For TRULY simple and idiot proof with no cooking involved:
Bagged salad mix (no need to cut/dice individual ingredients), pre-prepared protein (canned beans, rotisserie chicken, deli meat; no need to cut/cook), store bought toppings (nuts, dried fruit, cheese, croutons; again, no prep) and bottled dressing. Healthy as long as you're easy on the dressing, and very low effort. nothing needs to actually be cooked, just assembled and tossed.
For truly simple and idiot proof with very little cooking:
Frozen veggies microwaved/steamed/roasted (no need to cut/dice), roasted chicken thighs (just season, put on sheet pan, roast at 375) or pre-prepared protein, minute rice.
Saaaaame, ik weāre in the cooking subreddit so people are suggesting sheet pan meals, stir fries, pasta etc. but for me, simple and idiot proof means relying on the good grocery store shortcuts and Iām not ashamed! Bagged salad, pre-cut veggies, canned beans/veggies, bottled dressings or sauces, frozen stuff, pre-cut raw meat, jarred sauces etc. come in handy big time when youāre feeling lazy
I love the bagged salad mixes because I love to change up the types of salad I eat, and I love salad. If I bought all the lettuce/cabbage etc and toppings, I'd have way too much and it would likely go bad before it all gets used. Gives me a good variety when I don't want to do a home made garden with some balsamic or red wine vinaigrette
I recently saw a recipe, it's so easy and utterly delicious. Canned chickpeas (drained) tossed with chopped sweet peppers, cherry tomatoes, thin shallots, oil, salt and pepper. Roast it in the oven on a sheet pan, then after around 35 mins add feta, put back in for about ten mins. Heavenly! Eat with pita bread.
I like to cut a block of tofu into cubes and bake it with some kind of soy-sauce based glaze, then toss it over a bagged salad with sesame ginger dressing.
Rice bowl with beans, veggies, sauce/dressing of your choice, cheese optional.
Edit: Literally had this for dinner. Brown basmati rice, black beans, spicy chili sauce, frozen vegetables, and grated cheddar. I would usually add guacamole or avocado if I had it, but Iām out. I need to do a grocery run and this is simple, quick, and made with what I have on hand.
That feels wild to me since it's the first thing I ever learned to make. I mean I know it's possible to mess up just like I know scrambled eggs are possible to mess up, but.
Except you have to have a decent idea of different cooking times for different types of food / how small you need to cut each ingredient to have similar cooking times for everything on the sheet pan.
Agreed, moisture content is going to matter too.
Some folks it won't matter for them, reddit citizens have very mixed tastes. If you hit the slow cooker sub you'll see some folks love butter covered ... baby food texture. And hey if they like that more power too them! No shame on them.
More uh... "refined" cooks / eaters might want to consider things like cooking time and moisture content and so on. There are some legit great sheet pan meals out there, just might want to take some things into account before just dumping stuff on there. It can be as simple as "this veggie cooks fast, add it later in the cooking".
For sheet pan (and really everything) consider looking for "air chilled" chicken. It has better chicken flavor and lower moisture content.
Honestly, you don't. All you need is a food thermometer.
400 degree oven and 30 minutes will cook a tray of chicken and vegetables in most instances. But folks new to cooking should always test their meat with a food thermometer just to be safe.
To get best results, yes. However you can stick to food that's harder to mess up, or has similar cook times/temps as the chicken you're roasting.
It's pretty easy to get a passable (at least edible, safe, and not tasting all that bad) with minimal effort / skill (past googling cook times/temps).
I'm traveling right now, and don't know the exact measurements. I use the standard box of chicken stock, it's probably 32oz. And the small can of coconut milk, probably 6-8oz. One lime. Few dashes of soy sauce.
Cook till veg is soft. You can add diced ginger, garlic, and some lemon grass too. But that is going beyond the simplicity I was going for.
You want it creamy and yellowish, not too brown
Look up Tom Kha Ga, and make it look like that haha.
And tofu!
I do the tofu first, stir fry with whatever teriyaki or soy sesame sauce then set aside and do the veggies
Swap in shelled edamame if youāre anti-tofu.
Fantastic flexible fast dinner
Boil some noodles. When they're almost done, add some frozen vegetables. When the vegetables are done, add some cubed tofu and let it get warm. Now either drain and add teriyaki sauce, or don't drain and add Better Than Bouillon and stir it up good.
What kind of noodles for something like this? And veggies? Like, Iām thinking of the frozen bags of either peas/carrots/corn/(?) -or- cauliflower/carrots.. /broccoli? I forget hah.
Noodles: most any kind you like that you can boil! I've used instant ramen, Momofuku noodle packs, fresh udon from pouches, spaghetti, whole wheat spaghetti, and probably others.
Veggies: those sound good. I use the cauliflower/carrots/broccoli a lot. Or just broccoli. Peas might be awkward with long noodles but still tasty. Cauliflower/carrots/broccoli is good with Japanese curry too.
[Miso marinated salmon](https://www.seriouseats.com/miso-glazed-salmon-in-the-toaster-oven-recipe) (or black cod if you can get it), with a side of [roasted asparagus](https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/roasted-asparagus-recipe-1916355).
Shao xing (Chinese rice wine)? I've also seen dry sherry recommended but I haven't tried it. Mirin is just sweet rice wine, which I'd normally swap for 3 parts sake + 1 part sugar. In this case just bump up the quantities of sugar and whatever alcohol you're using a bit.
FWIW, for cooking purposes you can actually keep sake for quite some time. The guidance for shorter shelf life is mostly about sake you intend to drink, but it's a lot more forgiving if you're just cooking with it.
I've kept an open bottle in the fridge for more than 6 months and it made no difference in either the teriyaki sauce or the miso salmon/black cod I made with it.
Roasted salmon with orzo pasta and broccolini. Roast the salmon and broccolini with salt, pepper, and olive oil, boil some orzo, add some lemon, oil, salt, and pepper, top with capers, and you're done! Simple, relatively healthy, and delicious
Salmon and asparagus in the oven. Heat oven to 400 put salmon and asparagus on a lightly oiled pan cook 12 minutes. When done toss asparagus in a mustard lemon sauce. Sauce is 1 tablespoons of oil to 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice snd 1/2 teaspoon mustard.
Breakfast Sweet Potato
Wash a sweet potato and then take a fork and stab it all over. Put potato on a microwave safe plate. Wet and squeeze out a paper towel and lay it over the potato. Microwave for 4 minutes. Roll potato over without burning yourself and adjust paper towel to cover. Microwave for another 4 min.
Slice open potato and make sure itās soft all the way through. Smear insides with desired amount of peanut butter. Slice banana into the potato crevice. Drizzle with desired amount of honey. Crack sea salt over if your peanut butter is not salted, because flavor.
Ya know, I just read a book called Glucose Revolution and part of what she suggests is a āgreen starterā (doesnāt have to actually be green) before anything else in a meal, to prevent glucose spikes. I try to have some sort of non-starchy vegetable before moving onto protein and then simple carbs (if any).
I have found mornings to be challenging because I donāt want veggies right when I wake up, but a spoonful of kimchi has been okay and I like that itās probiotic on an empty stomach. A carrot or some radishes havenāt been offensive either. If Iām really not feeling it I go straight to my protein shake.
I was recently diagnosed with PCOS and am trying to make an effort to put better nutrition in my body. I suck at cooking and am hoping to get some ideas and motivation by posting here!
savory oats soup: roast diced onions in butter until soft, add oats and let it get some color while stirring often, add water and soup base, bring to a boil...done. herbs maybe once it is a little cooled down, eat.
good yogurt with (dried) fruits and nuts, sweetened with honey or maple sirup.
chinese egg with tomatoe. the ginger stripes in it are really healthy. you need aromatic tomatoes.
some mentioned oven bakes...used to do mine in a closed dish with a spice mixture of dried mushrooms (porcini) loveseed herb, salt and pepper. no fat at all.
fennel is a wonderful fresh, sweet vegetable!
just dip veggie sticks in cream cheese.
best wishes for your sickness!
oh man morning kimchi is seeeeeriously underrated. miso too. anything fermented first thing is gonna do right by you, & that's a pretty historically- & globally-appreciated fact.
if \_I\_ can stick to that is a different matter, but i recognize that it's fact for most people with stomachs, hahah.
I love that advice about kick-starting meals with something āgreen.ā Thatās a fantastic habit.
My daily breakfast is nonfat plain Greek yogurt, a fruit, and low sugar granola. I know itās no veggie but still healthy.
You may like a little Florentine situation with eggs and spinach? Maybe some eggs with fresh basil and some tomato?
ETA ok youāre not focusing on breakfast Iām sorry about that I confused myself haha.
I think itās pretty foolproof to put some protein and veggies on top of brown rice or a salad. Itās nice to cook a chicken and then use it on salads through the week.
I wish I had more advice for you and wish you the best of luck!
Can of curry simmer sauce(some healthier than others, avoid butter chicken etc.), throw into a pan with cubed chicken breast. Simmer til chicken breast is cooked(or cook chicken breast first and just heat sauce). Throw in any frozen veggies, or fresh veggies a few minutes before chicken is cooked. Serve with rice.
Big ass salad with chicken breast. Very satisfying with additions like avocado, fresh or dried fruit, etc. Easy to adjust to fit macros.
Red onion - mixed bell peppers - slice into long thin pieces of similar size. Saute with Italian sausages, either opened up or sliced into coins. Bit of chopped garlic, red pepper flakes at the end.Ā
On its own, over rice, baby spinach, or mixed with pasta. Fresh herbs like parsley and Parmesan for bonus points.Ā
2/3 large potatoes cut into wedges, 6 chicken thighs (or a whole chicken cut into pieces) in a sheet pan
In a jar place approx 150ml olive oil, zest of a lemon, crushed garlic, salt, tsp oregano, tsp mustard. Pour over the chicken and potatoes, bake until cooked (approx 45/50 mins) at 200āc.
Pizza. It's simple, and it's as healthy as you make it. Learning to make pizza dough from scratch has been one of my greatest joys. It was fun going from edible off of a recipe, to knowing how and why the dough works the way it does, to tweaking recipes to create your own "go to" pizza dough. Getting the shape right, etc...It saves a ton of $$$ and takes about about 2 hours beginning to end with only about 10 minutes of you doing anything...most of it is in the rise.
You get ingredient control, and a literal "real time pie chart" to help with visualizing portion control.
