Meal Prepping on the Grill...or the Grill Pan

Recipes by Chef Christy Williams (@christinewilliamscooks)

August and September are confusing months in the midwest. It may be 100º on Monday and 70º on Friday. Sometimes there is a 20º difference between 9 am and 5 pm. Midwesterners instinctively know to pick out clothes in layers to be prepared for whatever weatherthe day brings. We know that a summery salad may sound good at the beginning of the week but by the end of the week, we may crave beef stew. You just never know.

It’s a guessing game. Grilling outdoors will probably be an option for most of August and September, maybe even into October baseball, but that is not guaranteed. You may have to whip out the ol’ grill pan and make-do indoors. 

No matter the weather, we have created two recipes to meal prep on the grill, inside or out. These recipes include grilled vegetables, two homemade salsas, and, of course, Pre steaks. All you need is your grill or grill pan, a blender or food processor, some tongs and your favorite meal prep containers.

First, make your salsas. The key to a flavorful salsa is charred peppers. Get your grill pan or grill hot, and place the tomatoes, tomatillos, onions, and peppers right on the grates. Make sure to keep an eye on them so they do not burn too much but you do want some blackened edges.

Salsa Verde

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lbs tomatillos, husked and washed 
• 1 small yellow onion, sliced in half with the rootintact 
• 1 poblano pepper
• 1-2 jalapeños(two if you like a lot of spice!)
• 1 bunch of cilantro, roughly chopped 
• 1-2 cloves of garlic, grated
• Juice from 2 limes to taste
• Salt, to taste

Instructions:

1. Grill the tomatillos, onion, poblano, and jalapeño until lightly charred and softened.
2. Place the warm vegetables in a bowl and cover with a towel to continue to steam and soften the vegetables for about 10 minutes.
3. Pulse everything together in a food processor or blender until relatively smooth. Mix in lime juice, salt, and cilantro. Taste and adjust for seasoning.

Salsa Roja

• 4-5 Roma tomatoes
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced in half lengthwise, remove seeds, stems, and ribs
• 1 red jalapeño or Fresno pepper
• 1 red onion, sliced in half 
• 1 bunch scallions, sliced
• Lime, to taste
• Salt, to taste

1. Grill the tomatoes, onion, bell pepper, scallions, and jalapeño until lightly charred and softened.
2. Place the warm vegetables in a bowl and cover with a towel to continue to steam and soften the vegetables for about 10 minutes.
3. Pulse everything together in a food processor or blender until relatively smooth. Mix in lime juice and salt. Taste and adjust for seasoning.
4. Tip: Make sure to not over pulse or your salsa will turn pink!

When you have your salsas ready, chop your vegetables of choice. We used sweet potatoes, cut into wedges, zucchini, sliced, asparagus, and carrots. All of these are easy to grill and hold up well throughout the week for lunches or prepped dinners. 

The vegetables will serve as your base so having a vegetable like a sweet potato will take the place of whole grain rice or cauliflower rice nicely. Although, either rice or cauliflower rice would make great options too. 

Lightly oil and salt the vegetables and place on grill. Cook until tender and there are visible grill marks on the sides. If you like your vegetables on the softer side, place in a bowl with a towel covering it after grilling. This will steam the vegetables a little more to make them softer.

Lastly, cook your steaks. We used our New York Strip Steak and our Ribeye cut for this round of meal prep. If you are looking for a leaner cut, reach for our Top Sirloin or our Filet Mignon. 

Lightly oil both sides of the steaks and salt both sides. Check out our Steak Temperature Chart to see what times we recommend for your preferred doneness. 

Once the steaks are done cooking, let them rest for at least 7 minutes. Slice against the grain and place on top of the grilled vegetables.