…for those times when we feel cr*p and cba. We still need good nutrition but what do you eat that requires little effort besides a beautiful bag of crisps?!!
I make up huge batches of quorn chilli( i’m a vegi) and freeze, so when I don’t feel the best I can just heat up and add some rice.
Otherwise some lovely wotsit sandwiches!! not healthy but still taste good!
Beans, every time. Any which way. Even cold from the tin. But must be Branston. Also, I’ve started buying those fruit purée pouches from Ella’s kitchen, for times when swallowing is a bit tricky. One pouch is one of your 5 a day and I mix one with a little Greek yoghurt. They’re yummy. Don’t be put off by the fact that they’re for weaning babies !! Scrambled eggs with a tin of salmon and sliced tomato. Steam fresh, whole grain rice mixed with tinned tuna, spring onions, courgette chunks and lashings of hell mans garlic and herb salad dressing.
Ooh lovely ideas MrsH - I love the fruit puree idea - I feel like I could just eat baby food right now.
Beth - disguising the crisps between slices of bread is delicious but not nutritious!! (Am 100% sure I’ll do that though )
although i do try and avoid bread, sometimes when i am pressed for time i make a roll on fish fingers tomato sauce and mustard
winner every time
Not sure about good nutrition but I now use Mr Mash instead of going through all the ‘faff’ when I fancy some good, comforting mashed potato. It’s the only one I’ve found that tastes close to homemade (and you can control the amount of salt you add)…lovely with some grated cheese and a dollop of Branston pickle.
Instant noodles are filling if you don’t want to be a danger in the kitchen. Just put them in a plastic container, add boiling water, put the lid on and let them ‘steep’ for 10 mins (lovely with some sesame oil…).
Tesco do a bag of frozen stir-fry vegetables which are good for adding to stock (and/or instant noodles - can you see there’s a theme going here…) for soup.
Sweat some leeks in butter/oil and add milk and stock and Mr Mash () for an easy leek & potato soup.
Microwave veggie pouches are very handy and don’t forget you can also microwave fish portions from frozen in no time.
When I have the energy I cook a batch of stuff and freeze or eat for several days.
Tbh, when you’re feeling c**p, any nutrition is better than nowt and you can always top up with a multivitamin.
Mags
Well this fish curry does require tiny effort… but it is dead easy. I timed it recently and from start to finish it was 15 mins.
Gently fry some garlic (or onion) & chilli flakes or curry power in frying pan.
Get a mix of veg out the freezer (broccoli, peas, green beans… anything you have). Put them in a collandar and pour boiling water from kettle over them. Add them to frying pan and swish it all about a bit.
Add tin of oily fish in tomato sauce (mackerel is really good & oily fish is very good for you).
Swish it all about a simmer with lid on for about 5 - 10 mins until veg is softish.
Put a packet of microwave rice in microwave (the brown rice is very good and healthier).
Serve fish curry over rice.
Quick, easy, tasty and healthy!
Pat x
My tip is a straightforward casserole. I don’t usually even bother to brown the meat, I just bung in the diced meat, ready prepped bag of veg from the supermarket (I keep the finely diced frozen veg in the house at all times!), a bag of NEW potatoes (easier than peeling potatoes!) and anything else I fancy eg. chopped tomatoes, tomato purée, sausages, etc. Cover with stock (I use the jelly ones) and cook at around 160 degrees for three hours. Normally get 4 or 5 adult portions per casserole and it only takes a few minutes to reheat in the microwave! No prep involved - just bung it in the dish and cook!!! If I can be bothered I sometimes brown the meat first as it is better, but not a necessity! X
A quick lunch
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Tinned Mackerel in olive oil (or any oil but avoid engine oil).
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Marmite.
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Bread.
Toast the bread, spread some marmite, open the mackerel and lay it over the toast.
Eat.
When I make soups or casseroles, I always make extra and freeze a few portions for CBA days!
Stewed dried fruit is easy to do and lovely with porridge, rice pudding, greek yoghurt or just on its own and keeps several days in the fridge. I usually do apricots, prunes, figs, dates, cranberries, raisins, chopped apple and simmer in fresh orange juice with a bit of sugar and a cinnamon stick…delicious!
Fizzy x
I use my slow cooker loads as I feel a bit better mid morning so prepare food and whack it all in when I feel able, put it on low and leave till dinner. Fab foor feeding a family of 5. I get really tired between 4 and 5 ideal cooking time so at least I can wake up knowing it’s all ready to serve. I do casseroles, mince, soups, curry and any other similar. keeps it very nutritious too 
Boil some pasta, throw in a tin of tuna, a carton of passata (or chopped tomatoes), some mozzarella and stir it about, Ta-dah, pasta bake without the bake.
Tortilla with whatver you fancy (tuna, ham, cheese, tomato, oinion etc), bung it on the George foreman grill (or under a normal grill) and bobs your uncle. Serve with a bag of mixed salad. Or chips. Mmmm chips.
Best discovery I ever made were McCains microwave baked potatoes. They take 4 minutes and imo are the best thing ever. We have them with everything.
at weekends I also make up single portions of curry, savoury mince, chilli and bolognaise and just bung them in the oven in the evening, serve with a baked potato/pasta/rice/salad/garlic bread. Whatever tickles my fancy.
Some lovely ideas here. I was really unwell when I started this thread so was thinking even simpler than a lot of these!
Over the weekend I started writing down some simple meal ideas in one of my lovey new paperchase sales notebooks (stationery addict gets orgasmic in paperchase) plus the list of ingredients I always need to hand. Then I made my Tesco delivery order .
Since my mind has gone kaput it’s the formulating ideas and being ready that’s tricky which then makes me stressy: so those beautiful notebooks and new coloured pens are a vital vital purchase…oh yes they are!
Dx
PERFECT! Am going to order a slow cooker immediately - so obvious yet I’d never considered it
Am so with you on the stationary issue !! And have a look on Amazon…I got a brill slow cooker a while ago, at a really good cost and use it all the time. Made braised red cabbage in it yesterday…yummy !! In fact I don’t even put it back in the pantry anymore, it just sits on the kitchen table, ready for next time.
Just ordered a morphy richards 6.5l for £24.99 free p&p - le famille will be well fed once more.
Time for bed now… I’m sooo pathetic at the moment, really unwell after the high at Christmas : (
Light Lunch: Some Rocket leaves, a few slices of wafer thin ham, 3 or 4 baby plum tomato’s cut in half, a couple of tinned new jersey potato’s, a dollop of creamy coleslaw.
Jelly & ice cream.
Ooooh plus a FAB option of a bag of Cadbury’s mini eggs.
Mini eggs…yummy…hubby went up to shops yesterday and was astonished to see Easter eggs !! ALREADY.
Joint of meat in the slow cooker with some onions and gravy, leave for hours, serve with ready made supermarket mashed potato and ready prepared vegetables (just steam/microwave for required time). If the joint is big enough you have leftovers too for the next day. We are a family of two so we always eke a pot roast out for at least 2 meals. You can also cook a whole chicken in a slow cooker if it’s a family sized one. It doesn’t need carving as the meat falls off the bones and it is very moist! Mmmmm.
Tracey
you have some good ideas from the other repliers (is that a word?)
i watch jamie olivers 15 minute meals and sometimes have a go, it takes me a lot more than 15 minutes though
and today i treated myself to marks and spencers stir fry kits - steak strips, eastern style veg, singapore noodles and a sweet chilli sauce - it was sooo yummy
carole x