How to Follow the Mediterranean Diet If You Hate Cooking or Have No Time — Beyond the Brambleberry (2024)

If you aren’t a big fan of cooking or just don’t have the extra time to spend in the kitchen, this post is for you.

I get it! Even if you do enjoy cooking, sometimes there’s just not enough time in the day to work, run errands, clean the house, AND cook a healthy meal.

In this blog post, I’m sharing my top tips to follow the Mediterranean diet if you hate cooking or have no time to cook.

I’ll be sharing:

• How I drastically improved my health by following the Mediterranean diet… and how you can, too!

• My top tips to follow the Mediterranean diet if you don’t enjoy cooking or have little or no time to cook

• A 30-day Mediterranean diet meal plan designed to help you be successful in reaching your health goals

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What is the Mediterranean Diet?

The Mediterranean Diet is a diet that focuses on eating lots of healthy fats, whole grains, fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds, and beans. It became popular in the 1950s when it was discovered that people living in the Mediterranean region had a drastically lower rate of heart disease. Many studies have been done on this diet since that time that have shown the Mediterranean diet provides many health benefits.

The Mediterranean Diet focuses on:

• eating healthy fats rich in Omega-3s

• eating fish at least twice a week

• preparing meals with lots of vegetables served with whole grains and high-quality protein

• enjoying lots of fresh fruit

Health benefits of the Mediterranean diet include:

• Lower rates of heart disease and stroke

• Lower risk of obesity, high cholesterol, diabetes, and high blood pressure

• Aids in weight loss and sustaining a healthy weight

• Increased longevity and health span (that span of your life where you are healthy, not just living)

• Improved brain health and decreased risk of developing dementia

In 2018, I was struggling to make healthy food choices and experienced constant joint pain, brain fog, blood sugar highs and lows, and extreme fatigue every day. These were symptoms that had become a part of my every day and was something that I thought I would always have to live with.

However, I knew there had to be a way for me to feel better, so I started doing research on evidence-based ways of eating that supported long-term health. As one of the healthiest diets in the world, the Mediterranean diet showed up repeatedly in my searches. In 2020, I decided to make the shift toward eating a more Mediterranean-based diet to support my health.

I started applying what I learned by following a Mediterranean-based diet and immediately saw great results!

After implementing a Mediterranean-based diet, I quickly noticed my energy levels drastically improve, I was sleeping SO much better each night, and my skin had become clear and glowing (yay for no more “adult acne!”) and I did all of this in a healthy, balanced way. I was so ecstatic about my results that I put together all my recipes that I had used and developed at this time and started sharing them with others with the hopes that they would feel just as amazing as I was feeling.

Eating a Mediterranean diet restored my physical and mental health.

My goal for you is to experience these same incredible benefits. My 30-Day Mediterranean Meal Plan is the exact plan I used to improve my health and eat intuitively.

Get the ebook here, or get the hard copy on Amazon!

How to Make Following the Mediterranean Diet Easy and Enjoyable

Tip #1: Choose healthy pre-made meals

I usually do not recommend purchasing pre-made meals as they often contain hidden unwanted ingredients such as sugar, high levels of salt, and unhealthy fats. Pre-made meals are also often more costly than making the dish yourself at home. However, if you are short on time or don’t have the necessary equipment or resources to prepare your meal, this can be a good option to support you in following the Mediterranean diet.

When choosing a pre-made meal, it is important that it is made mostly of whole foods and has little to no added sugar and salt.

If you are eating out, choose a salad with lots of veggies and healthy fats such as nuts, seeds, and avocado. Avoid candied nuts, and ask for olive oil and vinegar for a dressing or choose a vinaigrette that may contain less sugar and unhealthy fat than their creamy dressing counterparts. Also, avoid choosing the “low fat” dressing options, as they often contain extra sugar to make the dressing more palatable. Another option is to choose a meal with just meat and veggies such as baked or grilled salmon and steamed broccoli (my go-to at Olive Garden.)

Many grocery stores now have salad bars, and this is a great opportunity to create healthy and filling salads without having to do a bunch of preparation by chopping up veggies. When building your salad, choose mostly non-starchy vegetables such as spinach, kale, arugula, tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, peppers, onion, mushrooms, and carrots. Add a small amount of healthy carbs such as quinoa, beans, or lentils. Include a protein to keep you full until the next meal, and top it off with healthy fats such as avocado or olives and a healthy dressing.

If you are interested in building some delicious salad bowls, check out my blog post 15 Easy Salad Recipes for the Mediterranean Diet That Aren’t Boring. You can also use this post to help you build filling salads at the salad bar!

Tip #2: Buy fruits and vegetables that are already cut up

While I do enjoy cooking and preparing delicious meals, I can admit that chopping, dicing, and shredding vegetables isn’t always my favorite part. It can be really time-consuming, and on my busy days, it just doesn’t work! This is when I purchase certain ingredients that are already prepared for me, and it saves me a TON of time.

Buying certain foods that are already cut up or ready to eat can save you a lot of time. Look for these pre-made and pre-packaged ingredients at your grocery store:

• Chopped vegetables in the produce section including diced sweet potatoes, diced butternut squash, chopped Brussels sprouts, celery and carrot sticks, baby carrots, and shredded cabbage

• Canned fish (such as tuna, salmon, and mackerel) and chicken

• Frozen vegetables already chopped up - my go-to’s include broccoli and cauliflower florets, diced butternut squash, and chopped carrots and peas

Buying these foods already prepared saves me a LOT of time when meal prepping and still allows me to create healthy meals for myself and my family on a budget.

Tip #3: Find a few simple recipes and make them on repeat

The more often you prepare a recipe, the more comfortable you will become making it. And the more comfortable you are making the recipe, the faster and easier it will be to make it. You will also likely always have these ingredients on hand in your kitchen, or you will find yourself automatically putting them on your shopping list each week.

My favorite recipes that I make on repeat include:

Roasted Sweet Potato, Red Onion, and Pecan Salad with Peanut Dressing

Comforting Chicken Soup

Butternut Squash, Quinoa, and Feta Salad

Unstuffed Bell Peppers with Low Carb Pasta

One Pot Turkey Chili

I have a lot of recipes on my blog for you to check out, or if following a set meal plan would be helpful in getting started on the Mediterranean diet, I recommend checking out my 30-Day Mediterranean Meal Plan.

Tip #4: Double or triple your recipes - cook once, eat for days!

This is one of my favorite ways to ensure I always have healthy meals on hand! I often double or triple my recipes when I am preparing dinner, and this gives us plenty of leftovers for lunch or dinner on busy days. A lot of meals are freezer-friendly, and it’s a great way to have an entire second meal pre-made.

You’re already in the kitchen preparing a meal - double or triple the recipe and you’ll have leftovers and dinner made for future nights in nearly the same amount of time!

My favorite meals to double or triple include salads, soups, casseroles, chili, and basic proteins such as fish fillets or chicken (which freeze very well). It is SO easy to simply pull out another pot, baking dish, or sheet pan and make a double batch of the recipe you are already preparing. Salads make great leftovers for lunch, and soups, casseroles, and chili freeze exceptionally well.

By investing in a few salad meal-prep bowls and freezer-safe containers, you’ll be setting yourself up for success by having healthy meals on hand for when you have no time to cook or simply don’t feel like cooking.

The following recipes from Beyond the Brambleberry are especially easy to double or triple:

Spiced Apple, Walnut, and Quinoa Breakfast Bowl

Perfectly Grilled Chicken Thighs

Easy Roasted Ratatouille

Tip #5: Simplify cooking with the right equipment

The Instant Pot and slow cooker are your best friend if you have little time to cook or simply don’t enjoy cooking. Many recipes that use this equipment are “set-it-and-forget-it” and require very little effort on your part to create incredibly delicious meals.

Another trick I’ve recently started doing and that’s something I also mention in my blog post How to Meal Prep for the Mediterranean Diet for Beginners is cooking multiple meals at once using different cooking methods. For example, if I am baking chicken thighs and vegetables in the oven (a super easy meal for busy weeknights, by the way), I might also prepare a second meal on the stove or in the Instant Pot to eat the next night.

This idea is similar to my “cook once, eat for days” tip in that you are already in the kitchen preparing a meal, and if you find that you have a bit of extra time, use it to prepare a meal for an evening that you might not have as much time to spend cooking.

Tip #6: Keep it simple

You don’t have to prepare elegant meals to fully enjoy the Mediterranean diet. Keep it simple by preparing meals and snacks that don’t require a ton of ingredients or meal prep. For lunch, enjoy a simple salad. Snacks might include a handful of berries and nuts. Easy dinners might include a healthy protein such as chicken or salmon and roasted veggies such as frozen broccoli florets. Keep it simple and enjoy the delicious flavors of each individual ingredient.

Simple breakfast ideas include:

• Easy muesli with Greek yogurt

• Classic avocado toast

• Simple gluten-free waffles (these waffles freeze really well!) topped with berries

Easy main dish recipes include:

• Perfectly grilled chicken thighs with grilled or fresh veggies

• Savory baked salmon and asparagus

• Roasted zucchini, onion, and feta bake

Quick and easy snacks include:

• Fresh veggies and hummus - my favorites include baby carrots, celery sticks, coined cucumber, and cherry tomatoes

• 1/4 cup spiced nuts

• Hard-boiled eggs

• 1/2 cup berries with a handful of nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds, etc.)

• 1/2 cup Greek yogurt with fruit

• Celery sticks and peanut butter (with no added sugar)

• Fresh veggies and guacamole

• Strawberries and chocolate hummus (for real - this stuff is amazing!)

• Cherry tomatoes and mozzarella balls

Other blog posts you might like:

How to Save Money on the Mediterranean Diet

15 Must-Have Kitchen Gadgets to Make Eating Healthy Easier

Started Eating Healthy with the Mediterranean Diet

If the Mediterranean diet is very different from how you have been eating, I HIGHLY recommend you follow a meal plan that has already been designed to help you be successful and quickly see results. The 30-Day Mediterranean Meal Plan I created includes everything you need to get started on the Mediterranean diet. It includes over 80 easy and delicious recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks that you can simply follow along to and enjoy all the delicious flavors that come with the Mediterranean diet.

Once I learned how to eat a balanced Mediterranean diet, I quickly saw great results! By having an understanding of what my own body needed each day, I was able to set myself up for success and have maintained this healthy lifestyle for almost 2 years.

I want this for you too! If you are ready to fully benefit from the Mediterranean diet, I urge you to get started with my 30-day meal plan now while it’s the lowest price it will ever be! Click here to get started.

Choosing the right foods makes all the difference in how you feel. Even if you’re not yet ready to go all in, I have something that will help you make a step towards eating healthy and reaping the benefits of a healthy, balanced diet. Download my ebook Top 10 Must-Try Mediterranean Diet Recipes by using the form below to get instant access to this valuable resource.I have also included a Mediterranean Diet Shopping List to help you get started.

Get Your FREE ebook: Top 10 Must-Try Mediterranean Diet Recipes + A Free Shopping List

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