Too lazy to cook

fragilewhisper
fragilewhisper Posts: 3 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I usually work 7 days a week, and by the time I get home I don't always feel like cooking because of how tired/lazy I am. I also hate having to wait an hour for dinner to be ready. What are some tips or super quick healthy meals anyone can suggest? It's so much easier to just go to a drive-thru fast food restaurant then spend an hour prepping, cooking, and cleaning up. :p

Replies

  • samantha1242
    samantha1242 Posts: 816 Member
    Get a crock pot. Throw everything in before you go to work, turn on and eat when get home.

    Cook a bunch of meals once a week (I do this on Sunday) for your whole week. Freeze (in portions if just for yourself) till ready to use it.
  • Firefox7275
    Firefox7275 Posts: 2,040 Member
    Stupid internet ate my response! Crock pot/ slow cooker, consider one that also steams rice, batch cook refrigerate/ freeze and microwave leftovers, frozen fruit and vegetables for no prep, stick blender with own lidded beaker for soups and smoothies.
  • Freedom125
    Freedom125 Posts: 31 Member
    I often feel the same way. For 2 months I prepared meals in advance, but I just got so tired of doing it and burnt myself out. Between that and working out 6 nights a week I had NO time for my hobbies. Eventually I realized that that wasn't a sustainable lifestyle for me. I started looking for faster, easier meal ideas.

    Right now, my go-to meals for when I'm feeling tired/lazy are fruit smoothies (skim milk, protein powder, all-bran buds, spinach, and two kinds of frozen fruit), or scrambled eggs and whole grain toast, with a frozen fruit puree (usually frozen strawberries or raspberries, water, a bit of lemon juice and a bit of sweetener) on the side.

    So for me, my blender is key. It makes it so easy and delicious to get my fruits and veggies in..
  • melaniecheeks
    melaniecheeks Posts: 6,349 Member
    Check out Jamie Oliver's 15 minute recipes.
  • SToast
    SToast Posts: 255 Member
    I have been terrible at cooking meals ever since I got married 6 years ago. I'm surprised hubby hasn't starved to death! I found that keeping track of what I eat has motivated me to cook. I'm going on 3 months of cooking dinner almost every night and that is a first for me.

    I use my crock pot a lot and the BBQ grill. I also use my pressure cooker quite often. Hey you can cook a whole chicken in under 20 min! I also cook my meats in bulk then use them in other meals. Like chicken I'll do bbq chicken, then shredded chicken tacos, then chicken chowder. 3 meals and I only had to cook chicken once!
  • mperales00
    mperales00 Posts: 15
    Some cities have shops that have pre-prepared, portion controlled meals that you can pick up for the week. They're made fresh daily and come with all the nutritional information. My Fit Foods is a local chain where I live and the meals are reasonably priced and available in different sizes. This is a much better alternative than grabbing fast food all week. However, for the days where you feel like fast food is inevitable, make sure you look at the restaurant's nutritional information online so you can make better choices!
  • quirkytizzy
    quirkytizzy Posts: 4,052 Member
    Check out Jamie Oliver's 15 minute recipes.

    I am so going to do this. I can't blame work for my dislike of cooking - I just hate how long it takes. Passionately. 15 minutes is even faster than hard boiling eggs. I could do that! Thank you for the suggestion!
  • ZugTheMegasaurus
    ZugTheMegasaurus Posts: 801 Member
    It helps to prep ingredients ahead of time when you're not tired or in a rush (like on the weekend). For example, cut up fruit and vegetables and store them in the fridge. Or portion and cook off a few pounds of chicken in the oven, then just add however many portions you need to whatever meal you're having during the week and all it takes is the time to reheat it. Frozen vegetables are also a great option.

