what are you favorite fast dishes?

[Mom to Brandon and 2 cats]

Fast as in just walk in the front door from a grueling 9-hour day at work and the kids are starving, fast?

Also, any tips for getting dinner on the table faster?

I've thought of:
setting the rice pot on a timer so it'll be done with I get home
doing all my prep for meat and veggies the night before
trying to use the crock pot more

Help, please, I'm going back to work FT in less than 2 weeks, and I want to be organized enough that my kids don't starve! :)

[DebbieJ]

I buy ground beef in bulk, then cook it, cool it, and store it in 1 lb portions in the freezer. That way when I need a quick dinner, I can make sloppy joes, tacos, etc, really fast.

Someone else posted on how they roast a couple chickens every weekend and then cut it all up and use it in different meals all week. I think it was Beth (brittone), so maybe you can search her posts.

Crock pots are great. I need to use mine more.

~ deb
DS born at home 12/03
Breastfeeding After Reduction is possible! www.bfar.org

http://www.bfar.org/members/fora/style_avatars/Ribbons/18months-bfar.jpg

[ctmom]

Pasta!
here are a couple of good recipes if you want to make your own sauce...
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/239252
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/105679

I love the frozen ravioli's from Costco, I always have some in the freezer as well as some refrigerated tortellini's on hand.

I like Debbie's idea of freezing cooked ground beef. I'll have to try that!

Here is a great article, with recipes, regarding slow cooking
http://www.epicurious.com/cooking/everyday/family/slow_cooking/index

hth!

Mary
dd#1 2/01
dd#2 12/03

[boolady]

At this time of year, anything that can be tossed onto the grill for 10 or 15 minutes and be done-- boneless chicken breasts or thighs, pork chops, hamburgers, chicken or turkey sausages or hot dogs, etc. We will either make a veg, like asparagus on the grill, or heat a few ears of corn on the cob that DH or I will husk the night before while we're grilling. Sometimes we make a salad with it or baked potatoes in the microwave, and we're ready to roll.

[ekbecker1]

A couple of ideas that work for me:

I keep a small list of recipes that I can cook in large quantities on the weekend and freeze several portions for quick defrosting: pork and saurkraut, chili, spaghetti sauce, soups, cabbage rolls, stuffed peppers, etc.

If you have a Trader Joe's near you, they have an awesome frozen brown rice. It's 3 packages to a box and each package serves 3 full-size people (or 2 adults and 2 toddlers in our case). They cook in the microwave in 3 minutes and are great with stirfry, chili or anything that comes out of a crockpot.

Trader Joe's also has many sauces that I use like simmer sauces. I brown a couple of chicken breasts on the stove. Then pour a sauce over them and let them simmer for a while. Serve with a frozen veggie and/or brown rice mentioned above. They carry a large variety of sauces: curries, Thai flavors, teriyaki, Mexican Mole, Jerk, etc. This even works with plain, old spaghetti sauce.

I keep my freezer stocked with chicken breasts, ground turkey, ground beef and pork tenderloins. I used to forget about making dinner until the last minute and then it was too late to defrost something. So now I try to remember to take something out of the freezer every night while I'm doing the dinner dishes. I put it in the fridge and hope it defrosts by the next evening.

Stir fry is quick if the chicken is defrosted and you have a good bag of mixed frozen veggies. With diced chicken, rice, frozen veggies, a couple eggs, and some soy sauce you can make fried rice.

Breakfast foods make an easy dinner meal too. We have scrambled eggs or Mexican egg burritos (tortilla wrapped around scrambled eggs with cheese, salsa, ham, onions and peppers). Another favorite is a quick quiche. There's a Bisquick quiche that's super easy. It's eggs, milk and Bisquick and then you add your own ingredients: meat, cheese, veggies, whatever you have on hand.

I try to buy fish every time I go to the grocery store and then cook it that same night. I want us to eat more fish, but I don't like it stinking up my fridge and I don't like it after it's been frozen. So I've tried to make it my habit to have it every time I grocery shop. That means we eat it once or twice a week which is a vast improvement for us. I usually get Tilapia, orange roughy, monkfish, grouper, whatever looks good. I lay out a large piece of foil for each piece of fish (for small pieces like Tilapia you can put 2-3 on each piece of foil). Spray the center of the foil with Pam. Then top each piece with a half cup or so of a semi-liquid mixture (salsa, olive oil and lemon juice, olive oil and white wine, whatever you can think of). Then throw the packets on the grill for 10 minutes (until the packets puffs up with steam). I've even had luck putting veggies in there with the fish. My favorite combination is a large handful of pre-washed baby spinach, one or two large leaves of fresh basil, a handful of frozen corn and a handful of grape tomatoes cut in half. Frozen broccoli, caulifower and carrots are also a good combo.

