Sunday Meal Prep Plan: 5 Recipes That Keep 4 Days or More

This Sunday meal prep plan cooks 5 Savour recipes in one session, and each one has a fridge note of 4 days or more: blueberry baked oatmeal for breakfast, slow cooker black bean burrito bowls, Mediterranean chicken grain bowls, baked pork chops and crispy air fryer roasted potatoes. Cooked on Sunday, the 4-day dishes last through Thursday and the two 5-day dishes reach Friday.

Added together, the five stored total times come to 9 hours, but 6 of those hours are the beans cooking on LOW in the slow cooker while the other four recipes are made. Below: the cooking order, one shopping list from the recipes' ingredient lines, how long each dish keeps and what to freeze for Friday.

What can you meal prep on Sunday that lasts until Thursday?

Any dish whose own fridge note says 4 days. Count from the day after you cook: a dish made on Sunday with a 4-day note covers Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, not Friday. A 5-day note reaches Friday.

We started from the Meal Prep Recipes collection, kept only the recipes whose fridge notes say 4 days or more, and picked 5 with different main ingredients, spread over four appliances: black beans in the slow cooker, oats and blueberries in the oven, chicken thighs and quinoa on the stovetop, pork chops in the oven after the oatmeal, and potatoes in the air fryer. That lets the dishes cook side by side instead of one after another.

Three of the five (the oatmeal, the burrito bowls and the grain bowls) are also on Savour's make-ahead recipes page.

The Sunday meal prep plan at a glance

Recipes in cooking order, with the times, servings and nutrition stored on each recipe:

• 

  Slow Cooker • Healthy

  Slow Cooker Black Bean Burrito Bowls

  6 hrs 15 mins6 servings
• 

  Breakfast • Healthy

  Blueberry Baked Oatmeal

  1 hr6 servings
• 

  Healthy • Chicken

  Mediterranean Chicken Grain Bowls

  40 mins4 servings
• 

  Pork Chops • Easy Dinners

  Juicy Baked Pork Chops

  35 mins4 servings
• 

  Air Fryer • Healthy

  Crispy Air Fryer Roasted Potatoes

  30 mins4 servings

Made as written, that is 6 squares of oatmeal, 14 main-course servings and 4 servings of potatoes. Calories and protein are each recipe's estimate per serving; this plan is general information, not nutrition advice.

The burrito bowls and the potatoes are listed as vegan and gluten-free, the grain bowls and the pork chops as gluten-free, and the oatmeal as vegetarian. The burrito bowl recipe says to check that the salsa, broth and tortilla chips are labelled gluten-free if you need them to be.

In what order should you cook on prep day?

Longest first, then let the oven, stovetop and air fryer overlap, following each recipe's own method and times. You need a 4 to 6 litre slow cooker, the oven, a 20 cm (8 inch) square baking dish, a rimmed baking sheet, a skillet, a saucepan, an air fryer and, for the pork chops, an instant-read thermometer.

1. Load the slow cooker with the black bean burrito bowls

The slow cooker black bean burrito bowls take 15 minutes of prep: chop the onion, dice the red pepper, mince the garlic, then stir them into the slow cooker with the drained and rinsed beans, salsa, broth, spices and salt. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 hours, or on HIGH for 3 hours if you start later in the day. The lime juice goes in at the end.

The bowls call for 4 cups of rice that is already cooked, and the recipe has no rice step, so have it ready by the time the beans are done.

2. Bake the blueberry oatmeal at 190°C (375°F)

Heat the oven to 190°C (375°F) while you load the slow cooker. The blueberry baked oatmeal takes 10 minutes to mix in two bowls, then bakes for 35 to 40 minutes, or 40 to 45 minutes with frozen blueberries; the recipe's tip is to add frozen ones straight from the freezer. It cools in the dish for 10 minutes before you cut it into 6 squares.

