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quick and healthy dinner ideas! |
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#1 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 271
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quick and healthy dinner ideas!
Hi All
Im currently trying to eat healthy and make some changes to the food i eat. Im fine with breakfast and lunch, but when it comes to dinner i have no imagination, i mostly just stick something quick in the oven, like breaded chicken and microwave mashed potato, but id like to start eating more healthy and fresh things, but have no imagination. when i get in from work the last thing i want to do is slave over the cooker for an hour. so im looking for some quick and healthy dinner ideas. My fiance is quite fussy with food so cant be anything too fancy lol. i have a slow cooker and so far all ive made is sausage casserole, id like to try more things in there. im still trying to educate myself on whats healthy and whats not and im gradually substituting all the bad things im eating ie changing to brown pasta, brown bread and so on any ideas would be appreciated
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#2 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Sitting at my PC
Posts: 9,434
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Make your own tomato pasta sauce (takes about 40 minutes) and serve with sausages or grated cheese.
Make a hearty vegetable soup (again takes 40 minutes) with plenty of potatoes in and serve with crusty bread. Use your slow cooker for beef stew, chicken casseroles, mince-based meals such as chilli con carne or spaghetti bolognaise. Here is the recipe for home-made tomato sauce (hint: make double and freeze for next time) 1 onion peeled and finely diced 1 clove of garlic crushed or chopped 1 tin plum tomatoes (whole or chopped) Season with: salt, black pepper, celery salt, Italian herbs, Fry onions and garlic till soft and transparent Add all other ingredients (Hint: a spoonful of sugar sweetens the tinned tomatoes) Cook on a low heat for about 30 minutes and then either serve as is over cooked pasta or liquidise/blend till smooth. |
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#3 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Essex
Posts: 16,223
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There is plenty of healthy stuff that you can batch cook like sauces and soups and freeze. You can easily make 10 portions at a time in a hour or two.
As long as you remember to take it out of the freezer in the morning it will only take a few minutes to reheat in the evening and bulk up your meals with fresh salads. As for healthy, just use your common sense. Avoid saturated fats, avoid starchy carbs, avoid processed foods, watch the dressings, sauces, dips, sides dishes (often loaded with sugar and fat), etc. plenty of veggies and watch your portion sizes. |
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#4 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Sep 2011
Posts: 17,247
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Stew is one of the best things you can eat. Brown some beef, chuck in the slow cooker with spuds, carrots, onions and peas and stock. Leave for a few hours and add some bisto if you want. Yum!
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#5 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Belfast, Northern Ireland
Posts: 4,011
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Quote:
(hint: make double and freeze for next time)
Anything we cook 'on the night' (so to speak) has to be quick, things like stir fries or salads. Anything that is more time consuming to prepare we freeze and take out on the morning of when we want to eat it. I've found that it's all about being prepared. For example, made a chicken, ham and leek pie for dinner on Saturday with oven chips. So I made twice the amount of filling, popped half in a freezer bag and now some evening all I need to do is pop it in a dish and roll some shop bought pastry over the top. As Burton says, things like tomato sauce are great for that...just chuck over some pasta, or over some chicken breasts in the oven. So my tips...if you can be bothered and have the time at the weekends, make something and freeze it for during the week. Otherwise, save your time consuming meals for cooking on the weekend, then make twice as much and freeze. I also find that making a weekly 'menu' also helps as I can look at it in the morning and know what to lift out of the freezer for that evening. Also saves you money when shopping as you just buy what you need. |
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#6 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 3,725
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Why don't you get a couple of quick recipe books, we've got a couple that everything takes around 30 minutes. Although if you have microwave mash you must be really rushed, mash is ridiculously quick and easy.
There's tonnes of recipes on the internet too. I have proper cooked meals every night and never feel like I'm slaving over a stove. I nearly always make something that serves 4 and then reheat it the following day too. |
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#7 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Belfast, OWC
Posts: 502
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Stir fry is very quick and you can pack it with as much fresh veg as you like, if you buy ready made pastry you can rustle up a chicken pie the night before and stick in the oven when you get in from work. A good pasta recipe book will give you loads of options that can be done in 30 mins or less, taglietelle carbonara, smoked chicken and and black pepper boursin penne etc. Chicken, mushroom and green bean risotto is something else that can be done in 30-40 mins and as they all home made, you can moderate your salt etc. A coconut curry, or potato and leek soup is quick enough to do as well. Once you get into the swing of it you'll probably find you enjoy cooking as the finished product is much more enjoyable than anything to come out of a packet
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#8 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: stirring the cauldron
Posts: 3,957
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Quote:
There is plenty of healthy stuff that you can batch cook like sauces and soups and freeze. You can easily make 10 portions at a time in a hour or two.
As long as you remember to take it out of the freezer in the morning it will only take a few minutes to reheat in the evening and bulk up your meals with fresh salads. As for healthy, just use your common sense. Avoid saturated fats, avoid starchy carbs, avoid processed foods, watch the dressings, sauces, dips, sides dishes (often loaded with sugar and fat), etc. plenty of veggies and watch your portion sizes. Plenty of fresh veg. Sauteed veg take no time and are very flavoursome. Fish is one of the fastest things you could make and healthy too. You don't HAVE to eat wholewheat pasta, just don't overdo it with the white ones. What I often see (or read) on these boards is people who eat Lasagna, garlic bread and chips. Now that to me is total carb overload. Just use your common sense.
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#9 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,110
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Quote:
For example, made a chicken, ham and leek pie for dinner on Saturday with oven chips. So I made twice the amount of filling, popped half in a freezer bag and now some evening all I need to do is pop it in a dish and roll some shop bought pastry over the top. ![]() This vegetarian recipe is delicious. It's a little time consuming but freezes wonderfully well. http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/fi...ithportw_73185 I use low fat cheeses. |
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