Prep ingredients before you turn on the stove: Chop all your vegetables, measure your spices, and portion your proteins before you start cooking anything. This keeps you from scrambling mid-recipe and cuts down on the number of times you touch a dirty cutting board.

Cook grains and proteins at the same time: Get your rice, quinoa, or pasta going on the stove while your protein cooks in the oven or a skillet. Running two cooking methods at once can cut your total prep time nearly in half.

Line pans with foil or parchment: A quick layer of foil or parchment on your sheet pans and baking dishes means cleanup takes seconds instead of minutes of scrubbing.

Use one cutting board for similar ingredients: Group vegetables together and proteins together so you only need to wash your board once or twice instead of after every single ingredient.

Portion meals immediately after cooking: As soon as food comes off the heat, divide it into containers while it's still easy to work with. Waiting until later makes portioning messier and slower.

Label containers with the date: A piece of tape and a marker take five seconds and save you from guessing whether something is still good later in the week.

Keep a running grocery list on your phone: Add items the moment you notice you're low, so you're never stuck missing an ingredient on prep day.