3. While the oatmeal bakes, make the chicken grain bowls

The Mediterranean chicken grain bowls use only the stovetop, so the oven stays free for the oatmeal. Toss the chicken thighs in the lemon, garlic and oregano marinade for 10 minutes while the quinoa simmers for 15 minutes and steams off the heat for 5. Cook the chicken for 5 to 6 minutes per side until it reaches 74°C (165°F), rest it for 5 minutes and slice it.

Stir the yogurt sauce together and prepare the cucumber, tomatoes, cabbage and olives. The recipe's tip is to cool the quinoa and chicken completely before packing.

4. Turn the oven up to 200°C (400°F) for the pork chops

When the oatmeal comes out, raise the oven to 200°C (400°F) for the baked pork chops. Pat the chops dry, mix the brown sugar and paprika rub, oil and season both sides, and set them on a wire rack over a foil-lined baking sheet (or on the oiled foil if you have no rack). They bake for 15 to 20 minutes if boneless or 20 to 25 minutes if bone-in, and come out as soon as the thickest part reads 71°C (160°F). Rest them for 5 minutes under loose foil.

5. While the chops bake, air fry the potatoes

The crispy air fryer roasted potatoes take 10 minutes to cut into 2.5 cm chunks, rinse and pat dry. Preheat the air fryer to 200°C (400°F) for 3 minutes, toss the potatoes with the oil and seasonings, and air fry for 18 to 22 minutes in a single layer, shaking every 6 minutes. Use 2 batches if they do not fit. Toss them with the parsley and fresh garlic while hot.

6. Cool, pack and finish the beans

Pack each dish once it has cooled: the grain bowls into 4 containers with the yogurt sauce in small separate ones, the chops and the potatoes into airtight containers within 2 hours, and the oatmeal covered once it is completely cool.

When the slow cooker finishes, mash about a quarter of the beans against the side of the pot, stir in the lime juice and taste for salt. Store the beans and the toppings (corn, tomatoes and greens) in separate airtight containers; the recipe's FAQ says the rice can be packed with the beans. Keep the guacamole back and add it just before serving.

Sunday meal prep shopping list

Every line comes from the five recipes' ingredient lists, with the stored amounts, for the servings each recipe makes. The same item in the same unit is added up, with the split in brackets. Check what you already have before you shop.

Produce

• 3 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes (2 cups for the burrito bowls, 1 1/2 cups for the grain bowls)
• 7 cloves garlic (3 for the burrito bowls, 3 for the grain bowls, 1 for the potatoes)
• 1 onion (burrito bowls)
• 1 red bell pepper (burrito bowls)
• 1 lime (burrito bowls)
• 2 cups chopped kale or romaine (burrito bowls)
• 1 1/2 cups corn kernels, thawed if frozen (burrito bowls)
• 1 English cucumber (grain bowls)
• 1 1/2 cups red cabbage, finely shredded (grain bowls)
• 3 tbsp lemon juice (grain bowls: 2 tbsp for the chicken, 1 tbsp for the sauce)
• 750 g Yukon Gold or baby potatoes (potatoes)
• 1 1/2 cups blueberries, about 225 g, fresh or frozen (oatmeal)

Meat

• 600 g boneless, skinless chicken thighs (grain bowls)
• 4 pork chops, 2.5 cm (1 inch) thick, boneless about 180 g each or bone-in about 250 g each (pork chops)

Dairy, eggs and chilled

• 1 3/4 cups milk, about 420 ml, any kind (oatmeal)
• 2 large eggs (oatmeal)
• 2 tbsp butter or coconut oil, plus extra for the dish (oatmeal)
• 3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt (grain bowls)
• 100 g feta (grain bowls)
• 1 cup guacamole (burrito bowls)

Pantry

• 3 cans black beans, 540 ml / 19 oz each (burrito bowls)
• 250 ml tomato salsa, mild or medium (burrito bowls)
• 125 ml vegetable broth (burrito bowls)
• 4 cups cooked rice, white, brown or cilantro-lime (burrito bowls)
• 1 cup dry quinoa (grain bowls)
• 1/3 cup kalamata olives (grain bowls)
• 2 cups large-flake rolled oats, about 180 g (oatmeal)
• 1/3 cup walnuts or pecans, about 35 g (oatmeal)
• 1/4 cup maple syrup, 60 ml (oatmeal)
• 1 tsp baking powder (oatmeal)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (oatmeal)
• 1 tbsp brown sugar, packed (pork chops)
• 5 tbsp olive oil (2 tbsp for the grain bowls, 1 1/2 tbsp for the pork chops, 1 1/2 tbsp for the potatoes)

Herbs and spices

• 3 tsp salt (1/4 tsp for the oatmeal, 1/2 tsp for the burrito bowls, 1 1/4 tsp for the grain bowls, 1 tsp for the potatoes)
• 1 tsp fine salt, or 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt (pork chop rub; 1/4 tsp if you brined the chops)
• 3 tsp dried oregano (1 tsp for the burrito bowls, 2 tsp for the grain bowls)
• 1 tsp dried thyme, or dried oregano (pork chops)
• 1/2 tsp dried rosemary, or dried thyme (potatoes)
• 2 tsp smoked paprika (1 tsp for the burrito bowls, 1 tsp for the grain bowls)
• 2 tsp smoked or sweet paprika (1 1/2 tsp for the pork chops, 1/2 tsp for the potatoes)
• 2 tsp ground cumin (burrito bowls)
• 2 tsp chili powder (burrito bowls)
• 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder (1 tsp for the pork chops, 1/2 tsp for the potatoes)
• 1 tsp onion powder (pork chops)
• 3/4 tsp black pepper (1/2 tsp for the pork chops, 1/4 tsp for the potatoes)
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon (oatmeal)
• 2 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped (potatoes)
• 1 tbsp fresh dill (grain bowls)

Optional and for serving

• Greek yogurt, extra milk or a drizzle of maple syrup, to serve (oatmeal, optional)
• Tortilla chips, spiralized zucchini and dairy-free sour cream (burrito bowls, optional)
• Chopped fresh parsley, to serve (pork chops, optional)

How long does each dish keep in the fridge?

Each dish keeps for the time its own recipe gives, so the five do not share one limit:

The oatmeal can also be warmed whole, covered with foil, in a 175°C (350°F) oven for 15 minutes, and sliced pork chops warm in a covered pan.

Which dish should you eat on which day?

Eat the 4-day dishes early in the week and keep the 5-day beans for Friday. For two people eating dinner at home, the servings divide like this:

That leaves 4 servings of burrito bowls for lunches on any day up to Friday. The oatmeal's 6 squares give one person a breakfast each weekday with one square to spare.

What should you freeze for Friday?

In this plan, Friday comes out of the fridge: the oatmeal and the burrito bowl beans both keep up to 5 days. The freezer is for a 4-day dish you would rather eat on Friday or later, and each recipe's freezer note sets what freezes and for how long:

• Baked pork chops: freeze cooked chops, wrapped individually, for up to 3 months, and thaw overnight in the fridge. To have chops on Friday instead of Thursday, wrap 2 and freeze them on Sunday once they have cooled, move them to the fridge on Thursday evening, and swap the two days: burrito bowls on Thursday, chops on Friday.
• Blueberry baked oatmeal: wrap individual squares and freeze for up to 3 months; thaw overnight in the fridge. The spare square fits here.
• Black bean burrito bowls: the cooked beans freeze for up to 3 months. The recipe gives no thawing step.
• Mediterranean chicken grain bowls: only the cooked chicken and quinoa freeze, for up to 2 months, not the vegetables. The recipe gives no thawing step.
• Air fryer roasted potatoes: the recipe has no freezer note, so eat them by Thursday, including on a Thursday-Friday swap.

Pork Chops • Easy Dinners

Juicy Baked Pork Chops

35 mins4 servings

The Freezer Meals collection lists dishes made for the freezer, the blueberry baked oatmeal among them. To cook each night instead of in one session, the 30-minute dinner meal plan for Monday to Friday has 5 weeknight dinners and its own shopping list.

See every meal prep recipe