Recipe
10 Mexican Meal Prep Recipes That Taste Like Spring Break
Something about struggling through these midterms with spring break looming on the horizon has my stomach begging for some fresh food. Thankfully, I found that one way to get the fiesta going a few weeks early with minimal effort is with Mexican meal prep recipes.
These Mexican meal prep recipes will let you jump into all those flavors you're going to be enjoying for real over spring break. Great for all cooks, even those with a tight budget and minimal effort, these recipes will fuel your work or studying without getting boring, like most meal prep does.
1. Freezer Breakfast Burritos
Start your day off with a fiesta in your mouth, even when you're running five minutes late to a midterm. You can prep these breakfast burritos ahead of time and heat them up for a delicious breakfast, or for any other meal. This recipe uses chorizo, red peppers, and eggs as the main ingredients, but feel free to get a little crazy. Add some avocado or even hot sauce for an extra wake up call.
2. Stuffed Peppers
Stuffed peppers are one of my personal favorite foods to prep. They reheat well and you can add pretty much whatever ingredients you want. My mom taught me how to make an Italian version, but since I found this vegan quinoa and jalapeño stuffed pepper recipe, it's been on repeat.
3. Mason Jar Mexican Salad
Mason jar salads are the perfect portable meal to prep on the weekend and bring to the library for study fuel. Those snack foods may taste good, but they'll never satisfy your cravings for real food. You can choose whatever ingredients you want, but for a Mexican-inspired dish try ground beef, peppers, jalapeños, and some chili powder-spiced quinoa. Try putting salsa on the bottom to act as a salad dressing without making your lettuce soggy.
4. Mexican Chicken Mini Casseroles
One of the things that I miss about home are the family-sized casseroles that my mom used to make. There's something so comforting in that style of meal. When you're stressed about midterms and need some of that simple comfort, try this chicken casserole recipe that makes mini casseroles that you can eat or freeze for later.
5. Chicken Enchiladas
Another family-sized meal that's hard to tackle when you're living on your own is enchiladas. Try this enchilada recipe to make a whole pan, then keep a few portions in the fridge for quick meals and freeze the rest for when you get back from spring break. Trust me, you'll thank yourself later.
6. Chicken Burrito Bowls
Whenever I meal prep for the week, I like to prep separate components and keep them in the fridge so that I can throw together slightly different meals each day. This burrito bowl recipe is a great candidate for that approach. If you get all of the ingredients, it can be just like Chipotle.
7. Tilapia Tacos
Are you one of those people who hates the bowl trend? Don't worry, there's a taco meal prep recipe for you too. And it includes tortillas for the full taco experience. To make these tacos last all week, simply prepare extra of each topping and store them separately. Then, whenever a taco craving hits, you can quickly assemble it however you want and taste the tropical spring break destination that awaits you.
8. Vegetarian Tacos
I know what you're thinking. What about a recipe for all those vegetarian taco lovers out there? Look no further. This vegetarian taco recipe uses black beans and butternut squash as the base. I think that vegetarian meal preps always taste better than their meat-laden counterparts by the end of the week when you really need them.
This recipe can also be turned into a mason jar salad or taco bowl really easily if you don't have time to assemble an actual taco. Use chips instead of the tortilla for the same effect.
9. Baked Chicken Chimichangas
Chimichangas are usually one of those special dishes that you only get to have when you visit a Mexican restaurant. That's no longer the case. This baked version is super easy and much healthier than its traditional deep-fried counterpart. Use rotisserie chicken for an even simpler meal prep session. You can assemble all the chimichangas and then bake them throughout the week to ensure they're warm and crisp for every meal.
10. Crockpot Mexican Rice
I never knew that rice could be so easy to make or have so much flavor until I tried this Mexican rice recipe. It's perfect for meal prepping because you can start it and then prep the rest of your meal components for the week. It'll be ready to go with very minimal effort on your part.
Hopefully you can survive on these Mexican meal prep recipes through midterm season. Before you know it, you'll be on the beach, enjoying the real thing.