Cutting Food That Actually Tastes Good: My ~600-Cal Meal Prep System + High-Protein Sauces

I’ve been cutting at around 1,700 calories a day, and I’ve learned that I don’t really have a problem eating the same basic proteins and carbs repeatedly.

What gets old is eating the same damn flavor repeatedly. --

Most days I eat two substantial meals around 500–600 calories each, have a protein shake, and use whatever calories are left for a couple snacks.

The thing that’s made this ridiculously easier for me is SAUCE.

I buy those cheap plastic squeeze bottles from Walmart for about a buck, make 3–4 sauces at a time, and keep them in the refrigerator. Most use Greek yogurt as the base, so I get something creamy with additional protein without turning a 600-calorie meal into a 1,000-calorie meal.

Then I prep relatively neutral proteins, rice/potatoes/pasta, beans and vegetables.

Same groceries. Different sauce. Completely different meal.

I’m going to keep experimenting and add new sauces to this thread every week or two when I find something worth making.

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THE BASIC FORMULA

Most of my containers are built around:

Protein + carb + beans/vegetables + sauce

I weigh my food. Saying “a serving of potatoes” isn’t particularly useful when you’re trying to track a cut.

My basic starting portions

Protein — cooked weight:

• Chicken breast: 140 g / 5 oz
• 93% lean ground turkey: 140 g / 5 oz
• 93% lean ground beef: 140 g / 5 oz
• NY strip: 140 g / 5 oz

Carbs:

• Cooked white rice: 100–125 g
• Cooked pasta: 100–125 g
• My crispy potatoes: 100–125 g

Black beans:

• 75 g cooked

Vegetables:

• Broccoli: 100–150 g
• Green beans: 100–150 g

Sauce:

• Usually 30–45 g

These aren’t commandments. They’re starting points that make it pretty easy to build meals around 500–600 calories.

And I’m deliberately not going to tell you that every bowl contains exactly 583 calories and 47.63 grams of protein.

Your steak isn’t my steak. Your yogurt isn’t my yogurt. Your potatoes aren’t my potatoes.

Weigh your ingredients and use your actual labels.

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THE PROTEINS

I usually rotate four:

CHICKEN BREAST

About 140 g / 5 oz cooked.

Roughly 230 calories and 44 g protein, depending on the product and cooking method.

93% LEAN GROUND TURKEY

140 g / 5 oz cooked.

Usually somewhere around 240 calories and 35 g protein.

93% LEAN GROUND BEEF

140 g / 5 oz cooked.

Approximately 245 calories and 36 g protein, but check your package.

NY STRIP

140 g / 5 oz cooked.

Call it roughly 300 calories and 38 g protein, with considerably more variation depending on how fatty the particular steak is and how much exterior fat you eat.

SEASONING

I intentionally keep my meal-prep meats pretty neutral:

Salt
Black pepper
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Sometimes paprika

That’s intentional.

If I heavily season four pounds of chicken one particular way, I’m stuck eating that flavor all week.

Instead, I let the sauces change the meal.

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RICE, PASTA & BLACK BEANS

For white rice, I’ll generally use 100–125 g cooked.

For pasta, around 100–125 g cooked is a good starting point.

And I love adding about 75 g of cooked black beans to the rice bowls.

The beans add some protein and fiber and work especially well with the chipotle, roasted salsa and jalapeño sauces.

If the meal is coming in too low, add another 25–50 g of rice.

If it’s too high, pull some out.

That’s the beauty of owning a $10 food scale. --

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VEGETABLES

I usually alternate between broccoli and green beans, around 100–150 g per meal.

I’m not trying to turn my container into 80% vegetables just because I’m cutting. They’re there for fiber, micronutrients, volume, texture and because I actually like them.

BROCCOLI

Usually:

125–150 g broccoli
Salt
Black pepper
Garlic powder
Optional Parmesan

Steam it, roast it or air fry it.

Broccoli with the garlic-Parmesan-lemon sauce below is fantastic.

GREEN BEANS

Usually:

125–150 g green beans
Salt
Black pepper
Garlic powder or fresh garlic
Onion powder
Squeeze of fresh lemon after cooking

They’re especially good alongside beef or NY strip.

And season your vegetables.

If you’ve spent your entire life eating completely plain steamed broccoli and decided you hate broccoli, broccoli might not be the problem. Your cooking might be. --

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MY CRISPY POTATOES

Now we’re getting serious.

These aren’t sad little oil-free “fitness potatoes.”

These are crispy outside, fluffy inside, actually-worth-eating potatoes.