    I make tostadas that are really fast since everything is prepped beforehand. I'll make beans and chicken ahead of time, then put them on a toasted corn tortilla with cheese, avocado, sour cream, salsa, and lettuce. It takes all of 10 minutes since it just requires toasting the tortillas in the oven and heating up a serving of beans.
  • Zommbunny
    Zommbunny Posts: 42
    Healthy food does not ned to be time consuming. For instance if I'm cooking chicken i'll grab a couple of chicken breasts, sprinkly with spice and shove in the oven for 40 mins... that time i use to bath, fit in a quick workout or do houshold stuff. then shove soem veggies in a pot for 5 mins.....done!
    x:happy:
  • fragilewhisper
    fragilewhisper Posts: 3 Member
    Thank you all so much for the good advice and encouragement!! I got a slow cooker that I have yet to take out from the box, I think my fear of it burning the house down while I am at work has kept me from trying it out. I'll have to get a slow cooker cook book, and look up Jamie Oliver's recipes too :)
  • xbleedingxglitterx
    xbleedingxglitterx Posts: 27
    Slow cooker! I use mine all the time for soups and chicken. I freeze half of the soup (veggie, turkey chili, taco soup) so theres always a quick meal in my house in case I need it in a pinch. I do cook almost every night of the week though. I just like to have something healthy on hand so that I'm not tempted to order pizza for the days that I'm feeling lazy. You can also throw a bunch of chicken in the slow cooker and shred it and use it for tacos or sandwiches. It freezes very well too.
  • BonaFideUK
    BonaFideUK Posts: 313 Member
    Thank you all so much for the good advice and encouragement!! I got a slow cooker that I have yet to take out from the box, I think my fear of it burning the house down while I am at work has kept me from trying it out. I'll have to get a slow cooker cook book, and look up Jamie Oliver's recipes too :)

    Slow cookers just use hot water to cook what ever is the pot, keeping it hot with electricity. You have as much chance of burning your house down with one as you do using an alarm clock .
  • tjsoccermom
    tjsoccermom Posts: 500 Member
    I second everyone on the crock pot, it's so nice to come home and have dinner just about ready. I've been finding a lot of recipes on skinnytaste.com that I can't wait to try. Also, having a plan for the week sure helps. It easier to come home from work and know exactly what you're going to make and that you have everything on hand to make it. It also keeps me more motivated to get started on it, than when I have to search and see what there is to make. I would jot down recipes that you find and do your shopping based on that so you know you have everything. Also, making extra to freeze for those nights where you're just too tired to cook is great, too.
  • frankie71
    frankie71 Posts: 3
    Another suggestion is a pressure cooker. I just bought one not ever having used one. You can have a great meal in 15 minutes. Also don't be afraid of them as they are safe to use if you get an electric one. I made soup in 6 minutes, pork chops & cabbage, pot roast and a few other things.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    crock pot is a great idea and we do that quite a bit during the work week. Jamie Oliver's book is great and there are numerous recipes out there that don't require hours of prep and cooking time. I cook most of the meals in our house and we rarely eat out...most of the weekday meals I do take about 15-30 minutes prep and cook time.
  • BaileyP3
    BaileyP3 Posts: 151 Member
    My freezer is my best friend :-) Saying this, be forewarned that it takes a bit before you 'ride the wave' as I call it. I plan our meals for the month. The frozen poultry and meats are already in the freezer. On my least busy day of the week I have all my ingredients ready to go and I make double batches of casseroles.6 servings x 2 =12 serviings. We have that for dinner on the night I make it. Usually 9 servings are put in single serving containers and into the freezer...1 serving goes to work with him the next day.

    I repeat the same process with soup in the crockpot too. Make 6 servings, 3 in the freezer, 1 for the next days work.
    Stir-fries....cut all the veggies once a week and put them in ziplocs...we do stirfries at least twice a week.

    After a month or so you end up having a nice wariety of meals in the freezer. Yes it takes organization but you get to the point that you're on auto pilot :-) If they're in the freezer you take it out in the morning, take it to work or let it defrost all day and have it for dinner when you get home. All you'll need to do is warm it up and you're good to go :-)

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