What do you do for tea during heatwaves ?

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I really don’t want to put the range cooker on during a heatwave, the thought of it fills me with dread ! Got me thinking, what dinners do you do when it’s so hot? I need ideas other than just salad.

No? Not if you live in one of the many new builds. Anyway, my point was there isn’t great ventilation, no extractor for example plus our single pain windows don’t open !

Chicken kebabs, flatbread, salad
Burgers and salad
pasta
random collection of cold stuff if too hot to face cooking

I tend to make things in the slow cooker,l also cook a ham in it and have it with bread and salad. If you have another way to cook stir-fry is good.

I'm quite happy to just have the same thing several days in a row, so I'm going to do maybe like a big batch of chilli con carne in the slow cooker, a big cauliflower/broccoli or macaroni cheese bake, that sort of thing and maybe some chicken breasts that I can quickly cook in the oven and then eat over several days afterwards and obviously just steam some veg/heat up some store bought mash in the microwave etc.

I shall be using my oven as little as possible...it's a tiny west-facing kitchen that gets all the afternoon sub and easily gets 30+ degrees during hot weather if the oven is on as well! The one window it has doesn't really let wind/airflow in that well for cooling it down.

Call mozzarella salad boring but it's a lovely tasteful accompaniment to hot or cold meats. Although I tend to make that the main point of a meal and work around it.

Some good options here, thanks. Just to add there isn’t anything wrong with my cooker, it’s a brand new induction range we had for our new house, it’s the house that’s the problem i guess, tiny kitchen with no opening windows. Single pane glass and no extractor. Getting it extended when we have the extra money but obviously that doesn’t solve the issues now, it gets so hot in there, oh also west facing garden and the kitchen is at the back of the house so as you can imagine it’s like a furnace come the evening 🥵

I have just meal planned and written my shopping list:

Today: Barbecued Chicken and steak, Greek salad, new potatoes with rosemary, finished on the barbecue, coleslaw.

Tom: salad with: lettuce, toms, cu, pepper, avo, olives, sun dried toms, mozzarella and half a shredded chicken, good garlic flatbread.

Tues: left over salad, perhaps topped up a bit, ham and potato salad (see pots above), might hardboil a couple of eggs.

Weds: Lamb chops (on the barbecue), greek salad, cous cous salad.

Thurs: chicken salad, with grapes and tarragon (chop spring onions, add to half mayo/half cream, tarragon, black pepper, halved green grapes, add half a roast chicken), finish the cous, green salad.

Lots of freah fruot available and cornettos/gelato tubs in the freezer.

The only cooking will be on the barbecue.

Wraps and sandwiches and some potato salad, coleslaw, toms, cucumber on the side. Not doing anything more than that. Oh and some ice cream to finish of course.

Can you not put a big stand up fan in the kitchen or would that make it worse? It must be quite unbearable so I can see why you would want to be just in and out of the kitchen.

Niçoise salad is a favourite, Greek marinated chicken in the air fryer with Greek salad and flatbreads is another, any kind of nice salad with a box of ready made frites done in the air fryer…

BBQ will be on everynight,
today - chicken, baked potatoes and Mediterranean veg
Tomorrow - Salmon
Tues - gyros
Wed - pork, chicken and prawn kebabs
will be a fair amount of salads and chargrilled veg to go with it all.
would rather be outside when it’s nice

Chicken cooked early in the day ready for a Caesar salad later (with homemade giant croutons from the airfryer).
Tomorrow is giant sausage roll (air fryer) and salad.
Tues is quiche….and salad.
Weds will be summat and salad.
I had a sudden spurt of thinking ahead at about midnight last night and made up a jelly with a tin of mandarins in so that’s a treat for later…ice cream and jelly cools down your belly.

I don't really change my eating habits dependent on the weather specifically more due to my appetite and levels of motivation for cooking and eating!

This week will probably be, in no particular order, pork belly and salad; chicken thighs and salad; pork souvlaki and salad; lamb kofta and salad; chicken gyros and salad... Salads and specific meals may vary depending on available herbs and spices and appetite.

I made mayonnaise and tzatziki this morning so that's the week covered anyway.

See user name 😉.

We tend to eat as we would on a hot holiday, so bbq’d grilled meats, tapas, bean ( or more substantial) salads, pizza, paella, baked or boiled potatoes. You can cook nearly anything on a Kamado. No need to put the oven on.

Oh God, someone's going to say "picky bits" or "picky tea" aren't they? 🤮

Yes, you.

Our meal plan

quiche (made today) baked potatoes and salad

bbq pulled pork in buns with coleslaw and corn on the cob

chicken wraps

bbq

I do have one of those tower fans so will try using that. My husband is actually an air con engineer but you can’t just install air con anywhere it has to be an appropriate place which there isn’t one atm, so once this extension is done he’s going to install a massive system and I can’t wait 😆

Yes what a massive difference that will make.it will be worth it x

Crackers and cheese and salad, dried fruits, jarred veg, fruit, yogurt, cereal and dried fruit, cous cous (just add water) milk to drink.

No toaster, no microwave, no oven or hob. It's unbearable at 28-32 inside.

Tonight, the kids are having sandwiches, strawberries and cucumber. DH and I will be having smoked salmon and goats cheese salad. I can’t turn the oven on, I am melting!

We just cook with the air fryer & ninja sizzler. To hot for the oven!

Whatever we'd normally have. Why wouldn't you cook as normal? 🤨

Salads with protein, like cob salad or salad nicoise, etc. made with precooked chicken or canned tuna.

Pasta boiled on hob with sauce made quickly on stove top.

Rotisserie chicken and baggette from supermarket with green tossed salad.

Nothing in the oven at all.

Ice lollies, jelly, ice cream for dessert.

My oven heats up my (small) kitchen really badly too. Probably a ventilation issue as my kitchen is small and only has one small window.

Anyway, we are planning a lot of sandwiches, salads, quick pastas and ice lollies this week. Like hell am I spending any significant amount of time cooking in 40° heat, which is what we have been forecast here.

On less hot days when I still don't want to stand in front of my oven or over the stove, I use my slow cooker.