Cooked meals tend to freeze well in airtight containers. Foods with high moisture content, such as salad greens, tomatoes, or watermelon, are not recommended as they tend to become mushy when frozen and thawed. Blanching vegetables for a few minutes before freezing can help.

However, if the texture of a frozen food becomes undesirable after thawing, they might still be used in cooked recipes such as soups and stews. The following are recommended times for various cooked foods that offer the best flavors, maximum nutrients, and food safety.

Refrigeration at 40 °F or lower days: Cooked ground poultry or ground beef days: Cooked whole meats, fish and poultry; soups and stews 5 days: Cooked beans; hummus 1 week: Hard boiled eggs; chopped vegetables if stored in air-tight container 2 weeks: Soft cheese, opened weeks: Hard cheese, opened.

Freezing at 0 °F or lower months: Soups and stews; cooked beans months: Cooked or ground meat and poultry months: Berries and chopped fruit banana, apples, pears, plums, mango stored in a freezer bag months: Vegetables, if blanched first for about minutes depending on the vegetable.

Ready to get started? Happy prepping! The contents of this website are for educational purposes and are not intended to offer personal medical advice.

You should seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.

Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website. The Nutrition Source does not recommend or endorse any products. Skip to content The Nutrition Source.

The Nutrition Source Menu. Search for:. Home Nutrition News What Should I Eat? Here are some examples: If you now eat fast food or takeout several nights of the week, your goal may be to choose a specific day of the week to create a food shopping list and hit the grocery store.

If you already food shop once a week and have basic cooking skills, your goal may be to choose one day a week to do most of the cooking, or try a new recipe.

If you already cook some weekday meals for your family, you might decide to create a schedule so that you are not deciding last minute what to make and to ensure you have the needed ingredients on hand. Some benefits of meal prep: Can help save money Can ultimately save time Can help with weight control, as you decide the ingredients and portions served Can contribute to an overall more nutritionally balanced diet Can reduce stress as you avoid last minute decisions about what to eat, or rushed preparation.

Tips for supermarket savings Planning your meals ahead of the trip to the grocery store is a key strategy for eating well on a budget. References Fryar CD, Ervin RB. This simple clean-eating meal plan lays out a week of recipes that work well for both beginners and seasoned cooks looking to simplify their routine and up their intake of healthy foods.

Emily Lachtrupp is a registered dietitian experienced in nutritional counseling, recipe analysis and meal plans. She's worked with clients who struggle with diabetes, weight loss, digestive issues and more.

In her spare time, you can find her enjoying all that Vermont has to offer with her family and her dog, Winston. Elizabeth Ward is a registered dietitian and award-winning nutrition communicator and writer. She has authored or co-authored 10 books for consumers about nutrition at all stages of life.

The term "clean eating" perhaps implies that other foods are "dirty," but in reality, that's not the case. To us, "clean eating" means filling your plate with nutritious whole foods like whole grains, fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, healthy fats and legumes—all of which deliver important nutrients, like fiber —while keeping things like added sugars, sodium and saturated fats to a minimum, nutrients that can harm our health when we eat too much.

The goal is to help you feel your best, and sometimes you need a kick to get started. If you're new to cooking or just feeling swamped right now, this easy-to-follow meal plan is for you.

We focus on simple recipes with short ingredient lists, incorporate plenty of pantry staples and repeat meals throughout the week to streamline your time in the kitchen. Whether you make one recipe or a few, this meal plan is meant to provide inspiration and motivation—it is not meant to be binding.

Listen to your hunger and fullness cues rather than sticking to a specific calorie count or serving size, and don't totally ignore your cravings!

It's completely OK and healthy to enjoy a sweet treat or glass of wine here and there, and not restricting these things can actually make it easier to maintain a healthy lifestyle in the long run.

See More: The "Dirty Dozen" and "Clean Fifteen"—Here's What Experts Have to Say About Choosing Organic. A clean-eating meal plan includes tons of fresh fruits and veggies, high-fiber whole grains and legumes, healthy fats and lean proteins like fish and chicken.

It skips added sugars and minimizes sodium and saturated fats that can damage our hearts when we eat too much of them. While we are certainly not against sweets, according to the American Heart Association, the average American consumes way more added sugar than the recommended upper limit of 6 teaspoons a day for women and 9 for men.

