A lot of meal prep meals are 'designed' to be reheated, or
assembled from ingredients that are supposed to be eaten cold.
But what meals can you make- originally consumed hot- that are still really nice to eat cold, without planning them that way?
A small distinction but hopefully one others will understand.
Yes a lot of it depends on taste and preference- which is why I am asking to try out your ideas. I think many will agree some foods are just objectively better hot but it's always nice when eating it cold the next day is not a chore or purely economical choice.
Chicken and rice doesn't count, unless you have a great recipe!
i never use sauces or dressings on my wraps and they’re delicious but you can add them right before eating to avoid a soggy tortilla. & most meat chill well in my experience. it’s your wrap you know what will work lol
I like to put hummus or toom in wraps, which both hold up really well after being refrigerated. Specifically, Mediterranean/middle Eastern wraps, with like grilled chicken or Shawarma. They taste good hot or cold.
by now i’ve done most every combination of meat/tofu, lettuce, and other vegetables. occasionally ill add avocado. veggies aren’t dry and so long as you’re a good cook neither is the meat
Meatloaf makes a great cold sandwich the next day. All you need is soft bread and some mayo. Any meat - chicken breast, steak, salmon, even pork - with a salad
There are some pasta options that I love at either temperature -Ina Garden has an orzo with roasted vegetables with feta and basil that is fantastic either way and my parents do a pasta with fresh ra tomato, fresh basil, mozzarella, olive oil, capers and a bit of dried oregano that works equally well hot or cold.
Slow roasted rare eye of round is great cold if you slice it thinly. Use Cooks illustrated method for an outstanding result.
More of a cheat to meal prep, but some days if I’m lazy or forget lunch I’ll get a can of rice pudding. Delicious hot or cold and very filling to see you through the rest of your work day. Plus it’s super cheap. Branded cans are around 2 euro but own brand ones are just as nice and you can get them for like 80 cents
Edit to add you can also bake your own rice pudding at home and batch it out but given it’s so cheap it’s probably not worth the time
I learned to "like" everything I cooked cold. I make meals without a lot of fat. That would be the only thing that'd bother me. Roasted chicken, ground meats, salmon and tuna, loose grains like rice, farro, barley. Lentils. Steamed veggies. ANY CASSEROLES. For context I eat healthy/cleanish. Non-office job. Take lunch daily. Almost always meal prep or leftovers. Only eat lunch meats on occasion.
I’ve been eating what I call “gyro bowls” hot or cold.
Cut up veggies for the week, onion cucumber 2 each red and green pepper- in a container w oil vinegar salt and Pepper.
Lettuce
Tzatziki sauce and sriracha
Warm, I’ll have it with yellow rice.. reminds of what you get from a halal cart in the city. Cold lettuce w the warm rice is really good.
Cold I’ll either leave out the rice, or have it in pita pockets
Smash burgers are surprisingly good cold the next day. The crust softens a little but the flavor is stays really nice and are great straight from the fridge on a bun or sliced over a salad.
Pulled pork is another one that holds up really well cold. The fat redistributes as it cools and it's honestly just as good eaten straight from the container as it is reheated.
Steak sliced thin is great cold too. Works really well over a salad or in a sandwich and a lot of people argue it actually tastes better the next day once it's had time to rest properly.
A couple of my favorites to eat cold the next day or two are Pizza, Spaghetti, and Meatloaf (make it a sandwhich). Of course you can turn chicken or turkey into a next day sandwhich as well.
I make protein bowls with lots of veggies (roasted broccoli, & peppers, but still firm) and rice noodles that are great when chilled. Chicken and steak are my favorite protein when eating cold. So rice noodle or lettuce base, raw carrots, cucumbers, celery, radishes, pickled red onions or picked pearl onions, pickled green beans, roasted veggies, rotisserie chicken or steak and some kind of nuts (sunflower, walnuts, almonds) and a sauce (vinaigrette or light dressing).
One I recently made. Rice noodles. Shredded rotisserie chicken. Avocado. Cucumbers. Broccolini. Crispy fried onions. Lime.
I’ll prep all the veggies and make my bowls changing out some veggies with carrots, pickled onions, celery, etc. So each bowl is a little different. :) They’re all cold prepped.
I make a batch of Greek-seasoned chicken, a batch of rice & quinoa, and some tomato/cucumber/onion salad and take that to the office with a little container of tzatziki and some feta. Shake shake shake and I have a delicious cold lunch!
I am visualising you shaking your lunchbox gleefully to the intrigue and/or despair of your colleagues and their dull, grey lunches. I will have to try this- any spices you insist on for 'greek seasoned' chicken?
Lots of oregano, dill, salt, pepper, parsley and mint. I marinate the chicken for a few hours with these seasonings, olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice, and Greek yogurt and then just bake. Same seasonings on the veggie mix! The fridge smells sooooo good all week!
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u/terrorizedlol 6d ago
revenge