What's Your "Go to " Quick Meal

I have a home made marinara sauce that I keep on hand for quick pasta, raviil, stuffed shells, etc. I also make my own stuffed shells and keep some frozen. Works great for a quick tasty dinner. You can easilyake a quick chicken Parmesan with this.

The other option I do is a home made chicken noodle soup. Another good thing to keep on hand for quick meals.

We grill a lot on weekends. I have 1 night a week to " clean out the fridge". And we buffet what I have. Then I start fresh!!

We have a routine hectic schedule and make ahead meals works great for me. Let me know if you want more ideas.

Tacos are always quick and easy. I usually buy the taco kits, but you can just get a seasoning packet, add chicken or beef and buy shells or tortillas. In fact, you could prepare the meat and chop the lettuce and other toppings before you go and just come home and heat it up.

Whole Wheat Spaghetti is always a quick and easy option. I add browned meat to the Ragu sauce that offers 1 serving of veggies per 1/2 cup.

I also fix instant brown rice in beef broth, brown and season ground beef (Montreal season, salt pepper, garlic is what I use), and mix 1/2 cup of water with brown gravy mix (don't cook it). I mix all three together and cook for a bit longer. Since this is my protien and starch in one I just fix a veggie and go.

I have two things that I can't live without that save me tons of time in the kitchen. Both are from Pampered Chef. One is the MicroCooker. I use it to brown ground beef, boil potoatoes, and lots of other things in the microwave. It saves tons of time and only cost $10. The other is the deep dish covered baker and was $65, but so worth it for me. Just about what ever I could cook in the slow cooker or in the over I can make in the microwave in a fraction of the time and it taste just as good. This also helps to not heat up the house in summer.

One of my fav things to do in the baker is to cut up boneless skinless chicken breasts into nugget sized pieces. Put in the baker and evenly coat with a package of Ranch Dressing mix (powder) and a package of Lipton Onion Soup mix. I cook it for 4 minutes at a time, stirring each time. And in about 15 minutes my meat is ready. I used to cook it in the over at 400 in an oven bag and my family thinks it is jucier this way!

Good Luck!

I have found that Sams has a really good canned chicken breast. I use it to make chicken spaghetti, chicken and bean burritos, chicken salad, chicken and rice. You get a great meal and little mess.

stir and fry

i use lean sirloin steaks and slice the beef and then mix with a bag of veggies for stir and fry(frozen) and then add garlic and at 2 minutes add the stir and fry sauce i buy that in walmart and is ready in about 8 minutes

fajitas

1 lb Sirloin steak, cut into strips

1 Each red pepper, green pepper cut into strips

1 Onion, cut into strips

1 cup Salsa

8 (6-inch) flour tortillas

Guacamole, if desired

Sour cream, if desired

Cook sirloin steak strips in 1 tsp oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat for 3 minutes. Add red peppers, green peppers and onion; cook 3-4 minutes.

2. Add marinade, salsa; reduce heat to medium-low. Cook unitl heated.

3. Fill warmed tortillas with meat and veggie mixture. Serve with a spoonful of guacamole and/or sour cream if desired.

i usually cook in the mornings about 9:30 to 10:30 am is my cooking time

the crockpot is your friend! the one with the timer is sooooo cool! you can fix it up in 2 minutes flat, turn it on, set the timer, and it keeps the food warm till you get home. my newest recipe find: a bag of frozen veggies as a bottom layer, a layer of meat (chicken breasts, pork chops, whatever), then put the sauce on it. the sauce is simply a can of cream of chicken/mushroom/whatever you have on hand added to a cup or so of salsa. it cooks on low for 4 hours, then top with some cheese and let the cheese melt before serving. tonight we are doing this, minus the veggies, but adding rice instead. you could do pasta as well.

we are a vegetarian family but also don't eat a whole lot of processed food (or as little as we can get away with!).
if you have time on a weekend, could you make up a double batch of brown rice, and then freeze it in 2 cup portions? that way, you cna just whip it out of the freezer to toss w/ other ingredients for a casserole, or do a stir-fry, etc? (a casserole idea for us that we do frequently is can of rotel, can of black beans, drained, corn if you wish, cheese if you wish, mixed all together and bakes 350 til warmed thru, about 20 min.. it takes that 20 min in the oven, but the assembly is so quick!). stir frys are quick if you pre-chop veggies or have oldr kids who can help do some prep?
baked potatoes if you are ok microwaving them.
a basic pasta dish is pretty quick like the other person said (even if you browned meat it'd go relatively quickly). love the idea of tacos/taco salad.
and if you were willing to sort of menu-plan in advance, you could (if you eat meat) do something like a pot roast, then plan on roast beef sandwiches for a swim night.
i'm blanking on other ideas at the minute, but if i think of more, i'll be back!

Since you don't specify what types of processed or prepared foods you don't eat, it's a little hard to answer. Do you mind using lunch meat, canned meat, packaged or canned soups? What about boxed pastas or canned or frozen veggies?

For me, the secret to quick cooking on a weeknight is planning ahead. On the weekend, I might brown several pounds of lean ground beef and freeze in 1 1/3 - 1 1/2 pound packages to use later for spaghetti sauce or hamburger helper or some sort of casserole, tacos or whatever. Once it's cooked, even if it's still frozen, it takes no time to throw it in with jarred pasta sauce heat it up and serve it over whole wheat noodles.

Grilled steaks are quick. We have a gas grill and it takes about 10-15 minutes for my husband to grill steak and/or smoked sausage while I chop and saute mushrooms and onions, microwave steam some frozen veggies and serve with a side of mac and cheese or an instant or frozen potato dish.

Homemade soups are great made ahead and warmed up later. And homemade bean dishes are always better the next day.

I keep a few cans of tuna, chicken and beef in the pantry for times when I need very quick meals and can make a quick stir fry (with frozen stir fry vegges and canned beef or chicken) or a quick casserole (lots of recipes on www.recipezaar.com).

And there's always breakfast or lunch for dinner. One of my kids' favorite dinners is ramen noodle soup, turkey sandwiches and applesauce or tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwiches and applesauce. We don't have those often, mainly 'cause they aren't the parents' favorite, but in a pinch, they work just fine.

And of course, there is always the crockpot. I have a pork chops with potatoes, carrots and green beans recipe that's all cooked together and it's hot and waiting to be served when we get home. Beef pot roast with root veggies is the same way. I've got a pork shoulder that I added some seasonings to cooking right now in my crock pot which I will serve tonight shredded on potato rolls with corn, baked beans and bread and butter pickle chips. I normally don't like serving two starchy sides (corn and beans), but it's my husband's favorite so once in a while it's ok.

My main tip though is planning ahead if you want to eat at home and you need it quick.

Blessings,
N.