For one big batch:

900–1,000 g raw potatoes — approximately 5 medium potatoes
4 tbsp beef tallow — approximately 50–55 g
2 tbsp olive oil — approximately 27 g
20 g freshly shredded Parmesan
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp paprika
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper

STEP 1 — PARBOIL

Dice the potatoes into fairly even pieces.

Boil them for approximately 15 minutes.

You want the inside partially cooked and softened without having them fall apart.

Drain thoroughly and put them back into the pot.

STEP 2 — SEASON

Add the beef tallow, olive oil, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt and pepper.

Toss everything thoroughly.

Yes, I’m using beef tallow AND olive oil while cutting.

Call the authorities. --

I’m portioning the finished potatoes. I’m not eating the entire batch and drinking whatever tallow is left in the air fryer.

STEP 3 — AIR FRY

Air fry at approximately 400–420°F for 40–45 minutes.

Pull them out and toss them thoroughly.

Sprinkle approximately 20 g Parmesan over the batch.

Put them back in for another 20–30 minutes or so, checking periodically.

Air fryers vary dramatically, so don’t blindly follow my clock.

You’re looking for deeply browned and crunchy outside with a fluffy center.

HOW I TRACK THEM

Once they’re finished, weigh the entire cooked batch.

Then calculate the calories for all the raw potatoes + tallow + olive oil + Parmesan and divide by the finished weight.

Now you know exactly what 100 g of your finished potatoes costs you.

Not every gram of cooking fat actually ends up on the potatoes—some stays in the pot and air fryer—but I prefer counting all of it.

If anything, that means I’m slightly overestimating rather than bullshitting myself.

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NOW FOR THE IMPORTANT PART: SAUCES

Buy yourself 3–4 squeeze bottles.

Make these.

Your meal-prep life just got considerably better.

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1 — SRIRACHA-JALAPEÑO FRESH GARLIC

One batch:

245 g / 1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
1 medium jalapeño — approximately 15–20 g
15 g fresh garlic — roughly 4–5 good cloves
30 g / 2 tbsp sriracha
15 mL / 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/4 tsp salt

Blend until completely smooth.

Taste and adjust.

If you want more heat, add more jalapeño or sriracha. If it’s too thick for your squeeze bottle, add a little lime juice or water.

And when I say 4–5 cloves of garlic, that’s a starting point.

I’m Italian with garlic. Measure that shit with your heart. --

Serving: 30–45 g

Great with: chicken, turkey, rice, black beans and potatoes.

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2 — SMOKY CHIPOTLE

One batch:

245 g / 1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
1–2 chipotle peppers in adobo — approximately 15–30 g
10 g / 2 tsp adobo sauce from the can
10–15 g fresh garlic
15 mL / 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

Blend until smooth.

Start with one chipotle pepper and taste it.

You can always add another.

Getting one back out after you’ve liquefied it presents certain difficulties. --

Serving: 30–45 g

Great with: chicken, ground turkey, ground beef, rice and black beans.

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3 — GARLIC-PARMESAN, LEMON & BLACK PEPPER

This one ended up being one of my favorites.

One batch:

245 g / 1 cup Greek yogurt
30 g freshly shredded Parmesan
15 g fresh garlic — approximately 4–5 cloves
20 mL fresh lemon juice — approximately 1 1/2 tbsp
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
1/4 tsp salt, then adjust

Mix thoroughly or give it a quick blend.

Don’t skip the lemon.

It cuts through the yogurt and Parmesan and wakes everything up.

Don’t overdo the rosemary because it’ll take over the sauce.

The black pepper?

Go nuts.

Serving: approximately 40 g

Great with: chicken, NY strip, potatoes, broccoli and pasta.

This sauce on the crispy potatoes is ridiculous.

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4 — FRESH FIRE-ROASTED SALSA

No jar.

No sriracha.

We’re actually making salsa.

One batch:

5 Roma tomatoes — approximately 450–500 g
2 jalapeños
1/2 medium white onion — approximately 75 g
4–5 cloves fresh garlic
15–20 g fresh cilantro
30 mL / 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp salt, then adjust
1/4 tsp cumin — optional

Put the tomatoes, jalapeños, onion and garlic under the broiler.

Let them blister and develop some actual char.

That’s flavor.

Put everything into the blender with cilantro, lime and seasoning.

Then PULSE IT.

We’re making salsa, not a tomato smoothie.

Creamy version

Mix:

100 g fresh salsa
100 g nonfat Greek yogurt

Done.

