What Meal Do You Cook at the End of a Long Day?

I just want you all to know that this is the best post ever, because the comments are giving me hope. Lately, I’ve been very pleased with fast wonton soup, thanks to the chicken and cilantro wontons from Costco, some bouillon, leggy scallions from the glass on the counter where they live until they are stinky and limp, and a handfull of some kind of veg. Also smoked sausage (usually kielbasa) and sweet potatoes and onion, plus any other veg that’s lying around, cooked on a sheet pan at 400º with a fast vinaigrette has been a good go-to.

Omelette w/ cheese and whatever bread is kicking around in the freezer!

I’m Poor Pizza…slice of bread, spoon some tomato sauce on it, then a slice of cheese, then some more tomato sauce, throw it under the broiler, et voila.

i make udon noodles – so easy to make. for the broth, add dashi powder + soy sauce + mirin. whatever else you need to make the broth tasty. add frozen udon noodles. add whatever else is in my fridge for toppings – frozen fish cake, frozen dumplings, scallion, roasted seaweed.

some korean recipes: kimchi fried rice (with bacon). rice with a fried egg, soy sauce, sesame oil (a teeny bit of butter if you’re feeling indulgent).

soba noodles – just boil soba noodles for 7 min, add soba sauce + fresh veggies (i like cucumber).

miso soup – miso, dashi, and silken tofu. add whatever veggies you have in the fridge.

if i’m super depressed – air fried frozen dumplings. pasta of course. if your pasta is feeling bleh add bacon or canned anchovies.

frozen salmon is also super easy to make. i just pan fry and add some dressing, and air fry some veggies (like asparagus or broccoli)

Typically a long day ends with breakfast for dinner: bacon and trader joe’s frozen hashbrowns in the oven for 10-15 minutes while we change my clothes, run the dogs out, etc… some quick fried eggs on top and a dash of everything bagel seasoning. Filling, comforting, delicious.

Boil water for pasta and gets out a bag of greens and some feta. Toss in salt and then the pasta and a few minutes before it is done add the greens (right before you drain the pasta if using spinach). Drain pasta and greens. Crumble the feta over all and drizzle with olive oil and maybe some red pepper flakes. I have used kale, arugula, spinach and mixed salad greens.

1) Smitten Kitchen’s Aglio E Olio Artichokes. Can of artichokes and can of white beans sauteed in garlic, red pepper flakes and olive oil for a few minutes until nice and warm. Top with parm, inhale. Feeds two.

2) Hetty Mckinnon’s cold silken tofu with spicy soy dressing. With extra herbs and a few slices of cucumber or radish or even cherry tomatoes for some balance.

3) Caprese salad with nectarines/peahces/plums AND tomatoes. No cooking, just chopping and it takes all of five minutes.

My two go-tos are 1) ‘garbage pasta’ with whatever pasta we have, plus whatever chopped or jarred veggies we can pull together. Sometimes I eat it hot, sometimes it turns into pasta salad. If cold, I’ll often use canned/jarred artichokes, feta cheese, some Italian dressing, chopped onions, carrots, peppers. 2) Loaded baked potato – sometimes made in the microwave! You can do regular or sweet potato, then top with black beans, salsa, cheese, sour cream… or sausage, peppers, onions… or broccoli and cheddar… They can take anything you have!

Ours is basically a whole-family cheese plate: 2 or 3 kinds of cheese, bakery bread (or Mary’s Gone Crackers if we’re really struggling), olive oil for dipping, marinated olives, almonds, mixed greens with dressing (in my mind this is a French salad and it’s sophisticated, not lazy), and whatever fruit we have (which is sometimes apple sauce). Just pile everything in the middle of the table and people help themselves. We call it “summer dinner” but honestly we have it once or twice a week all year round.

Salmon tacos – which sounds like a lot of work but it’s mostly opening cans/bags
Salmon defrosts so fast and we get a regular order of filets – I dust some spice on it, oil a pan and throw it on broil for like 5 min
Heat a can of black beans, warm some tortillas (both of which take roughly the time for the salmon to cook)
This is the genius part: I get one of those southwest chopped salads and toss it up. Its veggie/dressing/ cheese and crunch all in one.
Flake salmon into tortillas, add beans and salad.
EVERY TIME I make it my family raves.

It’s tomato season where I live, so BLTs!

Breakfast for dinner. Lately, Kodiak cakes w/ a fried egg on top.

we are flexitarian in our house- eating a vegetarian diet 90+% of the time. our quick go to meals are pasta aglio e olio with kale (butter and parm pasta for kids w/side of raw veggies and fruit) and potato tacos. we always have this stuff on hand, but small dice some yukon golds and toss with oil, salt, seasonings. bake in a hot (400+) oven for 20 ish minutes. while that’s going, heat some beans and prep your toppings: cilantro, lettuce, cheese, onions, whatever you’ve got! also, i will never not eat a bean and cheese burrito. pro tip: keep your tortillas in the fridge, they won’t go moldy so quickly

This post is saving my life this week. I am so tired of cooking, and tired of MY cooking, and tired of all the things I cook. Now I have 271 new ideas, and also a sense of solidarity for those times I can only manage toast with fried eggs.

