Dinner ideas that are quick/low effort but not junk

[Bubble678910]

We've recently started a business which means we spend a lot of weekends travelling around the country (from either Wednesday or Thursday - Sunday typically) attending trade shows and country fairs etc.

We are both struggling to think of things to have on a Sunday night when we get home - we'll be working on the Sunday daytime, and will get back after the shops have closed at about 6ish or later.

When we get back, there's also lots of work to do (unhitching the trailer/unpacking bags/putting stock away etc) so want something we can just put in the oven or can be ready quickly.

I should add, we only have a small freezer so pre-making a lasagna or something isn't really an option, and we won't have chance in the day to go to a shop as we'll be working. We also don't want to rely on fast food and takeaways as stopping at the services with our trailer etc is a bit of a nightmare!

My current ideas are:

• Chicken burgers
• Ravioli pasta with a sauce
• Pizza and salad

Omelettes are fast and filling. Puttanesca sauce for pasta takes around 10 minutes.
Veg stir fry packs with prawns is also very quick and easy.

Bowls! Salmon rice bowls, Chicken fajita bowls, Taco mince bowls. Super quick and so easy. Can be done start to finish in under 20m, healthy, can change up the seasonings / sauces / salad to make it feel “new”.

Buy the frozen veg (tiny freezer I’m assuming can fit some frozen onions, garlic, peppers in) - for chicken fajita bowls and taco mince bowls just pop the onion, garlic and peppers in a pan. Leave to soften for a few mins, pop in the meats and seasoning (either pre mixed or packet!) and leave to cook for 10m it just needs the odd stir. Same time pop some rice on, cut an avocado up and get some pre-made salad bags. Within 15m you’ve got a full meal in a bowl!

You can skip the pan and even just season the chicken (not mince!) and pop it in the air fryer and use fresh pre chopped veg.

For salmon bowls, just pop the seasoned salmon (I like to do chinese salt and pepper) in the oven / air fryer for 15m, pop some rice on, top the rice with the cooked salmon and some avocado and sauces, can eat as is or with some dried seaweed crisps.

Ravioli with sage butter sauce is easy. Sauce takes about 5 mins (google any recipe).

if you can get frozen roast potatoes you can cook in advance then dice the leftovers for quick Spanish omelette.

chicken / beef fajitas are a favourite quick meal in our house.

Investigate what meals can be left in a slow cooker. It can safely be left on all day. Stews, sausages, mince etc etc.
Presuming you have one ! Or worth investing in one for hot food ?

Salmon fillets baked in oven with any flavour Chinese 5 spice salt and olive oil works well x

Our quick dinners are

Fajitas using salmon, white fish, or prawns or chicken. Cabbage keeps for ever in fidge and you can thinly slice. Also frozen red peppers are fine or jarred red peppers. Add some black beans too.

Stir-fry. Sometimes use hot smoked salmon as that keeps a while in tbe fridge.

Omelette

a slow cooker could be useful @Bubble678910

Any one pot recipes such as this are easy

Others, here

Grilled chicken breast and fried rice.
About 5 minutes prep and about 12 minutes to cook.
Egg fried rice takes about 4 minutes to cook if you use rice pouches.
Minute steak with salad and chips done in air fryer.

Lamb chops, pork chops with veg. Fishcakes either made or bought with veg. Rissoles.

The quickest meals I make are anything using fish - it can be fried or baked in the oven in less than 10 minutes.

Also prawns. I do a prawn and couscous recipe that only involves frying an onion and some courgette, adding prawns and couscous which is cooked by being soaked in boiling water while the veg are frying.

Stir fries. Especially if you buy the packs of stir fry vegetables and ready cut meat if you want meat in it, and the packets of sauce. Literally takes 10 mins from start to finish.

My old standby: poached eggs on beans on toast.

Cheese on toast, egg on toast, beans on toast, tuna melt.

