Next level of desperation cheap and extremely easy meals

[Anonymous]

RTO is the gift that keeps on giving, and I am preparing to hunker down for a miserable life for the foreseeable future. Take out is not practical or affordable and we need meal ideas. Very easy meal ideas I mean beyond “30 minute meals” all over the internet.

We have Trader Joe’s mandarin orange chicken on standby but not very healthy. latchkey kids know how to make rice and can do some simple things in the kitchen before we get home. But we need at least some variety. The first couple of weeks I spent my whole weekend cooking so that we would have food during the week, but that just exhausted me even more.

When I mean, simple, I mean really really simple like cutting up sausage, potatoes, and green beans and tossing them with oil, salt and pepper and throwing them on a sheet pan. That kind of thing. Low effort. For the weekend, things that are low effort, but take some time like baked potatoes are OK.

I’m also OK with cooking things like taco meat ahead of time as long as it doesn’t take up my whole weekend.

Ideas please! I am still getting used to being out of the house for 60 hours every week and also trying to feed us healthy meals.

[Anonymous]

Healthy Choice Power Bowls are cheap -- they routinely go on sale at Amazon Fresh for about $3.75 -- and they have decent ingredients and can be heated in the microwave. Easy meal or snack, depending on their age, that any kid can make and there are a variety of them.

[Anonymous]

For fast options,

Consider Trader Joe 10-minute farro, a delicious grain. If you mixed it with fresh spinach microwaved for 2 minutes and maybe a tsp. Of jarred pesto, it is delish.

Trader Joe has frozen Turkey meatballs that microwave in 4 minutes. Pasta and jarred sauce don’t take long either.

I will keep thinking, but a walk through Trader Joe will offer up more ideas, I’m sure.

[Anonymous]

Kids can cook pasta and healthier jarred spaghetti sauce, maybe even saute meat. It was my latchkey kid meal of choice in the 1980s. Add salad.

Rotisserie chicken and steamed frozen vegetables. Nuke baked potatoes in microwave, or use dehydrated mashed potatoes like my mom did.

[Anonymous]

meez meals - a meal kit that is very easy and pretty affordable.

[Anonymous]

I gave in and bought an instapot and air fryer. Game changing quick meals. Salmon from frozen in 15 minutes. Chicken thighs in insta pot with enchilada sauce makes shredded chicken. Etc.

[Anonymous]

Microwave sweet potato topped with tahini and pine nuts accompanied by your easy side of choice.

[Anonymous]

Do your kids eat whatever you eat or are they picky? That makes a big difference.

We lean hard on marinated, grilled chicken breasts that we do like 8 at a time and use throughout the week. Plus rotisserie chicken, and frozen fish portions. Wash and cut all the vegetables over the weekend unless it’s something delicate like lettuce, tomatoes, etc. Buy a bunch of different flavored simmer sauces.

Throughout the week you can mix and match all these things together for meals like salads, rice bowls, burritos, and sheet pan dinners. We also do breakfast for dinner and that’s pretty quick, not always healthy, but you can do vegetable omelets or pancakes with fruit on the side and it’s fine.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

I hear you. It’s rough.

I make this tomato sauce every week and serve w spaghetti or ravioli: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1015178-marcella-hazans-tomato-sauce?unlocked_article_code=1.cU8.jjmE.3q7PET-WAA9P&smid=ck-recipe-iOS-share

I prep veggies on the weekend. I use my instant pot to make Chana masala and khichdi. We make turkey burgers and tots. I make Japanese curry with ground chicken and veggies. I just made a quick stir fry with veggies and ground pork. Hang in there. I’m exhausted too and now the school year is going to start…

[Anonymous]

A lot of prepared foods can be doctored with extra vegetables or a salad. Trader Joe's chicken meatballs are really good -- they're refrigerated and you can cook them on the stove or microwave them and have them ready in 5 minutes. We buy a bunch and freeze them and that adds only a couple of minutes. Frozen pot stickers -- same thing.

We buy those plastic containers of spinach or greens that are meant for salads and turn them into a veg side dish with butter or olive oil and garlic powder. Super simple no brainer -- you don't even need to wash it. Just put it in a pan or a wok with some kind of oil or even just water and in a few minutes they wilt into a side dish.

Spaghetti, of course.

Chicken breasts or chicken tenders are easy. KidFresh healthy chicken strips are really good but we only get them when they go on sale. Same thing, serve with a veg or a salad.

[Anonymous]

There’s nothing wrong with cut up fresh fruit and veg for a side with every meal. Add meat and starch. Done

[Anonymous]

Cous Cous is also super easy and fast. Serve with frozen microwaved peas or other veg or pieces of leftover chicken etc.

[Anonymous]

Sheet pan dinners are easy. Our go to is salmon with a veggie and potatoes or rice. Ask the staff at the fish counter to cut the salmon in portions for you and they can even take the skin off too (if you ask). Buy pre-chopped veggies in bags. Just switch up the protein, vegetable, and starch for variety. Bagged salad kits are also so easy.

[Anonymous]

Quesadillas with canned beans, diced onions, storebought salsa or pico de gallo.

Stir fry if you can minimize time spent chopping. There's a great NYT turmeric chicken and asparagus recipe. I use frozen green beans instead of asparagus because I'm super picky about my asparagus.

Also, can you give yourself a break and not cook every night? Serve frozen ravioli and salad from a bag. Make someone else cook one night even if it's eggs, toast, and fruit.

[Anonymous]

https://www.spendwithpennies.com/crockpot-chicken-tacos/

https://whatsgabycooking.com/diy-chipotle-burrito-bowl/