So often for people who work in restaurants, and I imagine with people in other industries as well, we just don’t feel like cooking after work. This frequently results in eating less than quality food that is done quickly and with little to no effort. Or going to another restaurant to get food, which of course costs money. So how do you get nutritious meals that don’t break the bank, and just as importantly how do you get it so that you don’t have to put in much effort, and cook your dinner quickly?
The answer lies in proper planning and prep work. For those of us who work in restaurants we often receive a shift meal, so taking a look at my week I don’t count any dinners for evening shifts or breakfast or lunch during day shifts. Once I know how many of what meals I need, I determine a few main dishes I’ll want to eat throughout the week or two, and then maybe a couple snack foods to enjoy whenever. When it comes to dinner I try to use recipes that will utilize the same ingredients for multiple purposes. This still allows for eating all different types of cuisines and recipes!
Chickpeas are a versatile way of making multiple entrees and your snacks for the week. They’re also pretty inexpensive. Two pounds of dried garbanzos will stretch farther than you would think. One pound can be used to make falafel mix which will freeze well so you needn’t use it all quickly. For the other pound you can cook it all off and use half for hummus and the other half to make chickpea burgers, or a curry dish, they’re great on salad or lettuce wraps.
A very simple way to go about this process is tacos. I think for most people it’s difficult to get sick of tacos. And there are possibly infinite types and toppings. So if you cook off a large batch of some tasty carnitas, you have something you can heat up quickly.
I encourage people that when they buy chicken to purchase whole chickens and fabricate them into smaller cuts on your own. This way, you get two breasts, two leg and thigh combos, two tenders, four wings and a carcass for stock. I love stock making, it’s so simple, useful and it makes a home smell wonderful. I usually freeze half of it, including the stock, except that I freeze the wings and tenders together for a fried chicken dinner. The rest of it is dealer’s choice as the choices for chicken are endless. Most recently I used the stock along with some extra vegetables and aromatics to simmer the first leg and thigh in a ginger broth that I added soy sauce to after the chicken was done. Now with loads of pre-cut onions, carrots, bok choy, mushrooms, celery, and just a few slices of serrano chiles for a little kick, a pre-made broth, chunks of meaty chicken, par-cooked udon noodles, to be finished to order, then topped with julienne daikon radish, mung bean sprouts, and a poached egg, I can have a chicken udon bowl made in just a few minutes. For the first breast I’ll likely use it for something simple, like a chicken caesar salad. For the frozen stuff (the fried chicken package notwithstanding) I don’t have specific plans yet, but perhaps I’ll braise the leg and thigh to make B’stilla, a Morrocan sweet and savory delight wrapped in phyllo dough and topped with ground nuts and spices. Then maybe the breast can be used for a pasta dish, either utilizing some of the stock or making an entirely different sauce.
It doesn’t stop with chickpeas and chicken! I’ve long desired to get a nice eye of round and use it for delicious philly cheese steak sandwiches and chicago style Italian beef sandwiches. Or even homemade gyros that can be heated up quickly. Meatballs can be made ahead of time and then you have a choice of sauce, maybe one night you have Swedish style and the next night barbecue, and still the next night put some of the giardenera from your italian beef onto a classic meatball, marinara, and mozzarella sub.
With some pre-planning and a fair bit of prep work (ideally concentrated on one day) it isn’t difficult to find delicious dishes that can be finished to order in a few short minutes. It saves money, and although there’s a lot of prep work involved it makes it a lot easier on those days when you just don’t feel like cooking. Plan and prep it all out ahead of time and you’ll thank yourself later. And although some of the options I have mentioned are not exactly healthy, they are at least wholesome if made from scratch. A home cooked meal always sits better in my stomach than a processed frozen one. Follow your own food, and it just might lead you to something great.
Just Follow Food! 