We know that food prepping for an extended period of time is overwhelming, which is why we’re here to help out. We’ve rounded up all the best tips we can find around the internet on figuring out what you need to buy and what you can actually make.

Figure out which food you’ll want to eat

14 days may seem like a long time to be without a trip to the grocery store, but with non-perishable food items like peanut butter and boxes of pasta on your side, you can put together meals you’ll still look forward to eating. This article from Epicurious breaks down some basic tips for you on what to buy so you’ll have options.

Speaking of shopping, go into it with a plan.

Shopping and meal prep is a task in itself, even without the added stress of long-term prepping. Check out this other article before you go shopping for a 14-day meal plan you don’t even have to come up with yourself.

Learn how long certain foods last.

Before breaking into your pantry stash, use up all the perishables in your fridge! This helpful resource will let you know how long each food lasts for safe consumption all around.

And then get creative about using up that perishable food.

Have you ever watched the show Chopped? Well this is like that, except your “basket” will just be made up of all the ingredients you’ve got to use up ASAP. This fun article from food blogger Happy Healthy Mama lays out the game.

Cook as much as you can now and freeze it

Say it with us: The freezer is my friend. You don’t have to live on an all-canned-food diet. Learn exactly how to freeze anything you need in this article from Bon Appetit.

On the subject of frozen food, get some interesting stuff

If you’re lucky enough to have a Trader Joe’s nearby, try out their wide array of interesting frozen food items. Some of our favorites are the chicken tikka masala and cauliflower gnocchi. If you’re into reading up on an official ranking, check out this article from Delish.

But don’t forget the trusted staples

Not everybody is fortunate enough to have a Trader Joe’s around the corner. But classics are classics for a reason, which is why you absolutely should be reading up on the all-time-best frozen foods list from Eat This.

Getting a little bored of just sticking stuff in the microwave?

We get that pressing buttons on a microwave doesn’t typically fuel one’s creative juices. We love this list of creative recipes featuring canned goods from The Kitchn.

Try your hand at baking

The cool thing about baking is that most of the ingredients don’t require refrigeration and you’ve probably got the majority of stuff needed in the back of a cabinet somewhere. This list from Tasty features some simple recipes even the most novice baker can handle. Not sure you have everything you need? On your next grocery store run, pick up eggs, butter, flour, sugar, baking soda, and vanilla.

Finally make that complicated recipe you’ve had bookmarked for months

Remember that trendy dish you saved months ago that you’re totallygoing to make any day now? Well that day has arrived! Check your bookmarks for inspirationm and if that doesn’t work, you can never go wrong with these recipes from Alison Roman.

Bottomline, being quarantined isn’t fun, but that doesn’t mean that the food you eat during it has to make your days harder. Just trying out a few of the tips on this list can result in making some meals that you can really look forward to eating.

Photo courtesy of Jason Briscoe, Unsplash.