Very low effort meals needed

[IsaBisaBuildsaBoat]

I have ME/CFS and have just realised I need to be more strategic about time spent in the kitchen. I need to reduce effort as much as possible, basically. Shame, as I enjoy cooking (sometimes) and have resisted making this change for too long. I use a perching stool so I can sit while I chop but still, the lower effort the better.

I need to change my shopping habits to include more preprepared frozen veg, frozen steam rice, more family size ready meals, and incorporate more dishes that are like 'dump the jar on the chicken beasts and walk away for forty minutes'.

So, please share your low effort tips. I would really really appreciate it.

Beyond thank you for that. Many people have no idea.

I'm sure a thread like this can have helpful ideas for lots of people Isa,
thanks for starting it

Babybels, dairylea triangles, pepperamis, frubes

Get some 'fruit' in - little cartons of OJ and boxes of raisins

Don't have specific meal suggestions but those froze Mediterranean veg are good. Ocado are nice and chunky. Think Sainsbury was too. Have tesco at the moment which is a bit bitty.

Good for pasta sauces etc.

Ooh and if you fry some and chuck some feta cubes in last minute it makes a good luck with bread or cous cous.

Philadelphia cheese (with herbs etc. ) melted over pasta makes a lovely sauce. Bit of ham and a bag of salad and mmmm.

Oh and, if you are thinking of a slow cooker - I won (thanks Mumsnet) a Heston risotto maker /slow cooker. Amazing! 20 minutes to perfect, no stir risotto.

Lidl frozen paella. So easy and tasty!

I love this thread, some brilliant ideas.
I've just added frozen mixed grilled veg to my ocado shop (peppers, aubergine etc took a bit of finding) and never knew you could cook pasta in milk then just add cheese.

Not sure how helpful this will be as I've lost the recipe but I used to cook what was basically an oven baked omlette .

It used fozen veg - green beans etc - some cream and cheese .I found it easier than cooking on top of stove and it was thicker and more filling .

Maybe someone will have more exact details .

Someone should do a cookery programme based on this thread - there are so many other ones - a really simple, cook for your family using every possible convenience and short cut prog would be fab! I think Delia did something along those lines - but there's room to go simpler I think. We all have to rustle up something for the DC every night one way or the other!

I know you don't want your Dh to do more, but if he cooks at weekends anyway it's the perfect time to make a double batch of things like casserole, Bolognese sauce and curry etc to store in the freezer. Then you will have a simple meal when you are really tired. Of course you can do the same if you cook a suitable meal too. If you look on Amazon you will find some good containers to store these meals in

So glad so many people are finding this useful! Things that take minimal prep and then minimal final assembly will make my life much much better.

I remember Waitrose frozen pea and aspargus risotto got a mention on a previous thread... It is nice.

Isa to you too. I don't always admit to DH if I've struggled whilst he's at work, he does so much already. A snack box is a great idea. We used to have those at uni for lazy middle of the night feasts.

Laundry I will mention this to him. We are all about leftovers but we can be more systematic.

Yes, if your DH cooks at weekend then batching is a good idea.

There was also a show/book a while ago called something like Economy Gastronomy, which was about taking one base thing and using it for lots of meals. That kind of thing might be a plan - e.g if he does a bolognaise one night at the weekend, another portion can have beans and a bit of chili powder added to become a chili with hardly any effort (I realise purists would say that they are totally separate recipes. I could live with them not being authentic, so maybe you could). Do you already do all that kind of stuff or might it help? (I understand you don't want to make more work for him, but I find doubling rarely adds much work, unless there is a lot of chopping involved).

Oh, cross post. Sorry

One thing I struggle with, shopping online, is knowing how much meat to buy in a roasting joint. If, for instance, DH roasts pork at the weekend, I will order a joint but I want to have enough for leftovers for a couple of days. But I never know how much is too much (used to be vegan and only roasted a chicken myself for the first time this year - literally). Should I just go as big as possible or is that silly?

Loving this thread OP! Very useful for yourself who is finding it a bit tough, but also great for the terminally lazy like me!

Those frozen chargrilled veg are lush. I cook off chopped chicken (but it already chopped up), throw in the veggies, throw on a jar of good pasta sauce, leave to bubble for 10 minutes and your done - well lush with grated cheese on top.

Microwave mash and micro rice are the best thing ever invented.

Don't be hard on yourself either OP, if you are anything near my age, then you may have been raised on boil in the bag beef and crispy pancakes and we turned out ok!

The quanties on line is just trial and error op!

I also genuinely just need to change my attitude to prioritise fuelling the family with minimum effort. When someone says I can just reheat leftovers for lunch I automatically think, 'Or I could whip up an omelette.' But that thinking needs to stop. I need to make food as convenient as possible (while still being nice and healthy ish).

Joints depend really.

Lamb I don't find good for much except curry, so you don't want masses of leftovers.

Beef and pork a bit more flexible. I wouldn't necessarily go massive, but there are more things to do with them.

Chicken - tbh people tend to eat 'a breast' or 'a leg' so it seems in our house that you have the scrappy leftovers whatever you buy. Mind you, MNers will also tell you that they can feed a family of 5 for a month on a chicken...

I'm not good on actual weights as I shop at the butcher and by sight, but am sure someone will be.

Is the dropping the vegan diet to do with your illness OP? I just ask because I have a vegan family member who had to go back to eating meat because of ME (I realise you can eat healthily on a vegan diet, but it's that catch 22 of it taking more effort that you don't have....). Are there particular meats you like or find hard to stomach? Or are you just a carnivore by choice and with enthusiasm these days?

For joints I do an ounce per person. Add a couple of extra ounces for leftovers.

Attitude shift when you become chronically ill is one of the hardest things. Especially if you've always prided yourself on being able to do everything.

Oh, my other question was going to be whether there are any favourite meals your DH likes to cook at the weekend?

Some posters might have ideas how to turn extra quantities into different things for variety, but it's nice to start with things you already like