Busy week ahead? Hate cooking? Have no idea where to start with macros? Then this post might just help you! This week, I decided to share 3 macro-friendly meals you can make with 5 ingredients purchased from Costco. These meals are high in protein, low in prep time, and actually not too bad on the budget, especially if you compare them to a couple of trips through the drive-through.

The Ingredients

First, let’s chat about the items that make up these meals. All of them were picked up at my local Costco and are available all year round. Even if your Costco doesn’t have these exact items, I bet you’d be able to find similar products at yours.

1. Rotisserie Chicken. It is hard to argue with a Costco rotisserie chicken! They are so delicious, and a steal at just $4.99 per chicken. For these meals, we will be using skinless chicken breast. That is because it has the best macros out of the chicken.  For 3 ounces of skinless chicken breast meat, it is 2.5F/1C/22P and 120 calories. Feel free to serve your husband and your kids the darker meat if they enjoy it. Speaking of families, if you want to make these meals for a larger group of people, you might want to buy another chicken, maybe even two! You want to make sure you have plenty of protein to go around. If you have any extra, rotisserie chicken is always great to have on hand for an easy protein option, or you can add even more chicken breast to your meal to really amp up the protein grams. It can also be frozen if you have way too much left!
2. Kirkland Chicken Tortilla Soup. This pre-made soup is so simple to heat up and use. As a bonus, it is also super delicious. It reminds me of the chicken tortilla soup that you might be served at a popular chain restaurant like Red Robin or Chili’s. The macros are also not too bad. For 1 cup, it is 3F/12C/11P, and the price for two containers is $7.99. It made enough for our family for dinner and some leftovers.
3. Taylor Farms Mediterranean Crunch Salad. My Costco has a good variety of pre-bagged salads available for purchase. I decided to go with this version because it didn’t contain any eggs in the dressing (I’m allergic) and had less fat than some of the other varieties. For 100 g the macros are 10F/13C/3P and 150 calories and the salad kit cost $5.99. Feel free to substitute out your favorite kind of bagged salad, but keep in mind the macros will be different.
4. Basmati Rice. This week was actually my first time purchasing this rice from Costco. All you need to do to prepare this rice is heat it in the microwave for 90 seconds, and you can even do that in the pouch. The macros for one cup are 3.5F/43C/5P. Because it was heavier in carbs, I adjusted the amount of rice to be just 3/4 of a cup for this meal.
5. Green Wave Green Beans. I’ve shared about this on my Instagram account before, but we buy these green beans all the time. First of all, my kids love them. They are also very easy to prepare and can even be steamed in the bag if you wish (store leftovers in the fridge and then you don’t have to worry about this step the rest of the meals!). We usually break one 2 pound bag up into three different meals for our family, and our favorite ways to eat them are simply boiled or roasted in the oven. We then sprinkle them with a little garlic salt for flavor. The macros for 85g or 3 ounces of green beans are 0F/6C/2P and 25 calories, and cost $4.99 for a bag. I added green beans to every meal so you can get in some micronutrients and extra volume to your meals. You could also substitute whatever veggie you like most from Costco (will likely change the macros!).

The Meals

 

Chicken Tortilla Soup + Green Beans

To prepare this meal, simply heat up the chicken tortilla soup according to the package instructions. We chose to heat ours up on the stove. Also, prepare the green beans as desired. Once the soup is heated up, pour 1 and 1/2 cups into a bowl (360 ml) and add 1 and 1/2 ounces of cooked, skinless chicken breast. Top with additional toppings, if desired (see below for ideas). Serve with a serving of green beans.

Additional Toppings: Shredded cheese, sour cream, cilantro, chips, lavash chips, avocado, hot sauce, etc.

Macros: 6F/24C/29P and 265 calories

Roasted Chicken + Mediterranean Crunch Salad + Green Beans

This meal is probably the simplest! Combine all of the ingredients in the salad kit into a big bowl. Place 100 g of prepared salad on your plate along with 3 ounces of cooked chicken and a serving of green beans

Note: This salad makes 7 servings all together. If you want to keep your toppings fresh for a later date, I’d recommend only assembling a portion of it at a time. For us, we do half and save the other half for the next day. I usually do not measure out the ingredients to make sure they are half, I just eyeball it. But if you’d like to be specific, you can weigh individual ingredients and divide them by half. Your choice. So really, I guess you could probably get two meals out of this bagged salad if you had enough chicken!

Macros: 12F/20C/27P and 295 calories

Roasted Chicken + Basmati Rice + Green Beans

For this meal, prepare the basmati rice according to the package instructions. Also prepare your green beans, as desired. To serve, place 3/4 cup of basmati rice (about 101 g) on a plate along with 3 ounces of cooked chicken and a serving of green beans.

Additional Topping Ideas: Ranch dressing (a lighter variety or maybe my Skinny Barbecue Ranch or Skinny Pesto Ranch), Fat-free or light Italian dressing, avocado, Stubb’s barbecue sauce, Parmesan Cheese. If you want to add more volume to your dish, add in some riced cauliflower to mix with your rice.

Macros: 5F/39C/28P and 310 calories