Ideas for People Who Don't Cook or Barely Do

Ecrivaine32

My biggest weight loss issue has to do with the fact that I usually dine out and barely know much that I can cook. Any healthy ideas that you've learned or would care to share?

AmyG1982

Crockpot foods! It's hardly cooking at all!! Roast some meats in there or do stews, chilli or soups. So many options!

I made a soup tonight that I just kinda whipped together from stuff I had in the pantry/freezer. 2 frozen chicken breasts, I package of onion soup mix, some chicken broth, 6 cups of water water and seasonings of choice (garlic powder, oregano, pepper and celery seed), a can of black beans. Let it cook on low all day. Pull the chicken out, shred it and return it to crock pot. Add 1 cup frozen peas, 2 cups frozen corn. I made 1 cup of rice and added all of that it and it's done. Super yummy and filling and it filled my 5qt crockpot so I'll have leftovers for ages!

You can pretty much do anything in a crockpot as long as there's enough liquid so it doesn't burn

lithezebra

I roast vegetables on a baking sheet covered in aluminum foil. You could use a nonstick baking sheet if you don't want to need oil to keep them from sticking. I even make things that are supposed to be done on the stove, like cauliflower fried rice, in the oven. It's easier to clean up.

Forty6and2

I don't cook a lot and I'll admit that I rely on frozen meals quite a bit. But, if you do that, really watch the sodium. Sometimes it's kinda outrageous how much salt is in these things.

piggysmalls333

Protein bars, morning protein/fruit shakes, deli slices, fiber one bars, bananas, Skinny Cow snacks, to-go veggie/ranch cups, fruit parfaits, rice cakes, almonds, 100 calorie popcorns, wine lol

Madelinec117

It's never too late to learn to cook good and healthy meals with minimum effort. Just start collecting good & easy recipes and strive to learn to cook one or two additional dishes a month. Before you know it, you'll have a collection of recipes to choose from.

CooCooPuff

If money isn't an issue, most grocery stores should have ready made meals. The HEB I go to has something called Perfect Fit my sister seems to like.

Frozen meals are also an option like stated earlier. Aside from some water retention, and outside of certain medical conditions, sodium shouldn't be an issue.

If you want to try your hand at cooking, slowcooker, pressure cooker, and oven recipes are the way to go.

debtay123

Steamable frozen vegetables are the best. There are so many different varieties of veggies or rices or potatoes mixtures then all you need is fish , chicken or lean ground beef in the oven if you like-also as they mentioned the crockpot is great for soups, chili, etc. go to you-tube there are tons of "how to cook..."videos - if you can name it someone on youtube will tell you how to cook it- teehee

Lounmoun

Ecrivaine32 wrote: »

My biggest weight loss issue has to do with the fact that I usually dine out and barely know much that I can cook. Any healthy ideas that you've learned or would care to share?

Put some chicken in a slow cooker. Cook 8 hours on low. Shred the cooked chicken. Use in multiple dishes like pasta, soup, casseroles, sandwiches, salads.
Mix cooked meat with barbeque sauce, buffalo sauce, salad dressing, or salsa and put on bread or a tortilla for a sandwich or wrap.
Add canned black beans (drained), cooked chicken or tuna, salsa, baby spinach, cheese, avocado and put in a tortilla.
Quick thin crust pizza- use a tortilla, pita, or naan and spread with sauce, top with cheese and other toppings. Bake 350 F for 10 minutes.
Hard boil some eggs. Add to salads. Make egg salad sandwich. Eat plain. Make deviled eggs.
Baked potato topped with things like chilli , cheese, broccoli.
Grilled sandwiches.

jgnatca

Learn a few basic meals to build your confidence.

https://www.buzzfeed.com/emofly/foods-everyone-should-learn-to-cook

Have a decent spatula, frying pan, pot, and knife.

Have hamburger meat, chicken breasts, and frozen veggies in your freezer,
Milk, Parmesan, yogurt, cheese, eggs, butter in your fridge,
and olive oil, potatoes, pasta, and rice in your cupboard.

Buy yourself some prepared sauces. I suggest spaghetti, light Alfredo, tikka masala, teriyaki and burrito.

Now go mix and match my friend.

trisH_7183

Ecrivaine32 wrote: »

My biggest weight loss issue has to do with the fact that I usually dine out and barely know much that I can cook. Any healthy ideas that you've learned or would care to share?

Learn all you can about nutrition....calories etc for the places you eat in.Even if you don't cook,you can still track your food.

MsBuzzkillington

jgnatca wrote: »

Learn a few basic meals to build your confidence.

https://www.buzzfeed.com/emofly/foods-everyone-should-learn-to-cook

Have a decent spatula, frying pan, pot, and knife.

Have hamburger meat, chicken breasts, and frozen veggies in your freezer,
Milk, Parmesan, yogurt, cheese, eggs, butter in your fridge,
and olive oil, potatoes, pasta, and rice in your cupboard.

Buy yourself some prepared sauces. I suggest spaghetti, light Alfredo, tikka masala, teriyaki and burrito.

Now go mix and match my friend.

There's a burrito sauce?

Lehk290

I do not cook a lot so I use and Love the app Yummly. I filter and pick out recipes that have few ingredients and it gives you nutritional info.
Supermarkets now have great to go snacks in produce and it's nothing to roll a wrap with any meat, cheese & tortilla or bfst burrito. Great to eat in the go!

beautifulwarrior18

Ecrivaine32 wrote: »

My biggest weight loss issue has to do with the fact that I usually dine out and barely know much that I can cook. Any healthy ideas that you've learned or would care to share?

