Favourite week night dinners for working mums

[mrspir8]

Ideas please!

I am a bit disillusioned with my cooking at mo-On days off when I am not busy-which is very few. I bulk cook, but my repetoire is beginning to bore me. Out of a large pack of beef I usually make a ragu, a cottage pie and some meatballs or burgers. Out of a big pack of chicken thighs I make, chicken supreme or chicken pie filling which I top with pastry as I need it. I also make fish pie and beef stew as freeze ahead dinners.

I am also looking for ideas for freshly cooked weeknight dinners that take about half an hour. The usuals in our house are pork chops, fish fillets in foil packs in the oven. We have a one night a week where we have a junk food oven dinner-chips and kievs/fishfingers etc. But i really want something different to expand my menu

Salmon filet pieces - spead with pesto from a jar and put in oven for 25 mins. Easy!

One of my favourite quick things is pasta with a sauce of leeks, mushrooms and bacon (or pancetta). Melt butter, toss in a load of chopped up garlic (I like lots, but you can skip it if your kids don't like it), add the mushrooms, leeks and bacon and cook for about 8 minutes. Add Philadelphia and stir in (as much or little as you like depending on how wet you want it). Meanwhile, cook the pasta (I usually do tagliatelle with this, but obviously anything will do).

Stir pasta into sauce. Voila!

I am a pretty basic cook, and this is delicious and always goes down well. Takes about 20 mins.

risotto? Pasta carbonara? Curry?

For four I would use two large leeks. I just guess at the mushroom quantity, not very scientific, I know. And a packet of pancetta, or 6 slices of bacon.

Spicy rice. Saute onions garlic and celery add 1/2 tspn each of cumin, ground coriander and turmeric, stir in basmati rice add hot stock (twice as muc liquid as rice by volume). Cover and simmer until the rice is cooked, stir in left over cooked chicken or cooked salmon, fresh coriander and lemon or lime. very versatile.

Polenta - make it the night before and cut into pieces and then grill or fry when you get home while preparing a creamy or tomato based sauce and some veg.

Big salad with hard boiled eggs or cold meat, cold steamed potatoes or couscous etc to make it filling

There is another thread on RECIPE section asking the same question - SEE HERE

I bulk-cook home made fishcakes and potato croquettes, then they need about 20 mins in the oven from frozen

Escalopes of chicken/pork/veal can be breadcrumbed in advance, frozen separately and pan fried quickly after defrosting

Irish stew

Puffs - chicken(leftovers from a roast) or salmon (I often use tinned) in white sauce, plus broccoli, wrapped in puff pastry and cooked

Any leftover meat from a roast I freeze with some of the gravy, then serve with pasta and veg, the gravy makes a lovely sauce.

Can I recommend Nigella's "Nigella Express"? It is life changing.

WOW reading this makes me feel like a crap mum/cook....and all this from a working mum. I work FT too and cook every night ....but my meals are boring and very repetitive

Mon: HM burger in bun + cheese and salad

Tues: Chili and garlic pasta with tomato, mozzarella, para ham and basil stacks. (takes 12 minutes and i LOVE this)

Wed: Jacket potatoes, chicken and salad

Thur: spag bol

Fri: take away

might make a roast, sausage & mash or a shepards pie to try and break it up a bit.

I would really love to be able to make a great curry from scratch (including all spices) if anyone has a good recipe

I've seen this one recently More here