September Week 2: Easy 4-Step Mastery Meal Assembly

Many of my clients doubt they can lose weight because they do not know how to cook, or do not like to cook, or feel overwhelmed at the end of the day when it’s time to make dinner. As we look at getting Back to Structure this week, I want to focus on an easy, repeatable structure for creating low-calorie, highly nutritious and fast meals.

When we have the structure of an easy, automated way of throwing together a lunch or dinner that is nutritious and filling, it helps us stay away from the fast food, take out, and out of the box meals, that tend to be higher in calories and lower in nourishment value.

I have been out of my kitchen for almost a month now and even though I only have a fridge and a microwave, I am putting together some awesome meals in about 10 minutes and have not relied upon take out or fast food to get through this time of my kitchen remodel.

Meal assembly is the idea of throwing together some basic ingredients that create a meal that is fast, filling and nourishing. The key to food or meal assembly is having the ingredients on hand. Also, many of the elements of these meals can start off as frozen so they don’t go bad and so you don’t have to always be shopping for fresh ingredients.

Thinking ahead, planning, creating simple repeatable systems and having on hand foods that you can put together into tasty, healthy meals in minutes is easier than you think. I use the following easy 4 step structure to make my main meal of the day most days of the week.

Meal Assembly

Step 1: Start with a Vegetable or Salad Base:

• First of all, you want a nutritious start that is going to add volume, fiber and nutrients to your meal as your foundation. Most Americans have meat or starchy carbohydrates as the centerpiece of their meal. By making a steamed or sautéed vegetable or salad greens the main centerpiece of your plate for a meal, you are adding more nutrition, fiber, and volume to your meal while cutting out calories, saturated fat and blood spiking starches.
• Grab a bag of prepped salad greens, spinach or bag of cold slaw cabbage (no dressing) or take a 1 lb bag of frozen veggies and steam them in the microwave (or you could do a quick sauté with a tablespoon of water in a non-stick skillet or with some olive oil). Put the salad and /or veggies in a bowl (s) or on a plate.

Step 2: Add a Protein Source:

• Take a few ounces of pre-prepared protein and sprinkle it over your vegetables/and or salad.
• I use beans, canned tuna or salmon or tuna from a pouch or grilled fish, chicken or turkey slices or some chicken from a pre cooked store bought chicken--even pre-made turkey meatballs found in the freezer section. I also grill or poach chicken tenders by the bag and keep them in the fridge for my family to grab at when they need to throw something together.
• Tofu and marinated tofu are good sources of protein and so are veggie burgers, they are great chopped up and thrown over vegetables or a salad. Or you could even use lean strips of beef. When you think ahead there are a lot of ways to keep this important element handy without having to cook every time
• If you want, throw in a bit of starch, keeping it to a minimum, a handful or about a ½ cup—brown rice—wild rice some sweet potato or a bit of pasta. These things can be made ahead of time and kept in your fridge so that you are literally throwing dinner together.

Step 3: Add a Flavor Element:

• This is where you get to tune into your taste palate and decide what flavor you are in the mood for. Is it an ethnic spice?  Is it a light and creamy dressing or spicy and smoky BBQ? You decide and toss some of that flavor in (of course checking the calories on the label)
• Many stores have marinades, spaghetti sauces, salsas, Asian teriyakis and marinades, Indian and Malaysian simmer sauces, curry pastes, or BBQ sauces which when used sparingly over your vegetable and protein, can infuse the dish with instant flavor and make it taste like you sweated for hours over a hot stove. You could even put your dinner into some broth and make a meal of soup.  Sometimes I take a can of light soup and add it in these ingredients for a more substantial but filling meal that is low in calories.

Step 4: Add Some Sizzle:

• Give your taste buds a wake-up call with just a teeny bit of something that will add surprise and texture to the dish. Maybe that is a bit of toasted nuts for a healthy crunch or a table spoon of parmesan for some tang or a little bit of dried cranberries or raisins for some extra sweet. Or try salty crunchy goldfish or Pop Chips crushed over a salad. Just remember these items tend to be densely caloric so use sparingly--a little goes a long way.

Voila!!!  Dinner is served in less than twelve minutes and for a lot less than going through a drive-through.  Depending on what sources you use and portion size, this meal could have as few as 150 calories but be filling, healthy and satisfying.

I hope you will try out this great way to make a real “happy meal”. It really is a do-able way to make life easier and slimmer!

oxRita