Meal prep will save you loads of time and money throughout the week. Plus, sticking to a preplanned menu ensures you'll stay on track with your healthy eating efforts. If you're looking to start meal prepping but you're totally overwhelmed by where to begin, make sure you load up on these meal-prep [1] essentials. From slicing and dicing your food to storing it for the week to taking it to work, we've found the best products for meal prep, all available on Amazon.
The Essential Storage Containers
You can't meal prep without the proper storage containers. These glass containers are airtight and a higher quality than plastic ones, which can potentially contain endocrine-disrupting BPA. The variety of sizes ensure you can store just about anything you make for the week.
Glass Storage Containers With Lids [3] ($46 for a set of 13)
Small Containers For Snacks, Salad Dressings and Condiments
These little storage containers are perfect for individual servings of salad dressings, nuts, and condiments. Plus, they're BPA-free and fridge-, freezer-, and dishwasher-safe.
Mini Food Storage Containers [4] ($9 for a set of 20)
Portion Out Your Meals With These To-Go Containers
Large, wide-mouth mason jars are perfect for storing smoothies, soups, or mason jar salads for the week. Just portion out your food for each day and store in the fridge.
Wide Mouth Ball Pint Jar [5] ($32, originally $40, for a set of 12)
Upgrade Your Lunch Box
Bring your lunch to work with the leak-proof Yumbox Tapas lunch container. It's dishwasher-safe and compact enough to fit in your work fridge, yet big enough to hold 4.2 cups of food.
Yumbox Tapas lunch box [6] ($33)
Keep All of Your Meals Cold When You're on the Go
If you need to transport several meals on the road, this lunch bag is perfect. It holds several glass containers plus storage for fruit on the top, all while keeping everything cold.
Insulated Lunch Bag [7] ($29)
Reusable Labels to Plan Your Entire Week
These cute labels help you track what dates you made your food on, what day of the week it's planned to be eaten, and who it's for. Reuse them every week with the new batch of prepped food!
Waterproof Reusable Chalkboard Stickers [8] ($11)
A Slow Cooker to Batch Cook
A slow cooker is essential for making big batches of soups, chili, or even oatmeal [9]. This one is programmable to make life even easier!
Programmable 6-Quart Crock-Pot [10] ($57)
Prep For the Week With a Handy Erasable Calendar
Plan out all your meals for the week with this convenient magnetic meal planner that sticks right on your fridge.
Magnetic Meal Planner [11] ($12)
Easy-to-Use Hand-Held Blender
A hand-held stick blender is sometimes easier for whipping up homemade dressings, soups, and condiments. Pro tip: use along with one of the quart-size wide-mouth mason jars for minimal mess.
Cuisinart Smart Stick Hand Blender [12] ($40)
Containers For Snacks or Complete Meals
These compartmentalized containers make putting complete meals together a breeze. Plus, they are microwaveable, have lids that seal tightly, and are also dishwasher- and freezer-safe.
2 and 3-Compartment Glass Meal Containers [13] ($25 for a set of four)
Meal Prep Your Own Salsa, Hummus, and Nut Butters
A high-quality food processor is essential for making homemade salsa, hummus, nut flours, granola bars, and nut butters. The price tag may seem steep, but it's worth the money because you'll use it every week.
Cuisinart 14-Cup Food Processor [14] ($230)
Storage Bags Perfect For Smoothies and Snacks
Giant zip-seal storage bags are perfect for freezing big batches of chopped veggies or making your own smoothie packs [15]. These reusable ones are better for the environment and your wallet.
Reusable Silicone Food Storage Bags [16] ($20 for a set of three)
Reusable Blender Cups For Daily Smoothies
A quality high-speed blender makes whipping up sauces, soups, and smoothies a breeze. The NutriBullet even comes with sealable lids for the blender cups, which makes for easy storage.
NutriBullet Pro 13-Piece High-Speed Blender/Mixer System [17] ($89)
For Fast Slicing and Dicing
Dice up veggies for your salads, soups, and sides super easily with this tool. It minces, slices, grates, and chops, all for less than $35.
Sedhoom 23-in-1 Food Chopper and Mandoline Slicer [18] ($34, originally $37)