dinner ideas for a cooking dummy?

heathie88

so i am not a very good cook at all, but i dont mind trying at all.... i have realized that one of my hardest times of the day to eat healthy is in the evening because i find myself just snacking cause i dont know what to cook and then i cant eat dinner... but i really want to start learning to cook, but most importantly learning to cook healthy!

does anyone have any suggestions on what they make for dinner thats easy and doesnt take too long? thanks a bunch

lovetodance

I keep the frozen tilipia that are in individual portions for something quick to grill or pan fry with Pam or a little olive oil. The frozen vegetables are quick to microwave too.
I also keep frozen cooked shrimp to grill on the stove with veggies (or rice or pasta) added.
It depends on what you like.

BassBoneBabe

Do you have a grill or a forman?

I take 1/4 cup of honey and 2 tbls spoons of balsamic vinegar, about 2 pounds of boneless skinless chicken breast (I cut them so they are about 4 ounce "patties") Mix the honey and vinegar together, dip the chicken in the mixture, or let it marinate for awhile. Throw on the grill.

This allows for me to have extras to eat on different nights/days. Great with brown rice and veggies, or just on a hamburger bun with whatever you like on your chicken sandwiches. Very easy, and the left overs make it great to help speed up weeknight dinners!

juneybabes

try any one pot wonders ....... throw a choice of your favourite veggies in a roasting tin with a 1/2 cup of water or stock ...cook for about 15 mins then put your favourite fish like salmon or trout or cod,monk etc on the top of your veggies put back in the oven for about 12-15 mins done ....add things like fresh herbs or orange juice instead of water to( roast your veggies ) and youve got a one pot wonder ........you can do this with roast meats too
dont forget things like frittatas are great easy and healthy one large pan add your favourits things pour over whisks and bake 10 min ...done

justann

I find the biggest problem with not knowing what to make for dinner is not having the right ingredients on hand. I've learned planning ahead makes a world of difference. Once a week I sit down with my cookbooks for healthy meals and at least 3 or 4 meals for the week. I mark them in the book and then make a grocery shopping list. Then during the week all I have to decide is which meal I have a taste for that night. Sounds so simple but makes a world of difference. The crockpot is also becoming a favorite friend. Good luck. I know you can do it. Start small so it doesn't overwhelm you and soon you will no longer be a 'cooking dummy'. It worked for me!:bigsmile:

sonjavon

Employ a crock pot. Put your meat into cook all day on low. Plan a side of veggies and make a salad... voila dinner's done. I always eat an apple while preparing dinner... it just helps keep me on track.

Over the weekends I make a large amount of rice so that it can be reheated throughout the week.

lina1131

Take a little bit of olive oil (maybe a teaspoon) and put it in a sautee pan and turn the heat on Medium. Get boneless skinless chicken breast and lay on the pat and cook on one side for 3 minutes and season the side that is up with whatever you want (I use season all, garlic powder, a little pepper, a dash of soy sauce). After the 3 minutes flip it, and cook another 3 minutes. Season the other side, after 3 minutes are up, cover pan, turn heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, flip chicken and cook for 3 more minutes. after time is up, chicken is done! I take out of sautee pan, cut up in strips, cut up some veggies, throw the veggies in sautee pan, cook until tender, add chicken, and serve by itself or with brown rice or whole grain pasta.

Enjoy!

sandebud

This is really easy and great way to end your day. I take a tsp of olive oil to a frying pan, add 1 cup of spinach, 3oz. or so of lean turkey, goranzola cheese, and chopped onions. Heat on medium...chopping up turkey and spinach for about 5-7 minutes. YUM! You'll be craving it after the second time you make it! You can add it to a low cal wrap if you need the carbs..but I leave them out.
Sande

holmesis

I've made some dinners from The Eat-Clean Diet book. Prep time for most are 20 minutes.

ReneDavidson

Over the weekends I make a large amount of rice so that it can be reheated throughout the week.

You can actually freeze rice really well! I make a big pot then divide it into ziplock bags and freeze them flat. I put about 2c per bag of cooked rice. Then when you need a side dish, just pop one in the microwave with a bit of water in the bag...heat about 2 mins and there you have your rice. It comes out really well! like it is fresh!

rufatbob

You might try oriental steamer vegetables comes with its own sauce. Then add a couple ounces of thin sliced lean beef, chicken breast , or shrimp . It's easy fast and low on calories

lvfunandfit

The crockpot is my best friend!
click here for some awesome recipes
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/65431-easy-crockpot-recipes

www.hungry-girl.com has great recipes

sparkrecipes.com has some as well!

