Welcome back! Okay, I thought last week’s meal prep was the last I was going to cook in my kitchen before moving, but I was wrong. Mid-week I decided to use up the last four chicken thighs in my freezer to make these Sticky Ginger Soy Glazed Chicken Meal Prep boxes to get us through the rest of the week before packing up and shipping out.
This week’s meal prep is super simple, but also my favorite type of meal prep. I love doing an easy base of rice or noodles, frozen broccoli florets for my greens, and some sort of protein. It’s such an easy and delicious formula and you can do so many variations on the rice or noodles and protein, that I never get tired of it. I love using frozen broccoli florets in meal prep boxes because they hold up well, and because they require no chopping or cooking (they’re already blanched), so they’re super convenient.
The highlight of this meal prep box is the Sticky Ginger Soy Glazed Chicken and rich Garlic Noodles. Both are extremely easy, so this week’s meal prep comes together very quickly. Everything in this meal prep holds up well in the fridge, but I wouldn’t freeze this one as the noodles will get quite dry. One more note about the chicken: the glaze will be nice and clear when you first cook it, but it may turn a bit cloudy as it refrigerates. No worries, though, the flavor wont’ be affected. :)
For more information about meal prepping, how it works, and why I do it, check out Meal Prep 101: A Beginner’s Guide to Prepping and Portioning Meals, or check out my entire Budget-Friendly Meal Prep Archive.
Sticky Ginger Soy Glazed Chicken Meal Prep
This Sticky Ginger Soy Glazed Chicken Meal Prep Includes:
Sticky Ginger Soy Glazed Chicken (1/2 batch, 4 thighs): $4.04
Garlic Noodles: $2.54
3/4 lb. Frozen Broccoli Florets: $1.27
Pinch of Red Pepper Flakes: $0.05
Total Cost: $7.90
Cost Per Box: $1.98
No Leftovers this time, yay! I added a pinch of red pepper to each box just because I wanted a little heat, but that’s totally optional.
The single compartment glass meal prep containers seen in the photos are from Amazon. (As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.)
Tips:
- Make sure to read the label on frozen broccoli closely! There are several types of frozen broccoli and while the terminology can depend on the brand, they’re usually along the lines of florets, cuts, or stems and pieces. Make sure to get the bag labeled “florets” or you may end up with a lot of stems. While stems are great for casseroles, soups, and recipes where the broccoli will be puréed, they’re not quite as appetizing just for eating plain.
- Spoon all of the sauce from the Sticky Ginger Soy Glazed Chicken into your boxes so you have a little extra flavor to share with the broccoli. :)
- This box reheats in the microwave without any special considerations (but it’s always a good idea to stir often while reheating). You also shouldn’t have any issues with extra juices or things getting soggy or limp this week. That’s why I love this type of box!
- If you want to use fresh broccoli, I suggest steaming the florets until they just begin to turn tender and are bright green before adding them to the box. That will soften them just enough so that they will cook at an even rate with everything else when you reheat your meal.
- For frozen florets, you don’t need to even thaw them before adding them to the box (unless you’re going to eat one portion the same day). The florets will thaw in the fridge overnight.
And that’s all I’ve got for you this week! I may nor may not have a meal prep next week depending on when the movers deliver our belongings, but my fingers are crossed! :)
So good!! I am about to run out of my freezer leftovers and I’m very tempted to make it again. Two recommendations…get cheaper broccoli cuts and mix it into the pasta once it’s done. Helps cool it down to stop cooking and coat the broccoli in the sauce. If you’re looking to make it a bit healthier, halve the butter in the noodles and switch to a whole wheat or added protein pasta. I barely notice the difference in taste!
I have made these several times over the last few months to take to work. The ginger soy-glazed chicken is my favourite part of this Meal Prep although the frozen broccoli is one of my favourite tips.
I am confused, where is the recipe?
You can find it here: Sticky Ginger Soy Glazed Chicken
This has become a staple in our meal rotation. SO yummy!
Why are there nutrition facts and calories included at the bottom of some of these recipes then I notice that 80% of the other recipes on this site don’t have nutrition facts at all??
Wow, I thought this site was supposed to help with meal prep. I’m just gonna find a site or app that already added all the calories up bc #wasteoftime
Hey there Brandon, welcome to Budget Bytes! We only recently brought on a Registered Dietician to our team. She’s working hard behind the scenes to update the entire recipe database, over 1500+ recipes, with nutritional information. She’s working her way from the newest recipes back and it takes some time to update them all. It’s not a one click approach when you want them to be accurate. To read more about our approach to nutritional information check out our disclaimer here.
Hey Kelly,
I appreciate you responding to this question but we’re currently 1 year from this date and this recipe still hasn’t been updated with the nutritional information. Even if this was the oldest recipe you had on the books and your nutritionist would only have to be averaging 6 meals per working day to have got back to here by now.
Any chance of getting this updated?