I like to get mixed spring greens from aldi, chop some random veggies to add to it, buy a rotisserie chicken and make my own paleo (meaning sugar free) italian dressing. Mix it all together and you have no cooking necessary salad with fat, protein, and carbs.

I also do Taco Salads all the time. Super easy, brown some beef, chicken, or turkey, throw your seasoning in and add whatever veggies you like to it. Burgers are also pretty easy. I do meal prep so I make it all ahead of time and just toss it in the microwave when I'm ready to eat it because if I have to cook it when I want to eat it, I'll go to McDonalds and it will go bad.

dietpepsi124

Okay okay I got chu fam. Like this is/was my biggest challenge also. So lemme tell you what I do to cope with it.

I bought a rice cooker the Aroma 8-cup to be exact, BAM you get a rice cooker, you got Lentils and Rice every day. What are they? Some of the best foods you can eat with like zero effort and price. 40g Protein, 80g Carbohydrates 44g fiber, a 640 calorie meal i eat every day.

GREEK YOGURT. bam you got an amazing desser/snack, add a serving of peanut butter BAM you got a 300 calorie meal.

Frozen foods. I started out eating frozen burritos, now I eat hot pockets. I put it on top of some spring mix and bam you got some crazy 320 calorie salad. Just make sure to count your calories.

Just remember that no food is inherently "unhealthy" or "healthy". If it fits your macros, it fits your diet.

Also invest in a food scale. I use it ALL the time even though all I do is weigh rice, yogurt, and peanut butter. LOL.

dviolin661

Learn how to cook, it's easy. Just throw stuff together that you think will taste good. If it doesn't taste good, oh well, it was an experiment, try again.

dviolin661

There's a burrito sauce?

In the burrito dinner kits.

amusedmonkey

I cook, but sometimes I have 16 hour workdays and have to improvise. My latest concoction: instant noodles with a can of tuna. The kind of noodles that comes in a cup and you add hot water to it. The single serving packs are almost always under 400 calories (mine is 220). You make the noodles, and when they are soft enough you drain the tuna and just mix it in.

Cooking is not hard though. You don't need to know much. Start by practicing simple quick recipes from the internet or just improvise. One of my lazy "anything goes" improvisations to cook is this: I dice and sautee some onions and carrots in a pot until onions are golden and fragrant, add a large can of diced tomatoes packed in tomato juice and as much chicken stock as I want until it reaches a consistency I like, then dump in whatever canned stuff I feel like dumping in (beans, mushrooms, peas, corn..etc), maybe some random diced vegetable as well if have something I need to use up, and have them cook on medium low for 30 or so minutes adding stock if it gets a bit too dry, then shred some leftover or rotisserie chicken into the pot and mix it in. Don't forget to season with salt, pepper and any spice/herbs you like. There is no right or wrong to it and it's very forgiving to any "mistakes". It would also last you for a few days.

AmazonMayan

My latest trick is the Tyson Grilled and Ready chicken breast pieces in the freezer section. I think they have strips too. 100 cal for 84g and that's a decent amount of chix to make quick chicken salad or roll up in a tortilla with veggies and have a quick wrap. I add it to canned soups and stir fry - add at the end of cooking since it only has to thaw out and warm up. I am loving having the chicken cooked and cut up already since my schedule is hectic right now. Sometimes I use 2 weighed servings of it for a bigger meal. The chicken seems pricey until you realize how many meals you can get out of it. Weighed portions have meant 5 or 6 meals so far and I have a little left still.

My favorite stir-fry right now is whatever veggies I want, usually bell pepper chunks, something green like asparagus, Brussel sprouts, green beans, etc and anything else veggie low calorie like cauliflower chunks - whatever you like, to make it a big bowl of food. Sometimes I add 1/2 serving of frozen pineapple chunks too. I like spice so a pinch of red pepper flakes then I use 1 or 2 servings of the Target brand (market pantry I think?) General Tso sauce - it's the lowest calorie one I've found - way lower than others. I cook the veggies until tender then add the chicken when i add the sauce and warm through - but don't cook for too long. The meal turns out so delicious and low calorie and I definitely don't miss take out when I have this. I also sometimes use a little bottled peanut sauce instead.

trollerskates

Catered meals are cheaper than eating out, and there portioned correctly. Whole foods will cook you meat and veggies free and pacage them

dklibert

Easy Taco Salad: Bag salad, crushed corn chip, a little cheddar cheese, salsa and the healthiest low sodium can of chili you can find. Just assemble the salad. Warm the chili and top your salad.

Sheet Pan Suppers: https://youtube.com/watch?v=Qp8Tc4ncJgI the fajitas are good and you can buy pre-cut veggies if you like.

This is easy. The hard part is minced garlic and ginger but sometimes you can buy that in a jar or tube. soupspiceeverythingnice.blogspot.com/2013/12/inside-out-egg-roll-re-post.html

Just made this last night it was simple too and delicious!. frugalnutrition.com/orange-ground-chicken-rice-bowls/ Again garlic and ginger hopefully you can buy in a tube. Or buy a microplane and you can grate it right into the pan. I cooked the rice and broccoli in the microwave. 1 cup long grain white rice, 2 cups water in 1-1/2 qt casserole covered with paper towel and lid on high 5 minutes and medium for 15. Cut broccoli into florets or buy pre-cut, wash place in another casserole with a splash of water(1/4 cup) covered and microwave on high 5 minutes.