What's your favorite, easy meal?

I'm a busy Mom, and I'm not all that domestic. I don't really enjoy spending hours preparing meals. On the other hand I Love good food, and I want my family and I to eat healthy. Now I have the added pressure of finding filling meals that fit in my calorie allowance. Don't get me wrong, I'm enjoying the problem solving aspect, and finding new things everyday :smile:. I want to benefit from all the experienced MFP people on here! So my question is, what's your favorite meal to eat when you don't have a ton of time, and that doesn't require a lot of prep work?

Replies

  • gddrdld
    gddrdld Posts: 464 Member
    My favorite easy, healthy, fast meal is--- a can of white (canellini) beans rinsed and drained, a can of white tuna drained, jar roasted peppers drained and chopped, chopped fresh (or dried) parsley, dried basil, good olive oil/balsamic vinegar, salt/pepper...mix and eat!

    You can use any canned beans you like and sub canned salmon for tuna and add any chopped veggies you have on hand. I love this because it is one bowl, takes 5 minutes to make, is very high fiber and protein and I always have the ingredients on hand.
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  • 2 tilapia filets with lemon salt and pepper, and 3 cups of steamed broccoli. 9 grams of fiber, 40 grams of protein, 2 grams of fat and only 300 calories. I eat this all the time.

    Oh and I steam the fish in about a 4th of an inch of water for about 3 minutes per side, no oil needed.
  • Skeebee
    Skeebee Posts: 740 Member
    Blender baked potato soup. Microwave a potato, put it in a blender with chives, milk, sour cream, bacon bits, and cheddar cheese to your liking. voila...
  • dsjohndrow
    dsjohndrow Posts: 1,820 Member
    Anything on the grill (meat and veggies), or that I can cook and freeze!
  • zaph0d
    zaph0d Posts: 1,172 Member
    Chicken, rice, and beans
  • auntiemsgr8
    auntiemsgr8 Posts: 483 Member
    I like to make the Perdue Perfect Portions chicken. 20 minutes in the oven. Add some veggies or a salad and you're done. Comes in a few different flavors so its not just boring chicken. And every piece is the same size/calories. I often make the whole bag (5 pieces) on Sunday and take the left over chicken for my protein snack during the week - as I am in a single household.
  • 100 calorie pockets. 3/4 cup of egg whites (or liquid eggs) or eggs! and a wedge of laughing cow schmeared on the bread! Add veggies if desired to the eggs(peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, onions)
  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,966 Member
    Chicken. Lol. I usually bake it because I don't have a grill. I do have a george foreman grill but I hate that thing... it's so much better grilled...

    but anywho... I eat chicken all the time. I just marinade it or bake it in something and eat it with vegetables. Lately I've been doing bell peppers, yellow onion, and mushrooms and I cook it in balsamic vinegar. It's delicious.
  • MidlifeGlowUp
    MidlifeGlowUp Posts: 91 Member
    It's not really child friendly, but when I can't be bothered with anything elaborate, I go for a bowl of brown rice topped with diced tomato, black beans, red onion and avocado. It's kind of a deconstructed burrito. It doesn't sound like much, but the flavors combine wonderfully.
  • kimmiedunne
    kimmiedunne Posts: 82 Member
    I love putting things in the crockpot...you do it in the morning and doesn't take that long to do and it's done by the time you get home and you just have to serve it!
  • laserturkey
    laserturkey Posts: 1,680 Member
    I use chickpea flour to make a kind of seasoned, savory pancake and add a vegetable dish to that based on what's in the freezer or the produce drawer and needs to be used up.

    A lot of roasted vegetables take not very much work, and you can do other stuff while you wait for them in the oven.

    Another big one for me is quesadillas with soup or salad. It's pretty easy to throw together a simple tomato soup starting with a can of no-salt-added diced tomatoes and/or sauce.

    Fresh fruit and yogurt is super easy and you could even have everyone assemble their own yogurt parfait.

    Fried rice is pretty quick and easy. There are some good recipes for basic "restaurant-style" fried rice on allrecipes.com.
  • I buy a rotisserie chicken on the weekend and take the meat off and put it in zip lock bags.. One night I use some for fajitas, the next night stir fry, the next day chx salad, next day homemade chicken soup with canned FF stock, celery, carrotts and onions, sauteed and throw in a cup of cooked whole wheat noodles. Lots of easy meals, one rotisserie chicken. Voila!
  • 2Bgoddess
    2Bgoddess Posts: 1,096 Member
    stir fry! any kind and every kind of veggie. throw in whatever meat or seafood or poultry you like. a little olive oil and fat free italian dressing and lemon juice. bam.
  • I take the easy way out. I make their meals first and eat mine after. LOL!!!! I eat what I have, yogurt, bananas, oatmeal, ... they had spaghetti last night and I ate yogurt and bananas.... :) yeah, I want them to be happy. and I like what I eat. :)

