Fast and easy?

[Tarin]

I don't like to cook. I do like to eat.:rolleyes: So... can anyone recommend any fast (as in "30 minutes and it's ready to eat) and easy recipes?

[Tamera]

Chicken, noodles, and dumplings. Boil the chicken for about ten minutes, then throw in the noodles and dumplings. The recipe for the dumplings is on the Bisquick box.

[Tarin]

Sounds easy enough. Thanks!:)

[Tamera]

I don't know if you eat fried foods, but if you do, here's another one.

Breaded Veal Cutlets: Fried in a small amount of oil (5 minutes).
Perorogies (5 minutes).

[Tarin]

Sounds good, but what's the recipe? ;)

[Tamera]

Oh, sorry. No recipe here. Just buy the perogies and the breaded veal cutlets from the freezer section of the groceries store and fry them in a little oil.

[Tarin]

Gotcha. :)

[Cymrugirl]

Tarin, I know she sounds slightly hyper, but Rachael Ray really can cook a good meal in thirty minutes. I don't mind taking hours to cook a meal (cooking is a hobby of mine) but I can't do that every night!! I've tried enough of her recipes to say that they're good - they really are easy - and they really are fast. I'm thinking of picking up a cook book of hers as a result. If you don't want to make the plunk before trying some of her recipes, you can print them for free at Foodnetwork.com's website. The show is called Thirty minute meals. Two other cooks for those who need fast ideas are Sandra Lee and Robin Miller. You could check out their recipes on that site as well.

Sandra Lee takes boxed/canned goods and tweaks them to make them taste more homemade. Her baked goods are wonderful. And Robin Miller will cook a meal on one night and show you how to use ingredients from that meal for two other meals the same week. I haven't tried her stuff yet, but she looks like she has great ideas.

If you like Italian, there are a LOT of fast, easy, Italian recipes out there that taste fancy and wonderful, but take just a flash to fix. I have a lot of favorite fast Italian recipes I'd be willing to share if you're interested. They're usually pretty heart healthy meals too.

[Tarin]

Danke. I've looked at some of Raechel Ray's stuff before, but nothing ever really grabbed me. I'll take a look at the other two you mentioned, though.

And I absolutely love Italian (esp. anything with white sauce). Please share! :D

[Cymrugirl]

Okay, so you realize "white sauce" immediately takes us out of the heart healthy category? LOL

Perhaps if you told me what sort of food you like - I could come up with some recipes for you. I keep binders of them in my kitchen and cookbooks - and a Welsh cooking blog.... ;)

[Tarin]

Pshaw! Haven't you heard the phrase "fat and sassy"? ;)

Other than pasta alfredo and its ilk, I'm a huge fan of casseroles. "Warm and squishy" comfort foods are a hit with me any day. Cheese, hamburger, cream of chicken and mushroom soups, rice, pinto and white navy beans... seems like I cook with those quite a bit.

What's the link to your Welsh cooking blog? Sounds interesting.

[Cymrugirl]

Well I'd check Paula Deen and Sandra Lee for good casserole recipes. Paula's will be more complicated, but no casserole is really complicated.

I make killer mac and cheese, chicken pot pies, and a host of other comfort foods, but they're the from scratch version and not what I'd call easy.

My cooking blog (which hasn't been updates since March of last year since I haven't tried a new celtic recipe in a while and I only post my celtic recipes there):

www.xanga.com/Cymru_Llewellyn

This period of months that I was cooking all of these was actually part of the research that went into my book. The Selsigg Morgannag (poor man's sausages) are some of my favorite things EVER. Not sure if I spelled those right. There are some Irish recipes too - and some basic British pub recipes (Bubble and Squeak is a great comfort food). Have fun reading even if you don't try the recipes.

[Tarin]

Thanks. I'm salivating just looking at the Welsh Cakes pic. :p

[Cymrugirl]

Welsh cakes are amazing - and amazingly simple. EASY recipe and very good comfort food. That Bacon and Chipple pie is super easy - casseroly - and comforting too.

[lynnmosher]

Tarin, You can also buy roast beef in gravy already cooked and the mashed potatoes. It all goes in the microwave. Then just add a green veggie. Have you ever tried Stouffer's lasagna? It's microwavable and it's really good, both flavors. Some of Bertolli's dinners in a bag are really good, too.

[wgjones3]

I have a couple of frozen crock-pot meals that look really good. All you do is dump them in the crock pot, turn it on, and 8 hours later, you've got dinner. They're in the frozen food section of the grocery.

I would tell you whether they're good or not but thusfar it's been too much work to break out a crock pot and try one.

[Cymrugirl]

A recent fast meal that I've come to adore is a steak salad. I just take greens - whatever lettuce you like - cut some onion - red is the best - and cover it lightly in a Caesar dressing. Then grate some fresh parmesan over the top. Cook your steak the way you like it, then slice it and fan it over the top of your salad. Sprinkle with good kosher salt and some fresh ground pepper and wowza.

I've added cherry tomatoes sliced in half before too - but the acidity breaks up the nutty flavor of the salad. Still, in summer, it can be hard to resist a good tomatoe. A nice side dish of button mushrooms sauteed in butter and salt and pepper is good with this too.

BTW, if you learn to cook a good steak - which is incredibly easy if you follow simple steps - there are a lot of good things you can make. You can rub a steak down with a dry rub - minced garlic and chili seasonings mixed with cinnamon is good - then slice it and put it in a tortilla. Add some red cabbage, a splash of lime, and a nice salsa made with diced cucumber, finely minced jalapeno, minced red onion, and fresh cilantro mixed with some lime juice, and you have the makings of a killer meal. In the summer, those are very inexpensive ingredients too.

Steak tastes fancy and comforting and hearty - but if you get it at the store, can be cheaper than eating at McDonalds, which is what I love about it.

[srussell]

Two words:

Ramen noodles

Of course, after a meal of Ramen noodles, I basically feel like I might as well have eaten paper.
Sam

[Tarin]

Two words:

Ramen noodles

Of course, after a meal of Ramen noodles, I basically feel like I might as well have eaten paper.
Sam

LOL Thanks... I think... :p

[righter1]

I like Campbells Soup recipes myself. They've got cookbooks out there that are quick and easy (most under 30 minutes.) Or, even just collect some soup labels over time.

Once you get comfortable with combos and stuff in cooking, you can start experimenting. I do that and have created several dishes similar to Hamburger Helper (or Chicken or Tuna Helper) stuff in boxes... and hubby doesn't see boxes so he doesn't get irritated that I'm using 'boxed' food.

[ProfessorAlan]

I use the noodle packages myself, but then fancy 'em up with seasonings and spices, or sauces, or meat, etc ...

[righter1]

Noodle packages are good...

But then when I'm in 'single mode'--i.e., when hubby is out of town or going to be very late--I have a tendency to make pasta in whatever quantity I want, get a jar of Alfredo sauce, a can of tuna and a handful of peas or broccoli, and mix it all together and eat that for supper (and have been known to do it for lunch, too.) But, then again, I'll eat a can of tuna and whatever all by itself. I like tuna. :)

[Tarin]

I like Campbells Soup recipes myself. They've got cookbooks out there that are quick and easy (most under 30 minutes.) Or, even just collect some soup labels over time.

Me too! Fast and yummy! ;)

But then when I'm in 'single mode'--i.e., when hubby is out of town or going to be very late--I have a tendency to make pasta in whatever quantity I want

Hey, I do this too!:cool: