Favorite 15 minute meals?

I work PT and by the time I get home I have about 15 minutes to prep a meal to keep to our little schedule for the rest of the night.

I do a lot of tacos and pasta because these are quick but I'm desperate to try something new.

My oven takes about 10 mins to preheat so using it isn't really an option.

Looking for things to sauté, boil, etc. that are quick, easy, and that a 4yr old and 20 month old will like

Favorite 15 minute meals?

I do eggs for dinner in a pinch. I keep baby spinach in a ziploc in the freezer so I crumble that and add cheese and sometimes tomatoes. Serve with toast and fruit and call it a day!

Maybe frozen meatballs or frozen raviolis.

I keep jenny o turkey burgers in the freezer so those are quick and just add grill seasoning and frank's hot sauce and blue cheese dressing for DH and I. You could skip the hot sauce or do bbq sauce for the kids.

Italian sausage is pretty easy. I parboil and then brown in the same skillet. Serve with rice and a green veggie.

For sides, we like the frozen bags of brown rice that go right in the microwave. Also, the green giant frozen green beans with almonds is a favorite for all of us. I do a lot of steamed broccoli but you could steam carrots, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, or other veggies in that time.

Re: Favorite 15 minute meals?

I recomend reheating already prepped food! 15 min is not a lot of time! You can make fresh and healthy meals in 30 min and just reheat! Thats what I do most weekdays. My kids are starving when we walk through the door.

Re: Favorite 15 minute meals?

Can you cook on the weekend and freeze for the week?

If not, chicken fajitas is a quick stove top meal
Skinnytaste tortellini chicken meatball soup
Salmon cooks quick and is great with couscous or rice.
Sausage is great also and you can throw that together with onions and peppers and make a sandwich
Ravioli in a garlic and oil sauce with sautéed zucchini or spinach

Re: Favorite 15 minute meals?

I don't know how you can make anything in 15 minutes! Congrats to you! Water does NOT boil on our stovetop that quick!! When I have nights like that I go to the freezer for pre-made things: meatballs, chicken nuggets, shredded chicken, etc. or I stick to super quick items, like scrambled eggs and toast. Breakfast for dinner! Also if you have pre-made hard-boiled eggs they can have egg salad. You can also just do different sandwiches. Like tuna fish salad, cold cuts and/or cheese, chicken breast with veggies. You can also do salads or broiling small white fish fillets are usually quick.

Favorite 15 minute meals?

Love breakfast for dinner, but I think it still take more than 15 min from start to finish lol, its the prep that takes soo long

Re: Favorite 15 minute meals?

Favorite 15 minute meals?

you can pre- sautee or roast veggies, partially cook chicken etc, so when you re-heat they wont dry out but it will finish cooking.

I read someplace you can make and freeze PB & J sandwich and take out when you need

Not sure Im helping

Message edited 1/5/2015 8:17:43 PM.

Favorite 15 minute meals?

Quick meals we do are broiled fish with lemon, garlic, butter. Serve with rice, veggie.
Pasta with broccoli garlic and evoo.

Message edited 1/5/2015 9:41:39 PM.

Favorite 15 minute meals?

Another option is to use a crock pot so dinner is ready when you get home

Tonight I made chicken quesadillas on the stove. Took me about 15-20 mins, but I bought the chicken pre-cooked from trader joe's which saved time.

Re: Favorite 15 minute meals?

Posted by melbalalala

Posted by stinger

I recomend reheating already prepped food! 15 min is not a lot of time! You can make fresh and healthy meals in 30 min and just reheat! Thats what I do most weekdays. My kids are starving when we walk through the door.

Prepping meals on the weekends is definitely an option, I do that for the days i don't work (lasagnas, crock pot meals, etc.), but I don't have any ideas for prep-aheads that I can then make in 15 minutes?

Bring on prep-ahead ideas!

Message edited 1/5/2015 10:21:55 PM.

Favorite 15 minute meals?

Trader Joes has SOOOO much in the frozen section.

Re: Favorite 15 minute meals?

I use my grill pan a lot during the week. Grilled chicken doesn't take long at all and you can serve it with salad, pasta, veggies, or anything you have left over.

Stir fry is also great for quick meals. I usually do chicken or shrimp with vegetables and a little salad dressing.

The Crock Pot is awesome! Get everything set the night before, turn it on in the morning and *boom* dinner is ready when you get home.

For quick sides, Minute Rice makes cups of rice that only take a minute in the microwave and Birds Eye Steam Fresh vegetables are also really quick to heat up in the microwave.

Favorite 15 minute meals?

I would buy one of those quick meal magazines they have near check out at the supermarkets.