Hi – I’m sorry for the misunderstanding. The nutrition information is on each individual recipe page. Since this is not a recipe post, simply an article about combining recipes to make pre-packed meals, there is no nutrition information on this article. You’ll need to click on each recipe listed in this article to see the nutrition information for that particular recipe.
Food for thought Brandon. Your email is terribly rude. You can ask without being so insulting. Everything in life is a work in progress.
Food for thought Brandon. Your email is terribly rude. You can ask without being so insulting. Everything in life is a work in progress.
that’s a little harsh
Can you start posting nutritional info please? I notice lots of people have asked for it.
Thanks for the request! We do get that request a lot, but unfortunately we don’t have a reliable source for the nutrition information. The calculators and databases that most bloggers and websites use to calculate the info can be extremely inaccurate, and for something that can so severely impact the health of people with health conditions, we just don’t feel comfortable publishing unreliable numbers. We prefer to leave it up to the reader to use the database or calculator they trust. I’m sorry and I wish accuracy were easier than shipping the food off to a lab for analysis!
Oh. My gosh. This is one of the tastiest meals I have ever made. It was super straight forward and easy to make and I loved it the entire week. This will, no doubt, be more frequent in my meal prep schedule. i substituted chicken thighs for strips of chicken breast and despite being a dark meat preferer, I looooooved this recipe. Thank you so much for sharing this delicious meal.
The recipes in this meal prep are now some of my favorites off this website. Oh my gosh, this was so good! I have had it every day this week at work and can’t wait to make it again. It’s delicious and so easy! Thank you for sharing these recipes. My friends and I love your website.
Hi there, making this tonight but wanted to know if you know the nutritional info on the chicken and marinade…..thank you
Hi! Thank you for the recipe, I tried a little of both tonight and they were super tasty! I just cooked these, and will be eating them all week starting tomorrow.
My question is how long do you need microwave them to cook the broccoli? And will I need to add any water to steam the broccoli?
You don’t have to do anything special to reheat (no adding water). Frozen broccoli is already blanched in boiling water before freezing, so it’s not the same as raw broccoli. The reheat time in the microwave will depend on the strength of your microwave, the size of your dish, and other factors. I usually suggest starting with one minute, then adding more time, in 30 second intervals, until the food is heated to your liking. :)
Can these meals be frozen? Looks delicious!!
This one will probably just freeze so-so. Since the sauces aren’t super liquidy, they may dry out a touch when frozen.
Absolutely delicious! Easy to make and a great lunch time option that is filling but not heavy. My office mates asked me what I had heated up and were so jealous of how great my meal box smelled. I shared the recipe so I won’t be surprised if I see a few of them with this in their lunches next week :)
Hahah, I always loved making my co-workers jealous in the lunch room as they ate their soggy, smashed Subway sandwiches. ;D
How many calories are in these?
Hi Beth,
Like others, I was looking for a quick way to print the recipe and get started. If you have enough material for a meal prep recipe book, I’d definitely pay for this convenience.
How many calories is this, and is there step by step instructions on how to cook this?
Each recipe individual recipe is linked. Just go to each recipe to find the step by step photos.
I am allergic to shellfish :-( Any recommended substitutions for the Oyster Sauce?
There are fish-free oyster sauces on the market, so I think that’s going to be your best bet. I don’t know of another sauce that has the same consistency and savory flavor. Some people have used hoisin, but I think that has a very different flavor. It might make a great marinade for this, but definitely different.
Hoisin Sauce can also be used. I’m in the same boat
For how long is this good for in the fridge?
About four days.
Am I missing something or do I have a click on different links to get all of the recioes for this dish? I see the grocery list link, but would be nice to have the recipe for the chicken and the noodles all on this one page rather than having to click different links.
Yes, unfortunately you’ll need to open the recipes individually in separate tabs. These meal prep posts are basically “round ups” of past recipes that make good combinations for a complete meal.
Another Budget Bytes home run! This is a delicious homemade cure for my salty-fatty-sweet takeout food cravings. Simple, healthy with whole wheat angelhair subbed in, and cost-effective. I’l definitely be making this again.
My roommate and I have made meal this 4 times now and it is in our top 3 favorite meals. So much flavor with so little effort! We often sub in 3 packs of cheap ramen for the angel hair(we discard the seasoning packet) – so good! I’ve even made this with leftover thin-cut pork chops we needed to use up and it was still amazing. 100% do recommend.
Hi folks, just want to chime in that this soy glazed chicken was INCREDIBLY delicious and so darned easy. I cut up the breasts and marinated them overnight. Super easy to make the sauce and very fast cooking since the chicken is in such small pieces. My family thought all breast meat was just fine; but trying it with 1/2 thigh meat I’m sure would also be yummy.
Next time I’ll be experimenting with using this sauce on tofu and veggies instead.
I’m sure this cooked chicken would be a great frozen for later idea, too.
This was really solid. Also made this for my fam with the hopes of leftovers and I think there is enough for one lean lunch tomorrow that my husband and I can fight over. I didn’t have oyster sauce for the noodles (they don’t sell it at Trader Joe’s), so I just used hoisin and it turned out wonderful. Thanks for a great website! I’ve really enjoyed several of your meals.
