Want to Save Hours in the Kitchen? Here's How to Meal Prep Salad (2024)

Meal prepping is one of my favorite time saving kitchen hacks – you can literally save hours in the kitchen (and a lot of stress) by taking just one hour a week to prep a few core ingredients that can then be mixed and matched for different meals throughout the week. One of the things I love doing is preparing a big batch salad so that I have easy grab-and-go lunches, dinners, or an instant veggie side waiting to be dressed at a minute’s notice.

Have you always been interested in meal prepping but find the thought of planning out a week of dinners and lunches overwhelming? We’ve got you. As registered dietitians, we’ve been helping clients meal plan for over a decade.

Like any skill, being a meal planning pro doesn’t happen overnight. It takes practice, but once you have that skill it’s one you will use for the rest of your life. Everyone has to start somewhere and prepping your salads for the week is a great place to start. They involve very little cooking or oven time (most of the prep is done at the cutting board) and veggies tend to have a longer shelf life.

Can You Prep A Salad In Advance?

You absolutely can! Salads are one of the easiest things you can prep in advance and make it so much easier to lean into The Plate Method and get half that plate filled with veggies! Most people don’t think of meal prepping salads because they worry about veggies losing their freshness. Don’t worry we’ve got you covered and included these tips to keep your veggies fresh!

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How to Batch Prep vs Ingredient Prep for Salads

Generally speaking, there are two main ways you can meal prep – ingredient prep and batch prep.

Ingredient Prep

Ingredient prep is where you prep individual ingredients for the week that you can then assemble into different meals the day of. This is the method I use in my 3-2-1 method meal plans. On prep day, all you have to cook is a grain and a couple of proteins, and then wash and chop your veggies for the different meals you’ll eat throughout the week. This allows you to assemble a totally different meal every day in little to no time, without the bore of repeat meals all week.

For salads, this would look like having all your ingredients prepped and stored separately for the week and then you would put it all together at lunch or dinner time.

Batch Prep

Batch prepping or cooking is when you make a large batch of an entire dish to last for multiple servings. You’ve done it before if you’ve ever made a big pot of chicken noodle soup or spaghetti sauce and stored multiple portions in the fridge or freezer for quick grab and go meals.

For salads, batch prepping could look like making one giant Crunchy Kale Caesar Salad and serving it as a side throughout the week or portioning this Summer Rainbow Power Salad into mason jars for super simple and nutritious lunches.

Both batch prepping and ingredient prepping are efficient ways to meal plan, it really comes down to what you prefer. If you’re newer to meal planning, I recommend starting with batch prepping. As you get more and more comfortable, add ingredient prep into your planning and get more variety in your meals. Lately, my meal planning involves about 60% ingredient prep, 30% batch prep and 10% no prep (hello sushi haha). For the purpose of this blog, we will be talking about batch prepping.

How to Meal Prep Salads

Choose your menu

I recommend choosing 2-3 salads to prep for the week that share some of the same ingredients. This saves you money, eliminates waste and makes prepping easier. For example, my Crunchy Kale Caesar Salad, Kale Salad with Mango and Spicy Prawns, Warm Kale Salad with Toasted Coconut, and Crunchy Kale and Pomegranate Salad all use kale as their base.

Grocery shop

Write out your grocery list in order of the store layout (Dairy, Produce, Bakery etc.). Go through your kitchen and pantry and cross off anything you already have in your house. Head to the store or shop online for pickup or delivery.

Cook your grain(s) & protein(s) (if necessary)

On prep day, start with the items with the longest cooking time first – that will likely be your grain, followed by your protein(s). For the menu example I have above, I would start with the quinoa (you can set it and forget it) and then I would get the chickpeas in the oven. For the prawns, because they are so quick cooking as it is, I usually just cook up on the day of for ultimate freshness.