Straight salsa serving: 50–75 g

Creamy version: 40–50 g

This is excellent on basically every Mexican-style bowl in this post.

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5 — CHIMICHURRI-YOGURT

This is one of my next experiments, but here’s where I’m starting:

200 g nonfat Greek yogurt
50 g prepared chimichurri
10 mL fresh lemon juice
5 g fresh garlic
1/2 tsp black pepper

Mix and taste.

Serving: approximately 40 g

I’m expecting this to be killer on NY strip + crispy potatoes + green beans.

Chimichurri varies tremendously in oil content, so calculate this one from the particular chimichurri you’re using.

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6 — PESTO-YOGURT

Another experiment I’m working on:

200 g nonfat Greek yogurt
50 g pesto
15 mL fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
Pinch of salt if needed

Mix thoroughly.

Serving: approximately 40 g

Pesto is delicious, but it’s also extremely calorie dense because of the oil, nuts and cheese.

Cutting it with Greek yogurt lets a relatively small amount of pesto flavor a much larger quantity of sauce.

I’m thinking:

Chicken + pasta + broccoli + this sauce.

I’ll update the thread when I’ve got it exactly where I want it.

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FOUR COMPLETE ~600-CALORIE MEAL-PREP IDEAS

Again, these are approximately 500–600 calories because brands and cooking methods differ.

Use your own labels if you’re tracking closely.

1 — CHIPOTLE CHICKEN BURRITO BOWL

140 g cooked chicken breast
125 g cooked white rice
75 g cooked black beans
125 g broccoli
40 g chipotle-yogurt sauce
50 g fresh roasted salsa

You’re looking at roughly 550–600 calories and a substantial amount of protein.

If you need more calories, increase the rice.

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2 — SRIRACHA BEEF & RICE BOWL

140 g cooked 93% lean ground beef
100 g cooked white rice
75 g cooked black beans
125 g green beans
40 g sriracha-jalapeño sauce
50 g fresh roasted salsa

Again, approximately 550–600 calories, depending mostly on your beef and yogurt.

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3 — NY STRIP + CRISPY POTATOES

140 g cooked NY strip
100 g finished crispy potatoes
150 g green beans
40 g garlic-Parmesan-lemon sauce

This should put you somewhere around the 550–600 calorie neighborhood.

This is the one where you REALLY want to use your own numbers because steak fat content and the finished potato calories can vary considerably.

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4 — CHICKEN PARMESAN-STYLE PASTA BOWL

140 g cooked chicken breast
125 g cooked pasta
150 g broccoli
40 g garlic-Parmesan-lemon sauce

Approximately 550–600 calories, depending on your pasta and sauce.

You could also substitute the pesto-yogurt sauce.

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HOW THIS FITS MY 1,700-CALORIE CUT

I’m currently aiming for around 1,700 calories per day.

I don’t particularly enjoy eating six tiny meals.

My typical setup is closer to:

Meal #1: ~500–600 calories

Meal #2: ~500–600 calories

Protein shake: a few hundred calories

Whatever is left: snacks or adjustments

Two 550-calorie meals puts me at about 1,100 calories, leaving roughly 600 calories for my shake and whatever else I eat.

And because I’m putting a substantial portion of meat in each meal and using Greek yogurt for most of the sauces, I’m getting a good amount of protein without having to live on plain chicken breast.

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THE WHOLE POINT

Meal prep doesn’t mean making seven identical containers.

Look at how easily this rotates:

Monday: Chicken + rice + black beans + broccoli + chipotle sauce

Tuesday: NY strip + crispy potatoes + green beans + garlic-Parmesan-lemon

Wednesday: Ground turkey + rice + black beans + broccoli + sriracha-jalapeño

Thursday: Chicken + pasta + broccoli + Parmesan or pesto-yogurt

Friday: Ground beef + rice + beans + green beans + roasted salsa/chipotle

You’re buying basically the same handful of groceries.

The sauces completely change the meals.

That’s made cutting around 1,700 calories considerably easier for me because I actually look forward to eating the food I’ve prepped.

I’m not claiming this is the world’s most scientifically optimized bodybuilding diet.

It’s simply what’s been working for me.

Calories still count.

Protein still matters.

Weigh your food.

Use your actual nutrition labels.

Adjust the portions to YOUR calorie requirements.

But for God’s sake…

MAKE THE FOOD TASTE GOOD. --

I’ll keep adding new sauce recipes every week or two as I experiment with them.

If anybody has a high-protein or relatively low-calorie sauce that actually tastes like something, drop the recipe below.

My squeeze bottles have room for competition. --