Cooking TipsQuick Easy Meals
Quick easy meals can be accomplished with a little bit of preparation ahead of time. There are several things you can do to be able to put a meal on the table in a short time, even if you have not been able to take anything out of the freezer to thaw ahead of time.
The advantage to planning ahead for quick easy meals is that you will save money and eat healthier than if you were constantly stopping by for fast take-out food. We know that eating too much fast food is not good for us, plus you don"t get a very balanced meal.
Here are a few things you can do ahead of time:
1) On your next shopping trip, make sure you have a good selection of the types of vegetables you like to eat. Choose mostly fresh, and also some frozen and canned for those days when the fresh veggies are all gone but you are trying to make a quick easy meal.
2) At the same time, buy some meat that you like: chicken, ground beef, etc. Buy enough that you can cook it all up and separate it into baggies of cooked meat to put into the freezer. The advantage of this is that if you have a baggie of cooked hamburger, you can quickly throw it into a pot of spaghetti. If you have a baggie of cooked chopped chicken, you can throw it into a pan of fried rice. You get the idea.
If you are a vegatarian, then buy and prepare the protein that you like best.
3) Make sure you have a nice little collection of spices to add flair to your food: sea salt, black pepper, thyme, oregano, cinnamon for starters. Later add parsley, garlic powder, etc.
4) Buy some rice, pasta, instant potatoes if you like them.
Now for the fun part. You come home from a long day and you need to get some supper on the table as quick as you can. You haven"t planned anything; don"t give in and order food in! You can do this.
Here is a quick easy meal you can try. After that, see if you can make up some more. Then, write them out on a list and tape it inside one of your cupboard doors. The next time you come home from work tired and hungry, open the door and there are your lifesavers!
Fried or Steamed Rice: Measure rice and water and put in covered glass casserole in microwave or rice cooker. Cook according to directions. Meanwhile, find some veggies to use. Fresh ones will need to be quickly sauteed or steamed; frozen or canned can go directly into the fried rice. Grab a baggie of cooked meat from the freezer. Plop the baggie in hot water or open and separate. It will thaw quickly. You can use beef, poultry, ham, etc. As soon as the rice is cooked, you can add meat and veggies and serve soy sauce or plum sauce on the side. If you want fried rice, then heat oil in pan, fry it with added meat and veggies. This whole process takes 30 minutes or less.
You can think of one to make with cooked ground beef and pasta, or ham and instant potatoes. If instant potatoes aren"t your style, then put some water on to boil as soon as you get into the house. By the time you have put your coat and stuff away, and gathered the food items, you can quickly peel (or not) the potatoes, cut up small for faster cooking, and get the rest ready.
You will have a delicious, quick easy meal in no time!