Dinner Ideas

[ArcticChicken]

I have just realized it is my turn to cook tonight. The problem is, I have no ideas. For protein I have frozen tilapia or frozen chicken. If anyone can recommend a way to make one or the other taste interesting, I will be your bestest friend.

[hopie144]

I LOVE tilapia! I use Old Bay seafood seasoning to give it some flavor. You can sprinkle a little extra virgin olive oil on it, then put the seasoning on top. I usually broil mine. Or you can bake it. Whichever you prefer. Of course an old fav also is just lemon juice, salt and pepper.

For chicken, there's a few different ways to flavor it and still be healthy.. if you like balsamic vinaigrette, you can brush that on. Or lemon-pepper seasoning, italian dressing is awesome on chicken.

I have alot of recipes for both tilapia and chicken. If you want more, you can PM me.

:)

[RetailWorkhorse]

Honey and mustard baked chicken with rice? Chicken with white wine sauce? What kinda veggies ya got?

[myswtghst]

I used to make ranch chicken with potatoes (usually mashed or oven fries) for my brother and male roomies in college. You just use the powdered ranch dressing mix and dip the chicken in breading made with flour and the mix after dipping the chicken in milk or eggs, and bake the whole thing. Yummy like ranch, but less fat cuz there's no sour cream/dressing involved. :)

[InsanityInc]

Um, tilapia, sprinkle with garlic powder, bread crumbs, paprika, place small amount of butter on it, and broil. :p Part of my attempt to make me and my daughter to eat healthy. Unfortunatly the only way my daughter likes fish is deepfried. :rolleyes:

[tropicsgoddess]

I love spicy food, so this might be a little hot for you depending on your taste.

Crushed garlic,a little bit of Jamaican jerk seasoning (the kind in the jar) and lemon pepper on the Tilapia and bake it. As a side dish, some veggies of your choice and rice. For the chicken, some ground ginger, ground cumin , with some salt and pepper and bake it.

[PCGameGuy]

Get a large can of Campbells Cream of Chicken soup. There is a recipie for chicken and rice on it, that works great as a fast easy meal. :) For Tilapia, look for a nice macadamia encrusted recipe. Not sure how it would go, but with mahi mahi I use a teriyaki marinade and let it soak for 30 mind before baking for 15. For salmon I use italian dressing, same formula.

Good luck!

[Chanlin]

Real simple one that is a favorite of mine and can be done depending what you have on hand.

Tomato Sauce - I usually use 3 to 4 8 oz cans for 3 to 4 chicken breasts depending on size.

Pinch of Basil and Oregano if ya have it

1 clove minced garlic (I mince my own garlic, again depends on what you have on hand)

1 chopped green bell pepper, again if you have it and if you like it

Chopped mushrooms, I usually just add this to y preference, I dont measure it, and again if you have it and if you like it.

This should go without saying I would hope, but heat this all together in a skillet or sauce pan.

Serve over Spaghetti again if you have it, if not its good with just the chicken.

[myswtghst]

For Tilapia, look for a nice macadamia encrusted recipe.

IMO, this is the best way to do tilapia - with a macadamia nut crust.

An example (http://homecooking.about.com/od/fishrecipes/r/blsea102.htm)

Also - tilapia ideas from Whole Foods (http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/list_seafood.html#tilapia)

Hope that helps!

[Giggle Goose]

I use Old Bay seafood seasoning to give it some flavor.

:worship::worship::worship::worship:

It's also good on burgers, fries, any kind of potato.... yum.

[Jester]

This may be a bit late for your dinner, but thought I'd throw in my ideas as well. Ya never know, maybe you or someone else here can use them next time.

For everything below, please spray the cooking vessel with your favorite non-stick cooking spray. You'll thank me later.

For tilapia, I would pan sear it or sautee it.

For pan searing, mix some salt and black pepper with Wondra flour, and dredge the fish fillets in the flour. Put a skillet on your stove top and put the heat on HIGH for thick fish (more than a half inch thick) or MEDIUM HIGH for thin fish (less than a half inch thick). Pour approximately 1.5 teaspoons of olive oil into pan, spreading it around by tilting the skillet for even distribution. (NOTE: Do NOT use extra virgin olive oil, as this will burn at this level of heat. I recommend light olive oil.) Wait until the oil starts to smoke slightly, then add the fish. (If the oil is not smoking, it is not hot enough yet.) Turn fish over when edges turn from flesh-color to white 1/3 to ½ way up sides. This will take about 1-2 minutes, depending on thickness. Do NOT mess with the fish until this point, as you will only tear it. Flip fish after this point, and cook until outside is golden in color and inside is milky white. (You can check the internal color simply by cutting slightly with a knife or poking with a sharp spatula while fish is cooking.) When the fish is done, scoop it up quickly with your spatula and serve it with your favorite sauce.

For sauteeing, I would sautee it at a medium temperature in a skillet with olive oil and garlic, with some salt and black pepper, and perhaps a few other spices, depending on what you are looking for.. Simple, easy, and tasty.

Chicken? I would stir fry it. And no, you DON'T need a wok for stir frying (though of course if you have one, use it!). Sautee the chicken in olive oil and soy sauce. You can either buy canned stir fry vegetables or, if you want it to be really fresh and awesome, buy your own. My recommendations are baby corn, water chestnuts, snow peas, onions, bell peppers, hot peppers (be careful!), and bamboo shoots. You can also (though I usually don't) use broccoli, carrots, mushrooms, green beans, and/or asparagus. Make sure to season with black pepper, crushed red pepper (to taste), garlic, and ground ginger. (You shouldn't need salt if you use soy sauce....if you don't use soy, season with salt, of course!) You can also throw a little curry in there if you want to go that direction. Also, you can mix in a little teriyaki sauce at the end, and/or some pineapple chunks. (Pineapple adds SO MUCH to this dish!

All of the above goes well with rice. You can either make your own or (what I do when I want to do things well but quickly) you can make pouched rice. Zatarain's and Uncle Ben's have some great flavors to choose from. Their teriyaki rice goes very well with stir fry.

Enjoy, and hope your dinner turned out well.

[ArcticChicken]

Thank you all. All your recipes sound delicious, and I will be trying them all at some point. I wound up making chicken parmesan 'cause I was poking through the cupboards and found bread crumbs and marinara sauce.

[hopie144]

:worship::worship::worship::worship:

It's also good on burgers, fries, any kind of potato.... yum.


Yes! It's yummy on all these things...especially potatoes!!