Often, a lot of the added sugar we consume comes from non-dessert foods, like cereals and bars. While we left these foods out of this plan, you can certainly add them back in where you see fit.

This plan will leave you feeling satisfied because it includes plenty of nutrients that keep us full, like fiber from fruits, vegetables and legumes , lean proteins from Greek yogurt, fish and chicken and healthy fats from nuts and avocado. Regular meals and snacks from nutritious sources, plenty of water to help you stay hydrated and moderate exercise throughout the week means more lasting energy.

If you're following this clean-eating meal plan for weight loss, we set the calorie level at 1, per day, which is a level where most people lose weight, plus included modifications for 1, and 2, calories a day, depending on your calorie needs. A little prep at the beginning of the week goes a long way to make the rest of the week easy.

Meal-Prep Tip: Gather ingredients for tomorrow's dinner, Slow-Cooker Vegetable Minestrone Soup , so it's ready to start cooking on Low tomorrow morning for 6 to 8 hours.

Daily Totals: 1, calories, 84 g protein, g carbohydrates, 34 g fiber, 94 g fat, 1, mg sodium. To Make It 1, Calories: Reduce to 1 tablespoon of walnuts at breakfast and reduce to half an apple at P.

snack, along with omitting the peanut butter. Meal-Prep Tip: Reserve leftover Slow-Cooker Vegetable Minestrone Soup to have for dinner tomorrow night. Daily Totals: 1, calories, 55 g protein, g carbohydrates, 42 g fiber, 76 g fat, 1, mg sodium. To Make It 1, Calories: Change the A.

snack and increase to 1 whole avocado at dinner. Daily Totals: 1, calories, 70 g protein, g carbohydrates, 45 g fiber, 87 g fat, 1, mg sodium. To Make It 1, Calories: Reduce to 2 tablespoons of chopped walnuts at breakfast, change the A.

Daily Totals: 1, calories, 92 g protein, g carbohydrates, 34 g fiber, 86 g fat, 1, mg sodium. To Make It 1, Calories: Omit the hummus at the A. snack and change the P. snack to 1 clementine. Daily Totals: 1, calories, 84 g protein, g carbohydrates, 36 g fiber, 89 g fat, 1, mg sodium.

To Make It 1, Calories: Reduce the walnuts to 1 tablespoon at breakfast and omit the peanut butter at the A. Daily Totals: 1, calories, 67 g protein, g carbohydrates, 32 g fiber, 68 g fat, 1, mg sodium. To Make It 1, Calories: Omit the peanut butter at the A.

While 1, calories may be the right amount for some people, it can be very restrictive for most , so always consult with your doctor before deciding to follow a certain eating style, says Stefani Sassos, M. N , deputy nutrition director for the Good Housekeeping Institute. Depending on your daily activity level , we also suggest checking out our 1, , 1, , 1, and 1,calorie meal plans as well.

View this plan as a primer for long-term healthy eating and sustained weight loss, if that's your goal. Reaching for nutritious foods more often than not can help save you from yo-yo dieting, an eating trend that can be harmful to your health. However, your weight is just one of many factors that impacts your overall health — staying properly hydrated , getting regular exercise, focusing on good quality sleep and knowing how to dial down stress are also important pieces of the healthy weight puzzle.

It's also important to note that this plan uses 1, calories as a base; it is designed to be built upon by doubling, tripling or even quadrupling your servings of veggies at any opportunity and adding more fruits at snack time, too.

You can consider complementing this plan with a daily multivitamin , too. Weight loss, health and body image are complex subjects — before deciding to go on this diet, we invite you to gain a broader perspective by reading our exploration into the hazards of diet culture.

Serve with 1 stick part-skim mozzarella string cheese and 2 kiwis. Serve 4 ounces broiled flounder or sole with 2 sliced plum tomatoes sprinkled with 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, broiled until just golden. Eat with 1 cup cooked couscous and 1 cup steamed broccoli.

Enjoy with a single-serve ice cream for dessert. Grab 1 or 2 hard-boiled eggs on your way out the door.

MORE IDEAS: Healthy Smoothie Recipes to Brighten Up Your Mornings. Heat up 1 cup vegetable soup and serve with 1 veggie burger on a slice of whole grain and seed toast or an English muffin. Pair with 1 cup of fresh grapes. OUR PICKS: Best Canned Soups. Brush 4 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast with barbecue sauce and grill.

