Mason jar salads are meal prep gold my friends! Seriously I’m not even kidding. Figuring this out was one of the most beneficial tips that helped keep me successful and it still does. I have tried so many containers and bento boxes and different lunch hacks and honestly putting salads in mason jars was a clear game changer for me. And because you know how much I love to help you all out I wanted today’s post to be completely dedicated to putting together one of these fantastic salads so it can help you as well! Plus, I have a little gift for you at the end because hey, what are friends for?
#01 Prepping the Ingredients
This is going to be the most important step you take to make these salads and this may surprise you but the biggest thing you need to prep is the lettuce. You have to make sure that lettuce is completely dry before you put it into the jar because if you don’t, it will not last the entire week. You will have soggy wilted brown lettuce by Thursday or Friday if you skip this step!
So how do I prevent this from happening? I chop all my lettuce and then wash it. After it’s washed I run it through the salad spinner. This is usually where everyone stops and for a salad you are eating right away that is perfect but for the meal preps you need to do an extra step. After I spin the lettuce I lay it out on paper towels to let any extra moisture get absorbed and I let it sit there for a little while until it is completely dry.
It definitely takes a little extra time but it’s totally worth it to have salads you can eat at the end of the week!
#02 Cooking
The next thing you will need to do is cook any ingredient you plan on cooking. This could be your protein or veggies or anything that needs to be cooked. You need to do this early because we need the item to cook completely before putting it in the mason jar. If you don’t then condensation will build and you will have extra moisture in the jar that will make the lettuce turn faster! So whatever you are cooking make sure it completely cools before putting it in the jar!
#03 Layering
I have tried a bunch of different options here and I find that this layering method works the best. First I put in any hard raw vegetables. This might be carrots or bell peppers or anything that won’t absorb any moisture. Then I add the protein followed by any other toppings I might be adding. I put the lettuce on the top. This helps because in case there is extra moisture in the jar the water will collect at the bottom and the lettuce won’t be sitting in it!
#04 Store Separately
I don’t actually put everything into the jar. Some items I leave out because I feel they last longer on their own or when I put them in the jar it causes the lettuce to turn faster. Dressing for sure I store separately. I measure out my dressing into little plastic cups and then put the cups right in the jar so that way I don’t have to remember something additional in the morning. Other things I store separately are hard boiled eggs, tortilla strips, and cheese like fresh mozzarella.
I am going to be honest here. I always make my salads Sunday and they last perfectly fine until Thursday (I usually order lunch with friends on Friday’s). I have never had a problem but I know that makes some people nervous so if you are one of those people who don’t want to eat chicken after that many days you can totally make the salads and put the chicken or protein in whenever you are comfortable! For me it depends on the protein chicken and ground beef I’m fine with. If I was using shrimp I would cook the shrimp on Sunday for Monday and Tuesday and then cook new shrimp on Tuesday night for Wednesday and Thursday. You just need to do what is right for you!
Now I told you I have a little gift for you and I totally do! You have the steps down for creating these salads and sometimes figuring out what to put in them can be hard, especially if you like variety. So I made this quick salad cheat sheet guide to help you build delicious salads without having to put in much thought! I hope you enjoy it! Click the link below to grab the freebie!
