BackEasy High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas: Plant & Meat-Based Recipes
Reviewed by Culinary Nutritionist | Kristy Del Coro, MS, RDN, LDN
Getting enough protein isn’t just about building muscle—it’s about fueling your body, supporting weight loss, and keeping you energized through whatever the day throws your way. But let’s be real: when life gets busy, hitting your protein goals can feel like a chore.
That’s where meal prep comes in. With a little planning, you can make mealtime effortless and delicious. We’ve rounded up some of the best high-protein meal prep ideas to help you stay on track—whether you're aiming to lose weight, gain strength, or just feel good in your body. Bonus: there are plenty of plant-based options for our vegan and vegetarian food lovers, too.
Key Takeaways
High-protein meals can be made from plant- or animal-based ingredients.
Some foods with the most protein include seafood, lean meat, yogurt, eggs, lentils, beans, and nuts.
A protein-rich diet can help you achieve various nutritional goals, like losing weight, building muscles, or maintaining a vegan diet.
Easy High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas for Weight Loss
High-protein doesn’t have to mean high-maintenance.
With a little planning, you can whip up healthy meal prep ideas that are just as easy as they are satisfying—especially when you're aiming to hit your protein goals and keep things low-calorie.
Balancing flavor, fuel, and convenience? That’s where we shine. These high-protein meals are built to support your goals—whether that’s plant-based power, leaner meals, or simply feeling your best. Mix it up by alternating animal-based proteins with veggies, grains, and fruits. Not only does research back this combo for better muscle health and sustainable weight, it also makes every bite way more exciting.¹
Easy Shrimp and Vegetable Skillet
One easy way to cook a low-carb and high-protein seafood meal is by combining shrimp with your favorite vegetables. If you buy frozen (deveined and peeled) shrimp and cut the vegetables in advance, you can make this meal in less than 20 minutes.
Stir-Fry Sesame Chicken
This chicken stir-fry uses chicken breast, bell peppers, and green beans. It’s a fantastic way to eat spicy Chinese-style cuisine without putting your weight loss plan at risk. If you want to meal prep it, slice the vegetables in advance and store them in a separate container in the fridge until you need to use them.
You can also save yourself the time and effort, and order Cookunity’s tasty Chicken and Veggie Stir Fry anytime!
Turkey Taco Lettuce Wraps
If you can’t resist Mexican food but want to lose weight, making these lettuce tacos is a great way to compromise. The ground turkey and vegetables are a healthy combination that won’t endanger your weight loss goals—and they taste great, too. You can prepare the ground meat and toppings in advance.
Related: How to Meal Prep a Salad: Dos & Don'ts (+ Recipes)
Low-Carb Zucchini Lasagna
You don’t have to forgo Italian food while adhering to a muscle-building protein diet. Try making a dish of mouth-watering lasagna with zucchini and ground beef to take with you for lunch. Slices of zucchini replace pasta, while lean ground beef and ricotta cheese provide the protein.
Spicy Chickpea Bowl
This is another quick meal you can prepare in advance. Combine chickpeas with peppers or other vegetables and store them in the fridge. Before digging in, add fresh herbs, lemon juice, or spicy seasoning.
Entrust your dietary needs to us, and we’ll do the meal prep for you. Check out our award-winning high-protein meals. We strive to meet your specific dietary requirements without compromising taste. Order up!
Muscle-Building High-Protein Meal Prep Ideas
Increasing your protein intake can also help you build muscle. These high-protein meals are great for increasing muscle mass. While meat contains a lot of protein, your options aren’t limited to meals that include a lot of meat. You can get protein from vegetables, grains, and even fruit.
Pesto Chicken
Pesto contains nuts and cheese and is a great choice for energizing meals. Use lean chicken meat to lower the amount of fat. You can buy organic pesto from the store or make your own.
Don't want to cook or don't have the time? Instead ordering out, you can still save money by ordering meal prep from CookUnity. Try our Pesto Chicken dish made by local chef Ruben Garcia.
Sweet Potato Hash
If you need something you can prepare a big portion of and take for lunch during the week, try combining sweet potatoes, sausage, eggs, and chickpeas. This delicious combination works well with spicy sausage or even ground beef. This meal has three high-protein ingredients, so your muscles will get all the protein they need.