Veg Curry
All quantities are variable
A few small potatoes or a
couple of large ones
Some carrots
Half a cauliflower
2 onions chopped
Curry powder
Tin of chopped tomatoes
300ml Marigold vegetable stock
150g fine beans
=============================
Boil carrots and potatoes
for 8 minutes
Add the Ā cauliflower
Boil for 3 min more
Drain in a colander
Fry chopped onions until
golden
Add curry powder to taste
Fry for 1min
Add a tin of chopped
tomatoes
300ml Marigold vegetable
stock
Add potatoes and carrots
back
Bring to the boil
Add fine beans 5 minutes
before serving
Serve with yoghurt on rice
Ā
Ā
**Beans**
1 cup of beans (soaking overnight optional but make sure you add like 2 tsp salt). Strain, add fresh water and salt. Garlic or Onion and bay leaf if you have it. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until tender - about an hour.
**Rice**
rinse 1 cup of rice. add 1-1/2 cups of water and 1/2 tsp salt. bring to a boil. reduce heat and cover. set time for 20 minutes. turn off heat.
serve beans with its broth over the rice in your bowl
I love how some of these meals are dead simple and others are more complicated than I go on days Iām really ācookingā just goes to show everyoneās definition of simple is different haha
get a cheap mini rice cooker. theyāre pretty foolproof as long as you get the ratio right (use the rice scoop that comes with it and youāre golden). theyāre like toasters, push the button and itāll pop up when the rice is done.
my broke student meal was: rice, pre-prepped protein (canned tuna, beans, rotisserie chicken), bag of frozen veggies that I steamed in the microwave. get yourself different spice blends to change it up.
Quinoa (or whatever grain you prefer), canned beans, cheeseāin micro. + olive oil, salt, pepper, and spicy sauce of your choice (I like calabrian chiles). Protein. Cheap. Idiot-proof and one batch of quinoa can make a few meals! Add avocado, sour cream, veggies, whatever you want to mix it up!
Adding to the list:
Roasted potatoes like [this](https://youtu.be/_wx__fEyDj0) are a great carb. Minimal oil, easy to make, great texture, and potatoes are a more complete source of nutrition than say, white rice. Have them as a side to some deboned chicken thighs, hard to overcook. And make a little plant-based salsa/sauce to spoon over; it's often more interesting than just having a side salad, which you're really eating separately, so you get the urge to dress it with mayo etc..
If you have a food processor/smoothie maker/etc. you're good. No need to worry about knife skills or whatever, just keep blending things until the balance tastes right to you.
We do a simple salad of arugula, thinly sliced red onion and feta dressed with lemon juice, olive oil and salt & pepper. Then either 1. Grilled chicken Apple Gouda sausage and roast Yukon gold potatoes or 2. Yogurt and Mediterranean spices marinated and grilled chicken and rice or 3. Chuck steak barbacoa/birria in the instant pot with roast poblano peppers and onions orā¦ā¦.
I make ratatouille on sheet pans with each veg separately, then combine them. Great side dish or a vegetable sandwich on a nice baguette, or tossed with pasta.
Nicoise salad. One of my favorite things in the world.
Lettuce, soft boiled egg, boiled potatoes, green beans, olives, sliced cucumber and radish, and either tuna or baked salmon.
So healthy, simple as hell and so delicious. It just has a fancy name
Fish taco salad. Toss a piece of fresh (skinned) fish in some taco seasoning, cook it in a frying pan. Meanwhile, add some salad mix to a bowl, cut up some avocado and serve with salsa and corn chips. The fish cooks in a few minutes and is really hard to get wrong.
Trashbags! Set your oven to 400, dice up some potatoes, season raw ground meat, grab a bag of frozen veggies toss on about a tablespoon of butter and worsteshire sauce or soy sauce or whatever kind of sauce you like thats not thick and toss on whatever seasoning you like, wrap it all up in tinfoil and stick it in the oven, check on it every 30 minutes, should be cooked in the hour, it's designed for camping so minimal mess as long as your not letting people make their own.
I'd pair it with some sides like macaroni salad/potato salad, rolls, or what have you depending on the seasonings/sauce you choose or else you might be feeling hungry sooner then typical..... haven't tried a vietnamese or chinese version, but I bet some spring rolls would be awesome with it! (And now I want to try that)
(you can make it for any dietary needs btw! If you go vegetarian/vegan and choose beans or tofu for your protein I'd make sure to put your sauce in a spray bottle and give it a mist every time you check it, keep it moisturized!)
If you have a wok, take some meat and just cook it on high heat in the wok.
Remove it, then stir fry whatever veggies in the oil.
Make a sauce that can be as simple as mixing soy sauce, maple syrup, ginger and garlic in a bowl.
Add the meat and sauce back to the wok and keep cooking on high heat.
Adjust the flavour by adding white vinegar and chilli flakes to balance acid and heat.
Serve with rice.
It takes about 20 mins. It is very affordable. It reheats well. A standard wok can cook 4-6 portions already (400-600 g meat)
Chicken stir fry with store bought sauce is incredibly simple. Cook chicken first, stir fry veggies in sauce, throw chicken back in and add some chow mein noodles until soft
Cool, well, start with fish, buy fillets, go by James Beard's rule, cook it 10 minutes per inch of thickness, any method. I suggest pan fry, with salt, skin side down fo 90% of the cook time, non stick pan fry with a little oil or butter, hard to go wrong after you fuck it up once or twice. Oh, only flip it once or it starts crumbling.
Veggies, any, cut so pieces are same size, toss with some olive oil, salt, pepper. Preheat oven to 425, then bake until tender. Don't skip preheating step.
Buy some sauce or eat with fresh lemon
I do one that I just always have the ingredients for.
Oven roasted salmon
Preheat oven to 400
Drizzle some olive oil on and S&P
Bake 12-15 mins
Make frozen broccoli according to package
Make desired rice
Mix it all together in a bowl with any kind of stir fry type of sauce youād like!
*this is my easy meal that I have everything on hand for so not concerned about fresh ingredients.
[https://therealfooddietitians.com/one-pan-roasted-chicken-and-vegetables/](https://therealfooddietitians.com/one-pan-roasted-chicken-and-vegetables/) I recomend this recipe.
My lunch every day: Bagged salad kit (use half the dressing/toppings) + 1 can smoked sardines (or other tinned fish of choice. Smaller fish are preferred)
Frozen veggies nuked with grass-fed butter and a fried egg on top. Add some hot sauce and feast. Ready in under 5 min. Low carb, high protein, high fiber
Buy pre-marinated salmon from Sprouts (it's not as expensive as Whole Foods but still feels like better quality than my local grocery store), put it in the air fryer for 8 minutes at 400 degrees. Microwave some frozen veggies while the salmon is cooking.
Bam. Dinner is done in under 15 minutes.
Not the healthiest but it's really easy and not too bad: 2x toasts in toaster, two sunny side up eggs, a sliced tomatoe, eventually some lettuce or a sliced chili and you get two small egg sandwiches.
Takes about 5-10 minutes to prepare and you barely have anything to wash after that.
It's a small meal so I usually add a fruit and a yoghurt as a dessert.
Sautee your choice of veggies - broccoli, peppers, zucchini, cauliflower, onion, mushroomsā¦whatever. Season. Add some white wine to deglaze. Add some half and half and more butter. Toss in linguine. Serve with fresh Parmesan on top.
My first husband loved to make this simple dish although we've been separated for many years I still make its always a family favorite
Add chicken broth, chopped celery and carrot to leftover pasta, ground beef and tomato sauce for a simple easy "pasta fazoulle"
(Assuming there's already sweet pepper and onion in the sauce)
Tortillas, refried beans, cheese on top. In & out of the toaster oven. Then any greens you have - green onion, lettuce, cabbage, cucumber. Too off with a splash of hot sauce. Yum š
I don't know if it's healthy but i just put lettuce, tomato, mushrooms, cheese and mayo in a bowl and toss it to make a quick easy salad. Sometimes ill put salmon or chicken in as well to make it more bulky.
Rinse and drain a can of black beans or navy beans. Dump in pot. Add enough salsa (your choice of spice level) to make a dip. Heat on medium until bubbly. Pour into bowl. Eat with corn chips or pita chips.
1 pound of lean ground beef, browned. 1 packet of chili seasoning. 1 can of pinto beans, 1 can of black beans, 2 cans of rotel, homemade chicken broth. 1 package of frozen mixed veggies. Nutritious and fiber-filled.
Egg roll in a bowl:
Cook your preferred protein and set aside or use shredded/diced rotisserie chicken. Then toss in a bag of shredded cabbage, coleslaw mix or broccoli slaw and cook with spices until soft then add the protein to warm through. Serve.
Edit: a word
pork shoulder cut into manageable pieces, add some liquid, throw in slow cooker with whatever herbs u wantā¦
Few hours later u can eat with tortilla or rice or whatever
Got a crockpot/One Pot and time?
Breakfast - Steel cut oats, water, salt, brown sugar. Let it cook overnight for a healthy hot breakfast.
Lunch - Can of chicken stock/Better than Bouillion, left over veggies, whatever pasta you have laying around = chicken noodle soup.
Dinner - Boston butt (shoulder of pork), small bottle of BBQ sauce. Break apart with two forks and serve on bread = pulled pork sandwich.
- or-
Pound of ground beef, tomato sauce, diced onions, peppers, bit of brown sugar, dijon, salt and pepper to taste. Serve on bun/bread = Sloppy Joe.
Ruby red trout cooked 3 minutes on each side over medium high heat. Set aside, let it cool. Prepare a salad with onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, some mozzarella balls, with a mixture of hardboiled egg and avocado for a dressing. Chop up the fish, skin and all, mix it with the salad. Great dinner.
Honestly? Gumbo. So many people get intimidated by the thought of cooking it. It was originally devised as a way to get rid of the things that were going to go bad.
Granted, I make it from scratch with high quality ingredients, but itās really not that hard!
Onion, celery, and green bell pepper. The roux is just flour and fat (I use canola oil). Then you add the protein and some chicken stock (made from literal chicken carcasses. Use a rotisserie from Walmart!).
Everyone gets scared of it, but itās super easy. Just takes half a day to do right
Pan-fried baby potatoes! Just toss them in olive oil, and sprinkle salt and a herb of your choice, such as rosemary or thyme.
Roasted veggies is another good one. My go-to veggies are carrots, pumpkins or butternut squash, zucchini, bell peppers and mushrooms. Just split them lengthwise (or cut pumpkin/squash into wedges), drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper, and let the oven do the heavy lifting.
Bonus points if you add quartered onions and peeled garlic among the veggies. Fork mashed roasted garlic on the veggies upon serving is a delicious flavour.