Cooked this meal last weekend with the intention of “meal prepping” it for my lunches this week. It smelled so good that my family and I ended up having it for dinner the same night. NO LEFTOVERS! This was excellent. I did double the sauce for the chicken and I didn’t have thighs so I cut 2 breast in half to make 4 pieces and it was just SO GOOD! No other edits. Followed the recipe exactly. Let the chicken marinate about 24 hours in the fridge. Will be making this again, and again, and again…
This sticky chicken and noodle meal prep was the absolute best!!! I love Asian-inspired meals and the sticky sauce on the chicken was DELICIOUS. Seriously, my boyfriend was practically licking his plate after dinner. SO GOOD!!! We’ve officially added this to our favorites and we will be making it pretty often. Next time, I think I’m going to make a little extra sticky sauce and add the softened broccoli in with the chicken along with some cut up red and green pepper strips. Love your recipes Beth and keep up the amazing work! You’re a true inspiration to us foodies! :)
This was really good, but next time I think I’m going to try cooking it all in one pan. It was more time, labor, and pan intensive than most of the other recipes on here!
But I think if I cook the chicken first, then add the cooked noodles and make a well in the center for the noodle sauce, it’ll work really well. The broccoli could even be added right at the end (I used fresh).
I agree – I just cooked it all in one pan because it seemed like a lot of extra time waiting. It worked fine!
Love the great meal prep ideas! Keeps lunches fun and exciting for sure..
I love that you’ve started doing this meal prep series! I meal prep your mini garden turkey loaves about once a month. They are perfect with some mashed potatoes/cauliflower and a veggie!
Welcome to Nashville. You are going to love it. Been here all my life. Hope the move goes well.
Loving the site, just joined a few weeks ago after reading your book at the library. Got several good recipes that I have been trying. Like the added bonus on the site of the approximate cost. Very helpful.
Welcome! And thank you! :)
thank you SO MUCH for these meal prep posts that you have been doing. i’ve been trying to meal prep for lunch way more often (so much easier than making different things daily) and i like seeing how you combine the different recipes you have. keep doing these, please!!
No matter how prepared you are, moving is always stressful and exhausting–best wishes for a problem free experience! And thanks for another wonderful idea.
You mentioned you grabbed the chicken out of the freezer- did you freeze pre-cooking or after? Is it OK to marinate ahead of time, chuck in the freezer, then thaw and cook later?
I had the thighs frozen by themselves. I did thaw them in the refrigerator over night before making this. :) You could probably add the marinade and freeze them that way before cooking. I wouldn’t freeze them after cooking, though. The sauce won’t stay nice and sticky.
I do a number of different chicken “and sauce” freezer packs. Our favorite is Maple Dijon, but Teriyaki works, so this one will, too. Instead of individual servings, I served family style.
I get a bulk pack of chicken thighs and split into meal-for-family amounts. You can do it for singles, too. I make a triple batch of the sauce, and put the meat and the sauce into zipper freezer bags. Freeze flat so they can be stored more easily. Separately, I freeze cooked brown rice in quart bags (feeds 4-5). This way, the meat and starch is done, just bake the chicken as directed (after fully thawed), and saute or steam some fresh carrots, broccoli, string beans, or greens. So easy! BONUS: you can give away a meal just like this when someone you care about is moving, or just had a baby or surgery, or a spouse come home from being overseas… contain 3 quart bags (meat, rice, veg) inside a gallon storage bag. with a love note!
Just echoing all the thanks for doing the meal prep posts. I’m newly single and trying to cook for myself more, and these are exactly my speed.
Moving can be an adventure! Hope all goes well for you.
I’ve made this exact meal before, except with your quick garlic parmesan broccoli (often skipping the parmesan as I often forget to buy it when I run out). I’ll have to try with frozen florets when I forget about buy the broccoli crowns.
Thanks for another great meal prep! Moving can be such a pain, I hope it goes smoothly for you!
Good luck with your move, Beth!! :-)
I was dying to make your garlic noodles but I was struggling with how to make a real meal out of it, so clearly this was divine intervention! I substituted the chicken with baked tofu and it was still really amazing. Very grateful you took a moment in a hectic time to share yet another great meal with us!
it looks like these are single serve plates, which is a cool idea.
are these able to go into the freezer?
I don’t think this one will freeze so well because the garlic noodles don’t have a thick enough sauce to keep them moist through the freeze/thaw.
Good luck with your move, Beth!
This looks awesome, but I have to say I’m most impressed with the fact that you’re keeping up with the cooking/blogging/posting/prepping after you’ve packed up your kitchen!! Good luck with the move! 😀
Hahaha, I wish. This was the last thing I cooked BEFORE packing my kitchen. :D
I am obsessed with these meal plans! My boyfriend and I have been using your website to prep lunches for the week for years, but this makes my life so much easier. Please keep up the awesome work!
Thank you!!