Give it one Sunday afternoon. Get 14 high-protein meals that taste like real cooking.

It’s Sunday at 3 PM. You know Wednesday is coming, and Wednesday you will be too tired to think about dinner. So this high protein meal prep plan does the thinking now. Then the rest of the week, you just open the fridge and eat.

Also, this isn’t a plan with plain chicken and sad broccoli. Every dish here is boldly seasoned with lemon and garlic, garam masala and ginger, or roasted green chile. In other words, you’ll actually want to eat it on day three.

How do you do high protein meal prep in one afternoon?

The trick is overlap. Instead of cooking one dish at a time, you keep three stations busy at once. That’s how a 4-hour job turns into about 2 hours.

• The oven: it roasts the chicken first, then bakes the egg bites.
• The stovetop skillet: it cooks the turkey keema while the chicken roasts.
• The pot: it boils the jammy eggs first, then simmers a pot of brown rice.

Plus, you only need one shopping trip, one sheet pan, one skillet, one pot and one muffin tin. So cleanup stays small too.

The high protein meal prep menu

Here’s what you’re making. Each dish links to its full recipe with a printable card, and each one has a vegan version too.

• Breakfast: green chile cheddar egg bites. 12 bites, about 17g protein per two. Bakes in 22 minutes.
• Lunch: Greek lemon chicken thighs with peppers and garlic yogurt sauce. 4 servings, about 44g protein each. Roasts in 25 minutes.
• Dinner: turkey keema with peas. 4 servings, about 36g protein each. One skillet, 30 minutes.
• Snack: garlic ginger jammy eggs. 6 eggs, about 6g protein each. Boils in under 7 minutes.
• Base: a pot of brown rice or quinoa to spoon under the chicken and keema.

That adds up to 6 breakfasts, 4 lunches and 4 dinners. Then you have 6 jammy eggs for the 3 PM slump.

Your shopping list

One trip covers the whole week. Also, check your spice shelf first, since most of the flavor lives there.

• Proteins: 2 lb boneless chicken thighs, 1 1/2 lb ground turkey, 16 pasture-raised eggs, a small tub of cottage cheese, a block of sharp cheddar and a tub of whole-milk Greek yogurt.
• Produce: 2 bell peppers, 1 poblano, 1 jalapeno, 2 green chilies, 2 onions, 1 red onion, 2 Roma tomatoes, baby spinach, scallions, a head of garlic, fresh ginger, 3 lemons, 1 lime, cilantro and dill.
• Pantry: brown rice, frozen peas, olive oil, ghee, coconut aminos, rice vinegar, cumin, coriander, turmeric, garam masala, smoked paprika and dried oregano.

For example, buying a family pack of chicken thighs and a big carton of eggs usually costs less per serving. So the plan stays friendly to your budget, too.

The 2-hour game plan, step by step

Read through this once before you start. Then put on a playlist and follow the clock.

1. 0:00 Turn on the broiler and char the poblano for the egg bites. Meanwhile, bring the pot of water to a boil.
2. 0:10 Cook the eggs for exactly 6 1/2 minutes, then move them to ice water. Next, mix the jammy egg marinade in a jar.
3. 0:20 Set the oven to 425 degrees. Whisk the chicken marinade and toss the thighs in it. Then slice the peppers and onion.
4. 0:30 Start the brown rice in the same pot. Also, start the keema onions in the skillet.
5. 0:40 The chicken and vegetables go in the oven. Meanwhile, keep building the keema: spices, tomato, then turkey.
6. 1:05 Pull the chicken out and drop the oven to 350 degrees. Then finish the keema with peas and lime.
7. 1:15 Blend the egg mix, fill the muffin tin and bake the egg bites for 22 minutes. Meanwhile, peel the jammy eggs and stir the yogurt sauce.
8. 1:40 Let everything cool for 20 minutes, then pack it up.

That’s about 2 hours of real cooking. However, give yourself a little extra the first time, since a new rhythm always takes a minute to learn.

How much protein does this give you each day?

Here’s a sample day from this high protein meal prep. Two egg bites at breakfast give you about 17 grams. Then the Greek lemon chicken at lunch adds about 44 grams. Two jammy eggs as a snack add about 12 grams. Finally, the turkey keema at dinner brings about 36 grams.

So that’s roughly 109 grams of protein from four easy meals. For many women, that lands right in a helpful daily range. To find your own number, read our guide to how much protein you actually need.

Of course, you don’t have to hit a perfect number every day. The goal is simply steady protein at each meal, because that may help you feel fuller and keep your energy more even through a long afternoon.

How to store it so it stays fresh all week

Food safety matters here. According to USDA leftover guidance, cooked leftovers keep 3 to 4 days in the fridge. Also, food should go into the fridge within 2 hours of cooking. So here’s how to stretch a Sunday prep through Friday.

• Eat the chicken first. Have it for lunch Monday through Thursday.
• Freeze two keema portions. Eat two fresh, freeze two on Sunday night and thaw them in the fridge on Wednesday.
• Use shallow containers. Food cools faster, so it spends less time in the warm zone.
• Keep sauces separate. The yogurt sauce goes in its own small jar so the chicken doesn’t get soggy.
• Reheat on the stove or in the oven. A covered skillet with a splash of water brings everything back to life.

How to keep meal prep from getting boring

Eating the same thing four days in a row is where most meal prep plans fall apart. That’s why small changes help so much.

• Change the base. Put the chicken on rice Monday, in a sourdough pita Tuesday and on greens Wednesday.
• Add a fresh topping. Sliced cucumber, avocado, pickled red onion or fresh herbs make day three taste new.
• Put an egg on it. A fried egg on top of the keema turns dinner into a whole different meal.
• Switch the sauce. A 2-minute lemon tahini or a spoon of salsa changes the whole bowl.

Also, if you want an even easier week, add a jar of overnight oats to the plan for extra breakfasts.

Frequently asked questions

Save this for Sunday, and try it just once. Your Wednesday self will be glad you did.

This article is for general information and is not medical or nutrition advice.