Is it possible? Food shop

[TheLimeQuail]

Is it possible to buy easy foods that don’t take a lot of time or preparation, 10 mins max prep, still healthy but doesn’t cost a fortune over all? Could do with ideas.

Depends on what your idea of not a fortune is. The other factors are definitely doable, especially if it's prep that is the issue, not cooking time. We do a lot of tray bakes that take about four mins to prep but need 50 mins in the oven.

No. To be honest, it's a ridiculous ask. If you want to bung chips in the oven, do that and don't feel bad about doing so, but unless you are going to eat a bag of salad with some ready cooked fish or chicken on top, nothing will take 10 minsand be relatively healthy. Why can't you spend half an hour on dinner?

Depends what you mean by cost a fortune.

our standard lunch is bread, cheese and tomatoes/cucumber/carrot sticks. That’s pretty cheap depending on what cheese you get.

i’m currently having an orange and an apple juice for breakfast.

my most simple meal consists of putting some potatoes in a steamer, followed by a piece of cod, or haddock, and 5 minutes before they are ready, adding frozen peas. Simple, and nourishing imo.

This takes around 25 minutes, in total.

Bag salad, cheese, croutons.

I had a stir fry tonight.
Frozen bag of mixed veg from Aldi, noodles, Hoisin sauce and chucked fish in for the last ten mins.
Not a conventional mix but it was very quick and enjoyable. For sure I’ll do it again.

I'm very one-pot. Something like this:

Boil water
100g per person mince... a few minutes frying, tip out into a bowl. (You could add finely sliced courgette, onion, peppers etc at this stage for veg).

Same pot, add boiled water and pasta. 8 minutes or so.

Tip out water, re-add meat... and add sauce. 2 minutes.

Done.

Aldi chicken breast pieces (no chopping needed), fry with smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder. Serve on flatbread or with rice. Chop tomatoes and cucumber for salad, mix with Sumac, salt and olive oil.

Boiled new potatoes, cold smoked mackerel, broccoli and green beans. 25 mins, 20 of which you can do something else in the kitchen whilst it cooks

Steaming veg in the microwave is very quick, 4 mins for tenderstem broccoli, for example.

I buy those ready cooked salmon fillets from Lidl. Boil pasta (10 mins) then while it is cooking, whizz up a bag of watercress and rocket salad with some lemon juice and half a pot of Philadelphia cream cheese. This makes a healthy pesto. Add to the cooked pasta and flake the 2 pre-cooked salmon in. 15 mins top. V yummy.

Couscous with pan fried Mediterranean veg ( defrosted frozen mix) with pan fried fish or chicken takes about 10 minutes. Not super cheap though

Depends on ability and health, I often need quick food, poached eggs on toast, cherry tomatoes,,

What kind of tray bakes do you make? I don’t mind how long something takes once in the oven but don’t really like prepping so your prep to cook time ratio sounds ok to me!

we like tortellini as a quick meal 3 mins to boil - grate of parmesan and balsamic with few lettuce leaves.

omelette and toast another favorite.

frozen prawns with a curry sauce and micro rice.

stir fry with ready made noodles.

I sometimes have what I can only describe as "toddler tea". My teenagers quite like it too.

Cubes cheese, cherry tomatoes, buttered bread, chopped apple also anything else in the fridge ie. Olives, grapes, hummus etc

Like a picnic on a plate.

If it's only some days that you don't have much time to food prep then some batch cooking might work for you.

Tinned chicken in white sauce
Microwave brown rice
Mushrooms (chop, microwave then add to the chicken while its heating in a saucepan)
Very quick and easy.

Home made pasta sauce from the freezer, just microwave while the pasta is cooking. If run out can get pasta sauce from Co-op instead.

Stir-fry tofu/chicken/whatever, stir-fry veg, wholewheat noodles.

All these are quick and easy, and not expensive.

Eggs for omelette
mushrooms for stroganoff
or I just prop bags for the slow cooker - so them all at once keep in the fridge - freeze anything left over for next week ( make for 6 and us 3 eat half)

I'm having:

Frozen fish fillets with frozen mixed veg and frozen onions, microwave 4½ mins with a bit of hot water. Drain water.
Microwave rice, 2 mins in pouch.
Tip rice into veg/fish dish. Add flavouring (fish sauce, soy sauce and lemongrass in my case).
Break up fish with a fork, check it's cooked, microwave another minute if not.

Also works with small chicken pieces if not frozen.

Last night I had:

Baby new potatoes, cooked in microwave 3 minutes.
Added frozen veg, back in microwave 3 minutes.
Pork loin steaks, coated in yoghurt with harissa and baharat spices, air fried 10 minutes while veg cooking.

You can ring any number of changes with this - different veg, rice, different meat, different flavourings.

Tomorrow will be:

Oven chips, air fried 10 mins, with steak in air fryer after 5 mins.
Bagged mixed salad with tomatoes.

Any day:

Baked potato: microwave 5 mins, air fry 5 mins
Can of tuna, salmon, whatever.
Bagged salad or microwaved frozen veg.

Fallback dinner:

Tin of curry, microwave rice, I might add other veg to curry.

I've only got the microwave & air fryer! If you have a proper oven and hob, you can really broaden your scope.

Also don't underestimate the slow cooker - put everything in and start it 4+ hours before dinner.

I don't prepare veg as have no energy, and am careful of the nutritional content of my fast, easy dinners :)

I have frozen mushrooms, onions, peppers which I can add to an omelette with some salad.
Or baked beans/ tinned tomatoes/ scrambled egg on toast.

Soup and a roll.
I also batch cook and will then make some rice/pasta in about 15 minutes.
I struggle due to disability and my ability will vary so always have preprepared foods in the freezer (I even have sandwiches in the freezer for when I don't have the energy).

1 x jacket potato, 10 mins in microwave, add simple protein of tuna mixed with sweetcorn and mayo. Serve with side salad.

If you have a rice cooker: basmati rice with turmeric and a handful of frozen mixed veg. About 10 mins for a 2 person portion. Whilst that's cooking, fry some diced mushroom and garlic if vegetarian/garlic and oily fish from tin/ garlic and finely diced chicken on high temp.

If I'm just making for myself, Heinz Beans on Toast with grated cheese on top is amazing 😋.

Or, poached egg on toast with a simple side salad of leaves, cucumber, tomato and salad dressing.

Soup maker also makes quick and healthy left over veg soup, just throw in whatever you have along with a handful of frozen onions (I always have leftover onions so chop them and throw them in the freezer).

Could I just ask what's steaming potatoes?? I steam broccoli, carrots green veg but not potatoes.