Air Fryer Meal Prep for the Week: Complete Plan and Recipes

Why meal prep with an air fryer

Meal prep — cooking your meals ahead of time — is the best way to eat healthy, save time during the week and cut food waste. The air fryer is the perfect tool for it: fast cooking, minimal cleanup and great results even after reheating. This complete guide gives you a Monday-through-Friday plan built around one Sunday batch cooking session, a single shopping list, and all the storage and reheating tips you need.

The goal is simple: put in 2 hours on Sunday to prep most of your meals for the week. Each day, all that’s left is to assemble, reheat and eat. For best results, see our guide to healthy air fryer cooking.

Weekly plan

Shopping list (for one person; double it for two)

Proteins

• 1.3 lb (600 g) boneless chicken breast
• 14 oz (400 g) skin-on chicken thighs
• 10.5 oz (300 g) salmon fillet
• 9 oz (250 g) lean ground beef (95% lean)
• 1 can chickpeas (14 oz, 400 g)

Carbs

• 10.5 oz (300 g) basmati rice
• 7 oz (200 g) quinoa
• 9 oz (250 g) whole wheat pasta
• 2 medium sweet potatoes (about 14 oz, 400 g)
• 4 whole wheat tortillas

Vegetables

• 1 head broccoli (10.5 oz, 300 g), 1 bunch asparagus (10.5 oz, 300 g), 2 medium zucchini
• 3 bell peppers (mixed colors), 10.5 oz (300 g) green beans
• 1 red onion, 1 head garlic, 1 lemon
• Salad greens (arugula or a spring mix), 2 tomatoes, 1 cucumber

Pantry

• Olive oil, soy sauce (⅔ cup, 150 ml), honey, teriyaki sauce
• Hummus (7 oz, 200 g), feta (3.5 oz, 100 g), tomato sauce (a scant cup, 200 ml), mozzarella (4.5 oz, 125 g)
• Spices: smoked paprika, cumin, turmeric, garlic powder, herbes de Provence, curry powder

Sunday batch cooking session (2 hours)

Phase 1: Prep (30 minutes)

1. Start the rice (10.5 oz, 300 g): bring to a boil with 1¾ cups plus 2 tablespoons (450 ml) water, cover and simmer for 12 minutes.
2. Start the quinoa (7 oz, 200 g): bring to a boil with 1⅔ cups (400 ml) water and simmer for 15 minutes.
3. Make the marinades: Spiced chicken (olive oil, smoked paprika, cumin, garlic powder). Teriyaki salmon (soy sauce, honey, ginger, garlic).
4. Cut all the vegetables: broccoli (1¼-inch/3 cm florets), asparagus (ends trimmed), zucchini (½-inch/1 cm rounds), peppers (¾-inch/2 cm strips), green beans (trimmed), sweet potatoes (¾-inch/2 cm cubes).
5. Prep the proteins: cut the chicken breast into strips and put half (10.5 oz, 300 g) in the spiced marinade, put the salmon in the teriyaki, season the thighs, and shape 8 meatballs (about 1 oz/30 g each) with cumin and garlic.

Phase 2: Air fryer cooking (60 minutes)

Batch 1 — Spiced chicken: 375°F (190°C) for 12 to 14 minutes, flipping halfway. Internal temperature: 165°F (74°C).

Batch 2 — Chicken thighs + sweet potatoes: thighs at 350°F (180°C) for 15 minutes, then 400°F (200°C) for 5 to 8 minutes. Sweet potatoes at 375°F (190°C) for 15 to 18 minutes.

Batch 3 — Teriyaki salmon: 350°F (180°C) for 10 to 12 minutes, skin side down.

Batch 4 — Beef meatballs: 375°F (190°C) for 10 to 12 minutes, flipping halfway. Internal temperature: 162°F (72°C).

Batch 5 — Mixed vegetables: cook them in batches, following our roasted vegetable guide: broccoli 375°F (190°C), 8 to 10 minutes; peppers 375°F (190°C), 10 to 12 minutes; zucchini 375°F (190°C), 10 to 12 minutes; asparagus 400°F (200°C), 6 to 8 minutes; green beans 400°F (200°C), 8 to 10 minutes.