Here is my favorite go to recipe!

spinach turkey burgers

* 1 1/4 lb Lean Ground Turkey
* 1/2 small Onion chopped fine
* 1 1/2 c Spinach chopped fine cook first
* 2 cloves Garlic minced
* pinch Salt to taste
* pinch Pepper to taste
* 1/2 c diced mushrooms
* 1 c bread crumbs or oats
*sometimes I add a half of a pack of ranch dressing seasoning

you can pan fry in olive oil then bake with marinara sauce and light mozzarella cheese and serve with whole wheat garlic toast or grill and serve as a burger on a wheat bun with sliced tomatoes and lettuce (and cheese if you'd like) with honey mustard. We've done both. Of course grilling is healthier.

I also make oven baked sweet potato fries to go along if I serve them burger style.

This is my absolute favorite thing to make! I grew up eating these... my mom always dipped them in egg,then flour, pan fried with tons of oil then baked them with the sauce and gobs of cheese and served over rice or with garlic bread. I changed the way I serve them to be a bit healthier.

triggerasynapse

I am a total non-cook, but decided this January to start learning to cook. I am out the door by 7:30am and I rarely get home before 7:30pm on weekdays, so it's been a challenge to make cooking happen. But I have found some things that have worked for me.
I bought Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution cookbook and have been working my way through it.
His 20 minute recipes take me an hour (because I have no idea what I'm doing in the kitchen). But if you know what you're doing it can really be done in 20 minutes. I find that planning what I'm going to eat for the week takes the longest and the going shopping, but once I organize myself it doesn't take that long to actually do stuff.
When I don't know how to do something like cut an onion or zest a lime I just google it online and find a video explaining how to do it.
I will cook 3-6 meals on the weekends, put everything away in correct portions into good containers (easy stacking, secure closing, easy toting(I use public transit-buses and subways to get to and from work)) and refrigerate or freeze the rest to take to work for lunch or reheat for dinner. Most things I've tried cooking are still very good after a few days.
It takes a bunch of effort; I had to buy some kitchen utensils (Chef's Knife, a good large frying pan, cutting boards) and the first time I went grocery shopping my bill was huge- things like olive oil, mustard and sea salt all cost a lot but they last a long time.
On the plus side even though there are things like cheese and bacon and olive oil in his recipes even when you enter them into MFP they actually turn out to be really well balanced and most things are not crazy calories if you eat the portions recommended. His soups are really good and I enjoy having them as a meal because they are very tasty and filling.
On the downside it is a British cookbook and some of the ingredients are hard to find (English Mustard, Italian Parsley, Jacob's Crackers) but I just sub the closest thing (Dijon/Regular mustard), Regular Parsley and unsalted Saltines) and it works fine for me.

Personally I found the sheer volume of recipes and cookbooks available totally overwhelming. I tried recipes.com and other sites but it was too much. Picking just one book and trying my best with what is in there has really helped me get started and start building confidence. So I would say go to Barnes and Noble and just spend a bunch of time looking at the cookbooks, when you find one you really like and feel you can 'bond' with and are excited in a good number of recipes go for it.

I also found now that I have accepted that cooking is a (new) hobby of mine, people are pretty excited for me and it has been a worthwhile investment in my time. I also found that I like chopping veggies- I find it oddly therapeutic and I get tons of compliments at work about how good my cooking smells.

Good Luck!

godblessourhome

planning ahead is key for me - that way i know what ingredients i have on hand and what i need to buy. i keep a well-stocked pantry. i make a meal plan each week, which you are welcome to check out on my blog (but i am not 'stuck' to it if i feel like something else) with lots of fresh fruit and produce.

take it in baby steps. since you are just learning to cook, don't kill yourself with prep time. buy the frozen chicken breast, the frozen or pre-cut veggies. buy things you can throw together to have a meal. i love my crockpot! there are a million 'healthy' recipes out there - don't forget that if it called for creamy soups or cheeses, you can always substitute low-fat or no-fat items.

one of the first meals i made when i was learning to cook was salsa chicken - a frozen chicken breast, marinade in pre-made salsa (that a stuck in a bag the night before) and cooked in salsa. now that i am confident in my abilities, i take less and less shortcuts. i still love salsa chicken, but now i use a whole chicken that i cut apart myself and make a salsa myself using fresh produce.

start small, experiment and find out what you enjoy doing in the kitchen!
dawn

hungrymarathongirl

Check out the Kraft Website and click Healthy Eating....great recipes that are super easy to make.

http://www.kraftrecipes.com/healthy-living-ideas/main.aspx