Most people have been in the following situation: it’s at the end of the workday and all you know is you’re hungry. You don’t feel like getting involved in making some dinner entrée that takes only 14 simple steps. So, inevitably you fall back on the double F’s: fast food or frozen food.
To avoid this perilous scenario here are a four meal solutions that score high both on the easy preparation and tastiness scales. You will get the most out of each if you plan a little bit of time—say on Sunday and then maybe on Thursday—to do a little preparing. This will pay off in spades during the week.
Sushi (minus the raw fish)
Sushi is actually far simpler to make than most people think. However, I don’t recommend adding raw fish unless you know the rules about such things. Instead, replace fish with tofu or even peanut butter for protein).
Things needed:
1. Cheap sushi kit (under $10 at many grocery stores): sushi mat and spatula
2. Sushi powder/sauce
3. Rice and ingredients: cucumbers, cream cheese, ginger, carrots … about anything will work (enough for about three meals)
4. Seaweed paper (not necessary)
What to do:
1. Cook your rice and slice your ingredients into strips (roughly the size of a cigarette at most)
2. Mix sushi powder/sauce in with rice, then let rice cool
3. Place a sheet of seaweed paper on sushi mat, then spread rice evenly on seaweed
4. With the mat and rice lying in front of you lengthwise, place all of your ingredients across the rice in a straight line (from left to right)
5. Roll it all up like you would roll a piece of paper (away from you), then slice into 1” pieces
Pasta, Chicken (meat) and Veggie Dishes
If you think this isn’t a quick meal then keep reading—it works out to be one of the quickest and best tasting. Take about an hour on Sunday to do all the work, and you will be set for most of the week.
Things needed:
1. Any meat—but get it in a form you can panfry or grill (enough for about four meals)
2. Any pasta
3. A couple veggies you like
4. A sauce: pesto, salsa, even a salad dressing will work
What to do:
1. Chop up the veggies the way you like them
2. If you are kitchen-savvy, you can cook the meat, pasta and veggies all at the same time (the veggies will cook the fastest, then the pasta, etc.)
3. Once cooked chop up the meat in cubes or strips
4. Mix all ingredients together, put in Tupperware and enjoy throughout the week
A Stew-like Thing:
Things Needed:
1. Enough meat, veggies and rice/pasta for about three meals
2. Chicken stock (make sure chicken stock is first ingredient on the label, not salt)
3. One huge pot
What to do:
1. Cook the meat and chop it into cubes
2. Follow the directions and mix the chicken stock with enough water to fill the pot about halfway
3. Add the meat, raw veggies and pasta/rice and boil until past/rice is done.
Potato Pancakes
This one is quick to make, but it’s not as much for the health conscious as it is for the amazingly yummy conscious.
Things needed (for four people):
1. Four baking potatoes per person (Idaho potatoes are the best)
2. One egg
3. One Medium Yellow onion per person
4. One teaspoon each of salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper
5. One tablespoon of flour
6. Quarter cup of chopped parsley
7. Pinch of garlic powder
8. ½ Cup olive oil
What to do:
1. Grate potatoes and onions on the largest size holes of the grater
2. Mix everything together EXCEPT the oil
3. Heat oil in a pan until hot—not smoking
4. Drop ¼ cup clump of mixture in pan and pat down—don’t flatten and wait 2 minutes on each side until golden brown
5. Pull out of pan (a wire rack in a warm oven will let them drain best while keeping warm)
6. (Optional) Serve with applesauce or sour cream … then immediately go jogging.
