Do you love to plan ahead so you can save some time in your busy schedule? These Air fryer meal prep ideas are what you need to help you get started. It’s great to keep you on track to achieve your set goals. You’ll find easy recipes that are easily adaptable and suitable for beginners or veteran users alike!
From chicken to pasta to vegetables and snacks, get ready to enjoy these tasty make ahead meals that use pantry staples and require minimal prep.
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Table of Contents
- Planning your meals will help you
- Join our Air fryer recipes group on Facebook!
- What are the benefits of air fryer meal prep
- Best Ingredients and tools for meal prep
- How to meal prep for the week
- 25+ foods you can meal prep in your air fryer
- Storage instructions
- Air frying Tips
- Frequently asked questions
- More air fryer recipe round ups!
- Air fryer meal prep recipe ideas
Planning your meals will help you
- Save money and stick to your planned budget
- Stay focused on your goals
- Save time
- Reduce food waste
Join our Air fryer recipes group on Facebook!
What are the benefits of air fryer meal prep
Quick: Cooking meats in the air fryer saves time. You get the same delicious texture of fried meats with a fraction of the oil.
Great for make ahead: The air fryer is a great kitchen appliance for cooking many meals ahead. Especially chicken and even vegetables.
Reheating: You’d be surprised how well the air fryer reheats food. It turns left over pizza gold and fries and chicken are the best when reheated in the air fryer.
Related: Air fryer keto and low carb recipes, Air fryer chicken recipes
Best Ingredients and tools for meal prep
Ingredients:
- Chicken
- Spices and herbs
- Ground Beef
- Steak cuts
- Eggs
- Rice
- Potatoes
Tools:
- Mixing bowls
- Air fryer perforated parchment paper
- Plastic Meal prep Bowls or these glass ones
- Ziplock bags
How to meal prep for the week
Plan: Start planning your meals for a particular week on the previous week. Choose a meal plan you want to follow, select the recipes you want to make that are freezer or make ahead friendly. Proteins like meats are good candidates for meal planning.
Look through your pantry: Now that you’ve decided what meals you want to make for the coming week, it’s time to look through your pantry to find what you already have available and what you need to buy or stock up on. You may need some herbs or spices or some complimentary canned foods. You need to also take stock of perishable goods you have in your refrigerator so you don’t go buying more zucchinis when you still have some from last week. Also make sure your have enough functional meal prep bowls to store the food.
Create a shopping list & go shopping: After looking through your pantry, it’s time to create a shopping list to buy what you need for the week’s meal plan. To make things easier, you can break shopping into two. Buy the non perishable items like spices, dry herbs and canned foods earlier in the week and perishable goods like meats and vegetables as close to meal prep day as possible which for most people is usually on the weekends.
Cook & store your food: Prepare your meals and store for the week in portioned containers enough for a meal. This will reduce the chances of having leftovers that need restoring and reheating.
25+ foods you can meal prep in your air fryer
Whether you are meal prepping for weight loss or to stay healthy or even to save cost, these are easy meals to meal prep with air fryer machines. Hope you find them helpful
Storage instructions
- Let food cool completely before refrigerating or freezing.
- Store in portioned containers.
- Use microwave safe meal prep bowls for when it’s time to reheat the food.
Air frying Tips
- If you have more than one air fryer, using both at the same time will save you more time.
- Don’t hesitate to employ the help of other kitchen appliances like the instant pot or microwave if needed. It will help with multitasking while making your meals.
- Using perforated parchment paper when cooking greasy foods like steak or chicken will help with easy clean up.
Frequently asked questions
What day is the best day to meal prep?
Most people choose Saturdays or Sundays to prep their meals because it’s a weekend and probably their most convenient days since they work Monday to Friday. There is no set day to meal prep. You have to choose a day based on your own schedule and do what withdrawals for you.
How many times a week should I meal prep?
In as much as it’s nice to prep for a whole week and not have to cook again till the next, it’s always good to plan and leave room for the possibility of cooking twice a week. So foods like veggies may not stay fresh for up to a week and may not be suitable for freezing so you might need to remake those in the middle of the week. Except you made sure during the planning stage to select only meals that would last through the week.
Does meal prepping actually work?
Nobody said it was going to be easy but it does work. If you take out the time to follow the steps discussed in this article and implement accordingly. You will find that it does work!
More air fryer recipe round ups!
- Air fryer New Year’s Eve recipes
- Over 13 Air fryer Bacon recipes.
- Air fryer game day recipes
- Best frozen foods for the air fryer
Check out all our >>>Air fryer Recipes!
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Air Fryer Yum’s Pro Tip! Air fryer temperatures may vary depending on size, make and model. When making a recipe for the first time, start with less time, check for doneness then add more time as needed.
Air fryer meal prep recipe ideas
Equipment
- Cosori Air fryer
- Kitchen tongs
Ingredients
- 12 links Breakfast sausages (any brand or flavor)
Serving suggestions
- Scrambled eggs
Instructions
Fresh breakfast sausages
- Place sausage links in air fryer. Set temperature to 400°F / 200°C and air fry for 8 to 10 mins.
- Remember to shake the basket or flip the sausages half way through cooking time to ensure sausages brown and cook evenly on all sides.
Fully cooked breakfast sausages
- Place fully cooked sausages in air fryer basket. Set temperature to 400°F / 200°C and cook for 6 mins
Frozen breakfast sausages
- Arrange the frozen sausages in the basket without overcrowding. Cook at 400°F / 200°C for 10 to 12 mins
Notes
- No need to preheat the oven. If you do, cook sausages at less time. Start checking for doneness at 7 mins for fresh sausage links.
- If cooking with an air fryer oven like the instant pot vortex oven cook in the middle rack for a couple more minutes than with the air fryer basket.
- Do not over crowd the basket and be sure to flip the sausages half way through cooking time.
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe? Awesome! Please rate it by clicking the stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ when you leave a comment below. Also be sure to Follow & Tag @AirFryerYumBlog on Instagram when you make any of our recipes. We are honored and would love to see your recreations of our recipes!
Thank you for making this so pleasant to read and pretty and savory pics to look forward to. trying to transition to a healthier lifestyle. one of our daughters fed us from cooking with her air fryer and has inspired us with how successful the food turns out.
Hi Heidi!
Your kind words warmed my heart! Happy you found our website and that you enjoyed reading through. I agree with you the air fryer is an amazing kitchen appliance and I believe you’ll enjoy yours. Feel free to reach out anytime! Happy holidays!