I’m impressed with all of your suggestions…I guess I’m lazier than most, but as a retired couple, our go-to is a bagged salad. We’re in the process of packing up our household and most nights we’re just too tired to care! (Maybe starting with a beer has an effect? ;)

We probably have this 1x a week and it always hits the spot, is comforting, and feels like a big payoff for little work. i always keep the ingredients in the pantry. Heat 1 or 2 jars of Maya Kaimal Indian Simmer Sauce (my faves are the madras or kashmiri curries – add some chickpeas/spinach/cooked chicken/kale if we have any on hand), put on rice, then top with lebni, cilantro, red onion, tomatoes (seem to always have these on hand). Two new exciting finds from whole foods that take it to the next level are Brooklyn Delhi hot sauce and jalapeno hummus. Serve with naan or pita if we have it. YUM.

1. Rao’s Marinara + Pound of 80/20 ground beef or lamb or mix + Grated Parmesan

2. 2 or 3 Eggs Over Easy + Malaysian Paratha From Frozen Section with Soy Sauce and Hot Pickled Peppers as Condiments

3. Spicy Cucumber Salad and Kimjaban over Steaming Hot Rice

4. Whole Foods Sirloin/Ribeye Steak Sliced Thin (By Butcher) Seasoned with Salt and Pepper. and a Bottle of Sparkling Water…Sounds the Fanciest But Seriously the Fastest

My go-to “It’s-6:30-and-I-can’t-be-bothered-to-cook” meal has been dressed up avocado toast! I say dressed up but it really takes 10 mins tops start to finish. 1/2 to one avocado smashed with a bit of salt and pepper (chili flakes too if you want a kick!), sundried tomatoes, crumbled feta cheese, and a fried egg on top. If you’re feeling really ~ fancy ~ I love to drizzle a bit of balsamic glaze on top of the toast before adding the fried egg. This to me is literally the perfect lazy meal that has become a steadfast meal that sustains me and works for any meal!

I try to always keep a few packages of TJ’s gyoza or wontons in the freezer. I make a simple broth of water, dash of soy sauce, dash of maggi, salt, and a smashed clove of garlic. If you have cilantro stems (make sure to crush them a little in your hands before adding), I would add that as well. I let it come to a boil and add the dumplings. Cook until all the dumplings start to float. And you’re all done! Simple dumpling soup. I like to add scallions on top, sriracha, and sambal olek to taste.

My other go-to is eggs and hotdogs. I think I prefer hotdogs to spam. So I slice up the hotdogs into coins and I cook them on a heated pan. When they’re more than halfway heated I add some eggs and scramble them together. I place it on top of a bowl of hot rice. Feel free to top that with wtvr you like. If you don’t like hotdogs you can swap it out for sliced bacon.

My quick “I don’t feel like cooking, but I must feed the kid” meal is always eggs and toast. I either do scrambled, over-easy or an omelet, depending on our mood. Never fails to hit the spot.

Easy comfort food for me is always Maggi Noodles (instant Indian ramen) and a boiled egg. My kids love it too.

My struggle meal is usually Instant Pot Spaghetti (recipe on the Kitchn). I always have the ingredients on hand, it’s mostly hands-off, and everybody devours it. I also like to have frozen prepared fish in the freezer (like a potato-crusted cod or something that’s not fish sticks) then I can just bake it up, add rice or couscous, heat up some veggies and DONE.

Trader Joe’s cheese tortellini (in the refrigerated section), those little fresh mozzarella balls cut in half, halved cherry tomatoes, fresh basil, and our favorite olive oil, all tossed together with flaky salt and fresh cracked pepper. It’s so simple and everyone really loves it.

The absolute easiest? Frozen potstickers and fresh broccoli, simmered together in boiling water til they’re cooked through, then drained and dumped on a plate with soy sauce and chili paste.

The easiest thing we make that requires actual cooking is a hands-off chicken dish: boneless chicken thighs swimming in olive oil, lemon juice, oregano, salt, and pepper, cooked at 375 for about half an hour. Once that goes in the oven, we make a pot of rice on the stove and prep whatever vegetables we have on hand for a salad. What makes this so easy is that I can make each component (chicken, rice, veggies) in five minutes or less and the timing works so that everything is done at the same time.

When I absolutely can’t cope, brown rice from the freezer (I have an entire drawer full of different types frozen cooked rice!), peanuts, cubes of cheese and raisins. Maybe some nutritional yeast or a drizzle of soy.
When I have more energy and am making noodles for my boys, I sauté chickpeas, garlic, onions, parsley and chili flakes in olive oil. Add 1/2 c of pasta water and mix with pasta. So delicious. Fancy up with capers or olives or a squeeze of lemon or splash of white wine.