Wash, dry and chop your veggies and fruits

Next wash, dry and chop your produce according to recipes. Water speeds up your veggie decay so make sure you spin your lettuces and pat those peppers with paper towel, or better yet, line your storage containers with paper towel or a dish cloth to soak up any extra moisture as the week goes on, keeping them fresh longer! Don’t forget to include ingredients for your salad dressings in your prep.

Batch prep and store dressings

Put your dressings together in mason jars, then label and store in the fridge. I personally like to dress my salads the day of because your veggies won’t get soggy. If you have a tougher green (example kale) you can dress it on prep day.

Assemble salads in reusable containers

Once you have all your ingredients together, you can line up your ingredients and portion into containers. I personally love storing salads in these glass containers but any will work. You can also wrap the salad in a paper towel if you’re worried about your veggies getting soggy.

Dress and enjoy!

At meal time, pull out your salad container, add fresh herbs or other toppings (if wanted), mix in the appropriate dressing and enjoy!

How to Store Meal Prepped Salads

I like to store my salads in portioned reusable containers or mason jars. Veggies don’t tend to get soggy for a week (and some hold their crispness even longer). I recommend storing without your dressing.

Depending on your grain and protein selection, your salad should keep for 3 -5 days. If you want your salad to last up to a week, use a vegetarian protein like chickpeas. For more information on food safety check out the FoodKeeper App here.

Tips to Keep Your Salad Fresh & Crisp

1. Prep with the freshest produce possible. Make sure to check your veggies before buying. I like to buy nearly ripened avocados and tomatoes still firmly on their vine.
2. Keep your dressing separate from your salad until you’re ready to eat. This will keep your veggies crunchy (no one likes a mushy cucumber).
3. Pat your ingredients as dry as possible. Remember liquid speeds up veggie decay. Use a salad spinner or towel to remove any wetness.
4. Wrap veggies in paper towel.
5. Make sure any cooked items have cooled down before adding to your salad.

Best Veggies to Use For Meal Prepping Salads

Not all veggies are equal…in staying power. Avocado browns and chopped cucumbers lose their crispness faster than bell peppers.

Here are some of my favorite veggies to use for meal prepping salads:

• Bell peppers
• Kale
• Shredded carrots
• Cherry tomatoes (keep whole)
• Shredded or roasted beets
• Grated brussels sprouts
• Cabbage or slaw mixes
• Romaine and iceberg lettuce
• Red onion
• Radishes
• Snap peas
• Chopped celery

6 Salad Dressings Perfect for Meal Prep

• 2-Minute Honey Lime Dressing
• Healthy Ranch DressingCilantro Chimichurri Sauce
• Homemade Green Goddess Dressing
• Creamy Caesar Salad Dressing
• Lemon Tahini Dressing

Salad Toppings

You can dress up your salad or boost it with protein by adding the following toppings.

Note: I put a star (*) beside the ones I like to keep separate from my salad because they can get soggy (like croutons) or brown if prepared too far in advance (like avocados).

Healthy Fats & Flavor Booosters

• Avocado*

• Sunflower seeds
• Chia seeds
• Poppy seeds
• Hemp heart

• Walnuts
• Pecans
• Almonds

• Fried or pickled onions*
• Olives
• Sundried tomatoes
• Home-made croutons*

Proteins

• Crispy chickpeas*
• Hard boiled eggs
• Shredded chicken
• Prawns or shrimp
• Shelled edamame beans
• Black beans or Cannellini (white kidney) beans
• Hummus
• Smoked tofu

Cheese

• Feta cheese
• Bocconcini cheese
• Halloumi cheese
• Shredded cheese (swiss, cheddar, or mozzarella)
• Parmesan

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Meal Prep Salad Ideas

Ready to start meal prepping salads? Here are some of my favorite salads to batch prep for quick grab and eat meals:

• Kale Salad with Mango and Spicy Prawns
• Crunchy Kale Caesar Salad
• Summer Rainbow Power Salad
• Roasted Beet and Kale Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing
• Mediterranean Chickpea and Quinoa Salad

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