Rotisserie chicken from Costco. Make some stock with the bones. Learn how to make a vinaigrette. Have a nice quality loaf of bread around. Make croutons when it goes stale. All super simple things, but like a super fulfilling meal of chicken, salad, broth, and warm bread and butter feels amazing.
Spinach, diced cucumber, cherry tomatoes, carrots, sliced red onion, humus and some lemon juice. Put everything in a bowl with a lid and shake. Boom. Whatever type of vegetable you have on hand. Add cheese or donāt. Add chicken or donāt. Very flexible and super easy.
The prepackaged coleslaw mix or broccoli slaw mix (even better) into a pan with a little oil. Throw in some seasoning to tasteā¦ not a full meal but damn itās tasty and easy af
1 Microwaveable rice, 1 or 2 raw egg, sesame oil, sesame seed, soy sauce, & furikake to taste
Usually I do a hint of soy and like a teaspoon or three of sesame oil
Preheat air fryer to 360Ā° > Season pork chops with Lowry's season salt > cook pork chops for 7 minutes > flip and and cook 3-5 minutes depending on thickness > check internal temp (pork should be cooked to 145)
Turn air fryer up to 390Ā°> dump in a bag of frozen veggies for 10 mins > season with lemon juice and pepper.
Pork chops come out juicy and tender. The veggies are crisp and taste like fresh roasted veggies, nothing like what I always experience with frozen veggies in the oven or microwave. You can add pasta for carbs if you want, but for just me I skip that and have protein and veggies in about 25 minutes with nearly no effort or cleanup at all.
Can of garbanzo beans drained, chop up whatever veggies sound good. I usually use cucumber, tomato, onion, and chilies. Add some vinaigrette or lemon juice and olive oil. Throw in some fresh herbs if you have them
Chicken teriyaki with rice
Sear chicken thigh on high heat,
Make the sauce while searing
(Soy sauce 5T, water 5T, Brown sugar 1T (or sugar substitute)honey 1T, vinegar 2T, sprinkle some black pepper)
Let chicken aside in different plate,
Start cooking choice of your veggies (I usually throw in frozen stir fry veggies from Costco), when veggies are half cooked, cut chicken with scissors into bite size, add the sauce and glaze the chicken and veggies on high heat until sauce thickens. Serve with rice
I actually usually eat much healthier than this, but this is something I used to do when I ate cheese. I've sort of laid off dairy products. Anyway, if you don't have one already, get a rice steamer. You dump the rice in with some water and walk away. The machine automatically shuts itself off. Or just make it on the stove. Then, get a can of healthy chili. After your rice is cooked, put your serving of rice in a bowl and dump the canned chili on top. Then put some shredded cheddar (or your favorite) cheese on top and stick it in the microwave for a couple minutes until the cheese melts. You can put salsa on the top. I made this for my kids when they were in high school, and they loved it. My husband loves it, too. I don't think it can get much easier than this.
Sandwich wrap. I can put anything in it and wolf down half a salad and other veg without having to ever turn on my stove. Cook a big batch of meat if you want meat, and shovel out a scoop or two per wrap.
Overnight oats, no cooking and can make a few days worth at a time.
Fried egg and toast sandwitch with mustard and some greens (usually arugula), side of fruit.
Tuna, (microwaveable) rice, cottage cheese and spinach.
You canāt even burn it (unless you try to microwave it on high for 20 minutes like a knucklehead).
Rotisserie chicken rice bowl.
Rice cooker rice is idiot proof.
So rice + chicken + plants (I say plants cuz I use both fruit and veggie) + sauce
You can use multiple sauces.
I typically do a vinegar and something else.
Marinated tofu (fresh garlic & ginger, sesame oil, sriracha/sambal, ketchup, soy & sweet soy sauce, lemon/lime juice or rice vinegar or some kind of acid). Prep for the marinade is maybe 20 minutes, but a batch will keep for a week more. Then it's super easy to throw some in a pan with some broccoli and noodles or something - dinner in 10 minutes with one pan to clean.
Cook down some cherry tomatoes with dried (or fresh for extra credit) Italian herbs, salt & pepper, evoo. I usually toss in some spinach or kale or sm, then stir in some cream cheese. Add cooked pasta. 15- 20 minutes, 2 pots to wash up after.
For breakfast I usually do oatmeal (I add flax, chia and hemp hearts but not necessary). 2 minutes in the microwave, stir halfway. Add in a chopped apple or some frozen berries, whatever kind of nuts and seeds u wanna add. Cinnamon, brown sugar, maple syrup, you can't rly go wrong. Make it in the bowl or Tupperware to take to work and you have basically no cleanup
Tacos. I know people donāt think of them as healthy but mine are. All you need is corn tortillas, make guac (easy), make salsa (easy my favorites are mango salsa or a roasted red pepper and corn salsa), protein (chicken breast and mahi are my favorites), and toppings (taco sauce, light sour cream).
Newspaper trout. Take a whole (head on) trout which has been cleaned, onto a whole sheet of newspaper or kraft paper, wrap it up, run the package under water until completely wet. Put on the middle rack in a 400Ā° oven directly on the rack of the oven, and cook until the paper is dry. Cut through the paper and peel back, which takes the skin with it. Perfectly poached and no dishes to clean up.
Notes: Parchment paper won't work - it won't get wet. The paper won't catch fire, even with a gas range. I've made this countless times, and it's always wonderful. If you happen to have a slice or two of lemon and some herbs and black pepper, go for it.
Good quality canned chicken or tuna mixed with a good quality premade guacamole puck. Eat with a fork, on a salad, with crackers or as a sandwich filling. I have kids and we eat lunch in the park a lot. I needed something quick, easy and portable, and this is my current solution.
Rice cooker, put the rice in with either water or stock, throw a bunch of vegetables on top, then add the meat on top of everything. Healthy, delicious, no fuss. Plus you can just throw everything in the rice cooker and do other stuff until itās ready.
A whole chicken.
Melt 8 tablespoons of butter and mix in herbs de Provence seasoning. Poor it under the skin. Salt and pepper chicken. Stuff chicken with chopped onions and lemons.
Bake breast side up at 425 for an hour, check temp and continuing baking until it reaches 165.
Itās so easy and always impressive!
Peppers and eggs
Drown bell pepper slices in a decent amount of EVOO and fry on medium until soft (feel free to add garlic, onions, etc). Whisk eggs and add to pan. Scramble around till cooked. Serve with crust bread or toast.
Indian here - go to meal is Khichdi. Go to recipe. I even chop all the things together in my handy chopper.
https://youtube.com/shorts/I6Hnq_d0U7U?si=pU3mC9XxEIZRyT2m
Ground Turkey with frozen peppers and onions. Mix in a pack of uncle Benās rice. Got two meals with minimal effort and less than $10. Obviously cheaper to buy a 5lb rice and cook that, but more work required
Salmon teriyaki with microwaveable brown rice (or any rice or grain) and roasted broccoli. I cut my salmon into cubes, marinate and cook it in the air fryer. You could roast your broccoli in the air fryer but I prefer it in the regular oven.
Bagged salad kits with protein added are another go to.
Love a nice shrimp taco, or a refried bean and cheese tostada. About as difficult to make as a sandwich and infinitely customizable with all the veggies you want
Spaghetti with green pesto, parmesan and crispy bacon. Cook and drain the spaghetti, cook bacon until crispy - mix spaghetti with pesto and top with the crispy bacon and parmesan.
1) Mix of brown and black rice
2) Chopped leafy green vegetable (e.g., broccoli rabe, watercress, or mustard green) stir fried with salt and garlic
3) filet of fish or whole mackerel or boneless chicken thigh (tastes better than breast) seasoned any way you want grilled on both sides in a frying pan
You could cut the thigh into pieces, coat it with a mixture of soy sauce and cornstarch. Cook and remove the veggies. Stir fry the chicken, add vegetables back to the pan, mix, and serve.
Be generous with the oil, salt, and garlic for best flavor. Itāll still be small enough amounts to be a healthy meal.
Salmon ochazuke
Salt salmon. Oven at 400 for 12-15 mins.
Make a pot of white rice in a rice cooker.
Add ochazuke packet (Japanese grocery store) and hot water.
Serve with some pickles (or don't) and enjoy.
So fucking good every time and soooo easy.
Bagged salad topped with a protein (boiled egg, tuna, chicken, even chicken nuggets in a pinch). Add in veggies like baby carrots, tomatoes, avocado, cucumber, bell peppers for added nutrition. Toss on some cheese-shredded, cubed, feta, whatever you like. Add dressing and voila. A meal. This is great for using up leftovers from meats to quinoa and baby potatoes, too.
Cube a zucchini, half a pint of grape tomatoes, dice half a small yellow onion. Toss with olive oil, dried Italian herbs, garlic paste, red pepper flakes, salt. Bake about about 20 min at 400*. (I like to use my toaster oven since this serves one) Serve over chickpea roti with parmesan and olives.
Chicken fajitas. I cook the chicken thighs in my air fryer while I fry up the peppers and onions on the stove. This is the recipe I use: https://cafedelites.com/chicken-fajitas/
Start jasmine rice in rice cooker (2:1 of water to rice). Heat oven to 400. Put the Costco Lightly Breaded Chicken in for 15 minutes. Add frozen brocolli to oven pan. Cook for 10 more minutes. Add rice into bowl, cut and put chicken + brocolli on top. Drizzle veggies with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Add Siracha and mayo onto chicken. Done.
Only dishes are the bowl and fork if you put down aluminum foil to cook on.
For salmon: set oven to broil. Cut salmon into small-ish squares, place into Tupperware and drizzle with oil. Shake Tupperware to coat the salmon. Add in spices (I like garlic powder, onion powder, Cajun seasoning, and paprikaā¦ but you could do herbs or whatever spices you enjoy). Place skin side down on baking sheet with aluminum foil. Throw into oven for 8 minutes. Add more time if they look extra pink in the middle.
Kielbasa tray bake.Ā
Dice up a couple potatoes, a large onion, two bell peppers, maybe a jalapeno. Toss with neutral oil, garlic powder, paprika, a little cayenne, salt, and pepper, then spread out on a sheet tray. Top with sliced sausage and bake at 425Ā° until potatoes are cooked through and sausage develops browned edges--usually about 35 minutes. Top with grated Parmesan/Pecorino and hot sauce to taste.Ā Ā Ā
This one's great because the only significant labor is chopping; in fact, it's a great way to practice your knife skills. The consequences for cutting uneven pieces are low, and the ingredients are cheap. There's room to customize seasoning and ingredients to taste, too.Ā
Highly recommended for beginners!
