Meals on UK holiday - ideas please

[Gladtimeslady]

I'm going to be staying in a self-catering cottage on a pretty isolated farm in June with my 2 adult children and their partners and my grandchildren aged 3 years and 18 months.

We can have a supermarket delivery and I'm starting to think about what meals we might cook for our evening meals while we are there, bearing in mind that the kitchen equipment in a holiday cottage can be very limited. We are a big foodie family and all enjoy cooking, but I want the holiday to be as relaxing as possible for the children's parents so I don't want anyone to be spending hours in the kitchen or driving to a supermarket to shop.

We would usually take some frozen home cooked meals (like lasagne, fish pie and moussaka) with us but, for reasons that are too boring to explain, we can't do that this year.

What interesting but simple meals would you suggest we cook there?

The farm sells frozen home cooked meals (like a mini, local version of Cook) so we won't starve whatever happens.

Given you say you are a foodie family, assume you
want something a bit more special than just pouches and jars? I'd go for steak and salad one night- some really nice dressed tomatoes, nice leaves with a buttermilk dressing etc and maybe some onion rings or fries. Jamie Oliver has a recipe for a fabulous salmon tray bake with new potatoes and asparagus which is quick and easy but delicious. Then I'd cheat and get a takeaway/Cook ready meal with lovely side dishes or similar.

Definitely check with your hosts what cooking appliances, fridge/freezer space and kitchen equipment you'll have in advance! I once bought a massive shop on the way to a holiday let to discover it had a mini fridge and a baby belling, plus BBQ!

If you are really limited with equipment etc, fajitas, pasta and sauce, anything with eggs, nice bread and cheese all work well.

Thank you everyone for your ideas. I really appreciate you taking the time to respond.

You've given me lots of food for thought (pun intended).

Here’s one we had at a recent large family cottage stay - it’s good because it’s really quick to cook, very simple ingredients, but (in my mind) unreasonably tasty and quite fun! It’s also quite a good one with kids as you can just add in alternative bits (eg chopped up sausages, cherry tomatoes on the side etc) if there are bits they don’t like.

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/smoky-pork-black-bean-tacos

Buy tin foil trays for the oven, you can get them in medium and large. You can use for roast chicken, tray or pasta bakes, lasagne or moussaka etc. Saves you worrying about oven trays, lets you prep in advance when there and stack in fridge or freezer, and saves on washing up!

Thank you so much for the further comments.

The foil trays are a really good idea.

I also love the recipe for the smoky pork tacos. An interesting change from chilli. I will definitely give this ago.

My best holiday dinner that woukd be too 'simple ' at home is tinned tomatoes with jarred ( not tinned) tuna with pasta.

Whereabouts are you going? If you are all foodies, I would google the area and see what local/seasonal produce is available.
Farm shops, specialist producers etc.

Cook some pasta, drain, cook some diced chicken, throw some double cream and a couple jars of red pesto through it all and serve with garlic flat bread,and broccoli
one of my favourite easy but tasty dinners

Definitely google the area and see if there's a local food delivery service to supplement your supermarket delivery - eg a local fish supplier

And definitely check fridge/freezer capacity before you order a week of food and have nowhere to put it...

Also have a backup plan for the first night in case your supermarket delivery is delayed - last year Tesco really let me down by cancelling the slot on the day and rebooking for the following evening!

I like to have extra nice food and wine on holiday rather than functional meals, so I go for this kind of menu - easy but quite expensive ingredients:

Steak, french fries, green beans, garlic butter.

Carbonara, green salad, garlic bread

Barbecued marinated fish fillets and halloumi (take a disposable mini BBQ for this) with rice, pitta, feta and tomato salads, hummus etc

Roasted chicken legs with parmentier potatoes (bought) and salads

2 nights - a takeaway or a Cook ready meal

I second taking a large pan that can hold enough pasta for 6 - holiday cottages rarely have decent sized pans. Really annoying!