Meals for the busy young professional
 

Any ideas for great easy to make and quick meals for the busy young professional? Some ideas I had were to cook some chicken during my day off and refrigerate (I guess oven baking would be easiest) and then making salads with greens and bleu cheese. Making readily accessible portions with peanuts. Buying packages of polly-o mozzarella cheese, etc.

any other ideas?

Salads is the easy way out for already cooked chicken ;)

You could also make chicken wraps with lettuce and some cheese or make it Mexican with some salsa, cheese and sour cream.

I also like to bake some chicken up and then add it to casseroles with broccoli or spinach and cream cheese and heavy cream. I know I found that recipe on here somewhere.

Boiled eggs - these can be mashed into egg salad or quickly made into deviled eggs or just eaten whole with...

Bacon - on your day off bake whole packages in the oven and then you can refrigerate

Recipes - find a couple that you REALLY like and make enough to last you a couple of days. If you find ones that can be frozen you can freeze in portions and pretty soon you will have a nice variety stocked up so you don't get bored.

Egg casseroles - find a couple you like and cook in 8x8 pans. This is a quick, easy breakfast that will last all week

Lunch meat - I try to limit the amount of lunch meat I eat, but it is a quick, convenient protein source. Roll up with cheese, dip in mayo or mustard. I have these with salt and peppered sliced tomatoes, black olives, pickles, pickled okra, etc. (any veggie you can have prepped and ready to eat)

Tuna - on your day off make enough tuna salad for a couple of days. Serve with sliced tomatoes, lettuce, celery, etc.

Roasted chickens - if you've got more money than time (or even if you don't) buy an already roasted chicken from Sam's/Costco/local grocery store. If it's just you this will last for several meals. Just add in that salad you said you would make or some other quick to cook veggie (you can also pick the chicken off the bone and freeze in portions to warm up later or dump in a salad)

Pork Loin - purchase one of these and on your day off bake it. It can be sliced into meal portion slices to last up to a week depending on the size. Again, just add a nice side dish veggie/salad (this can also be frozen in meal portion sizes)

Hamburgers - again....fry up several hamburger patties on your day off and freeze. take out as needed and warm with whatever toppings you want (sauteed onions, shrooms, peppers, jalapenos, etc.)

Taco meat - make a big batch on your day off and freeze in meal portions. Add to salads with taco ingredients...you can do the same with a chili or soup/stew recipe

These are all quick and easy and if you do a couple a week and make extra and freeze, over time you will have a nice variety of food. Once you find the recipes/foods you love and won't get bored with it will become easy and painless. Just rinse and repeat.

I know you're going to get lots of other GREAT recommendations and I am looking forward to that. I've been looking to shake up our meals, but also make it MUCH quicker and easier.

Freckles I'm stealing your post for my journal. I totally trust your advice. I have been hanging out eating vegetarian and not losing. I may try again one of these days. Anyway thanks for posting.

Buy a bag of chicken thighs, put in a baking tray with the bony side up, season (I like barbecue powder or some kind of chicken seasoning from a super market, just watch out for sugar and msg), and bake for half an hour, turn them, season, bake for the rest of a full hour. I freeze them in little plastic boxes from a hardware store, two thighs a piece, then in the morning grab a little broccoli or cauliflower, small pat of butter, and the box from the freezer.

I got sick of chicken after a while, but this is incredibly easy and convenient. I've since got adventurous, so right now I've nine boxes of chicken tikka masala freezing. Made it last night from a recipe on www.marksdailyapple.com .

Thank you these are all excellent suggestions!

I also have to pack stuff for work..I went and got snap tight containers and also had some cool packs --ones that you throw in your freezer--and you take out and put in your lunchbag to keep things cool--then I pack romaine leaves and either stuff the romaine with with tuna salad or egg salad, slices of chicken or roast beef...or cheese....makes a great "sandwich" .I also pack hard boiled eggs, individual string cheese packets, sometimes leftover dinner from the night b4. my lunchbag is one of those insulated zip-boxes. have fun! and be creative :)

get a crock pot, fill it the night before and put it in the fridge. You put it on the counter and plug it in before going to work- come home to a meal! LOTS of LC crock pot recipes.

Fish- shrimp- frozen or fresh. Cooks in a few minutes. I'll make a pound of shrimp, eat all I want the first day and the rest the next. I cook a pound of salmon, cut it into 4 portions and eat it for lunces over salad and dinners. I have LOTS of frozen veggies - they all cook fast. I try to make extra so I have leftovers for lunches.

Planning is key- having the food you ned, having recipes you like, and being able to make the food.

This site has great recipes- and you can also look at LINDAS LOW CARB RECIPES. Great site.

have fun!

Tnanks for the Linda's LC recipes rec. This is chock full of stuff!

Easy chicken recipe
 

Here's an easy way to do chicken:

Ingredients: About 8 chicken thighs, fresh garlic, olive oil, dried or fresh oregano and/or marjoram, lemon juice, (red pepper flakes), (cherry tomatoes)

Take it out of the fridge an hour or so before cooking if you can. The olive oil will be congealed otherwise. It isn't a disaster if you don't though.

Heat oven to 375' and arrange chicken on a foil covered cooking sheet (the kind with the low walls). Example of a 1/2 cooking sheet.

Cook for 30-45 minutes until the skin is nicely browned and crispy. If you used tomatoes they should be slightly charred.

Alternatives:

Add in 12-16oz of fresh cherry tomatoes to the marinade.

I've always bought the bottled lemon juice and was vindicated one day when I saw "Real Lemon" brand won a taste test challenge (even over a real, fresh lemon) on America's Test Kitchen. They're real snobby about food and the taste tester was quite contrite that he picked the concentrate as the best tasting. So... anyway, I buy the stuff in big containers from Costco. Very handy!

Nancy- that is hilarious!


OP- I just bought a turkey breast for the first time, from the deli section yesterday. It was a cinch to shred the meat and toss it on a salad- very yummy! and I have tonnnnnnns left over- i highly recommend it.

And, when in doubt, can't wrong with an omelet- takes no time at all, very yummy and cheap ;)

Well, thanks for sharing that! I always use the bottled as well. This is very funny!

The recipe sounds yummy and you could use different veggies as well!

Wow, that is pretty funny re: the lemon concentrate vs. the real thing. I guess the one benefit of using a real lemon would be the ability to use the zest, however, I don't really do that very often. Sounds like I may have to switch over to the concentrate because its easier to measure out. I've always seen those bright yellow bottles shaped like citrus in the grocery store and didn't really even consider using it. I'm gonna give it a try!

the crockpot & pressure cooker are your friends. ;)

I'll add something here and revive this thread.

Get a slow cooker! You can start something in the morning and set it on low and by afternoon its gona be great!

Example:

Get some round or sirloin steak, if you want you can have the butcher run it once through the tenderizer, and cut it up in portions and put it in the crock pot with some chopped up onions, bell pepper and a couple cans of petite diced tomatoes & one package of onion soup mix. Anywhere from 6-9 hours later, its great!

Lots of easy low carb recipes for the crock pot!