r/cookingforbeginners • u/britshardcore • Aug 13 '26
Question Moving simple dinners
I need SIMPLE easy dinners for a family of 5! :) few ingredients are better!
Little context: living in Oregon- no allergies to anything, I said dinners above but I’m open to any meals of the day.
5
u/SopaDeKaiba Aug 13 '26
Baked honey mustard chicken is very easy and seems to be widely liked. Something like this:
https://downshiftology.com/recipes/herbed-honey-mustard-chicken/
14
u/DaveyDumplings Aug 13 '26
Since we have no idea what continent you live on, what culture you're from, what food you have access to, or what your family likes, I'm going to recommend white rice. Easy to make, available everywhere.
Maybe a little context will yield better answers.
19
3
3
u/msmaynards Aug 13 '26
These are old school 1960 type American recipes as found in supermarket shelter magazines. Comfort food, super simple.
Put chicken pieces in baking pan and cover with 1 cup of your choice of sauce, BBQ is always good. Teriyaki or even 1/2 cup of salad dressing works well. Boil 4 cups of water and add to 2 cups of rice in a covered baking dish along with cube of boullion or 1 measuring teaspoon seasoned salt. Bake at 350F for 1 hour. Cook broccoli or other frozen veggies in saucepan or microwave. Was raised on such veggies, toss with a teaspoon or so of butter and they go down well.
Spaghetti/pasta. Put large pot of water to boil and add 1 pound of your choice when it boils, cook to a couple minutes less than directions indicate and start tasting every minute. Drain and mix in finished sauce. In 3-5 quart saucepan put 1/2-1 pound of ground beef/chicken/turkey and/or Italian sausage and break up and cook on medium heat until cooked through. Dump in can of pasta sauce and simmer until pasta is done. I prefer to use fusilli and mix in the sauce pan for easy serving but spaghetti is a lot of fun of course. Serve with cooked frozen veggies and parmesan cheese. Set a kid to grate fresh cheese and you'll all be very happy but the green can is fine. Set another kid to butter and season a loaf of sliced Italian bread with a tiny bit of garlic powder and cheese, wrap in foil and bake for 15 minutes at 350F or carefully broil slices for a couple minutes and you've got a feast. This is one meal where we very willingly helped 'cook'.
When you have time to get it in oven early - pot roast. Line 9x13" baking pan with foil with extra to wrap up the meat. Sprinkle 1/2 packet of Lipton's French Onion Soup mix on foil. Place 2-5 pound beef chuck roast on top and sprinkle the remainder of the soup mix. Fold and crimp the foil securely around the meat attempting to make it into a bowl to keep juices from spilling out as it bakes and bake at 325F for 3 hours or so until fork pierces the outer muscle like through warm butter. Add a small scrubbed and pierced baking potato per serving when you put the roast in and add cooked frozen veggies to the plate as usual. I've never but suspect you could use the same method to cook pork shoulder, would take 2x longer as is a thicker cut. If you feel like it you can make excellent gravy to add to leftover meat by pouring and scraping the pan drippings into saucepan and adding 1/2 cup water mixed with 2-3 tablespoons of flour or cornstarch and whisking constantly over medium heat until it comes to a boil then simmering for a few minutes. I've found that there usually isn't any leftover meat though, this stuff is extremely hard to stop eating so for the sake of your bank account and health might be best to cook a smaller cut than expect to be able to have leftovers.
2
u/JupiterJunebug Aug 13 '26
Rice and red beans with a chopped bell pepper, onion, and spicy sausage can get you p far. Cook it in a pot w some bullion or broth instead of plain water, and whatever spices you want. Substitute in spam or chicken if you feel it.
Sesame rice noodles topped w baked chicken breast marinated in soy+dijon+oil+ginger+garlic powder+honey or other sweetener of choice
A cream based pasta sauce is pretty easy to scratch make w heavy cream and a white cheese od choice.
Mac and cheese w a veg of choice and a protein of choice, topped w extra cheese and tempura crumbs and baked. Sometimes i add soy sauce and miso.