Salmon With Vegetables
Rich in protein, vitamin B12, and omega-3 fatty acids, salmon helps with muscle gain. It’s quick and easy to cook, too. You can meal prep the vegetables—just make sure you choose durable options that go well with salmon, like broccoli, cauliflower, potatoes, carrots, and parsnips.
And if you feel like trying something different, order CookUnity’s Crispy Roasted Salmon and Haricot Verts, prepared with love by award-winning chef Dustin Taylor!
Tuna Salad With Egg
You can combine tuna with various green salads and add capers, scallions, green onions, and more. If you want to meal prep this salad, just use harder salad greens, like romaine or iceberg lettuce. Mix the ingredients right before eating, and always add the seasoning as the final step.
Black Rice Grain Bowl
Rice grain bowls can also be full of protein if you include the right vegetables. Black rice, portobello mushrooms, spinach, carrots, and edamame beans are a yummy combination. All the vegetables and the rice can be meal-prepped; just add the spinach leaves and seasoning when ready to eat.
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Vegan and Vegetarian High Protein Meal Ideas
Even vegetarians can enjoy tasty recipes high in protein, as more plant-based protein options are available than ever before. From lentils, beans, and tofu to high-protein whole grains, like quinoa, nuts and seeds, discover how to use these ingredients best below if you want to learn to high-protein-meal prep for vegans effectively.
Vegan Lasagna
Lasagna is a versatile dish with some fantastic vegan variations. It also makes for a great batch-cooked lunch. Using lentils as a ground beef substitute and including cashew nuts and tofu will taste great and provide incredible nutritional value.
Chickpea Cutlets
You can use chickpeas to make delicious cutlets for dinner, which you can also slice to put in a salad or burger. A larger portion will be enough to last you for the working week, and you can add a spicy sauce or mustard for flavor. Complement your cutlets with cauliflower rice or brown rice.
Tofu Scramble With Broccoli, Mushrooms, and Kale
Tofu is often used as a vegan scrambled eggs substitute. If you want a protein-rich variant, use vegetables like broccoli, mushrooms, and kale for additional protein. It’s a yummy breakfast, but you can also take some with you for lunch!
Vegetable Quinoa Bowl
Roast up your favorite vegetables ahead of time—including high-protein veggies like cauliflower—and pair them with fluffy, cooked quinoa for a quick, nourishing base. Toss in some pre-cooked canned beans for an extra hit of plant-based protein, and you’ve got a ready-to-go bowl that’s hearty, healthy, and anything but boring.
Save time and try CookUnity’s Sustainable Chickpea & Quinoa Bowl - a delicious plant-based quinoa recipe for all vegans and vegetarians on a high-protein diet?
Vegan Pumpkin Peanut Butter Soup
On colder days, comfort food like pumpkin soup is nice to have on the menu. If you combine pumpkin with peanut butter or cashew “cream,” the soup will be creamier, and you’ll get much more protein from your meal. It also tastes better the next day, making an ideal next-day lunch.
Pro-Tips from a Nutritionist for High-Protein Meal Prep
Our In-house Culinary Nutritionist, Kristy Del Coro, shares her go-to meal prep guidelines:
Aim for at least 3 ounces of protein-rich food per meal or at least 20 protein.
Opt for high-protein snacks to eat between meals.
Be mindful to not choose high-fat, animal-based protein sources since these tend to be high in unhealthy saturated fat.
Stock your freezer with frozen seafood, which is easy to thaw quickly in the refrigerator, for a nutritious high protein meal.
Keep shelf-stable protein sources such as canned beans, tinned fish, jerky, and quick-cooking whole grains for convenient use in high protein recipes.
How to Meal Prep High-Protein Food
Even high-protein, easy meal prep ideas require some amount of planning. You’ll need to:
Plan out your meals and collect high-protein recipes
Determine what ingredients you need to buy and write a grocery list
Purchase the necessary ingredients
Wash and cut fresh veggies
Cook protein and grains
Prepare any sauces or dressings
Assemble your meals
Once your meals are portioned and assembled, store them in air-tight containers to preserve freshness. Label each meal with the date to prevent spoilage.
