Want to learn how to eat more vegetables in a day? In this video (at the end of the post), I show you two things that I do every week to help me eat lots of vegetables in a day and get a lot of colour and variety.
The first thing I do is make at least 5 salads so that I have one for every day of the week. I chop up all the ingredients and cook anything if needed. Then I create a little assembly line and pre-portion all the salads into Tupperware containers. My salads are meals, so I also include a source of protein and a whole grain/starchy vegetable. The key to keeping them fresh is to not put on the dressing until you are ready to eat. Or, you can make mason jar salads (at the bottom of the post you will find a free download with my favourite mason jar salad recipes).
Here is a template that I use for each salad.
- A few handfuls of a lettuce base (spinach, kale, romaines or mixed greens)
- About ¼-1/2 cup of several types of vegetables (peppers, red, green or white onions, broccoli, carrots, beets, cabbage, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, etc)
- Protein (beans, tofu, tempeh, chicken, tuna, hardboiled eggs, nuts/seeds)
- Whole grain/starchy carb (brown rice, quinoa, kamut, sweet potato)
Another thing that I do is chop up a big batch of vegetables so that I can roast them throughout the week as a quick dinner side dish. You can also use these chopped vegetables in other ways, like eating them raw or stir-frying them. The main thing is that they are all ready to go when you want to cook. This saves so much time!
Some great vegetables for roasting are:
- Asparagus, zucchini, onion, mushrooms, Chinese eggplant, beets, carrots, peppers, broccoli, cauliflower
The time to cook them may vary, but to cook them I usually lay them on a single layer on a baking sheet and roast in the oven at 375F for about 15-20 minutes. Some harder vegetables like beets and carrots may take longer than this. I also toss them in some olive oil and add spices.
For these two tips in action, watch the quick video below!
Have any other tips to share? Comment below!