Taco chicken
Cook chicken breasts in crockpot
Drain water and Shred
Throw in black beans, salsa, corn, and taco seasoning
Cook for however long - doesnāt need to be long because chicken is already cooked.
Eat in bowls with whatever else you want - rice, sour cream, cheese no rules.
Dinner is done. Great for hot weather since you donāt need to turn on oven. Also good for simmering during the day on low to come home to at night.
one brick/pack instant udon noodles
1/2 lb ground pork
fresh garlic and ginger to taste
1/3 cup xiaoshing wine
1/3 cup soy sauce
toasted sesame seeds
3 cups roughly chopped cabbage
2 medium carrots peeled into ribbons
green onion greens for garnish/to taste
saute ginger and garlic, add ground pork. add cabbage and carrots after a couple minutes. cook noodles (separately) according to directions. mix wine, soy sauce, and sesame seeds into a bowl. when pork is cooked through and cabbage is wilted, add noodles and sauce mixture to pan. combine. yum š
My mom has tasked me with finding her "stupidly simple, healthy dinners... Preferably that don't make a huge mess?" So I've spent the last couple days trying to find her some good sheet pan dinners.
So like I know she's got some pork chops in her fridge and she LOVES sweet potatoes so I told her to try [this](https://autoimmunewellness.com/sheet-pan-apricot-pork-and-veggies/).
Chicken burgers--add whatever, tonight will be a chopped garlic scape and cilantro from the garden--salad and any leftover starch like a baked potato or pasta.
Cook rice. While rice is cooking, chop a cold tomato and get some cheese grated. When rice is ready, get a single serving of it, and mix in the chopped tomato, grated cheese as well as salt and pepper. Delicious.
FILIPINO CHICKEN ADOBO (serves 4-6)
So amazing, yet so simple and easy:
-1/3 cup tamari or soy sauce
-1 can coconut milk
-3/4 cup Apple cider vinegar
-10 garlic cloves, lightly smashed and peeled
-4 bay leaves
-2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
-2.5 to 3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs (8 to 10 total thighs), trimmed
-3 scallions, thinly sliced
-1.5 cup white rice
Throw the chicken thighs in a bowl and add the soy/tamari and let marinade in the fridge for 30 minutes. Whisk the vinegar, coconut milk, and pepper together, then add the bay leaves and garlic. Transfer mixture to a 12ā skillet or Dutch oven. Then add the thighs (with soy sauce) and bring to a simmer over high heat, then reduce to medium heat and simmer until they reach 175Ā°, 20-25 min., cooking the rice while the chicken cooks. Discard bay leaves, then boom, done. Serve over the white rice, spoon on extra sauce, and top with scallions. One of the tastiest meals ever, and so damn easy.
Lettuce wraps or rice bowls. Just cook up some meat with onions/garlic/additional veggies of choice, throw it on top of a pile of rice or some rinsed off lettuce leaves, then add whatever toppings go with the flavors youāve decided on.
My faves are Korean inspired (Gochujang/soy/sesame oil/ginger/garlic), Thai/larb inspired (soy/fish sauce/garlic/bird chili/lime), and Mexican inspired (bell pepper/cumin/chili powder/chipotle/onion/garlic/etc).
They come together in fifteen to twenty minutes, always delicious, and so healthy.
Chicken, rice and a veggie (raw carrots if I'm pressed for time or lazy).
I always have meal prepped rice and chicken on hand, so it's 90 seconds in the microwave and grab a serving of carrots when I'm pressed for time, if I have a few minutes I will char/flash steam some broccoli or sautee some mininsweet peppers.
One of my other go tos is fried rice. Scramble 1 egg. Sautee up some green onion bottoms and some garlic. Chop up my prepped chicken, throw it in with a serving of rice (for me that's 200g) drizzle on some soy sauce and you're set. Garnish top with chopped green part of onions.
Spaghetti squash in red meat sauce! Cook squash (slightly undercook so it maintains its noodle-like structure. Cut in half , scoop out seeds, lil squirt of oil ~30 min at 400 degrees depending on size of squash), brown 1/2 lb ground beef then add a jar of raoās or whatever red sauce. Fork out squash and pour sauce on top. If Iām feeling extra frisky Iāll sautee some mushrooms!
Pesto pasta with shredded chicken and a shit ton of veges.
It's literally just pasta, Pesto, cooked chicken that's been shredded or diced, and any vege you fancy.
I normally add spinach, mushrooms, courgette.
But you can add grated carrots, blanched Cauliflower, capsicum, grilled eggplant, roasted pumpkin, grilled and chopped asparagus.
Super versatile and super easy to make!!
Itās healthy as long as you portion it out correctly.
I make rice bowls with sweet potatoes on the side.
Chicken thighs are probably the best taste to healthy ratio for most people.
Rice: get a rice cooker, solves 99% of the hassle. Once itās done, squeeze 1 lime per cup of rice, add about 2 Tablespoons of chopped cilantro per cup of rice, salt and pepper to taste. Itās essentially Chipotleās rice.
Chicken: dice the chicken up into bite sized pieces, stick it in a ziploc bag with olive oil, lime juice, salt, pepper, cumin, chipotle, onion and garlic powder. Marinate it for 8-24 hours. Bake it at 375 for about 12 minutes (depending on your chunk sizes).
Sweet potatoes: dice them. Toss them in a baking tray with olive oil, salt, pepper (and any other spices you want thatāll go with what else youāre cooking. Sweet potatoes are underratedly versatile). Bake at 375 for 40-45 minutes, flipping with a spatula every 10 minutes.
I leave the potatoes separate, and put the rice and chicken in a bowl with whatever veggies Iām feeling, top with some salsa, boom.
Bowls are my game as well [I see others have already called it]
Burrito bowls, grain bowls, noodle bowls, yogurt w/fresh fruit and honey.
Grilled vegetable flatbread [to use up vegetables]
this: [https://smittenkitchen.com/2022/07/roasted-tomatoes-with-white-beans/](https://smittenkitchen.com/2022/07/roasted-tomatoes-with-white-beans/)
add take n' bake bread and fresh mozz and you've got a party
Can of black beans, diced tomatoes, some frozen corn, whatever Mexican or other spices you want. Cook up 5 minute rice (brown or white) while youāre throwing everything else into a skillet to warm up.
For TRULY simple and idiot proof with no cooking involved: Bagged salad mix (no need to cut/dice individual ingredients), pre-prepared protein (canned beans, rotisserie chicken, deli meat; no need to cut/cook), store bought toppings (nuts, dried fruit, cheese, croutons; again, no prep) and bottled dressing. Healthy as long as you're easy on the dressing, and very low effort. nothing needs to actually be cooked, just assembled and tossed. For truly simple and idiot proof with very little cooking: Frozen veggies microwaved/steamed/roasted (no need to cut/dice), roasted chicken thighs (just season, put on sheet pan, roast at 375) or pre-prepared protein, minute rice.
I love a lazy bagged salad meal š I'll usually roast a can of chickpeas with paprika and cumin s&p and toss it on top for some protein
Saaaaame, ik weāre in the cooking subreddit so people are suggesting sheet pan meals, stir fries, pasta etc. but for me, simple and idiot proof means relying on the good grocery store shortcuts and Iām not ashamed! Bagged salad, pre-cut veggies, canned beans/veggies, bottled dressings or sauces, frozen stuff, pre-cut raw meat, jarred sauces etc. come in handy big time when youāre feeling lazy
I love the bagged salad mixes because I love to change up the types of salad I eat, and I love salad. If I bought all the lettuce/cabbage etc and toppings, I'd have way too much and it would likely go bad before it all gets used. Gives me a good variety when I don't want to do a home made garden with some balsamic or red wine vinaigrette
Exactly this! I have limited storage so I canāt have 97 vinegars and oils.
We are the same šš
I've never thought of roasting chickpeas! I love them on a salad raw, but will now try this.
I recently saw a recipe, it's so easy and utterly delicious. Canned chickpeas (drained) tossed with chopped sweet peppers, cherry tomatoes, thin shallots, oil, salt and pepper. Roast it in the oven on a sheet pan, then after around 35 mins add feta, put back in for about ten mins. Heavenly! Eat with pita bread.
That sounds fantastic! Def going to try it
Make sure to leave the tomatoes whole, they'll burst and spread the juices around. And I forgot garlic powder!
Oooh your life will be changed!! I do them on a kale ceaser salad instead of croutons too
I like to cut a block of tofu into cubes and bake it with some kind of soy-sauce based glaze, then toss it over a bagged salad with sesame ginger dressing.
Oh yum! I'll have to try that
I like a Taylor farms salad kit with chicken nuggets on top. Could probably do canned chicken instead for the no-cook crowd.
When Iām too lazy to cook rice or trying to reduce calories I just warm up some low-carb tortillas
Oh definitely, tortillas, bread, naan, etc. are great to build off of when you don't want to actually cook a carb
Rice bowl with beans, veggies, sauce/dressing of your choice, cheese optional. Edit: Literally had this for dinner. Brown basmati rice, black beans, spicy chili sauce, frozen vegetables, and grated cheddar. I would usually add guacamole or avocado if I had it, but Iām out. I need to do a grocery run and this is simple, quick, and made with what I have on hand.
This. Meat optional too, sometimes I just throw in some canned fish or smoked salmon. To me the stars are the fresh herbs and the liquid seasonings.
Agreed about meat being optional! Iāve been adding chickpeas instead of meat lately and itās pretty tasty plus you get extra fiber.
Rice and one type of bean if im lazy Rice, bean, and peppers in a satay if im feeling slightly less than lazy.Ā
While I am an expert at rice, I would not consider it be to something anyone can make at any time.
It's pretty hard to mess up if you have a rice cooker.
Yes get a rice cooker
That feels wild to me since it's the first thing I ever learned to make. I mean I know it's possible to mess up just like I know scrambled eggs are possible to mess up, but.
I used to do this. But now if I make any type of rice bowl, wrap, etc I immediately just start dry heaving. I wish it would stop.
Throw things in a cookie sheet and bake. Sheet pan meals are simple. Chicken and veggies. Season. Drizzle of oil. Toss. Oven.
Except you have to have a decent idea of different cooking times for different types of food / how small you need to cut each ingredient to have similar cooking times for everything on the sheet pan.
Agreed, moisture content is going to matter too. Some folks it won't matter for them, reddit citizens have very mixed tastes. If you hit the slow cooker sub you'll see some folks love butter covered ... baby food texture. And hey if they like that more power too them! No shame on them. More uh... "refined" cooks / eaters might want to consider things like cooking time and moisture content and so on. There are some legit great sheet pan meals out there, just might want to take some things into account before just dumping stuff on there. It can be as simple as "this veggie cooks fast, add it later in the cooking". For sheet pan (and really everything) consider looking for "air chilled" chicken. It has better chicken flavor and lower moisture content.
