Beginners cooking recipes needed

sunnyface86
sunnyface86 Posts: 10
in Food and Nutrition
Hi, so since starting this weight loss journey I've either been eating raw foods or packaged foods like healthy choice and laughing cow cheese. The down side to the latter is the crapload of sodium associated with it. And doing raw isn't bad but I need some taste o it. I've never been much of cook, I've mastered boiling water, so pasta could be made, but other than that, not much. Worried over taste, portion size, and accounting for calories. Not a vegan or vegetarian, but I not eat beef.

If anyone has any recipes they use, let me know, would love to try.

Replies

  • Confuzzled4ever
    Confuzzled4ever Posts: 2,860 Member
    Ohhh.. easyyyyy

    put a pat of unsalted butter or extra virgin olive oil or organic pure coconut oil in a pan. Add onions and garlic.. sautte until translucent. Add any veggies you want (celery, pepper, tomatilios) and then a protein with salt and pepper. I did this today with tilipia and a squeeze of lemon.

    Cut up fresh raw veggies in ay combo you want and add a tsp or two of balasmic vinegar

    Mix 2 cups brussel sprouts (i cut them in half) with 1/2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper and roast in over.

    Slice a potato super thin and bake in oven on a spayed cookie sheet 15 minutes on each side. Top with salsa (home made potato chips!) Or do the same with kale.

    Throw an avocado in greek yogurt with some salsa and garlic. Dip for crackers or veggies!

    I've got so many!! LOL
  • WBB55
    WBB55 Posts: 4,131 Member
    You could...

    Buy a "fuzzy logic" rice cooker that also has a slow cooker function and a steamer tray. It does the cooking for you.

    or maybe...

    Learn to make healthy stir fry
  • Confuzzled4ever
    Confuzzled4ever Posts: 2,860 Member
    i love my wok too.. make stir-frying so easy! You can use OJ instead of oil and any veggies you want.. Add ginger root and soy sauce and viola you have Chinese food. LOL
  • DaniAni19
    DaniAni19 Posts: 91 Member
    I used to be so afraid of cooking. I would justs eat out all the time. Recently, I found this youtube channel and her videos are so inspiring! Now I cook simple whole food recipes at home and am actually sticking with a plan. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVIe_fLmMME
  • DaniAni19
    DaniAni19 Posts: 91 Member
    Check out this video, I think this is what helped me to see that cooking doesn't have to be complicated! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nozq1pLbTdQ
  • Emtabo01
    Emtabo01 Posts: 672
    I started using a lot of recipes from skinnytaste.com. Easy and delicious. I've expanded a bit in my talents over the past 6 months.
  • lawtechie
    lawtechie Posts: 708 Member
    Chicken and spinach florentine with brown rice.

    Buy a box of Minute brown rice andon the back is the recipe, or see here. Instead of fresh baby spinach, I used a 10 oz package of frozen spinach. Once cooked be sure to dry it really well. All other aspects of the recipe I kept the same. Probably added more tomatoes too. Love the veggies!

    It's DELICIOUS!!!!

    http://www.minuterice.com/en-us/recipes/2888/ChickenandSpinachFlorentine.aspx

    Using the same basic settings, tonight I made chicken stir fry, using a bag of frozen stir fry veggies (little/no sodium) and cooked the chicken, added the rice w/ water instead of chicken broth. Didn't quite cook the rice long enough -- but it was still edible enough and the 3 portions of leftovers will be cooked enough once microwaved.

    PS: My diary is open if you want some more suggestions. Feel free to msg me for recipes.
  • KariRoseDoll
    KariRoseDoll Posts: 47 Member
    I definitely recommend skinnytaste.com. I tried her healthy chicken nuggets they other day, only I modified them a little. I put them over raw spinach, added a little avocado, and I was happy. Granted, I eat all my salads plain, but there is so much you can do with them. All of her stuff is pretty simple and straightforward.
  • marsellient
    marsellient Posts: 591 Member
    If you do a search on MFP you'll find great lists of websites people recommend. Really, just don't be afraid to cook. Learn the basic terms (google!) and experiment. Invest in a few good pieces of cookware. Try a slow cooker. Build up your choices of herbs and spices to season your meals.
    A simple, healthy meal is to roast a chicken breast and steam or stir fry a bunch of veggies. Lemon juice makes a good seasoning for vegetables.
    Good luck. All it takes is a little practice!

    ETA: You mentioned counting calories. The recipe builder on MFP works very well for me and does all the work. Add raw ingredients and decide the number of servings. The ingredient search is pretty fast if you add "raw" to your search. (E.g. Onion, raw)
  • DL21Smith
    DL21Smith Posts: 27 Member
    What has really helped me is an app on my phone for Spark People. I never could get into their site (thought it was boring) but the free app on my phone has a TON of great recipes. If you don't want to use the app, you can go to their site. There is a bunch of reviews to the recipes too. Good luck!!
  • Confuzzled4ever
    Confuzzled4ever Posts: 2,860 Member
    ETA: You mentioned counting calories. The recipe builder on MFP works very well for me and does all the work. Add raw ingredients and decide the number of servings. The ingredient search is pretty fast if you add "raw" to your search. (E.g. Onion, raw)
    yes! I discovered this yesterday! I log so many raw veggies it was driving me nuts! It finally dawned on me that I'm always picking the one that said raw! Gets you through all those other options.. some of them have millions I think! LOL
  • sunnyface86
    sunnyface86 Posts: 10
    Thank you so much. My inner foodie turned skinny appreciates it.

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