They will give you ideas but 15 mins is next to impossible for anything that isn't going to be a frozen pre-packaged food type thing.

Can you be "late" on the nighttime schedule a few minutes. Will 10 extra minutes disrupt the house?

Favorite 15 minute meals?

Ground Turkey Sloppy Joes kids love and are quick

Quesadillas are quick too and you can add in veggies or meats to make more substantial.

Stir fry's are pretty quick too if you have everything chopped and use minute rice or the microwaveable one.

I would prep veggies on the weekend and have in Ziploc's for easy access, buy shredded cheeses and a roasted chicken from supermarket to shred and keep handy. Keep a large Tupperware of sauce or buy jarred and have ravioli one night, can also do baked ravioli with cheese.

Different flavored chicken sausages on a bun are fast and yummy, add some of your sautéed veggies (peppers and onions etc.) for you and hubby.

Do you have a griddle? Those plug in and take less than 20 seconds to heat up...throw on bisquick (just mix with water in canister) pancakes add some chopped bananas or strawberries and serve with some sausage or turkey bacon from the microwave.

Or my guys LOVE grilled cheese...I also throw on the griddle so I can make a bunch at a time, add bacon or ham...tomato. Use canned soups and slice the grilled cheese in strips like soldiers and have them dip!

Re: Favorite 15 minute meals?

I highly suggest using the slow cooker. Prep can take 5 minutes in the morning then @0-10 minutes in the evening getting it together depending on what it is.

Favorite 15 minute meals?

Can you make an extra meal or two on the weekend. When I worked I used to spend one morning cooking on the weekends. Usually something in the crock pot and maybe one other meal. I would vacuum seal it with my foodsaver and freeze so I just had to defrost and reheat during the week if I was going to be home late.

Re: Favorite 15 minute meals?

Re: Favorite 15 minute meals?

Make a big batch of grilled chicken over the weekend and you will have tons of quick options to choose from...
1- chicken breasts with 90 second rice and either steamed or sautéed veggies
2- pasta with sautéed garlic and broccoli and throw in cut up grilled chicken pieces at the end to heat
3- sautéed peppers and onions, toss in chicken and seasoning and make fajitas
4- chicken fried rice- sautéed veggies, scramble an egg, add in 90 second bag rice and seasoning, toss in cut up chicken to heat through
5- loaded baked potatoes- "bake" the potatoes in the microwave, heat up chicken and bag of frozen broccoli, put chicken and broccoli on top of potato and melt cheddar over the top in the toaster oven
6- grilled chicken salad
7- chicken melt sandwich

Re: Favorite 15 minute meals?

My go-to if my DH isn't going to be homw before me to cook is pork chops & frozen corn.

I sprinkle herb or spices on the pork chops & sauttee in a little oil-if you want to get fancy you can prep a dry rub in advance.
You can also cook them on a grill pan.

Also, cous cous is faster than pasta or rice if you want another side.

Grilled cheese or quesadilla's (just cheese, or prep fillings ahead of time)

English muffin pizzas (make/buy sauce ahead of time, grate cheese ahead or buy shredded). Toast muffins in toaster if you don't want to preheat the muffin assble pizza & stick in broiler (doesn't need to preheat)

You can also make ahead & freeze chicken soup. That heats up really quickly.

Favorite 15 minute meals?

You can totally cook stuff without re-heating some things.

I do chicken francese with instant rice and steamfresh in a pinch.
Bagged shrimp cook quickly, garlic olive oil, basil, white wine over pasta, or pesto shrimp over pasta.
Pan seared fish-any fillet
I love tomato soup with different add-ins and different grilled cheeses to match. Like Mexican, Italian, French etc.

Re: Favorite 15 minute meals?

15 Minute Nachos Supreme

Re: Favorite 15 minute meals?

I like to make a big meal on Sundays and this way I have some leftovers for during the week. When I do have to make something then I will do something quick like a pasta dish.

Favorite 15 minute meals?

One fast dish I do is I sautée chopped onion in butter and some garlic, and chop meat and peas, then I add some tomatoe sauce and Italian seasoning. Serve over rice. Boil in a bag rice is faster lol

Re: Favorite 15 minute meals?

For 15 minute meals - we'll buy a roasted chicken on the weekend - shred it - one night will be chicken noodle (takes 20 minutes I think or so), then we'll do quesadillas, etc.

Check out Martha Stewart's one pot pasta meal - literally takes 15 minutes and I thought it was yummy - I used broth instead of water.

Sometimes we also do breakfast for dinner - egg white omelets w/ spinach and peppers, and cheese, side of turkey bacon and toast.

You can also do crepes with different fillings

Or do a big crock pot of some kind of meat (pot roast, etc.), and use that to top other things with.