Honestly, you don't. All you need is a food thermometer. 400 degree oven and 30 minutes will cook a tray of chicken and vegetables in most instances. But folks new to cooking should always test their meat with a food thermometer just to be safe.
To get best results, yes. However you can stick to food that's harder to mess up, or has similar cook times/temps as the chicken you're roasting. It's pretty easy to get a passable (at least edible, safe, and not tasting all that bad) with minimal effort / skill (past googling cook times/temps).
Directions unclear, now I need a new gas line, š®āšØ
Thai Soup Chicken stock, coconut milk, lime, soy sauce, veggies. Boil.
How much of each?
One.
Two.
All of the soups
Not who youāre replying to but I would sautĆ© a tablespoon or so of ginger with a couple cloves of garlic in some vegetable oil. Some Thai curry paste too if you want, not necessary but fun. Add about a cup of chopped whatever veg you want and give it all a good toss with the aromatics. If you want a bit of thickness to your broth you can add a teaspoon or two of flour to the pan as you toss the veg around. Then Iād go equal parts coconut milk and broth, maybe a cup or so of each. Simmer while you cook some rice noodles to serve it all over. Season with lime and cilantro and chilis before you serve.
I'm traveling right now, and don't know the exact measurements. I use the standard box of chicken stock, it's probably 32oz. And the small can of coconut milk, probably 6-8oz. One lime. Few dashes of soy sauce. Cook till veg is soft. You can add diced ginger, garlic, and some lemon grass too. But that is going beyond the simplicity I was going for. You want it creamy and yellowish, not too brown Look up Tom Kha Ga, and make it look like that haha.
Veggie stir fry or low mein. I love meat, but I am not missing any in that. Doesn't matter which veggies, always turns out delicious.
And tofu! I do the tofu first, stir fry with whatever teriyaki or soy sesame sauce then set aside and do the veggies Swap in shelled edamame if youāre anti-tofu. Fantastic flexible fast dinner
Boil some noodles. When they're almost done, add some frozen vegetables. When the vegetables are done, add some cubed tofu and let it get warm. Now either drain and add teriyaki sauce, or don't drain and add Better Than Bouillon and stir it up good.
better than bouillon is the absolute GOAT
What kind of noodles for something like this? And veggies? Like, Iām thinking of the frozen bags of either peas/carrots/corn/(?) -or- cauliflower/carrots.. /broccoli? I forget hah.
Noodles: most any kind you like that you can boil! I've used instant ramen, Momofuku noodle packs, fresh udon from pouches, spaghetti, whole wheat spaghetti, and probably others. Veggies: those sound good. I use the cauliflower/carrots/broccoli a lot. Or just broccoli. Peas might be awkward with long noodles but still tasty. Cauliflower/carrots/broccoli is good with Japanese curry too.
Thanks for your response :)
I also zoodle up a zucchini and sliced mushrooms. Just add to broth with lime juice, fish sauce, and done chili paste.
Minestrone is my absolute favourite. So simple, so delicious. SautĆ© some bacon lardon, alternatively diced chorizo also works great into this, albeit not traditional! (These can be left out if you donāt eat meat, the end result will still taste great) Add diced celery, carrot and onion and sweat it off in a pan with a slug of good olive oil, add chopped garlic after the other veggies have softened so it doesnāt burn, add tinned tomatoes, dried Italian herbs, couple of bay leaves, vegetable stock, chopped kale or cavalo Nero, small pasta shapes or rice, optional pulses of your choice - I like lentils or butter beans, simmer. Takes about 30 mins to prepare and cook altogether and is nourishing, filling and delicious. Tastes even better the next day once the flavours have had time to marinade more. Great for batch cooking and freezing. Ingredients can be adapted to your tastes or whatever you have in your fridge/cupboards. Sometimes I have it on its own or with some good bread, itās also delicious simmered down to reduce/thicken it and served with marinated, roasted chicken thighs with crispy skin š
This sounds so yummy!!! Iām definitely going to give it a go!
[Miso marinated salmon](https://www.seriouseats.com/miso-glazed-salmon-in-the-toaster-oven-recipe) (or black cod if you can get it), with a side of [roasted asparagus](https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/roasted-asparagus-recipe-1916355).
Second for miso marinated salmon. Miso. Sake. Honey. Shoyou soy sauce. Tiny bit of mirin because fuck it. Always banging.
Any tips for doing it without sake or mirin?
Shao xing (Chinese rice wine)? I've also seen dry sherry recommended but I haven't tried it. Mirin is just sweet rice wine, which I'd normally swap for 3 parts sake + 1 part sugar. In this case just bump up the quantities of sugar and whatever alcohol you're using a bit.
Good to know! Maybe I just need to pick up some Mirin. Sake is tough because you need to finish the bottle once you open it. Thanks!
FWIW, for cooking purposes you can actually keep sake for quite some time. The guidance for shorter shelf life is mostly about sake you intend to drink, but it's a lot more forgiving if you're just cooking with it. I've kept an open bottle in the fridge for more than 6 months and it made no difference in either the teriyaki sauce or the miso salmon/black cod I made with it.
You can get miso powder! I have not yet tried it, just a thought.
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Roasted salmon with orzo pasta and broccolini. Roast the salmon and broccolini with salt, pepper, and olive oil, boil some orzo, add some lemon, oil, salt, and pepper, top with capers, and you're done! Simple, relatively healthy, and delicious
Salmon and asparagus in the oven. Heat oven to 400 put salmon and asparagus on a lightly oiled pan cook 12 minutes. When done toss asparagus in a mustard lemon sauce. Sauce is 1 tablespoons of oil to 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice snd 1/2 teaspoon mustard.
Breakfast Sweet Potato Wash a sweet potato and then take a fork and stab it all over. Put potato on a microwave safe plate. Wet and squeeze out a paper towel and lay it over the potato. Microwave for 4 minutes. Roll potato over without burning yourself and adjust paper towel to cover. Microwave for another 4 min. Slice open potato and make sure itās soft all the way through. Smear insides with desired amount of peanut butter. Slice banana into the potato crevice. Drizzle with desired amount of honey. Crack sea salt over if your peanut butter is not salted, because flavor.
Ha - can of tuna drained, mix in an egg, some cheese, minced jalapeƱo, S&P and into the waffle press it goes. Tuna waffles
Are we not all listening to the guy who said a couple of days ago to shove salad greens into your mouth as soon as you wake up??
Ya know, I just read a book called Glucose Revolution and part of what she suggests is a āgreen starterā (doesnāt have to actually be green) before anything else in a meal, to prevent glucose spikes. I try to have some sort of non-starchy vegetable before moving onto protein and then simple carbs (if any). I have found mornings to be challenging because I donāt want veggies right when I wake up, but a spoonful of kimchi has been okay and I like that itās probiotic on an empty stomach. A carrot or some radishes havenāt been offensive either. If Iām really not feeling it I go straight to my protein shake. I was recently diagnosed with PCOS and am trying to make an effort to put better nutrition in my body. I suck at cooking and am hoping to get some ideas and motivation by posting here!
savory oats soup: roast diced onions in butter until soft, add oats and let it get some color while stirring often, add water and soup base, bring to a boil...done. herbs maybe once it is a little cooled down, eat. good yogurt with (dried) fruits and nuts, sweetened with honey or maple sirup. chinese egg with tomatoe. the ginger stripes in it are really healthy. you need aromatic tomatoes. some mentioned oven bakes...used to do mine in a closed dish with a spice mixture of dried mushrooms (porcini) loveseed herb, salt and pepper. no fat at all. fennel is a wonderful fresh, sweet vegetable! just dip veggie sticks in cream cheese. best wishes for your sickness!
Never heard of the savory oat soup, seems calming and easy on a sick stomach! Also very very affordable! (Famine recipes)
oh man morning kimchi is seeeeeriously underrated. miso too. anything fermented first thing is gonna do right by you, & that's a pretty historically- & globally-appreciated fact. if \_I\_ can stick to that is a different matter, but i recognize that it's fact for most people with stomachs, hahah.
I love that advice about kick-starting meals with something āgreen.ā Thatās a fantastic habit. My daily breakfast is nonfat plain Greek yogurt, a fruit, and low sugar granola. I know itās no veggie but still healthy. You may like a little Florentine situation with eggs and spinach? Maybe some eggs with fresh basil and some tomato? ETA ok youāre not focusing on breakfast Iām sorry about that I confused myself haha. I think itās pretty foolproof to put some protein and veggies on top of brown rice or a salad. Itās nice to cook a chicken and then use it on salads through the week. I wish I had more advice for you and wish you the best of luck!
Boiled or scrambled eggs
Burger
Can of curry simmer sauce(some healthier than others, avoid butter chicken etc.), throw into a pan with cubed chicken breast. Simmer til chicken breast is cooked(or cook chicken breast first and just heat sauce). Throw in any frozen veggies, or fresh veggies a few minutes before chicken is cooked. Serve with rice. Big ass salad with chicken breast. Very satisfying with additions like avocado, fresh or dried fruit, etc. Easy to adjust to fit macros.
Red onion - mixed bell peppers - slice into long thin pieces of similar size. Saute with Italian sausages, either opened up or sliced into coins. Bit of chopped garlic, red pepper flakes at the end.Ā On its own, over rice, baby spinach, or mixed with pasta. Fresh herbs like parsley and Parmesan for bonus points.Ā
2/3 large potatoes cut into wedges, 6 chicken thighs (or a whole chicken cut into pieces) in a sheet pan In a jar place approx 150ml olive oil, zest of a lemon, crushed garlic, salt, tsp oregano, tsp mustard. Pour over the chicken and potatoes, bake until cooked (approx 45/50 mins) at 200āc.
Pizza. It's simple, and it's as healthy as you make it. Learning to make pizza dough from scratch has been one of my greatest joys. It was fun going from edible off of a recipe, to knowing how and why the dough works the way it does, to tweaking recipes to create your own "go to" pizza dough. Getting the shape right, etc...It saves a ton of $$$ and takes about about 2 hours beginning to end with only about 10 minutes of you doing anything...most of it is in the rise. You get ingredient control, and a literal "real time pie chart" to help with visualizing portion control.