Hope you find some ideas here. Good luck with the new work schedule!

[brittone2]

Yeah, I do the chicken thing pretty regularly. I roast 2 chickens on the weekend after we get home from grocery shopping. (I use a huge cast iron Lodge brand "fish pan" which is like an enormous rectangular roasting type of thing).

I'll often remove the 4 chicken legs and put those in one container. Those are good reheated and brushed with a little glaze (balsamic vinegar and some maple syrup or honey, orange juice and a little soy sauce and honey, etc.) or of course you can just do them plain.

I let the chickens cool, remove meat, and cube. I leave a container or so out for the next 1-2 days. The rest goes in the freezer.

ways I use it:
chicken salad (done many ways...grapes and almonds added, tarragon and grapes, dried cranberries and green onions, sometimes I do red onion with cucumber and cilantro, I've done black beans, sweet corn, cilantro and a little bbq sauce added to the mayo). That is good on top of salad greens (can buy a huge tub at costco if you'll use it fast enough), in a wrap, etc. Good for lunches or hot weather dinners.

Stir fry. Just toss the thawed chicken (even still a bit frozen it is fine) with some frozen veggies in a hot pan. If you are open to things other than rice, quinoa is super healthy and cooks up in 15 mins or less. Couscous can be made really really quickly. Serve stir fry mix over those quick cooking grains.

Add to pasta sauce and pasta for a super super quick and easy dinner. Not fancy, but it works in a pinch. (can also do this w/ precooked and then frozen ground beef as a PP mentioned, which is another huge time saver we use).

The chicken can be used as filling for quesadillas (two tortillas with cheese, chicken and some veggies in the middle). That's a super fast dinner. Good with soup. DS likes to dunk quesadilla wedges of any type into lentil or black bean soup.

Chicken can be added to the crock pot w/ some bbq sauce, shredded, and put on sandwiches or eaten plain. Can do this w/ the precooked chicken. Can also be frozen w/ the bbq sauce already added (so could do the chicken and bbq sauce in the crockpot on the weekend and then freeze. Thaw and reheat on the stove for a work week dinner if that's easier).

Chicken w/ any kind of simmer sauce or curry sauce, etc. Trader Joes has a lot of good ones (mojito, Thai, masala, etc. all come to mind). Can reheat precooked chicken on the stove w/ some simmer sauce or do it in the crockpot. Again, serve over some sort of quick cooking grain like quinoa since that can be faster than rice.

Precooked chicken can go into a wrap with salad greens, veggies and some salad dressing or something like honey mustard.

Can be used for soft tacos. Just add some cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, etc. Can heat the chicken up with a little cumin, chili powder, garlic, etc. to give it a more mexican flavor.

Ground meat is easy to prep in advance. Just brown a bunch and freeze into single meal serving sizes. This can be easily made into chili, added to spaghetti sauce, turned into tacos, added to quesadillas. All of those things are fast. If you know you like a lot of mexican/chili type dishes, you can brown some onions and add the mexican type of seasonings in advance and freeze it that way. If you want more flexibility, brown it plain and add seasonings the night you'll serve it (although this is a little more time consuming)

If I bring home a bunch of raw ground meat, I'll precook meatballs. Mix a bunch up, and brown in a skillet or in the oven (I never do the oven but it is easier to do a large amount at once in the oven). I do some bigger sized ones for serving w/ pasta or on rolls (keep some extra rolls in the freezer to give you this option for dinner). I also do some smaller ones and we add those to soup. You can make a fast version of pseudo-Italian wedding soup by adding some precooked frozen meatballs to chicken broth, along w/ some small pastas (I use little Eden organic alphabet pasta for DS) and chopped carrot, and at the very end toss in some greens like spinach or escarole. It only takes like 15 mins to whip up and it can be hearty, healthy and kid friendly. Spoon a little grated parm over the top. Yum.

When you make something like meatballs, while the bowl is out and already dirty, mix up a meatloaf or two right in the same bowl afterward. You can freeze it raw or precook and then freeze (which for a work night would probably work better for you).