Garnish chicken with chopped scallions and a squeeze of lime juice. TRY OUT: Healthy Chicken Dinners for the Best Weeknights Ever. Serve over lettuce. Eat with 1 large piece of multigrain toast. Serve 4 ounces steamed shrimp with 1 baked potato topped with 3 tablespoons salsa and 1 tablespoon unsweetened Greek yogurt, plus 3 cups spinach, steamed.

Finish the meal off with 1 ounce of chocolate or a to calorie ice cream bar. Heat 1 cup tomato soup and serve with a sandwich made with 1 mini whole-wheat pita , 3 ounces thinly sliced roast beef, 1 teaspoon horseradish, mustard, tomato slices and lettuce. Add spices, herbs and seasoning as desired.

OUR PICKS: Best Dairy-Free Yogurts. Sprinkle on 1 ounce shredded part-skim cheese. Limit refined grains like white rice and white bread. Looking for a printable copy? Download one here , and hang it on your refrigerator to serve as a daily reminder when planning and preparing your meals!

Translations of the Healthy Eating Plate are also available in over 25 languages. Make most of your meal vegetables and fruits — ½ of your plate. Go for whole grains — ¼ of your plate. Whole and intact grains—whole wheat, barley, wheat berries, quinoa , oats , brown rice , and foods made with them, such as whole wheat pasta—have a milder effect on blood sugar and insulin than white bread, white rice, and other refined grains.

Protein power — ¼ of your plate. Fish, poultry, beans , and nuts are all healthy, versatile protein sources—they can be mixed into salads, and pair well with vegetables on a plate. Limit red meat, and avoid processed meats such as bacon and sausage.

Healthy plant oils — in moderation. Choose healthy vegetable oils like olive, canola, soy, corn, sunflower, peanut, and others, and avoid partially hydrogenated oils, which contain unhealthy trans fats. Drink water, coffee, or tea. Skip sugary drinks , limit milk and dairy products to one to two servings per day, and limit juice to a small glass per day.

Stay active. The Healthy Eating Plate does not define a certain number of calories or servings per day from each food group. The relative section sizes suggest approximate relative proportions of each of the food groups to include on a healthy plate. As the name suggests, the Healthy Eating Plate is visualized as a single plate, however it can be used as a guide for creating healthy, balanced meals—no matter which type of dishware is used!

There are many cultures around the world in which people may not eat their meals from a plate. Although our translations of this guide maintain the single-plate graphic, we encourage its use for creating healthy, balanced meals in context of cultural and individual customs and preferences.

For some people, moderate alcohol consumption can offer health benefits, whereas for others alcohol may pose risks. Learn more about the risks and benefits of alcohol. The Healthy Eating Plate, created by nutrition experts at the Harvard T.

Chan School of Public Health and editors at Harvard Health Publications, was designed to address deficiencies in the U. The Healthy Eating Plate provides detailed guidance, in a simple format, to help people make the best eating choices.

The Healthy Eating Plate is based exclusively on the best available science and was not subjected to political or commercial pressures from food industry lobbyists. In fact, the Healthy Eating Pyramid and the Healthy Eating Plate complement each other.

See how you can use the Healthy Eating Pyramid as a guide for your grocery shopping list. According to research done at Harvard Chan School of Public Health and elsewhere [], following the guidelines presented through the Healthy Eating Pyramid and Healthy Eating Plate can lead to a lower risk of heart disease and premature death:.

Two studies offer further evidence of the disease prevention benefits that accrue from following a diet similar to one based on the Healthy Eating Pyramid:. The Healthy Eating Plate image is owned by Harvard University.

The downloadable version may be used, without permission, for educational and other non-commercial uses with proper attribution, including the following copyright notification and credit line:.

Copyright © , Harvard University. For more information about The Healthy Eating Plate, please see The Nutrition Source, Department of Nutrition, Harvard T. Chan School of Public Health, www. org , and Harvard Health Publications, www. The contents of this website are for educational purposes and are not intended to offer personal medical advice.

You should seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website.

The Nutrition Source does not recommend or endorse any products. Skip to content The Nutrition Source. The Nutrition Source Menu. Search for:.