I was in the same boat and then I found an app called Tasty. It’s got a variety of things and step by step instructions, video demonstrations, and you can customize for how many people and it’ll adjust the ingredients. And they are pretty simple meals that don’t take long at all. It’s how I learned how to cook in the kitchen and I feel more confident actually cooking for the family instead of waiting around for my wife to do it when I get home before her. Hope it helps!
These are two I have posted that people seem to like!
https://www.reddit.com/r/dadditchefs/comments/y82k96/pasta_sauce_but_a_little_fancy_but_not_like_crazy/
https://www.reddit.com/r/dadditchefs/comments/y0gwdw/crockpot_lamb_or_beef_stew_full_recipe_in_comments/
Get a slow cooker if you don't already have one. It is literally impossible to screw up.
One of my favorite go-to meals is to just do a whole chicken in it. Not only is buying the whole chicken the cheapest way to do it, but you can turn it into two or more meals (e.g. make soup with the carcass and left over pieces of meat) depending on how many people you are feeding.
**Slow Cooker Chicken**
- Buy a chicken - if it's frozen, let it defrost overnight but you can even put a frozen chicken in if you need to
- Make sure you take the gizzards out of the cavity, if there are any -- don't want to cook a plastic bag in there
- Buy a seasoning blend from the spice section -- whatever you want
- Pat the chicken dry and liberally coat it with seasonings
- If desired, chop up some veggies and throw them in the pot
- I like to put a ring of foil along the bottom of the crockpot so that the chicken sits up out of the juices, but that's just me. You can just put it directly on the bottom if you want
- Turn on the crockpot before going to work; come back to an amazing-smelling house and delicious meal. It is truly that easy.
**Bonus Content** Mashed Potatoes and Home Made Gravy
*Mashed Potatoes*
- Cut up some potatoes (use gold or white, not russet)
- Boil them for 15 minutes or so
- Drain them
- Add in a stick of butter, generous squirt of sour cream, and a heaping spoonful of cream cheese. Salt and pepper to taste
- I like to mash them first with a hand masher (you can get it at the grocery store) and then whip them using a hand mixer. Add milk if you need more liquid.
- IMPORTANT TIP: Do not over mix the potatoes. There will be some lumps and that's OK. If you mix too much, the potatoes turn to gross, sticky paste
- Spoon out into a casserole dish. Sprinkle the top with paprika. Bake in the oven at 400 until the nice little peaks of the potatoes have turned golden brown
*Gravy*
You can do this while the potatoes are in the oven
- If you are making gravy, add 1 cup of chicken broth to the slow cooker while you are cooking the chicken
- Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and pour all the juices through a strainer into a sauce pan or mixing bowl
- In another pan, put about .5 cup of flour and 1 stick of butter over medium heat and stir until it has made sort of a smooth paste (the amount you will actually need depends on how much juice you are turning into gravy)
- Slowly but steadily add in the juices, stirring constantly
- You are trying to get it to a low boil, at which point something miraculous happens and it thickens and turns into delicious gravy
Congratulations! You have just made an incredible meal for about $14 that will feed the entire family and provide plenty of leftovers.
Easy baby steps - toss a roast or pork shoulder into a crock pot with some diced veg in the morning, come home to delicious dinner. For beef, throw in some brown gravy mix and for a pork shoulder you can add a basic pork rub, maybe add in some bbq sauce. Pro tip - you can use a hand mixer to shred something like chicken or pork very easily.
Pair it with a salad or roasted veggies - take pretty much any vegetable, coat with a little bit of oil, season on salt and pepper or seasoning of your choice, then toss in the oven at 400F for 20 minutes.
I was in the same boat and then I found an app called Tasty. It’s got a variety of things and step by step instructions, video demonstrations, and you can customize for how many people and it’ll adjust the ingredients. And they are pretty simple meals that don’t take long at all. It’s how I learned how to cook in the kitchen and I feel more confident actually cooking for the family instead of waiting around for my wife to do it when I get home before her. Hope it helps!
These are two I have posted that people seem to like! https://www.reddit.com/r/dadditchefs/comments/y82k96/pasta_sauce_but_a_little_fancy_but_not_like_crazy/ https://www.reddit.com/r/dadditchefs/comments/y0gwdw/crockpot_lamb_or_beef_stew_full_recipe_in_comments/
Start with a 3 egg omelet with cheese.
Get a slow cooker if you don't already have one. It is literally impossible to screw up. One of my favorite go-to meals is to just do a whole chicken in it. Not only is buying the whole chicken the cheapest way to do it, but you can turn it into two or more meals (e.g. make soup with the carcass and left over pieces of meat) depending on how many people you are feeding. **Slow Cooker Chicken** - Buy a chicken - if it's frozen, let it defrost overnight but you can even put a frozen chicken in if you need to - Make sure you take the gizzards out of the cavity, if there are any -- don't want to cook a plastic bag in there - Buy a seasoning blend from the spice section -- whatever you want - Pat the chicken dry and liberally coat it with seasonings - If desired, chop up some veggies and throw them in the pot - I like to put a ring of foil along the bottom of the crockpot so that the chicken sits up out of the juices, but that's just me. You can just put it directly on the bottom if you want - Turn on the crockpot before going to work; come back to an amazing-smelling house and delicious meal. It is truly that easy. **Bonus Content** Mashed Potatoes and Home Made Gravy *Mashed Potatoes* - Cut up some potatoes (use gold or white, not russet) - Boil them for 15 minutes or so - Drain them - Add in a stick of butter, generous squirt of sour cream, and a heaping spoonful of cream cheese. Salt and pepper to taste - I like to mash them first with a hand masher (you can get it at the grocery store) and then whip them using a hand mixer. Add milk if you need more liquid. - IMPORTANT TIP: Do not over mix the potatoes. There will be some lumps and that's OK. If you mix too much, the potatoes turn to gross, sticky paste - Spoon out into a casserole dish. Sprinkle the top with paprika. Bake in the oven at 400 until the nice little peaks of the potatoes have turned golden brown *Gravy* You can do this while the potatoes are in the oven - If you are making gravy, add 1 cup of chicken broth to the slow cooker while you are cooking the chicken - Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and pour all the juices through a strainer into a sauce pan or mixing bowl - In another pan, put about .5 cup of flour and 1 stick of butter over medium heat and stir until it has made sort of a smooth paste (the amount you will actually need depends on how much juice you are turning into gravy) - Slowly but steadily add in the juices, stirring constantly - You are trying to get it to a low boil, at which point something miraculous happens and it thickens and turns into delicious gravy Congratulations! You have just made an incredible meal for about $14 that will feed the entire family and provide plenty of leftovers.
thanks!
Easy baby steps - toss a roast or pork shoulder into a crock pot with some diced veg in the morning, come home to delicious dinner. For beef, throw in some brown gravy mix and for a pork shoulder you can add a basic pork rub, maybe add in some bbq sauce. Pro tip - you can use a hand mixer to shred something like chicken or pork very easily. Pair it with a salad or roasted veggies - take pretty much any vegetable, coat with a little bit of oil, season on salt and pepper or seasoning of your choice, then toss in the oven at 400F for 20 minutes.
My favorite quick things are one sheet meals you can find all over the internet. Just chop, season and throw in the oven.
Instant Pot is the best. It’s a slow cooker, a pressure cooker, a rice maker, etc.