The source story for today’s post was exactly what I was looking for… To inspire myself to greater heights, creating flavour-elevated, penny-pinching suppers. The test kitchen types at Allrecipes are going to start us all off with a panorama of perfect plates…
Thai Green Curry Chicken: Noodles are traditional, but you can just as easily serve it over rice…
These days, I’ve found folks are becoming just as much, if not more concerned with the price of supper than they are with what’s on the menu. But even the healthiest, cheapest dinner needs a change-up now and then. All lentils and no nachos make Maggie a dull girl.
Checks all my boxes
The preamble to the source post checks all my boxes for fast, easy and inexpensive suppers. If not all the boxes for nutrition-worthiness.
Winter is the cruellest season of all. I don’t care with the best-sellers say. And when I stand up from the keyboard after a long day, I want something warm and satisfying to cap it off.
“You’re craving something scrumptious, but you’re not necessarily in the mood to season, marinate, chop, mince, purée, fry, or any of the other time-consuming, dish-dirtying activities you might nor-mally enjoy on the weekends,” Allrecipes contributor Lauren Helmer commiserates.
“You’re in luck, because we’ve rounded up 25 of the tastiest, easiest-to-make winter dinners. We made sure to include soul-nourishing dishes from an array of culinary traditions and cuisines, so no matter what you’re craving, we’ve got a recipe that will hit the spot on your cozy winter night-in,” she expands.
Wow! Easy, inexpensive, fast and scrumptious – all that and a soul-nourishing, international person-ality, as well!
Here we go…
I have surveyed all 25 recipes Helmer offers. And I’ve chosen, as examples, the top 6 in my personal book. All call for a minimum of ingredients, and deliver a maximum of plate appeal.
Quick Beef Stir-Fry
You might have all the ingredients in the house already – aside from the beef, scallions and Bell Peppers. Total prep and cook time, max. 25 min. And there’s nothing to say you can’t add other stir-fry veggies if you want.
Un-Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
What we culinary-school grads call a ‘deconstructed’ version of the Central European Classic. It’s a skillet dish with all the same ingredients, towit: Cabbage, Tomatoes and Ground Beef. Helmer says even folks who ‘don’t like cabbage’ love this one! 10 min. prep time, 35 min. in the oven.
Best Taco Casserole
Looks good, tastes great! And you get to customize it to your heart’s content, with whatever Taco ingredients you prefer. Use ground beef, shredded/cubed chicken, or whatever as the central theme. Just 10 min. prep, and an hour to bake. (See photo, top of page.)
Mongolian Beef & Scallions
One of my faves… And this version makes it much easier for me to consider cooking it after a hard day. Prep time 15 min. Cooking no more than 10 min. (stir-frying). Just beef, scallions and rice. And anything else you’d like to throw in. It is a stir-fry, after all!
Best Parmesan Chicken Bake
A classic – but reimagined and streamlined. It’s a toss-in casserole – no breading or fussing. Just 15 min. prep, and 35 more in the oven. All of the flavour of the Italian original but none of the drudgery. I used smaller croutons, and added more cheese than recommended.
Vegetarian Korma
This one is an exception: not as simple as the previous dishes. It calls for a lot of ingredients – rel-ative to the pervious dishes, that is – but it’s worth the moderate fuss and extra prep. Prep time is estimated at 25 minutes, followed by 30 minutes simmering. “It’s rich, creamy, mildly spiced, and extremely flavourful. Serve with naan and rice.”
Thai Green Curry Chicken
Another Asian classic. It has a similar prep-cook time profile, and an equally intensive ingredient list. But it’s a whole different experience! If you’re familiar with Thai Green Curry paste or oil, you’ll be glad you can adjust the heat in this dish to suit yourself.
My take
I have no further comments on the prep or cooking of these dishes. But I did want to mention…
Shop the meat department sales, and don’t be afraid to grab packets with special ‘Enjoy Tonight’, or ’50 % OFF’ stickers. There’s NOTHING wrong with that meat!
Also, get whatever inexpensive meat is available. You don’t have to stuck right to the recipe recom-mendations for beef or chicken cuts. But if it says, ‘boneless’, make sure it is boneless!
Do add-in appropriate ingredients you have on hand, to enrich your own personal version of these dishes – and use up leftovers.
Go ahead and tinker with the seasoning, spices and other flavours you encounter. It’s YOUR supper, after all!
~ Maggie J.