20 Meal Prep Recipes That’ll Actually Stay Good in Your Fridge All Week

Meal prep can be both a blessing and a curse. By strategically frontloading your cooking at the beginning of the week, you have one less thing to worry about on busy weekdays. However, the absolute last thing you want is to open your fridge on a Thursday and see a mushy, now-inedible mess that you meal prepped on Sunday. During a hectic week, it’d be a shame to have all your hard work reduced to rejected leftovers you’d rather abandon in the trash than eat. Thankfully, this fate is avoidable.

Focusing on ingredients that stay fresh all week (or meals you can easily freeze and reheat later) will ensure your meal prep recipes are as tasty on day five as on day one. No delicate greens that’ll get soggy after a few hours in the fridge or once-crispy potatoes that immediately turn to mush when refrigerated. If you want your prepped meals to last, using hearty, long-lasting ingredients is the way to go. Keep scrolling for 20 meal prep recipes that will stay good in the fridge all week long.

Chickpeas are the perfect example of a hearty ingredient that holds up super well in the fridge. This meal prep salad recipe is full of fresh ingredients but no greens, so it stores well without getting soggy or wilted. Plus, it’s packed with protein and nutrition, so it’s a great lunch to get you through a mid-day slump.

These burritos may be freezer-friendly, but they’re a huge step up from your run-of-the-mill store-bought frozen burritos. Made with hearty ingredients like black beans, seasoned rice, and cheese, these burritos can last up to three months in the freezer and are easy to reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop. Top them off with salsa or guacamole to really take them to the next level.

If you love Starbucks egg bites, this is the perfect meal prep breakfast idea. You can make a dozen egg muffins at once, add whatever veggies and toppings you like, and have breakfast ready in the freezer to reheat whenever you need it.

Bowls are a great option for meal prep because you can easily store all the ingredients separately. These Mediterranean-inspired meal prep bowls consist of marinated chicken and quinoa topped with roasted red peppers, kalamata olives, and hummus—all of which can be store-bought to save time. Throw in some sliced red onion, cucumber, and arugula (stored separately, of course), and you’ve got a flavorful, protein-packed meal that’ll last all week.

If you get bored eating the same meals on repeat all week, this recipe is an amazing way to add some variety. This delicious, sweet-savory chicken takes five minutes of prep before throwing it in the slow cooker, and the results last 4-5 days in the fridge. Use it on top of rice, in tacos, or with noodles to switch things up throughout the week.

Not only do these salads look adorable in the mason jar, they are insanely easy to make. All you have to do is chop and layer your ingredients, and your salad is already packaged up and ready for you to grab on the go. And since the dressing goes on the bottom, your greens will stay fresh and crisp.

Tacos are always delicious, but a soggy tortilla completely ruins the meal when you try to enjoy leftovers the next day. This recipe lets you enjoy all the taco fixings, but it will keep much better in your fridge.

If you spend a lot of time scrolling on TikTok, you may have come across people raving about dense bean salads. Beans work very well in meal prep recipes because they absorb the dressing while they sit in the fridge, making the recipe more flavorful as time goes on. This bean salad embodies fresh Mediterranean flavors and is vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free.

This incredibly convenient sheet-pan recipe will save you so much time during the week. Toss your ingredients into a bowl with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and Italian seasoning, throw it on a sheet pan, and pop it in the oven. Then, serve with quinoa, and you have tomorrow’s lunch or dinner ready to go.

If you were absolutely obsessed with Eggo waffles growing up, you’ll love this toaster waffle recipe. They’re super simple to make and freeze, so when you’re running out the door on a busy morning, all you need to do is throw one in the toaster. A delicious breakfast minus all the effort and mess.

This breakfast sandwich recipe can be made ahead of time and then stored in the freezer for whenever you need a quick bite. No need to stop for breakfast on the way to work—you’ll save time and money by opting for this freezer-friendly recipe instead.

While this recipe has few ingredients, its flavor is anything but basic, thanks to the homemade Greek marinade. You can store the marinated veggies for up to two days before cooking, so you can easily grab the ingredients out of the fridge and roast a single portion for dinner. Or simply bake the whole batch at the same time—the roasted veggies will stay good for up to three days in the fridge.

Lentils are an ideal meal prep ingredient because they pack in tons of protein to keep you full and store really well in the fridge. This lentil salad requires little effort and is loaded with vegetables and flavor—it will definitely become a staple in your household.

There are endless ways to customize overnight oats to create your new favorite breakfast. Strawberries and cream, lemon blueberry, pumpkin pie, and PB&J oats are just a few variations you can try. With all this variety, you could eat overnight oats every morning and never get sick of them.

This Korean-inspired power bowl is great for spring and summer. It features fresh and light flavors balanced with savory Asian-inspired ground beef and farro, making it the ideal meal prep lunch or dinner.

Spaghetti and meatballs is such a comfort meal, but by swapping the typical ground beef for turkey and mixing in spiralized zucchini, this recipe offers a healthier option to the traditional recipe. Freeze the meatballs to use for a future meal, or just keep the whole batch in the fridge to eat during the week.

Even though the weather is warming up, a steaming bowl of soup still hits the spot on a rainy spring day. This vegetable soup is perfect to have on hand for when storm clouds start rolling in or when seasonal allergies start to get you down.

These stuffed peppers are a classic dinner option that’s great for meal prepping. If stored in an airtight container, they can last up to five days in the fridge, and when frozen, they can last up to three months. To reheat, you can either put them in the oven or just pop them in the microwave for a few minutes.

I don’t know about you, but premade grocery store spring rolls are a common on-the-go lunch for me, and I had no clue they were so easy to make at home to eat throughout the week. These spring rolls are so light and refreshing and, unlike a too-heavy lunch, won’t make you feel bogged down or tired in the middle of the day.

If you struggle to get your veggies in, swapping zucchini noodles for traditional pasta is an easy way to increase your intake while still enjoying a tasty meal. Plus, the peanut sauce is so good you’ll be tempted to eat it alone with a spoon (we won’t judge you if you do).