I use lemon zest and lemon juice in both of the meal prep sauces to bring brightness and zinginess, and rely on parsley to bring an herbaceous bite to the pistachio pesto. And while canned beans might not sound like the most exciting thing to meal prep, you can add lots of flavor and crunch by simply roasting them in the oven. Just toss with a little olive oil, salt, and pepper and bake them until crunchy. You won’t believe how tasty the crunchy roasted chickpeas in this meal plan are (and they’re so simple!).
ALDI Grocery List for this Budget-Friendly Meal Prep
For a printable guide that includes the grocery list, all recipes, and mix-and-match ideas, access the free PDF guide. Okay, so multitasking isn’t directly related to saving money, but it will save you time…and isn’t time money?? For instance, in this meal prep, once the cabbage hits the oven, I start cooking the brown rice in my electric pressure cooker. And since the pressure cooker needs no babysitting, I can also make the spiced pistachios or the tofu on the stovetop at the same time.
Dried Goods
Specially Selected Brown Basmati Rice Simply Nature Raw Cashews Southern Grove Shelled Pistachios Canned Chickpeas (2 cans) Simply Nature Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil Simply Nature Organic Linguine
Produce
Lemons (1 bag) Garlic (1 sleeve) Yellow onions (1 bag) Flat-leaf parsley (1 or 2 bunches, dependent on size) Cabbage (2 medium-large or large heads)
Refrigerated / Frozen
Earth Grown Extra Firm Organic Tofu Earth Grown Classic Meatless Meatballs
Note on serving size: The meal prep here should make about 10 meals for one person, so feel free to adjust the quantity of groceries and meal prep according to your needs. The cost of the groceries used to make these 10 meals came out to just around $22(!) at my local ALDI (I included only the cost of the dried goods actually used in the meal prep, since they’re shelf-stable and can be used again in the future; of course, prices may vary by store location).
Recipes for this Meal Prep
You can find all of the recipes for this meal prep below. For a more printer-friendly option with everything in one place, be sure to sign up for the free PDF guide!
Big Vegan Flavor
Techniques and 150 recipes to master vegan cooking.
Big Vegan Flavor
Techniques and 150 recipes to master vegan cooking.
Big Vegan Flavor
Techniques and 150 recipes to master vegan cooking.
Big Vegan Flavor
Techniques and 150 recipes to master vegan cooking.
Big Vegan Flavor
Techniques and 150 recipes to master vegan cooking.
Big Vegan Flavor
Techniques and 150 recipes to master vegan cooking.
Big Vegan Flavor
Techniques and 150 recipes to master vegan cooking.
Big Vegan Flavor
Techniques and 150 recipes to master vegan cooking.