My fav part of cooking like this is I still have flexibility (I'm not locked into a specific casserole, but having the chicken or ground beef precooked and ready to go cuts out a TON of work and I still can change what I'm making on a whim easily). It saves on going out to eat as often. My fav part is that you have a lot less to clean up!! You make the majority of the mess all at the same time, and then only have one pan or so to clean each night.

[brittone2]

Yeah, I do the chicken thing pretty regularly. I roast 2 chickens on the weekend after we get home from grocery shopping. (I use a huge cast iron Lodge brand "fish pan" which is like an enormous rectangular roasting type of thing).

I'll often remove the 4 chicken legs and put those in one container. Those are good reheated and brushed with a little glaze (balsamic vinegar and some maple syrup or honey, orange juice and a little soy sauce and honey, etc.) or of course you can just do them plain.

I let the chickens cool, remove meat, and cube. I leave a container or so out for the next 1-2 days. The rest goes in the freezer.

ways I use it:
chicken salad (done many ways...grapes and almonds added, tarragon and grapes, dried cranberries and green onions, sometimes I do red onion with cucumber and cilantro, I've done black beans, sweet corn, cilantro and a little bbq sauce added to the mayo). That is good on top of salad greens (can buy a huge tub at costco if you'll use it fast enough), in a wrap, etc. Good for lunches or hot weather dinners.

Stir fry. Just toss the thawed chicken (even still a bit frozen it is fine) with some frozen veggies in a hot pan. If you are open to things other than rice, quinoa is super healthy and cooks up in 15 mins or less. Couscous can be made really really quickly. Serve stir fry mix over those quick cooking grains.

Add to pasta sauce and pasta for a super super quick and easy dinner. Not fancy, but it works in a pinch. (can also do this w/ precooked and then frozen ground beef as a PP mentioned, which is another huge time saver we use).

The chicken can be used as filling for quesadillas (two tortillas with cheese, chicken and some veggies in the middle). That's a super fast dinner. Good with soup. DS likes to dunk quesadilla wedges of any type into lentil or black bean soup.

Chicken can be added to the crock pot w/ some bbq sauce, shredded, and put on sandwiches or eaten plain. Can do this w/ the precooked chicken. Can also be frozen w/ the bbq sauce already added (so could do the chicken and bbq sauce in the crockpot on the weekend and then freeze. Thaw and reheat on the stove for a work week dinner if that's easier).

Chicken w/ any kind of simmer sauce or curry sauce, etc. Trader Joes has a lot of good ones (mojito, Thai, masala, etc. all come to mind). Can reheat precooked chicken on the stove w/ some simmer sauce or do it in the crockpot. Again, serve over some sort of quick cooking grain like quinoa since that can be faster than rice.

Precooked chicken can go into a wrap with salad greens, veggies and some salad dressing or something like honey mustard.

Can be used for soft tacos. Just add some cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, etc. Can heat the chicken up with a little cumin, chili powder, garlic, etc. to give it a more mexican flavor.

Ground meat is easy to prep in advance. Just brown a bunch and freeze into single meal serving sizes. This can be easily made into chili, added to spaghetti sauce, turned into tacos, added to quesadillas. All of those things are fast. If you know you like a lot of mexican/chili type dishes, you can brown some onions and add the mexican type of seasonings in advance and freeze it that way. If you want more flexibility, brown it plain and add seasonings the night you'll serve it (although this is a little more time consuming)

If I bring home a bunch of raw ground meat, I'll precook meatballs. Mix a bunch up, and brown in a skillet or in the oven (I never do the oven but it is easier to do a large amount at once in the oven). I do some bigger sized ones for serving w/ pasta or on rolls (keep some extra rolls in the freezer to give you this option for dinner). I also do some smaller ones and we add those to soup. You can make a fast version of pseudo-Italian wedding soup by adding some precooked frozen meatballs to chicken broth, along w/ some small pastas (I use little Eden organic alphabet pasta for DS) and chopped carrot, and at the very end toss in some greens like spinach or escarole. It only takes like 15 mins to whip up and it can be hearty, healthy and kid friendly. Spoon a little grated parm over the top. Yum.

When you make something like meatballs, while the bowl is out and already dirty, mix up a meatloaf or two right in the same bowl afterward. You can freeze it raw or precook and then freeze (which for a work night would probably work better for you).