Batch cooking is a common option for protein meal prep recipes. It allows you to make a big batch of a meal, like a stew or a casserole, then portion it out and freeze it. If this is the route you want to take, choose foods that freeze well and cool your meals before popping them in the freezer.
Tools to Help You Meal Prep
Meal prep can sometimes feel overwhelming, especially when you’re focusing on macros and nutrition. Fortunately, there are a variety of apps that can help you effectively meal plan, and some even include high-protein meal prep ideas.
These apps include:
Cronometer
Eat This Much
MealPrepPro
Mealime
MyFitnessPal
Paprika
These apps can help you plan your meals and track your protein intake all in one place. This helps ensure you eat the amount of protein you want for weight loss or muscle building.
Entrust your dietary needs to us, and choose from a wide range of meal delivery solutions! From high-protein meals and low-calorie meals to healthy vegan and vegetarian options, we strive to meet your specific culinary requirements. Order up!”
Case Studies on the Effectiveness of Protein-Rich Diets
Scientists have been examining the benefits of high-protein meals for years now, with studies showing that a consistent protein-rich diet can help people achieve health goals like losing weight and building muscle mass.
In 2020, the Journal of Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome published an article that examined various studies on the correlation between high-protein diets and weight loss.² It found that high-protein diets overwhelmingly promote weight loss without harmful effects on the body.
A 2018 study in Nutrients showed that while eating a high-protein diet won’t inherently build muscle mass, it can help with muscle building.³ High-protein diets help your body repair muscles, especially if you space out your high-protein meals throughout the day.
Expert Opinions on Protein Balancing
Protein is essential for our bodies. Registered Dietitian Jamie Nadeau explains on her website, The Balanced Nutritionist, that protein helps us build new cells, digest food, and move oxygen throughout our body.⁴
It also helps you feel full longer, which reduces excess snacking. On top of that, protein supports your immune system and promotes healing. You can consume protein in two different ways through:
Animal-based sources, like chicken and beef
Plant-based sources, like tofu and beans
Your body needs nine different types of amino acids, and animal-based protein sources provide all of them.⁵ However, “Most plant sources of protein are ‘incomplete proteins,’ so you won’t get all nine essential amino acids from just one food,” explains Nadeau. Many plant-based sources do not contain all nine essential amino acids, but if you eat a combination of plant-based protein sources throughout the day, you will get what you need. Plant-based protein sources also contain fiber and a concentrated source of vitamins and minerals and phytochemicals that are beneficial for overall health and disease prevention. They’re high in nutrients and “also tend to have more fiber, which can help maintain your blood sugar levels and support your gut health.”
You get the best of both worlds by eating a diet rich in animal- and plant-based protein.
Regulatory Updates for Protein Intake
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) includes several key points on protein in its Dietary Guidelines for Americans.⁶ It recommends that the average person consuming 2,000 calories per day should eat at least 5.5 ounces of protein foods per week.
The USDA further breaks down protein needs with these recommendations:
26 ounces per week should come from meats, poultry, and eggs
Eight ounces per week should come from seafood
Five ounces per week should come from plant-based protein sources
Of course, this amount will vary depending on your specific dietary needs and health goals. The USDA recommends varying your protein intake and choosing nutrient-dense forms of protein.
The future of food is leaning green. Around the globe, there’s a growing shift toward sustainable protein sources that are easier on the environment than traditional options. That means a bigger spotlight on plant-based protein sources—and for the bold, even more unconventional picks like algae and insects are making their way to the table.
High-Protein Resources
Meal prep isn’t just about saving time—it’s about setting yourself up for success. These hand-picked reads will keep your high-protein momentum going all week long:
15 High-Protein Breakfast Ideas for an Energy-Packed Start to the Day
20 Carnivore Diet Snacks: Animal-Based, Easy, On-the-Go Options
Carnivore Diet Meal Plan: 7-Days of Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner
Final Thoughts: High-Protein Meal Prep Done for You
We hope you are inspired by these delicious high-protein meal prep ideas. Prepping your own meals can save you time and money and help you achieve your health goals. Still, it can be hard to find time in our busy schedules to do all the shopping and prep work ourselves.
