How Mediterranean Meal Prep will Transform Your Week

By Alex Chung

Senior Food Writer at Pro Home Cooks

Mediterranean diet has been extremely popular in food culture over the last few decades, which makes total sense to me. You've got super fresh ingredients, a variety of options, and there's so many different ways to build out a meal. You’ll never be bored! I currently have a kitchen renovation in full effect but that does not stop me from meal prepping for the week so today I'm going to be showing you how to make some of my favorite Mediterranean inspired dishes and then I’m going to be turning them into delicious meals throughout the entire week! Click here to see the full video.

Roasted Beet Puree

Ingredients:
  • 3 beets
  • 1 head of garlic
  • Drizzle of olive oil
  • Salt & pepper
  • Handful of parsley
  • Handful of walnuts
  • 1/4 cup of tahini
  • 2 tablespoons of greek yogurt
  • 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
  • Pinch of cumin seeds
  • 1 teaspoon of salt
Instruction:
  1. Drizzle oil over the beets and garlic. Add some salt and pepper.
  2. Wrap up the beets and garlic. Add a little bit of water to the garlic to make sure it doesn’t burn if you are using a grill. If you are using an oven set it to 450F.
  3. Cook for 30 - 40 minutes and then remove. Cut off the charred skin to reveal the perfectly cooked beets.
  4. Add the beets, parsley, walnuts, tahini, greek yogurt, lemon juice, cumin seeds, salt, 1/2 of the roasted garlic to a food processor. Blend until you reach your desired consistency.
  5. Place in an air tight container and place in the fridge.
Pickled Turnips

Ingredients:
  • 4 radishes
  • 4 spring turnips
  • 1 beet
  • Vinegar, see instructions
  • Water, see instructions
Instructions:
  1. Wash and pat dry the radishes and turnips. Peel your beets and slice everything into batons.
  2. Place in a mason jar and fill 1/2 way with vinegar. If you like it less acidic, fill it 1/3 of the way.
  3. Then pour in water to fill up the rest of the jar. Pour the liquid out and into a pot.
  4. Add in 3 - 4 tablespoons of salt, stir, and bring to boil to dissolve the salt.
  5. Pour the water over, let it cool down, and seal up.

Lamb Patties

Ingredients:
  • 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
  • 1 teaspoon of fennel seeds
  • 1 teaspoon of sesame seeds
  • 1/2 teaspoon of chili pepper
  • 1 teaspoon of salt
  • 1 teaspoon of pepper
  • 1 lb of ground lamb
  • 1/2 cup of parley & mint
Instructions:
  1. In a mortar and pestle, add in the cumin seeds, fennel seeds, sesame seeds, chili pepper, salt, and pepper. Grind until you have a powder.
  2. Add it to the lamb along with freshly chopped parsley and mint.
  3. Drizzle over some oil and let them sear on the the grill or pan. Flip & cook the other side.
  4. Remove from heat and save in an air tight container

Pita Bread

Ingredients:
  • 700g of bread flour
  • 2 teaspoon of instant yeast
  • 1 tablespoon of sugar
  • 2 tablespoons of salt
  • 450 grams of water
Instruction:
  1. In a large bowl combine the flour, yeast, sugar, salt, and water. Mix until dough forms and then knead for 5 minutes. Grease an air tight container with oil and let this rest for 1 – 2 hours or until nice & bubbly.
  2. Cut into 8 equal sized pieces and roll into nice tight balls. Cover and let them rest for 5 minutes.
  3. Individual shape your pita and place directly onto your hot grill. Leave it on the grill and watch it puff up in size. Approx. 1 minutes.
  4. Give it a flip and let it cook for another 45 seconds. Take it off the grill and you have freshly made pita ready to go! Check out all the recipes I made with these pita here!

Tzatziki

Ingredients:
  • 1 large cucumber
  • Pinch of salt
  • Handful of mint, no stem
  • Roasted or fresh garlic
  • 1 cup of greek yogurt
  • Fresh squeeze of lemon juice
  • Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
  1. Start by grating your cucumber with a box grater. Toss in some salt. To help draw out moisture.
  2. In the meantime, roughly chop mint and garlic. To a bowl, add the yogurt and chopped mint & garlic.
  3. Squeeze the water out of the cucumber and add it to the bowl. Add a squeeze of lemon, salt and pepper. Mix everything together and store in an air tight container.

Hummus

Ingredients:
  • 2 cup of dried chickpeas
  • 4 cups of water
  • 1 cup of tahini
  • 1/2 lemon
  • Tablespoon of salt
  • 2 cloves of fresh garlic
Instructions:
  1. Pressure cook the chickpeas for 45 minutes on high.
  2. Place the chickpea in a food processor along with the tahini, lemon juice, salt, and garlic.
  3. Blend until smooth and add the chickpea water (aquafaba) if needed. Taste it for any salt or lemon and adjust as necessary.
  4. Store in an air tight container.

Beet Puree Toast

Ingredients:
  • 2 pieces of toast
  • 1/2 block of halloumi
  • 1 lamb patty, recipe above
  • 1/2 cup of beet puree, recipe above
  • Sliced cucumbers
Instruction:
  1. Start by toasting your bread. Cut up your halloumi and lamb patty into equal sized pieces.
  2. Drizzle oil to a pan and add in the cheese and meat once the oil starts to shimmer. Fry for about 5 minutes.
  3. To serve, spread some beet dip over the toast, finish with the crispy cheese and meat and cucumbers. Enjoy!

Crispy Lamb Lentil & Tomato Bowl

Ingredients
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 3 lamb patties, chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, sliced
  • 1 cup of lentils
  • 1 can of crushed tomatoes
  • 1/4 cup of white wine
  • 1/4 cup of water
  • Salt to taste
  • 6 - 7 carrots
  • Salt and peper
  • 1 teaspoon of honey
Instructions:
  1. Preheat your oven to 400 F. Peel and chop your carrots into 2 inch pieces. Toss with salt, pepper, and honey. Cook for 15 minutes or until charred and soft.
  2. To a pot, drizzling in some oil. Once it begins to shimmer, add in the chopped onions and lamb. Fry for 2 - 3 minutes and then add the garlic. Cook for another 2 minutes.
  3. Toss in 1 cup of lentils, crushed tomatoes, white wine, water, and salt. Cover and cook on low for 15 minutes.
  4. Serve with the roasted carrots, tatziki, pickled veggies, and beet dip! Enjoy!

Hummus Bowls 2 Ways

Ingredients:

  • 1 cauliflower, chopped
  • 2 -3 lamb patties
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 1 cup of hummus
  • Pickled veggies
Instructions:
  1. Toss the cauliflower with olive oil and salt. Air fry for 15 minutes at 370 F.
  2. In the meantime, drizzle oil into a pan. Fry up the chopped lamb patties for 2 minutes before adding the chopped bell pepper.
  3. Spread about 1 cup of hummus to the bottom of two plate. Top one with the air fried hummus and the other with the crispy meat and bell pepper.
  4. To the crispy lamb hummus one, finish it off with some pickled veggies.
  5. Serve with warmed up pitas! Check out more recipes I made here.
By Alex Chung

Senior Food Writer at Pro Home Cooks

Published