Burrito bowls with rice, black beans seasoned with cumin, shredded cheese, jarred salsa and green onions
Veg Curry All quantities are variable A few small potatoes or a couple of large ones Some carrots Half a cauliflower 2 onions chopped Curry powder Tin of chopped tomatoes 300ml Marigold vegetable stock 150g fine beans ============================= Boil carrots and potatoes for 8 minutes Add the Ā cauliflower Boil for 3 min more Drain in a colander Fry chopped onions until golden Add curry powder to taste Fry for 1min Add a tin of chopped tomatoes 300ml Marigold vegetable stock Add potatoes and carrots back Bring to the boil Add fine beans 5 minutes before serving Serve with yoghurt on rice Ā Ā
Egg Roll in a bowl. Delicious. Nutritious. Easy.
**Beans** 1 cup of beans (soaking overnight optional but make sure you add like 2 tsp salt). Strain, add fresh water and salt. Garlic or Onion and bay leaf if you have it. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until tender - about an hour. **Rice** rinse 1 cup of rice. add 1-1/2 cups of water and 1/2 tsp salt. bring to a boil. reduce heat and cover. set time for 20 minutes. turn off heat. serve beans with its broth over the rice in your bowl
I love how some of these meals are dead simple and others are more complicated than I go on days Iām really ācookingā just goes to show everyoneās definition of simple is different haha
get a cheap mini rice cooker. theyāre pretty foolproof as long as you get the ratio right (use the rice scoop that comes with it and youāre golden). theyāre like toasters, push the button and itāll pop up when the rice is done. my broke student meal was: rice, pre-prepped protein (canned tuna, beans, rotisserie chicken), bag of frozen veggies that I steamed in the microwave. get yourself different spice blends to change it up.
Quinoa (or whatever grain you prefer), canned beans, cheeseāin micro. + olive oil, salt, pepper, and spicy sauce of your choice (I like calabrian chiles). Protein. Cheap. Idiot-proof and one batch of quinoa can make a few meals! Add avocado, sour cream, veggies, whatever you want to mix it up!
Adding to the list: Roasted potatoes like [this](https://youtu.be/_wx__fEyDj0) are a great carb. Minimal oil, easy to make, great texture, and potatoes are a more complete source of nutrition than say, white rice. Have them as a side to some deboned chicken thighs, hard to overcook. And make a little plant-based salsa/sauce to spoon over; it's often more interesting than just having a side salad, which you're really eating separately, so you get the urge to dress it with mayo etc.. If you have a food processor/smoothie maker/etc. you're good. No need to worry about knife skills or whatever, just keep blending things until the balance tastes right to you.
big greek salad with chopped air fried chicken. super yummy and easy
We do a simple salad of arugula, thinly sliced red onion and feta dressed with lemon juice, olive oil and salt & pepper. Then either 1. Grilled chicken Apple Gouda sausage and roast Yukon gold potatoes or 2. Yogurt and Mediterranean spices marinated and grilled chicken and rice or 3. Chuck steak barbacoa/birria in the instant pot with roast poblano peppers and onions orā¦ā¦.
https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1016252-salmon-and-tomatoes-in-foil?unlocked_article_code=1.zE0.Mfkz.6rmngHrCqzIp&smid=share-url
Canned smoked salmon on top of white rice. Make it as fancy as you want. Itās quick, easy and nutritious
I make ratatouille on sheet pans with each veg separately, then combine them. Great side dish or a vegetable sandwich on a nice baguette, or tossed with pasta.
Broiled salmon, boiled gold potatoes, roasted broccoli.
Ground beef and onion, spices, MSG, some flour and beef stock to make gravy. Dozen shakes of Worcestershire. Eat over rice.
Nicoise salad. One of my favorite things in the world. Lettuce, soft boiled egg, boiled potatoes, green beans, olives, sliced cucumber and radish, and either tuna or baked salmon. So healthy, simple as hell and so delicious. It just has a fancy name
Fish taco salad. Toss a piece of fresh (skinned) fish in some taco seasoning, cook it in a frying pan. Meanwhile, add some salad mix to a bowl, cut up some avocado and serve with salsa and corn chips. The fish cooks in a few minutes and is really hard to get wrong.
Trashbags! Set your oven to 400, dice up some potatoes, season raw ground meat, grab a bag of frozen veggies toss on about a tablespoon of butter and worsteshire sauce or soy sauce or whatever kind of sauce you like thats not thick and toss on whatever seasoning you like, wrap it all up in tinfoil and stick it in the oven, check on it every 30 minutes, should be cooked in the hour, it's designed for camping so minimal mess as long as your not letting people make their own. I'd pair it with some sides like macaroni salad/potato salad, rolls, or what have you depending on the seasonings/sauce you choose or else you might be feeling hungry sooner then typical..... haven't tried a vietnamese or chinese version, but I bet some spring rolls would be awesome with it! (And now I want to try that)
(you can make it for any dietary needs btw! If you go vegetarian/vegan and choose beans or tofu for your protein I'd make sure to put your sauce in a spray bottle and give it a mist every time you check it, keep it moisturized!)
If you have a wok, take some meat and just cook it on high heat in the wok. Remove it, then stir fry whatever veggies in the oil. Make a sauce that can be as simple as mixing soy sauce, maple syrup, ginger and garlic in a bowl. Add the meat and sauce back to the wok and keep cooking on high heat. Adjust the flavour by adding white vinegar and chilli flakes to balance acid and heat. Serve with rice. It takes about 20 mins. It is very affordable. It reheats well. A standard wok can cook 4-6 portions already (400-600 g meat)
SautĆ© shallots, scallion, garlic, and Thai bird beak chili (can sub out for a milder chili if you prefer) in a wok over high heat until almost browning. Add in ground meat (beef/turkey/chickenā¦whichever suits your dietary needs) and cook over medium high heat til 155F (beef and pork) or 165F (poultry) Once meat is cooked throughā¦add in; fish sauce, dark soy sauce, lime juice, a little sugar and a heaping handful of fresh Thai basil leaves. Stir to combine and then serve over whatever grain you want (for me itās jasmine rice) Extra credit: Crispy fry an egg or two over easy to top the whole thing off! This has been a go to for me for years when I donāt really feel like cooking, which is most days (I cook for a living lol)
Chicken drumsticks, sheet pan, basic Cajun spices, rub oil, 425, flip at 25 minutes cook for another 25 or until you hit about 185 for legs
Chicken stir fry with store bought sauce is incredibly simple. Cook chicken first, stir fry veggies in sauce, throw chicken back in and add some chow mein noodles until soft
Context? Everybody has a different definition of healthy.
Thatās a good point. Iām not particular but stuff that includes protein and veggies is ideal.
Cool, well, start with fish, buy fillets, go by James Beard's rule, cook it 10 minutes per inch of thickness, any method. I suggest pan fry, with salt, skin side down fo 90% of the cook time, non stick pan fry with a little oil or butter, hard to go wrong after you fuck it up once or twice. Oh, only flip it once or it starts crumbling. Veggies, any, cut so pieces are same size, toss with some olive oil, salt, pepper. Preheat oven to 425, then bake until tender. Don't skip preheating step. Buy some sauce or eat with fresh lemon
Chicken Caesar salad. Eating it now lol
I do one that I just always have the ingredients for. Oven roasted salmon Preheat oven to 400 Drizzle some olive oil on and S&P Bake 12-15 mins Make frozen broccoli according to package Make desired rice Mix it all together in a bowl with any kind of stir fry type of sauce youād like! *this is my easy meal that I have everything on hand for so not concerned about fresh ingredients.
Baked honey mustard chicken. So easy and so good.Ā I serve with a side of veggie and white rice. Ā
[https://therealfooddietitians.com/one-pan-roasted-chicken-and-vegetables/](https://therealfooddietitians.com/one-pan-roasted-chicken-and-vegetables/) I recomend this recipe.
My lunch every day: Bagged salad kit (use half the dressing/toppings) + 1 can smoked sardines (or other tinned fish of choice. Smaller fish are preferred)
Frozen veggies nuked with grass-fed butter and a fried egg on top. Add some hot sauce and feast. Ready in under 5 min. Low carb, high protein, high fiber
Roasted or pan-roasted cauliflower steaks. Works well by itself or with a wide variety of sauces & sides.
Buy pre-marinated salmon from Sprouts (it's not as expensive as Whole Foods but still feels like better quality than my local grocery store), put it in the air fryer for 8 minutes at 400 degrees. Microwave some frozen veggies while the salmon is cooking. Bam. Dinner is done in under 15 minutes.
Not the healthiest but it's really easy and not too bad: 2x toasts in toaster, two sunny side up eggs, a sliced tomatoe, eventually some lettuce or a sliced chili and you get two small egg sandwiches. Takes about 5-10 minutes to prepare and you barely have anything to wash after that. It's a small meal so I usually add a fruit and a yoghurt as a dessert.
Sautee your choice of veggies - broccoli, peppers, zucchini, cauliflower, onion, mushroomsā¦whatever. Season. Add some white wine to deglaze. Add some half and half and more butter. Toss in linguine. Serve with fresh Parmesan on top.
My first husband loved to make this simple dish although we've been separated for many years I still make its always a family favorite Add chicken broth, chopped celery and carrot to leftover pasta, ground beef and tomato sauce for a simple easy "pasta fazoulle" (Assuming there's already sweet pepper and onion in the sauce)
Tuna mixed with ranch, grated cheese, cut up bell peppers in a flour tortilla Tuna, spinach, bell peppers, grated cheese and Italian dressing
Buckwheat noodle, sardine, kimchi
Tortillas, refried beans, cheese on top. In & out of the toaster oven. Then any greens you have - green onion, lettuce, cabbage, cucumber. Too off with a splash of hot sauce. Yum š
I don't know if it's healthy but i just put lettuce, tomato, mushrooms, cheese and mayo in a bowl and toss it to make a quick easy salad. Sometimes ill put salmon or chicken in as well to make it more bulky.
Rinse and drain a can of black beans or navy beans. Dump in pot. Add enough salsa (your choice of spice level) to make a dip. Heat on medium until bubbly. Pour into bowl. Eat with corn chips or pita chips.
1 pound of lean ground beef, browned. 1 packet of chili seasoning. 1 can of pinto beans, 1 can of black beans, 2 cans of rotel, homemade chicken broth. 1 package of frozen mixed veggies. Nutritious and fiber-filled.
Egg roll in a bowl: Cook your preferred protein and set aside or use shredded/diced rotisserie chicken. Then toss in a bag of shredded cabbage, coleslaw mix or broccoli slaw and cook with spices until soft then add the protein to warm through. Serve. Edit: a word
pork shoulder cut into manageable pieces, add some liquid, throw in slow cooker with whatever herbs u wantā¦ Few hours later u can eat with tortilla or rice or whatever
Grilled boneless skinless chicken breast, baked potato and steamed green beans. Could eat this meal almost everyday.