Stir fry, fajitas, quesadillas, casseroles chucked in the slow cooker in the morning, macaroni cheese with bags of frozen mixed veg steam bags, veggie omelette, basic chilli or spag bol, thai red or green curry with prawns or salmon/white fish, oven baked salmon fillets with couscous or microwave rice.

We have a plain quick dinner once a week. Pan fried sea bass wit lemon butter (comes in the pack), mini new potatoes (boil quickly), and microwave veg. Although you could steam tenderstem broccoli just as quickly.

I do twice the amount of potatoes and then the next day have them fried with egg and sausages.

Carbonara or stifrys are are go to quick meals - ready in 15 mins.

Or fish cakes - in the 20 mins in the oven, chop up a broccoli and a carrot out on to steam for 10 mins, and you’re good to go.

Lemon pasta.

Cook the spaghetti.
Mix the grated zest and juice of one lemon per diner, plus 50g of grated Parmesan for each diner.

When the pasta is cooked, put a tablespoon of the pasta water per diner into the lemon and Parmesan mix, and stir it through the hot pasta. Add cooked chicken or prawns.

You can add petit pois or asparagus too if you want.

Traybakes are handy. Chicken thighs cook quickly and add some veg and baby potatoes. It can cook while you are unloading the trailer.

These are great ideas! Thank you!

Sorry if I didn't make it clear, we are away from the Wednesday or Thursday so can't put something in the slow cooker in the morning unfortunately.

It's very plain and DH calls it "old people food" but sometimes I like plain and just tasting the food itself rather than garlic etc, but for my ultimate no hassle but nutritious meal I throw some baby potatoes in their skins into a steamer then add broccoli, and a salmon fillet. You don't need to do anything but get the timings right. Barely any washing up.

I have an electric steamer but that's too much of a faff with it's different parts so instead I simply use a large saucepan with a few inches of water in and I have a steamer accesory which goes in it and everything goes in that. Lid on. Job done.

Bit of butter on the potatoes when you put it on the plate, and salt and pepper over everything and done. I like to cook that when I'm feeling under the weather with a cold or something and know I need to eat well with plenty of nutrition but don't have the energy to stand and cook.

Another one is "Kentucky baked chicken". You can premake the spice rub so it's already in the cupboard. Then just coat the chicken breasts in the rub and throw them in the oven for 25 mins ish. Oven chips make it even easier, and you can have it with whatever veg you want that's least hassle to cook.

Omelette and big salad. Baked potato and salad (easy to speed up in microwave and finish in the oven). I use home made dressing on my salad (keep it in the fridge and take out for a bit before I use it)

Home made soup that you've premade and portioned up to be put in the freezer. Easy to defrost overnight or in the microwave. I have veg soup, then cheese and crackers. Piece of fruit for dessert. Cos again, I'm conscious of it needing to be quick BUT nutritious. That's got plenty of vitamins, fiber, protein, fat, calcium, carbs.

Baked potatoes with cheese or coleslaw or tuna or baked beans

Get fresh pasta. Cooks in 5m not more like 20.

A steamer can also do all three elements of a meal in 20m max and minimal washing up. Potatoes in the bottom tier, then chicken or fish, then veg.

Season and add a knob of butter (Lidl do great flavoured butters) and it's lovely. You can use the water to make a gravy too.

You need a slow cooker and/or an air fryer

Pan fried salmon, peppers and tomatoes on herby couscous.

10 mins from packet to plate

Shakshuka is quick and easy really filling if you chuck a tin of butter beans into the sauce, stirfrys can be done in minutes if you get a bag of the pre chopped veg, then add protein of choice.

Do you have decent fridge space for a lasagne or other meal preps? Most things made at the start of the week would last fine in the fridge until Sunday.

In addition to those already mentioned, my children love this (feeds 4): quarter a pack of 500g extra lean mince, and spread one portion over a tortilla wrap (really press it down)….sprinkle this with a tiny bit of salt and pan fry for a couple of minutes on each side. Sprinkle with some grated cheese and serve with Avacado / tomatoes etc.