5 Quick Fix Easy Dinner Ideas

Rachel Ray is famous for her 30 Minute Meals, and when I became acquainted with the series, I was completely hooked; she cooks simple stuff, and makes it fast, with minimal mess. My youngest son fell asleep many nights, watching Rachel Ray's quick fix meals.

In a busy, and full, household, it's inevitable that there are nights when things are very pressed for time, as one child or another is shuttled to some activity, and back. The easiest thing would be to stop at a drive through, and I'm sure the young ones wouldn't complain. However, the pocketbook cringes at the thought, and even bargain burgers can add up with a bunch like ours. Following are 5 quick fix easy dinner ideas for our big bunch, easy to prepare, easy on the budget.

A recent town hall meeting led to nationwide attention on a woman who addressed the President with her concern, that things didn't seem to be improving economically, and that she really didn't want to go back to eating hot dogs.  While I understand the sentiment, I actually like hot dogs, and they figure into my menu plan for the sake of speedy preparation.  Whether it's a soccer game night, or a quick fix meal after church, hot dogs are a snap.  Generally, I boil them, but occasionally, I will do them on my griddle, as the family likes that approach well.  A side of salad or slaw, and a side of pork and beans, and voila! 

Don't think that your dogs need be mundane, either.  Various relishes, chopped onions, sauerkraut, chopped tomatoes, green chiles...there are many interesting things to use to dress up those dogs.  Try different mustards, or prep a can of chile to top with.  While they are salty, and not the healthiest of options, in a rush, they are a great time saver, and your options vary greatly for making them tasty.  Besides, a 24 pack of bun length dogs, and buns, run me about 7-8 dollars, whereas I would spend 20-25 dollars at the soccer snack bar. 

We raise chickens and ducks, and so there is usually a decent supply of eggs in the house.  My ducks actually are more faithful layers than my chickens, but it's nice to have some variety.  Occasionally, we even have turkey eggs.  There are plenty of options for making a quick dinner with eggs, most taking 15 minutes, or less.

Scrambled, fried, or basted, I can serve up eggs and toast easily.  With a little more time, omelets are a big hit, especially when I have garden veggies on hand.  Add veggies into the scramble, and it's a skillet dish, quite costly at a local diner, but cost effective in the comfort of my kitchen.  Moreover, it's not a time consuming event.  Egg sandwiches and egg burritos are also wonderful means of satisfying your troop's hunger.

My Mexican Red Rice recipe is about a 20-25 minute dish. Canned refried beans heat in the microwave in minutes, just place them in a casserole dish, and let them heat. Or, for that matter, use the oven. Top with cheese, to make it special, and the kids will love it. Meanwhile, heat flour or corn tortillas on your griddle, and keep them warm in a tortilla warmer, or in a well covered pot. Don't start them until the rice is more than half done, so that they won't cool off too quickly. A side of refried beans, a side of red rice, and a few tortillas are warming, comforting, and filling!

You can make the whole selection into burritos, if you like, saving on some of the dishes.

If you have a pound or two of ground beef on hand, cook it up with a diced onion, and with diced bell pepper and/or celery if you have it on hand.  Drain any grease, and add chicken stock, or water and chicken bouillon, to taste.  Add frozen veggies or canned veggies, whatever you have on hand, and if you like, add some tomato sauce for an additional layer of flavor.  You can also cook in a bit of rice or barley if you like, for some extra fill-power.  The results will vary by what your available ingredients are, but it's a quick fix every time.  The only hold up might be frozen ground beef, but a speed defrost setting on the microwave can help you there.

Pick up a rotisserie chicken, and corn tortillas.  Shred the rotisserie chicken, shred some lettuce, chop onion and cilantro, maybe tomatoes, and fill warmed tortillas with the ingredients.  Ketchup goes well, as do salsas.  Simple.

If you don't want to mess with a rotisserie chicken, boil a couple of chicken breasts, til done, and shred with two forks, pulling the meat apart.  For my big crew, it will require 4 or 5 chicken breasts, but shredded chicken goes a long way.  The boiling of the chicken will take a bit, maybe as much as 30 minutes, so this isn't the quickest option, but it works.