If healthy eating and saving money are important to you, preparing your own meals is a great way to go! You should probably try meal prepping at least 2x/week to ensure freshness, variety, and efficiency.

If you want to know exactly what goes into your food and to ensure its quality, cooking at home is your best bet.

Not to mention how much money it saves you to learn to prepare your own meals at home. Want to know how much you could save from cooking at home? Check out my post on food budgeting.

We made this meal prep herb chicken and veggies for the week and couldn’t be happier!

Meal Prep Strategies

I cannot stress enough the importance of variety in meal-prepping of any kind. If you make the same meal for the whole week, you are almost guaranteed to become bored.

For those who follow the meal-prep lifestyle, try meal-prepping twice a week. That way you ensure the freshness of what you are eating.

I also recommend mixing things up and having specific options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner so that you can mix and match.

How do I cook chicken?

It depends on the cut and if you have bone-in or skin.

Food52 has a lovely guide to cooking chicken breast. I personally prefer chicken thighs.

For thighs, I think it’s best to pan fry to perfection, and finish in the oven if necessary.

1. When you pan-fry your meat, use at least 2 tbsp oil, a hot pan that sizzles when you place the meat on it, and DO NOT TOUCH OR MOVE YOUR MEAT UNTIL IT CREATES A SEAR.
2. Wait at least 3 minutes for each side. I mean it. This is the one big piece of cooking advice that I always give to my meat eaters. Let the pan, oil, and heat do the magic for your meat. Moving it around releases juices, which will result in a steam rather than a sear.
3. I love using garlic salt and seasoned salt to season my chicken. It adds more pizazz than just salt and pepper, and makes me excited to eat my lunch at work. I encourage you to be creative with the kinds of herbs and spices you use for your chicken! You can never go wrong with rosemary chicken and veggies.

How do I roast veggies?

• When roasting/grilling veggies, HIGH HEAT is essential.
• If you are roasting veggies in the oven, make sure the temperature is at least 400 degrees. You can also roast them at the broil temperature because that ensures a nice caramelization.
• Buy yourself a grill pan, i.e., a fry pan with a grill surface. Do it! It is not practical to fire up an outdoor grill all the time for your cooking needs. Get yourself a grill pan for the stovetop. It will create a similar effect and your life will be changed.

Price Comparison

If you get a roasted chicken thigh and veggie dish at a restaurant, it should cost somewhere between $17-25 in the Los Angeles Metropolitan area. The chicken thighs cost $3, cauliflower was $.75, butternut squash was $.75, and the zucchini was $.50. I made this sheet pan meal prep for $5 and it was at least 2 servings worth.

Restaurant ($17-25) vs. Home-Made ($2.50)

I mean, come on! The savings are incredible when you make this at home.

Print

Meal Prep-Roasted Chicken and Veggies

An easy meal prep idea for the week. Delicious, healthy, aromatic, and easy on the wallet.

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Total Time 45 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

• 1 butternut squash
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 2 zucchinis
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• 1/2 head cauliflower
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 4 boneless skinless chicken thighs
• 1 tbsp garlic salt
• 1 tbsp seasoned salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 pinch red pepper flake
• 1 tsp dried rosemary

Instructions

• Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare butternut squash by peeling, taking out the seeds, and cutting into 1/2 inch thick slices. Line a baking sheet and spread butternut squash on the sheet in single layer. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place in the oven to bake.
• Meanwhile, prepare cauliflower by cutting into small florets, 2 -inch tall pieces. Line a baking sheet and spread cauliflower on a single layer on sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
• Move butternut squash away from the burner and turn on the oven to broil. Place cauliflower under the broiler and broil for ~5-10 minutes, or until golden brown.
• Prepare zucchini by cutting off top and bottom. Slice lengthwise into 1/2 inch pieces. Heat a grill pan on high. Spray with olive oil. When pan is hot, place zucchini onto the grill pan in an even layer. Allow each side to sear and create grill marks 3-5 minutes each side. Remove from heat and season with garlic salt.
• Pat chicken thighs dry with a clean paper towel. Season chicken with garlic salt, seasoned salt, pepper, rosemary, and red pepper flake. Allow to sit for a few minutes.
• Heat grill pan on high. Drizzle with olive oil. Once pan is hot, add in chicken thighs in a single layer, making sure you hear the sizzle of the chicken. Turn heat down to medium low. Allow to sear until golden brown on both sides ~5 minutes each side. Once you flip all chicken thighs, cover with a lid and keep heat on medium low for another 5-7 minutes.
• Check on butternut squash and cauliflower. Butternut squash is done when a fork can be easily inserted into it. Cauliflower is done when it is golden brown.
• Take butternut squash and cauliflower out of the oven when they are done. Also, remove chicken thighs from the pan when both sides have become golden brown.

Happy cooking! Tag me on Instagram @jennskitchendiary if you’ve made this dish! Would love to see how it turned out.