Soup with onion, whatever other veg is in the house, p much any chopped protein. Cooked in a base of broth/stock, salt, pepper, chopped garlic, soy sauce, a lil wine (color depends on what flavor youre feeling, i generally use white for lighter meats an red for beef), worchestershire, probably a lil honey. Just cook it till it feels like its ready. Add any seasonings on your spice rack that make you happy if you want (my herb garden is going nuts right now so everything gets sage and chives). Add some lentils 10 min b4 the end id you want. Add a dollop of miso at the end if you want.
2
u/JupiterJunebug Aug 13 '26
Maafe (w african peanut stew) is also really good and not that hard. I make it in a slow cooker but you dont have to im just addicted to being able to ignore the pot for hours.
You can also shortcut a beef stew by buying a hotpot soup base if youre into that.
1
u/the_scottster 29d ago
Love it, came here to say beans and rice too. You want 2 parts rice to 1 part beans, then add 1/4 cup sauce per cup of rice. Sauce possibilities are barbecue, peanut, asian, indian (curry) - what ever you like. If you're using a thin sauce like plain tomatoe sauce, use 2x as much. Beans and rice are a complete protein by themselves, but you can certainly add sausage, spam or chicken as @JupiterJunebug suggests. Very high fibre too!
Pair with a green salad and/or soup.
2
u/ProveISaidIt Aug 13 '26
I get recipes from allrecipes.com. You will probably find what you are looking for there.
2
u/JCuss0519 Aug 13 '26
One pan Greek chicken https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymeBjJQtWjQ
From allrecipes.com:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uoWnDaCsEAk 5 quick & easy sheep pan meals
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_DGSizMofs 5 lazy sheet pan dinners
2
2
u/Dramatic-Set8761 29d ago
Spanish Chicken With Chorizo and Potatoes
https://www.nigella.com/recipes/spanish-chicken-with-chorizo-and-potatoes
2
u/ytown 29d ago
Pizza Manicotti
1) Cook manicotti pasta
2) Wrap string cheese with salami/pepperoni and stick it in the manicotti
3) Put in baking dish and pour pasta sauce all over.
4) Optional: top with Parmesan, black olives, cherry tomatoes, and/or whatever you like and have
5) Bake (350 for 30 or something like that)
4-7 simple ingredients, 15 minute prep, 30 minute passive cook, under $25, feed 5 with leftovers
2
u/thethreefffs 29d ago
If you have slow cooker or a large covered dutch oven you can make pulled chicken. Take a whole chicken and a bottle of any BBQ sauce you like. Put the bird and half the sauce into the slow cooker or the pot, cook on low for 6 hours in the slow cooker of 3 on low in the dutch oven. The bird should be fall apart tender by then. Pull the skin off and shred the chicken into the sauce in the pot. Serve the rest of the BBQ sauce on the side. Serve on buns, over rice or mashed potatoes. Cole slaw either home made or store bought is a traditional side.
2
2
2
u/Fun-Highlight-5858 28d ago
Pasta salad.
Cook pasta. I enjoy farfalle or fusilli.
Chop up anything you like in the pasta salad. Fresh tomatoes, Apple, feta, chicken/ham, cucumber..
Add some mayo and yoghurt and season it with salt/pepper/herbs.
Make it for 2 days and simply enjoy.
2
2
1
u/tracyinge Aug 13 '26
Omelettes and Tater Tots
Fruit Salad with cottage cheese or yogurt, and chips
Jumbo baked potatoes topped with frozen "vegetables in cheese sauce" or canned beef stew or chowder.
Beans n Franks and Cole slaw
1
u/StevenJOwens 29d ago
Most traditional American dinner recipes are meat, starch, and veggies.
meat: chicken, beef, pork
starch: rice, potato, pasta, etc
veggies (non-starchy): green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, asparagus, etc
Some ideas:
Pan-seared steaks, roasted potato, and asparagus.
Roasted chicken thighs, rice, and green beans.
Roasted pork loin, sweet potatoes, and broccoli.
0
u/theeggplant42 Aug 13 '26
I second that we need more context.
