S/o my crockpot recipe thread....QUICK prep...easy cook meals

[Mommyfaithe]

I want to cut my cooking time down as much as possible. With the weekend discussion about priorities and expectations of us homeschool moms, dh and I had a long "discussion" :D about priorities and expectations. Ok...it was LOUD! But, we both decided BIG daily meals were NOT a priority....but we do have to eat.

 

We do not ever eat fast food except pizza once in a while.

 

I think I need a collection of menus that are easy to shop for and fix.

 

 

Please share.....

[whitestavern]

Just a quickie response for now; will try to come back and post specific recipes. Some ideas: salads (lettuce, veggies, some kind of protein-beans, meat, poultry, cheese), soups (veggies & protein-see above), sandwiches: buy a loaf of bakery bread and again, add protein (grilled meats/veggies are good). Boneless, skinless chicken thighs cook super quick. My family's fav is rubbing them w/cumin, cayenne, garlic powder and broiling, brushing w/honey once they're mostly cooked. You can also dredge them in any other kinds of spice mixture and saute. Ham is very easy since it just needs to be heated. Meatloaves (we use poultry) take a bit to cook but are super quick to throw together. Pork tenderloin: slice, pound and saute. Pasta; roast some veggies and toss w/some fresh mozz. Lots of options w/pasta. Gotta run for now; hope this helps some!

[momto2Cs]

I'm a big fan of cooking ahead, and quick meals. One thing that has helped me is to make double when it is a more time consuming dish, like lasagna, freeze the extra dish, and then I have a homemade frozen meal ready to go when I need it!

 

Some of our favorites:

 

• Brown rice with beans and sauteed veggies (cook rice and beans ahead or use canned beans). You can sprinkle with a little cheese.
  
• Pasta, either with veggies and pesto, or a marinara, etc. I add Italian turkey sausage to the marinara sauce, or cubed, cooked-ahead chicken.
  
• I use the crockpot a lot. One of my favorite resources is A Year of Slow Cooking. I also use the crockpot to "cook ahead", for example, I'll cook a good sized pork roast with some taco-type seasonings. Day one, we'll have pork soft tacos; day 2 either salad or soup made with leftovers. Sometimes I get a third meal out of it as well, like sandwiches (mix in some BBQ sauce, yum!)
  
• Salads as a meal are good and quick. Try adding some fruit, cheese, chopped nuts, etc.
  
• Here's a link to 100 fast meals
  
• Breakfast dinners, like omelets, can be quick and healthy.
  
• Eating Well has Quick and Healthy Dinner recipes too.
  

[Annie Laurie]

I'm always on the hunt for fast healthy meals myself. I love slow cooking and eating when we can, dh and I used to cook huge meals together on the weekend and that was fun. But my high-needs toddler and busy schedule have just not allowed that in this season of life.

 

Anyway, I'm on the iPad holding a sleeping baby but will try to come back later w some recipes.

 

I find the simpler it is, the faster and healthier it is. So I make a lot of things like salmon that I broil in the oven, served with asparagus that I roast w some evoo and s&p, and then I cook some brown rice and add seasonings. Pasta is quick if you're not opposed to canned tomatoes, I just combine crushed tomatoes and tomato sauce and add lots of dried basil and oregano and some diced garlic. Then a salad is quick to toss together with it.

[Soror]

crockpot365blogspot.com

 

Gluten free and lots of dairy free w/ "reg" people suggestions as well. I like the rotisserie chicken- throw a whole chicken in there- can be frozen- cook an hr on high and then low for 4-6 hrs(depending on size).

 

Roasts and stews are easy peasy. There are tons of good recipes on the site and the ones I've tried have been good(well except one which was horrid- but I forgot the name). I often modify recipes though.

[Mommyfaithe]

Thanks...

Keep them coming!!

I am determined to get THIS area under control!!!

[MamaCoop04]

Check www.allrecipes.com and look for "Zesty Slow Cooker Chicken BBQ" (I add some liquid smoke), "Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings" (definitely add some seasonings like Montreal Chicken) and "Slow Cooker Chicken Stroganoff". These are popular here and are almost dump and go, making it easy prep. You can even start off with frozen chicken breasts incase you forgot to defrost. Roasts are easy to prep. Like someone else said, I do a lot of freezer meals as well. Just double what you make for dinner and freeze one, or plan for leftovers so you are just cooking 1 out of 2 nights.

[mommymilkies]

We are somewhat Primal. I just throw some meat in there, some random veggies (whatever I have on hand-usually onions and carrots), some spices and a little water. Yesterday I threw in a pound of chicken thighs, some cut carrots, a cut onion, 4 cloves garlic, some turmeric, ginger and s&p and olive oil. We ate it with rice. It was good. :)

[momto2Cs]

We are somewhat Primal. I just throw some meat in there, some random veggies (whatever I have on hand-usually onions and carrots), some spices and a little water. Yesterday I threw in a pound of chicken thighs, some cut carrots, a cut onion, 4 cloves garlic, some turmeric, ginger and s&p and olive oil. We ate it with rice. It was good. :)

 

Where's the like button?

 

This is how I usually cook. Truthfully, I look at recipes to get ideas, and then throw it all together myself.

[NorthwestMom]

This is the quickest-preparation crockpot meal I have ever made. Get a big fully cooked, spiral sliced ham. Put 1.5 cups brown sugar on the bottom of your crockpot. Place the ham on top, trim to fit if necessary. Pour a can of crushed pineapple over the ham. Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours. That's it.

[prairiegirl]

My easiest crockpot recipe is Salsa Chicken.

 

Put chicken in crockpot (I usually use chicken breast cause I cannot handle any other part of the chicken,) pour a jar of salsa over top. Cook on low for 8 hrs or on high for 3 to 4 hours.

 

Another one that is similar is you put in a package of tortellini (I use the kind that is in the deli at the grocery store) in the crockpot and pour a jar of spaghetti sauce on top. Cook on low for about 3 hrs.

[Annie Laurie]

I make the crockpot chicken w salsa w some black beans or pinto beans added. Then we eat it over rice or mix it with the rice and put it in a tortilla w some fresh cilantro, kind of like a Chipotle burrito.

[Annie Laurie]

Also, I got a Mark Bittman cookbook from the library called Kitchen Express which has some delicious sounding simple and fast recipes.

 

And my favorite crockpot recipe on the 365 blog is called Indian-Spiced Chicken with lentils. But I have a thing for Indian food and for lentils. I never get tired of the stuff and it's easy to throw together.