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30 Minute Meals
I know what it's like to stumble through the door, exhausted from the day's efforts only to have to go straight to the kitchen to get dinner. Picking up the phone and calling for pizza or ordering a Chinese take-away seems so much easier and it's so tempting.
The downside of ordering is the time you have to wait for it to be delivered or worse still, you have to get back in the car and go and pick it up and bring it home, while trying to keep it hot enough to eat. And at an average of $30 per take-away meal, it's expensive.
You can be relaxing with dinner on the table in 30 minutes, faster than you can have Chinese delivered. The secret is choosing meals that you can put together in minutes that either cook by themselves or cook very quickly.
If you need motivation think about the $1,500 plus you could be saving each year.
A little organization can save you hundreds of dollars.
30 Minute Meal Ideas
Spaghetti Bolognaise
Brown thawed mince, add tomatoes, onion, herbs and garlic. Put spaghetti on to cook. Simmer sauce 15 minutes. Drain pasta, put onto plates. Top with sauce and grated cheese. Spaghetti on the table (and chin) in under 25 minutes.
Lasagne
Brown the thawed mince, add tomatoes, onion, herbs and garlic. Layer sauce and lasagne noodles (use fresh noodles if possible) in a baking dish. Heat 1 cup milk to boiling point. Carefully mix 1 tbsp plain flour in a little cold milk to make a paste. Whisk into boiling milk. Return the mixture to heat, add pinch salt, pepper. Heat, stirring until thick. Pour over lasagne noodles. Top with grated cheese. Heat in oven until cheese is golden and bubbly. This lasagne takes 15 minutes to put together, and 15 minutes in a moderate oven. Serve with a salad and you have a meal in 30 minutes.
Corned Silverside and Veggies
Put silverside in slow cooker in the morning. Prepare potato, cabbage and carrots. When you get home, steam veggies. Mash potatoes. Add garlic to cabbage, butter to carrots. Serve. Ten minutes to put silverside on to cook and prepare vegies, 20 minutes to steam vegies. You'll have a delicious dinner on the table in 30 minutes.
Pot Roast and Veggies
Scrunch balls of foil and place in bottom of slow cooker. Place roast on top, cook on low. Prepare vegies. When you get home steam vegies and prepare gravy. Putting the roast in the slow cooker takes less than 5 minutes, under 20 to prepare and steam vegies. Dinner is served in 25 minutes.
Curried Noodle Salad
Boil noodles in salted water for 12 minutes. While noodles are cooking, dice a stalk of celery. Mix ½ cup French dressing with 1tsp curry powder. Drain noodles, add celery and ½ cup sultanas. Toss with French dressing. Salad is ready in under 15 minutes.
Rissoles, Gravy and Veggies
Make up rissoles and bbq. While rissoles are cooking, steam vegies and make gravy.
Casserole/Stew
Cube meat, dice vegies. Add to slow cooker with water and gravy mix, add seasonings. Cook on low. When you get home, boil some rice. Serve. It should take you about 10 minutes to prepare the meat and vegies and 12 minutes to cook the rice. Dinner ready in 22 minutes.
These meals are just examples. There are plenty of other meals you can adapt to become 30 minute meals.
If you are organised, know what you are going to prepare and have the ingredients on hand most meals can be put together, cooked and served in less than 30 minutes. Getting dinner on the table quickly and easily will save you money, but it will save you time too. And when you've had a very busy day, time is the one thing you don't feel like wasting. When you can get a meal on the table in 30 minutes, you won't need to call for take-away ever again.
The downside of ordering is the time you have to wait for it to be delivered or worse still, you have to get back in the car and go and pick it up and bring it home, while trying to keep it hot enough to eat. And at an average of $30 per take-away meal, it's expensive.
You can be relaxing with dinner on the table in 30 minutes, faster than you can have Chinese delivered. The secret is choosing meals that you can put together in minutes that either cook by themselves or cook very quickly.
If you need motivation think about the $1,500 plus you could be saving each year.
A little organization can save you hundreds of dollars.
- choose uncomplicated meals – simple ingredients, simple recipes,
- use the tools you have available – the oven, slow cooker, microwave, fridge and freezer
- plan ahead – decide the night before or in the morning what you'll serve for dinner that night
- do as much preparation as possible ahead of time – take the meat out of the freezer the night before, cook the roast in the slow cooker during the day, peel the vegies in the morning
- clean up as you go – a tidy kitchen makes meal prep much easier
30 Minute Meal Ideas
Spaghetti Bolognaise
Brown thawed mince, add tomatoes, onion, herbs and garlic. Put spaghetti on to cook. Simmer sauce 15 minutes. Drain pasta, put onto plates. Top with sauce and grated cheese. Spaghetti on the table (and chin) in under 25 minutes.
Lasagne
Brown the thawed mince, add tomatoes, onion, herbs and garlic. Layer sauce and lasagne noodles (use fresh noodles if possible) in a baking dish. Heat 1 cup milk to boiling point. Carefully mix 1 tbsp plain flour in a little cold milk to make a paste. Whisk into boiling milk. Return the mixture to heat, add pinch salt, pepper. Heat, stirring until thick. Pour over lasagne noodles. Top with grated cheese. Heat in oven until cheese is golden and bubbly. This lasagne takes 15 minutes to put together, and 15 minutes in a moderate oven. Serve with a salad and you have a meal in 30 minutes.
Corned Silverside and Veggies
Put silverside in slow cooker in the morning. Prepare potato, cabbage and carrots. When you get home, steam veggies. Mash potatoes. Add garlic to cabbage, butter to carrots. Serve. Ten minutes to put silverside on to cook and prepare vegies, 20 minutes to steam vegies. You'll have a delicious dinner on the table in 30 minutes.
Pot Roast and Veggies
Scrunch balls of foil and place in bottom of slow cooker. Place roast on top, cook on low. Prepare vegies. When you get home steam vegies and prepare gravy. Putting the roast in the slow cooker takes less than 5 minutes, under 20 to prepare and steam vegies. Dinner is served in 25 minutes.
Curried Noodle Salad
Boil noodles in salted water for 12 minutes. While noodles are cooking, dice a stalk of celery. Mix ½ cup French dressing with 1tsp curry powder. Drain noodles, add celery and ½ cup sultanas. Toss with French dressing. Salad is ready in under 15 minutes.
Rissoles, Gravy and Veggies
Make up rissoles and bbq. While rissoles are cooking, steam vegies and make gravy.
Casserole/Stew
Cube meat, dice vegies. Add to slow cooker with water and gravy mix, add seasonings. Cook on low. When you get home, boil some rice. Serve. It should take you about 10 minutes to prepare the meat and vegies and 12 minutes to cook the rice. Dinner ready in 22 minutes.
These meals are just examples. There are plenty of other meals you can adapt to become 30 minute meals.
If you are organised, know what you are going to prepare and have the ingredients on hand most meals can be put together, cooked and served in less than 30 minutes. Getting dinner on the table quickly and easily will save you money, but it will save you time too. And when you've had a very busy day, time is the one thing you don't feel like wasting. When you can get a meal on the table in 30 minutes, you won't need to call for take-away ever again.