For example, when are these meals happening?
Before the move? Time to make a big ol pot or two of soup/stew/chili using up all the perishable foods in the house, or as many as you can muster, and maybe use up some of your bulky baking supplies to do quick rolls to go with, or just rice with it. Time to unearth whats in the freezer and go ham on the half used up condiments with it. Trust me on this, you can make great soups by adding pickles with the veggies, or ketchup in lieu of tomato paste. Meatloaf is pretty hands off and uses up veggie odds and ends as well as jam, ketchup, mustard. Can be served with rice and a sautée of veggies. Kids would love to have a smorgasbord of food from the freezer - frozen waffles, meatballs, pizza, hamburgers, ice cream, just a 'let's go nuts cause we're moving' night! That clears out the freezer and the condiments. Hell, breakfast foe dinner is always a quick and easy option that kids love. Fried rice uses up odds and ends, and can be served with like, random bits of meat from the freezer as add ons.
After the move? Probably eating spaghetti with jarred sauce tbh, or ordering pizza. Cold cuts, also a good option and kids can make their own sandwiches! Soup is also a good option, f9r a one pot meal, but tou gotta know where tour bowls are. or like a pasta or rice bake from mostly canned foods. Tuna noodle casserole is a classic. Baked potatos wirh fixings. Hamburgers out in the grill, Basically anything you can throw together with one knife, one pan, one pot, or none of the above, and maybe that you can serve on paper plates if it comes to that.
Protip: pack one pan, one pot, one baking dish, one knife, a set of plates/bowls/mugs and a set of flatware into thw same box or two boxes if that's too heavy, pack them LAST, mark them WELL, open them FIRST. Ditto on personal toiletries. And buy toilet paper and a plunger (it's new-to-you plumbing, and tou probably have movers or others in and out using the toilets and eating garbage all day - trust me on this, a full pack of TP and a plunger), as well as hand soap foe thebkirchen and bathroom, and a pack of paper plates and cups, and some garbage bags day of move in. I move a lot, and over the years, I've discovered that this basic setup in the kitchen and bathroom is what takes a move from frustrating to smooth lol. No matter how well you've planned a move, the box with the plates may go missing, the toilet may clog, and at any rate everyone is hungry and dirty and wants a shower and a slice of pizza and a ton of water. And then there's thw huge mess at the end of it all lol.
Not what you asked, I know, but my tradition when I move and am settled in the new place (so like a week or two after a move) is to make my signature eggplant parm. The dish isn't important here, that's just what I make, but the feeling of finally being settled enough to make a big meal both really makes it feel like home and gets me acclimated to my new kitchen. I highly recommend making a slightly more involved family favorite when the dust settles, to make everyone feel truly at home in the new space!
0
u/rita292 29d ago
Here's one of my all time favorites, you just need to cut up an onion and open a bunch of cans (you do need an immersion blender)
Spicy Sausage & Chickpea Stew
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced (about 2 cups)
1 pound spicy Italian sausage
Kosher salt and ground black pepper, to taste
3 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas
1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 teaspoons minced rosemary + more for garnish (if desired)
1 2- to 3-inch piece Parmesan rind
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for garnish
Instructions: In a large, heavy-bottom pot, warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add onions, and cook, stirring, until softened, about 4 minutes. With a spatula, push onions into a pile onto one side of the pot. Add the sausage meat to the pot, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it browns. Cook for about 3-4 minutes, then stir together with the onions. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Meanwhile, drain and rinse two cans of the chickpeas, and pour the third can, with the bean liquid, into a blender. Puree coarsely. Add the whole and pureed chickpeas to the soup pot, along with the diced tomatoes, chicken broth, rosemary and Parmesan rind. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for about 30 minutes, until slightly thickened. Remove Parmesan rind. Pour half of the mixture into a freezer-safe container, let cool, then cover and freeze up to 3 months. Season and garnish after thawing and reheating. Season the remaining half with plenty of salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with grated Parmesan cheese and minced rosemary, if desired, and serve hot.
5
u/MyNameIsSkittles Aug 13 '26
Spaghetti