My fav part of cooking like this is I still have flexibility (I'm not locked into a specific casserole, but having the chicken or ground beef precooked and ready to go cuts out a TON of work and I still can change what I'm making on a whim easily). It saves on going out to eat as often. My fav part is that you have a lot less to clean up!! You make the majority of the mess all at the same time, and then only have one pan or so to clean each night.

eta: if I do the chickens on the weekend early enough in the day, I will also throw the bones in a stockpot w/ a little apple cider vinegar and cover the bones with water. Throw in some veggies, etc.. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to low. I'll let it simmer for hours and it makes a great stock. More bang for the $, which helps us afford to eat organic in the first place. Once the stock cools you can strain and freeze, or you can turn it into soup that night or the next day. I do this more in the fall/winter...I'm not so much in the soup mood right now when it is 104 here in NC ;)

Oh, and if you have trader joes nearby, I just discovered that I like the Thai simmer sauce added to chicken stock, with some chopped green onion and some chicken pieces. It is a good way to use it up and make a quick Tom Ka Gai type of soup. Can stretch it further with a little extra coconut milk added. No need to buy a ton of special ingredients either. Those trader joe's simmer sauces can be really versatile and they make it easy to change up plain old chicken into different ethnic dishes. You can do it on your own, but for quick dinners, they can be a life saver.

[oneplustwo]

Beth, thank you so much for all those great, detailed ideas! Wow! I'm really going to be able to mix things up a bit more on the meals front.

[brittone2]

nak-
rereading my post, I feel like the Bubba Gump of chicken, LOL ;)

[mommy_someday]

If you don't feel like cooking the ground beef when you get home from grocery shopping, break it into 1-lb sections, put each pound into a gallon-sized freezer bag and then flatten it. You can use a rolling pin, but your hand will do just fine. It stores really neatly in the freezer and you can thaw one in warm water in the sink in 5 minutes (just be sure to flip it over in the water so both sides get thawed)! That's my favorite kitchen trick to date!

[danagee]

Thank you, your post inspired me to get some tilapia while shopping this week. I topped with the spinach, etc. that you recommended and it was really good and healthy. I plan on doing this again and again.
Thanks again.


Dana
ds 8/04 * dd 1/06

[SASM]

PIZZA! I also have the kids make their own individual pizzas so they are guaranteed to eat since they are so excited about the "love" that went into their creations. :)

Heat the oven to 450. While oven is warming lay out the crust on a foil-lined cookie sheet sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.

CRUST: For thin crispy crust, either flour or whole wheat tortillas (taco or fajita size). For slightly thicker crust, pocketless whole wheat pitas work well.

ADD: Any jarred sauce will do ~ we like arabiatta for a little zip. The cheese mellows it enough for the kids.

TOP with: ANY cheese ~ shredded (mozzarella or Italian combination), ricotta or grated. :)

You can also saute up some thinly sliced veggies to top it with but it is not as fast. :)

By the time your kids are done with their creations, the oven should be ready. Bakes in about about 5-7 minutes, depending on your oven ~ just until the crust is crispy and cheese is melted.

I serve this with salad (my kids are into salad with the spray dressing right now), a microwaved frozen veggie, or carrots/dip. :)

HTH!!

Oh...I also do a "Star Soup".

My kids LOVE soup any time of the year. This is a whatever-is-in-the-refrigerator soup and the kids love it! It is always different and they know it. The base is always sauteed onion, garlic, and olive oil. I add in whatever veggies I need to get rid of in the refrigerator or pantry (celery, baby carrots, mushrooms, tomatos, peppers, potatoes, whatever) or frozen. Add the fresh veggies, saute for a little while until semi-soft (or add the frozen to the stock and bring to a boil). Add whatever spices you'd like. Add in some stock (I like Kitchen Basics Chicken b/c I can close it and stash it in the refrigerator if I do not use it all). Bring to a boil. Add a fun pasta, like stars (pastina), rings, fine eggs noodles or ABCs, and cook until done. If I am adding basil or lettuce (or fresh tomatos), I add it now, at the end, just to wilt or heat through. Depending on how much you add, the pasta will thicken the soup into almost a stew, which I like for my kids as they are slobs. :) I almost always add some diced semi-soft or hard cheese, like mozzarella, asiago, or parmesan, to either the pot or their bowls as a little melted cheesy surprise. :) I also top it with some seasoned croutons for texture and maybe some extra grated or shredded parm. :) This is normally on the table in about 20 minutes, if I use fresh veggies instead of frozen. Oh...if there are leftovers, the "soup" thickens in the refrigerator so save a little stock for when you warm it up.

HTH! :)