Phase 3: Falafel + assembly (30 minutes)

Homemade falafel: drain the chickpeas and pulse them with onion, garlic, cumin, ground coriander and flour. Shape 12 balls and flatten them slightly. Cook at 375°F (190°C) for 12 to 15 minutes.

Assembly: spread the food out in small portions and let it cool for no more than 30 minutes at room temperature, then refrigerate it right away. Divide everything into glass containers by day. Keep sauces separate. Label each container.

Storage tips

• Fridge: chicken, salmon and meatballs keep 3 to 4 days.
• Roasted vegetables keep 3 to 4 days in the fridge.
• Cooked rice is the riskiest food here (Bacillus cereus spores): cool it within an hour, keep it in the fridge and ideally eat it within 24 hours; otherwise, freeze it in portions. Quinoa keeps 3 days.
• Falafel keeps 4 days in the fridge or 1 month in the freezer.
• Choose glass containers over plastic: food keeps better and reheats more safely.
• Refrigerate within 2 hours of cooking: split food into shallow portions so it cools quickly, and never leave it out at room temperature any longer than that.
• Thursday and Friday: freeze the portions for those days on Sunday (chicken thighs, meatballs, rice, chicken for the pizza) and thaw them in the fridge the night before.
• Reheat only once, until the food is steaming hot all the way through (165°F/74°C).

How to reheat meal prep in the air fryer

These times are a starting point for portions straight from the fridge: food must be steaming hot in the center (165°F/74°C on a thermometer). Add a few minutes if needed, especially for thawed portions.

Quick weeknight dinners

Monday — chicken wraps

Reheat the chicken and peppers at 340°F (170°C) for 4 minutes. Warm the tortillas at 320°F (160°C) for 1 minute. Fill and serve.

Tuesday — quinoa salad

Toss the cold quinoa with the cold roasted veggies, fresh tomato, cucumber and crumbled feta. Dress with olive oil and lemon juice.

Wednesday — roasted veggie pasta

Cook 4.5 oz (125 g) pasta (10 minutes). Reheat the veggies at 350°F (180°C) for 3 minutes. Toss everything together with feta and olive oil.

Thursday — roasted veggie soup

Blend the leftover roasted veggies with 1⅔ cups (400 ml) broth. Heat it on the stove. Serve with air fryer croutons (400°F/200°C, 3 minutes).

Friday — tortilla pizza

Top a tortilla with tomato sauce, mozzarella, leftover peppers and shredded chicken. Cook at 375°F (190°C) for 5 to 7 minutes.

Variations

• Vegetarian: swap the meat for tofu (375°F/190°C for 12 to 15 minutes, after marinating in a soy-sesame sauce), roasted chickpeas or tempeh.
• Athletes: increase protein portions by 50% and add extra sweet potatoes.
• Budget: swap the salmon for cod or hake (350°F/180°C, 10 to 12 minutes).
• Week 2: rotate in our 6 crispy chicken recipes and 7 ways to make fries.

Mistakes to avoid

• Keeping food in the fridge too long — after 3 to 4 days, quality and food safety go downhill. Freeze the end-of-week portions.
• Forgetting to dry your vegetables — see our guide to common air fryer mistakes.
• Reheating in the microwave — the air fryer keeps food crispy; the microwave turns it soggy.
• Storing sauces with the food — wet sauces make breaded or roasted food soggy. Always pack them separately.

The bottom line

Air fryer meal prep is a winning formula for healthy, affordable, tasty eating all week long. Spend 2 hours on Sunday and you free up several hours of cooking during the week. For more ideas, explore our 10 roasted vegetable recipes and our healthy cooking guide.

Storage guide: how long food keeps and how to reheat it

What air fryer meal prep saves you

• Time: one 2-hour session on Sunday replaces most of your daily cooking; on weekdays you just reheat and assemble.
• Money: cooking at home is usually much cheaper than delivery or takeout, especially when you buy in bulk.
• Energy: for small batches, the air fryer heats a smaller space and barely needs preheating, so it uses less energy than a full-size oven.
• Less waste: a shopping list built around the plan keeps you from buying food that never gets cooked.