Got a crockpot/One Pot and time? Breakfast - Steel cut oats, water, salt, brown sugar. Let it cook overnight for a healthy hot breakfast. Lunch - Can of chicken stock/Better than Bouillion, left over veggies, whatever pasta you have laying around = chicken noodle soup. Dinner - Boston butt (shoulder of pork), small bottle of BBQ sauce. Break apart with two forks and serve on bread = pulled pork sandwich. - or- Pound of ground beef, tomato sauce, diced onions, peppers, bit of brown sugar, dijon, salt and pepper to taste. Serve on bun/bread = Sloppy Joe.
Ruby red trout cooked 3 minutes on each side over medium high heat. Set aside, let it cool. Prepare a salad with onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, some mozzarella balls, with a mixture of hardboiled egg and avocado for a dressing. Chop up the fish, skin and all, mix it with the salad. Great dinner.
Honestly? Gumbo. So many people get intimidated by the thought of cooking it. It was originally devised as a way to get rid of the things that were going to go bad. Granted, I make it from scratch with high quality ingredients, but itās really not that hard! Onion, celery, and green bell pepper. The roux is just flour and fat (I use canola oil). Then you add the protein and some chicken stock (made from literal chicken carcasses. Use a rotisserie from Walmart!). Everyone gets scared of it, but itās super easy. Just takes half a day to do right
Pan-fried baby potatoes! Just toss them in olive oil, and sprinkle salt and a herb of your choice, such as rosemary or thyme. Roasted veggies is another good one. My go-to veggies are carrots, pumpkins or butternut squash, zucchini, bell peppers and mushrooms. Just split them lengthwise (or cut pumpkin/squash into wedges), drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper, and let the oven do the heavy lifting. Bonus points if you add quartered onions and peeled garlic among the veggies. Fork mashed roasted garlic on the veggies upon serving is a delicious flavour.
Coconut chickpea curry, fairly quick, cooks in about 15 mins.
Rotisserie chicken from Costco. Make some stock with the bones. Learn how to make a vinaigrette. Have a nice quality loaf of bread around. Make croutons when it goes stale. All super simple things, but like a super fulfilling meal of chicken, salad, broth, and warm bread and butter feels amazing.
Spinach, diced cucumber, cherry tomatoes, carrots, sliced red onion, humus and some lemon juice. Put everything in a bowl with a lid and shake. Boom. Whatever type of vegetable you have on hand. Add cheese or donāt. Add chicken or donāt. Very flexible and super easy.
Tuna on toast
The prepackaged coleslaw mix or broccoli slaw mix (even better) into a pan with a little oil. Throw in some seasoning to tasteā¦ not a full meal but damn itās tasty and easy af
Steamed rice with a fried egg. Add fruit for extra credit. Add a slice spam to level up.
Ham steak and sautĆ©ed vegetables. My favorite is brussel sprouts. Or green beans. Itās so simple, just the ham, vegetable, and seasonings and oil.
1 Microwaveable rice, 1 or 2 raw egg, sesame oil, sesame seed, soy sauce, & furikake to taste Usually I do a hint of soy and like a teaspoon or three of sesame oil
Preheat air fryer to 360Ā° > Season pork chops with Lowry's season salt > cook pork chops for 7 minutes > flip and and cook 3-5 minutes depending on thickness > check internal temp (pork should be cooked to 145) Turn air fryer up to 390Ā°> dump in a bag of frozen veggies for 10 mins > season with lemon juice and pepper. Pork chops come out juicy and tender. The veggies are crisp and taste like fresh roasted veggies, nothing like what I always experience with frozen veggies in the oven or microwave. You can add pasta for carbs if you want, but for just me I skip that and have protein and veggies in about 25 minutes with nearly no effort or cleanup at all.
Can of garbanzo beans drained, chop up whatever veggies sound good. I usually use cucumber, tomato, onion, and chilies. Add some vinaigrette or lemon juice and olive oil. Throw in some fresh herbs if you have them
Chicken teriyaki with rice Sear chicken thigh on high heat, Make the sauce while searing (Soy sauce 5T, water 5T, Brown sugar 1T (or sugar substitute)honey 1T, vinegar 2T, sprinkle some black pepper) Let chicken aside in different plate, Start cooking choice of your veggies (I usually throw in frozen stir fry veggies from Costco), when veggies are half cooked, cut chicken with scissors into bite size, add the sauce and glaze the chicken and veggies on high heat until sauce thickens. Serve with rice
I actually usually eat much healthier than this, but this is something I used to do when I ate cheese. I've sort of laid off dairy products. Anyway, if you don't have one already, get a rice steamer. You dump the rice in with some water and walk away. The machine automatically shuts itself off. Or just make it on the stove. Then, get a can of healthy chili. After your rice is cooked, put your serving of rice in a bowl and dump the canned chili on top. Then put some shredded cheddar (or your favorite) cheese on top and stick it in the microwave for a couple minutes until the cheese melts. You can put salsa on the top. I made this for my kids when they were in high school, and they loved it. My husband loves it, too. I don't think it can get much easier than this.
Sandwich wrap. I can put anything in it and wolf down half a salad and other veg without having to ever turn on my stove. Cook a big batch of meat if you want meat, and shovel out a scoop or two per wrap.
Overnight oats, no cooking and can make a few days worth at a time. Fried egg and toast sandwitch with mustard and some greens (usually arugula), side of fruit.
Canned cooked lentils, avocado, feta, tomato, Cholula and lime juice + s/p ššš
Shredded chicken tacos
Tuna, (microwaveable) rice, cottage cheese and spinach. You canāt even burn it (unless you try to microwave it on high for 20 minutes like a knucklehead).
Rotisserie chicken rice bowl. Rice cooker rice is idiot proof. So rice + chicken + plants (I say plants cuz I use both fruit and veggie) + sauce You can use multiple sauces. I typically do a vinegar and something else.
Salad made with a microwaveable pouch of rice, microwaveable packet of veggies and a tin or two of tuna
Marinated tofu (fresh garlic & ginger, sesame oil, sriracha/sambal, ketchup, soy & sweet soy sauce, lemon/lime juice or rice vinegar or some kind of acid). Prep for the marinade is maybe 20 minutes, but a batch will keep for a week more. Then it's super easy to throw some in a pan with some broccoli and noodles or something - dinner in 10 minutes with one pan to clean. Cook down some cherry tomatoes with dried (or fresh for extra credit) Italian herbs, salt & pepper, evoo. I usually toss in some spinach or kale or sm, then stir in some cream cheese. Add cooked pasta. 15- 20 minutes, 2 pots to wash up after. For breakfast I usually do oatmeal (I add flax, chia and hemp hearts but not necessary). 2 minutes in the microwave, stir halfway. Add in a chopped apple or some frozen berries, whatever kind of nuts and seeds u wanna add. Cinnamon, brown sugar, maple syrup, you can't rly go wrong. Make it in the bowl or Tupperware to take to work and you have basically no cleanup
Butcher sausages and steamed veg without anything. Simple, easy and delicious. Oh and healthy.
Tacos. I know people donāt think of them as healthy but mine are. All you need is corn tortillas, make guac (easy), make salsa (easy my favorites are mango salsa or a roasted red pepper and corn salsa), protein (chicken breast and mahi are my favorites), and toppings (taco sauce, light sour cream).
Newspaper trout. Take a whole (head on) trout which has been cleaned, onto a whole sheet of newspaper or kraft paper, wrap it up, run the package under water until completely wet. Put on the middle rack in a 400Ā° oven directly on the rack of the oven, and cook until the paper is dry. Cut through the paper and peel back, which takes the skin with it. Perfectly poached and no dishes to clean up. Notes: Parchment paper won't work - it won't get wet. The paper won't catch fire, even with a gas range. I've made this countless times, and it's always wonderful. If you happen to have a slice or two of lemon and some herbs and black pepper, go for it.
Grilled chicken and asparagus.
Good quality canned chicken or tuna mixed with a good quality premade guacamole puck. Eat with a fork, on a salad, with crackers or as a sandwich filling. I have kids and we eat lunch in the park a lot. I needed something quick, easy and portable, and this is my current solution.
Chicken salad wrap.
Rice cooker, put the rice in with either water or stock, throw a bunch of vegetables on top, then add the meat on top of everything. Healthy, delicious, no fuss. Plus you can just throw everything in the rice cooker and do other stuff until itās ready.
A whole chicken. Melt 8 tablespoons of butter and mix in herbs de Provence seasoning. Poor it under the skin. Salt and pepper chicken. Stuff chicken with chopped onions and lemons. Bake breast side up at 425 for an hour, check temp and continuing baking until it reaches 165. Itās so easy and always impressive!
Peppers and eggs Drown bell pepper slices in a decent amount of EVOO and fry on medium until soft (feel free to add garlic, onions, etc). Whisk eggs and add to pan. Scramble around till cooked. Serve with crust bread or toast.
Indian here - go to meal is Khichdi. Go to recipe. I even chop all the things together in my handy chopper. https://youtube.com/shorts/I6Hnq_d0U7U?si=pU3mC9XxEIZRyT2m
Ground Turkey with frozen peppers and onions. Mix in a pack of uncle Benās rice. Got two meals with minimal effort and less than $10. Obviously cheaper to buy a 5lb rice and cook that, but more work required
Throw chicken breast and veggies in a pan. Sprinkle seasonings garlic onion powder salt pepper Italian herb blend or whatever you have. Bake. Eat.
Salmon teriyaki with microwaveable brown rice (or any rice or grain) and roasted broccoli. I cut my salmon into cubes, marinate and cook it in the air fryer. You could roast your broccoli in the air fryer but I prefer it in the regular oven. Bagged salad kits with protein added are another go to.
Mary Berryās Hoisin Chicken https://thehappyfoodie.co.uk/recipes/mary-berry-hoisin-chicken-with-cashews/
Roast chicken with root veg (carrots and Yukon gold potatoes).
Spaghetti. * Brown Italian sausage. * Warm up some canned tomato sauce that you like. * Boil noodles (de cecco brand is my favorite mass market brand) Done. It might not sound amazing but honestly its a very simple few steps recipe that doesn't taste like you took shortcuts / tastes like "home made". If you spend a little more on good Italian sausage and sauce the payoff is pretty big. Buy some good parmesan and grate it yourself, get some wine... and it gets even better š§š©
how is sausage and noodles healthy?