    If I have the fixings for a salad I eat that. I like having breakfast! eggs, oatmeal, spinach omelets.... corn, black beans... you can make a meal with quinoa and beans and corn.... just gotta watch the serving size.
  • AllTehBeers
    AllTehBeers Posts: 5,030 Member
    I love sandwiches. Hard boiled egg sandwiches are my favorite right now and only 180 calories. I make half a dozen hard boiled eggs at a time. I also pick up 3 or 4 of the premade salads at walmart in the fresh produce section. Lunch in less then a minute.
  • lisa483
    lisa483 Posts: 105 Member
    Low calorie quiche,

    3 eggs
    fat free cottage cheese
    chopped ham
    mushrooms
    1/2 onion
    salt and pepper

    layer ham, onion and mushrooms in a flan dish pour over mixed eggs and cottage chees whack it in the oven for bout 30mins bout 150' voila healthy quiche and u can put pretty much anythin u want in it :0)
  • zenchild
    zenchild Posts: 680 Member
    During the winter I make 4 big pots of soup every other Sunday. Chicken noodle, black bean, turkey chili, red beans and rice, lentils, Italian red sauce and meatballs, etc. If I'm feeling frisky I'll toss a roast (or a chicken or a turkey breast) in the oven as well. I get two weeks of meals done in one day. Soups are generally better after they sit for a day or two anyway. Whatever we'll eat that week goes in the fridge, the rest goes in the freezer.
    In the summer we tend to get a whole bunch of stuff prepped on the weekend so during the week we can just throw a meal together. Ground beef and lamb are browned for tacos and gyros, bread is sliced for tomato basil mozzarella sandwiches, lettuce chopped, washed and dry. Everything that can be prepped gets done. We make a menu of what we're eating for the week so we know what to get when we go shopping and we know what we can do with it to be sure it's ready to go with minimum effort during the week.
  • Cindy311
    Cindy311 Posts: 780 Member
    Breakfast foods reign around here, lol!
  • ingalynn
    ingalynn Posts: 136 Member
    peppers, onions, and garlic sauteed in olive oil. Throw in some protein (tonight I used shrimp). Serve with rice, or noodles, or just by itself if you are watching carbs or are short on calories. YUMMMM!
  • pixish
    pixish Posts: 79 Member
    I love putting things in the crockpot...you do it in the morning and doesn't take that long to do and it's done by the time you get home and you just have to serve it!

    yep, I agree :) Plus, you can make super easy soups this way which would be low calorie & filling (tomato or vegetable based, not so much creamy ones) Good for go-to snacks that you can keep in the freezer :)

    Chilli is probably one of my go-to recipes, and I make that in the slowcooker too, though beef & broccoli stirfry is becoming one of my new favourites :) We have spaghetti a lot, and if I have cabbage in the fridge, I'll have that with the meat sauce rather than pasta and it's heaps lower in calories :D
  • UmmZinnira
    UmmZinnira Posts: 3 Member
    Black beans, ground turkey, and a little salsa served on tortilla's. Everyone in the house loves it, and you can add fresh tomatoes, lettuce and whatever else you like. It's very filling too.
  • princessdartany
    princessdartany Posts: 28 Member
    Saute chicken cutlet along with mushrooms and onions in olive oil....when done add a splash of white wine.
  • HealthFreak1967
    HealthFreak1967 Posts: 116 Member
    different variations of oatmeal- pumpkin, apple cinnamon, coconut, chocolate chip, peanut butter, peaches n cream, berry.

    and creamy chocolate quinoa flakes with fruit for dipping

    and massive salads just 4 or 5 different veggies chopped up and 3 different leafy greens mixed with 2-4 tbsp avocado and dressing.

    or for a spread- low sodium canned garbanzo chickpeas mashed with avocado and whatever veggies you prefer. Can be used in pitas, sandwich bread, tortillas, nori wraps. goes good with sprouts and cucumber too.

    also and type of beans with quinoa and veggies.
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
    Teriyaki chicken with bean sprouts

    Thin slice a still-partially-frozen chicken breast
    Sautee in a pan using non-stick cooking spray (or coconut oil if you have the calories) until cooked
    Add 1/4 cup Golden Dragon thick Teriyaki Sauce (80 calories)
    Sautee some bean sprouts (2-300g) in a pan with a tsp soy sauce for 2-3 minutes; add other veggies if you'd like
    Put bean sprouts on a plate and put teriyaki chicken over top

    You can get a full plate of food for about 350-400 calories and it's mostly protein.
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  • mariaeaston
    mariaeaston Posts: 2 Member
    Breakfast is always the hardest for me so I'll give you my favorite and very filling recipe. Toast a whole wheat English Muffin. Top it with a big slice of Tomato, 1 chopped up boiled egg and a thin slice of real Mozza (or a babybel). Put it under the Broiler for a minute and add some pepper. It works out to 268 cal. I'm also thinking about substituting the tomato for a slice of avacado to change it up.