If you’re struggling with meal prep, we’ve got you. Entrust your dietary needs to us, and choose from a wide range of meal delivery solutions. From high-protein meals and low-calorie meals to healthy vegan meals and vegetarian meal delivery options, we strive to meet your specific culinary requirements.
Check out our meal delivery menu today!
FAQs About High-Protein Meal Prep
Below, we’ve addressed some frequently asked questions about high protein, healthy meal prep ideas.
What are the best high-protein foods for meal prep?
Some of the best high-protein foods for meal prep are seafood, lean meat, eggs, yogurt, legumes, nuts, and soy products.
Seafood and Shellfish: It’s easy to add seafood to your diet as it’s a great addition to all kinds of salads, paellas, casseroles, and pasta. One of the best sources of animal-based protein and healthy fats, fish like salmon and tuna make for a healthy and satisfying meal.
Lean Meat: Low-fat meat like chicken breast (without skin) or lean beef are the best for protein-rich meals. They don’t contain as much fat and are lower in calories than other types of meat, so they are great for weight loss too.
Eggs: There are so many ways to prepare eggs. You can make scrambled eggs, omelets, frittatas, or poached eggs. They’re a delicious addition to salads and soups too.
Yogurt: Yogurt is full of nutrients, protein-rich, and great for gut health. It can also be combined with high-protein grains like quinoa and oatmeal, nuts, and fruits that contain a lot of protein. Strained yogurt such as Greek yogurt or skyr has significantly more protein than regular yogurt.
Legumes: Whether it’s chickpeas, black beans, or lentils, all varieties are the perfect way to add plant-based protein to your diet. These nutrient-rich foods are a great meat alternative in vegan recipes.
Nuts: Not only are nuts a good source of plant-based protein, but they also contain essential vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Peanuts contain the highest amount of protein, but almonds, cashews, and pistachios are also high-protein options.
Soy products: Tofu, and edamame, and tempeh are two examples of soy products, which are known for their high protein content. You can also add soybean sprouts to fresh salads or use them in stir-fry recipes.
How can I get 40 grams of protein for lunch?
You can try various high-protein meal prep lunch ideas to get you to 40 grams of protein. Check out the stir-fried sesame chicken, vegan pumpkin butter soup, and salmon with veggies for a burst of protein.
How can I add more protein to my meal prep?
If you’re struggling to add more protein to your weekly meal preps, there are a few things you can try:
Choose higher protein meats.
Incorporate high-protein fresh veggies as a side.
Pick high-protein snacks like cheese sticks, Greek yogurt, or cottage cheese.
Prepare eggs for breakfast — like omelets, hard-boiled eggs, scrambled eggs, or frittatas — instead of having cereal or oatmeal.
Make protein shakes or smoothies with extra protein powder.
What are high protein foods for weight gain meal prep?
The best high-protein foods for weight gain are also high in calories. Options like eggs, dairy products, peanut butter, and meat are all great choices.
What vegetables are high in protein for meal prep?
There’s a variety of protein-rich vegetables to choose from, including soybeans, lentils, chickpeas, beans, spinach, green peas, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts.
What fruits are high in protein?
While fruit normally contains less protein than meat or vegetables, there are types of fruits that contain more than others. These are guava, granadilla, avocado, jackfruit, pomegranate, and apricots, as well as many types of berries.
What plant-based foods are high in protein?
Grains, nuts, and seeds contain a lot of protein. Some of the most protein-rich ones include peanuts, pumpkin seeds, almonds, pistachios, cashews, chia, and sesame seeds.
Sources
Dietary Protein and Muscle Mass: Translating Science to Application and Health Benefit - NIH, 2019
Clinical Evidence and Mechanisms of High-Protein Diet-Induced Weight Loss - Jomes.org, 2020
Recent Perspectives Regarding the Role of Dietary Protein for the Promotion of Muscle Hypertrophy with Resistance Exercise Training - mdpi.com, 2018
Facts About Protein From a Registered Dietitian - The Balanced Nutritionist, 2023
Recommended Dietary Allowances: 10th Edition. - NIH, 2024
Dietary Guidelines for Americans - dietaryguidelines.gov, 2020-2025
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