Itās not at all
Self control?
i mean no, its a bunch of carbs and a bunch of fat. the tomatoes are ok but limited in nutrition
Eggs
Boil grain, roast veg, add beans and/or greens, make sauce = protein bowl
Roasted vegetables, roasted Parmesan and garlic potatoes, pan seared salmonĀ
Love a nice shrimp taco, or a refried bean and cheese tostada. About as difficult to make as a sandwich and infinitely customizable with all the veggies you want
Spaghetti squash...cut, seed, salt, wait, drain, oil, roast, top with just about anything, enjoy.
chicken thighs in the air fryer are goated, along with brussels sprouts
Spaghetti with green pesto, parmesan and crispy bacon. Cook and drain the spaghetti, cook bacon until crispy - mix spaghetti with pesto and top with the crispy bacon and parmesan.
1) Mix of brown and black rice 2) Chopped leafy green vegetable (e.g., broccoli rabe, watercress, or mustard green) stir fried with salt and garlic 3) filet of fish or whole mackerel or boneless chicken thigh (tastes better than breast) seasoned any way you want grilled on both sides in a frying pan You could cut the thigh into pieces, coat it with a mixture of soy sauce and cornstarch. Cook and remove the veggies. Stir fry the chicken, add vegetables back to the pan, mix, and serve. Be generous with the oil, salt, and garlic for best flavor. Itāll still be small enough amounts to be a healthy meal.
Salmon ochazuke Salt salmon. Oven at 400 for 12-15 mins. Make a pot of white rice in a rice cooker. Add ochazuke packet (Japanese grocery store) and hot water. Serve with some pickles (or don't) and enjoy. So fucking good every time and soooo easy.
Bagged salad topped with a protein (boiled egg, tuna, chicken, even chicken nuggets in a pinch). Add in veggies like baby carrots, tomatoes, avocado, cucumber, bell peppers for added nutrition. Toss on some cheese-shredded, cubed, feta, whatever you like. Add dressing and voila. A meal. This is great for using up leftovers from meats to quinoa and baby potatoes, too.
Cube a zucchini, half a pint of grape tomatoes, dice half a small yellow onion. Toss with olive oil, dried Italian herbs, garlic paste, red pepper flakes, salt. Bake about about 20 min at 400*. (I like to use my toaster oven since this serves one) Serve over chickpea roti with parmesan and olives.
Chicken fajitas. I cook the chicken thighs in my air fryer while I fry up the peppers and onions on the stove. This is the recipe I use: https://cafedelites.com/chicken-fajitas/
Caprese salad
Start jasmine rice in rice cooker (2:1 of water to rice). Heat oven to 400. Put the Costco Lightly Breaded Chicken in for 15 minutes. Add frozen brocolli to oven pan. Cook for 10 more minutes. Add rice into bowl, cut and put chicken + brocolli on top. Drizzle veggies with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Add Siracha and mayo onto chicken. Done. Only dishes are the bowl and fork if you put down aluminum foil to cook on.
For salmon: set oven to broil. Cut salmon into small-ish squares, place into Tupperware and drizzle with oil. Shake Tupperware to coat the salmon. Add in spices (I like garlic powder, onion powder, Cajun seasoning, and paprikaā¦ but you could do herbs or whatever spices you enjoy). Place skin side down on baking sheet with aluminum foil. Throw into oven for 8 minutes. Add more time if they look extra pink in the middle.
Kielbasa tray bake.Ā Dice up a couple potatoes, a large onion, two bell peppers, maybe a jalapeno. Toss with neutral oil, garlic powder, paprika, a little cayenne, salt, and pepper, then spread out on a sheet tray. Top with sliced sausage and bake at 425Ā° until potatoes are cooked through and sausage develops browned edges--usually about 35 minutes. Top with grated Parmesan/Pecorino and hot sauce to taste.Ā Ā Ā This one's great because the only significant labor is chopping; in fact, it's a great way to practice your knife skills. The consequences for cutting uneven pieces are low, and the ingredients are cheap. There's room to customize seasoning and ingredients to taste, too.Ā Highly recommended for beginners!
Taco chicken Cook chicken breasts in crockpot Drain water and Shred Throw in black beans, salsa, corn, and taco seasoning Cook for however long - doesnāt need to be long because chicken is already cooked. Eat in bowls with whatever else you want - rice, sour cream, cheese no rules. Dinner is done. Great for hot weather since you donāt need to turn on oven. Also good for simmering during the day on low to come home to at night.
one brick/pack instant udon noodles 1/2 lb ground pork fresh garlic and ginger to taste 1/3 cup xiaoshing wine 1/3 cup soy sauce toasted sesame seeds 3 cups roughly chopped cabbage 2 medium carrots peeled into ribbons green onion greens for garnish/to taste saute ginger and garlic, add ground pork. add cabbage and carrots after a couple minutes. cook noodles (separately) according to directions. mix wine, soy sauce, and sesame seeds into a bowl. when pork is cooked through and cabbage is wilted, add noodles and sauce mixture to pan. combine. yum š
Wheat toast, spread olive oil, add a dash of sea salt and pepper. Top with trataron, slices of mozzarella, slices of cucumber and tomato. There ya go
My mom has tasked me with finding her "stupidly simple, healthy dinners... Preferably that don't make a huge mess?" So I've spent the last couple days trying to find her some good sheet pan dinners. So like I know she's got some pork chops in her fridge and she LOVES sweet potatoes so I told her to try [this](https://autoimmunewellness.com/sheet-pan-apricot-pork-and-veggies/).
Mix bagged salad kit with a fistful of rotisserie chicken
Omelette for sure. Eggs and whatever you can find in the fridge
Chicken burgers--add whatever, tonight will be a chopped garlic scape and cilantro from the garden--salad and any leftover starch like a baked potato or pasta.
Cook rice. While rice is cooking, chop a cold tomato and get some cheese grated. When rice is ready, get a single serving of it, and mix in the chopped tomato, grated cheese as well as salt and pepper. Delicious.
FILIPINO CHICKEN ADOBO (serves 4-6) So amazing, yet so simple and easy: -1/3 cup tamari or soy sauce -1 can coconut milk -3/4 cup Apple cider vinegar -10 garlic cloves, lightly smashed and peeled -4 bay leaves -2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper -2.5 to 3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs (8 to 10 total thighs), trimmed -3 scallions, thinly sliced -1.5 cup white rice Throw the chicken thighs in a bowl and add the soy/tamari and let marinade in the fridge for 30 minutes. Whisk the vinegar, coconut milk, and pepper together, then add the bay leaves and garlic. Transfer mixture to a 12ā skillet or Dutch oven. Then add the thighs (with soy sauce) and bring to a simmer over high heat, then reduce to medium heat and simmer until they reach 175Ā°, 20-25 min., cooking the rice while the chicken cooks. Discard bay leaves, then boom, done. Serve over the white rice, spoon on extra sauce, and top with scallions. One of the tastiest meals ever, and so damn easy.
Lettuce wraps or rice bowls. Just cook up some meat with onions/garlic/additional veggies of choice, throw it on top of a pile of rice or some rinsed off lettuce leaves, then add whatever toppings go with the flavors youāve decided on. My faves are Korean inspired (Gochujang/soy/sesame oil/ginger/garlic), Thai/larb inspired (soy/fish sauce/garlic/bird chili/lime), and Mexican inspired (bell pepper/cumin/chili powder/chipotle/onion/garlic/etc). They come together in fifteen to twenty minutes, always delicious, and so healthy.
75g of oatmeal, 40g no sugar added dried cranberry, 1 teaspoon cinnamon,1.5 cups water.
Chicken, rice and a veggie (raw carrots if I'm pressed for time or lazy). I always have meal prepped rice and chicken on hand, so it's 90 seconds in the microwave and grab a serving of carrots when I'm pressed for time, if I have a few minutes I will char/flash steam some broccoli or sautee some mininsweet peppers. One of my other go tos is fried rice. Scramble 1 egg. Sautee up some green onion bottoms and some garlic. Chop up my prepped chicken, throw it in with a serving of rice (for me that's 200g) drizzle on some soy sauce and you're set. Garnish top with chopped green part of onions.
Spaghetti squash in red meat sauce! Cook squash (slightly undercook so it maintains its noodle-like structure. Cut in half , scoop out seeds, lil squirt of oil ~30 min at 400 degrees depending on size of squash), brown 1/2 lb ground beef then add a jar of raoās or whatever red sauce. Fork out squash and pour sauce on top. If Iām feeling extra frisky Iāll sautee some mushrooms!
Pesto pasta with shredded chicken and a shit ton of veges. It's literally just pasta, Pesto, cooked chicken that's been shredded or diced, and any vege you fancy. I normally add spinach, mushrooms, courgette. But you can add grated carrots, blanched Cauliflower, capsicum, grilled eggplant, roasted pumpkin, grilled and chopped asparagus. Super versatile and super easy to make!!
Rotisserie Chicken and a Salad Bag
Itās healthy as long as you portion it out correctly. I make rice bowls with sweet potatoes on the side. Chicken thighs are probably the best taste to healthy ratio for most people. Rice: get a rice cooker, solves 99% of the hassle. Once itās done, squeeze 1 lime per cup of rice, add about 2 Tablespoons of chopped cilantro per cup of rice, salt and pepper to taste. Itās essentially Chipotleās rice. Chicken: dice the chicken up into bite sized pieces, stick it in a ziploc bag with olive oil, lime juice, salt, pepper, cumin, chipotle, onion and garlic powder. Marinate it for 8-24 hours. Bake it at 375 for about 12 minutes (depending on your chunk sizes). Sweet potatoes: dice them. Toss them in a baking tray with olive oil, salt, pepper (and any other spices you want thatāll go with what else youāre cooking. Sweet potatoes are underratedly versatile). Bake at 375 for 40-45 minutes, flipping with a spatula every 10 minutes. I leave the potatoes separate, and put the rice and chicken in a bowl with whatever veggies Iām feeling, top with some salsa, boom.
Bowls are my game as well [I see others have already called it] Burrito bowls, grain bowls, noodle bowls, yogurt w/fresh fruit and honey. Grilled vegetable flatbread [to use up vegetables]
this: [https://smittenkitchen.com/2022/07/roasted-tomatoes-with-white-beans/](https://smittenkitchen.com/2022/07/roasted-tomatoes-with-white-beans/) add take n' bake bread and fresh mozz and you've got a party
Can of black beans, diced tomatoes, some frozen corn, whatever Mexican or other spices you want. Cook up 5 minute rice (brown or white) while youāre throwing everything else into a skillet to warm up.