Easy meals for the kitchen newbie!

[fireheart]

So my partner's parents have moved out of the house my boyfriend is living in and one of our friends is his housemate.

She is a chef and will occasionally bring home meals on the weekend for us. She doesn't do this all the time and currently there are a few nights where she's out at work or doing something else. Also so I don't feel like a lazy fucker, I'd like to cook once in a while.

Now here comes the dilemma: I am pretty much a cooking n00b. I can cook the following:

-scrambled eggs.
-french toast.
-pancakes.
-sausages (in a frypan)
-fried rice.

The house does not have a microwave, which is limiting my options a little.

So what are some easy meals to cook for 2-3 people? We are still in the process of stocking up on kitchenware.

[cashierbex]

Spaghetti is easy.

I have also made a fantastic meal that I found.

Its chicken with orzo
basically you cook the chicken, boil water to do the orzo. get some fetta cheese (I forget the amount, but I am sure a small tub of it would work) and spinach and tomato. You combine everything and bake it till the cheese is melted.

I am sure you can subsitute stuff in there if needed.

[42_42_42]

Find and watch Alton Brown's show "Good Eats." Afterwards, you *will* know how to cook!

Cooking really isn't difficult. If you can read and follow directions, you can follow a recipe. Make sure you read the recipe through and that you understand it before getting started. Also make sure you get all your ingredients together before starting (this is called "mise en place" by us "fancy" cooks).

If you don't own one, get a crock-pot (slow cooker). Some of the easiest and tastiest meals are made in that thing!

The only thing we use our microwave for is defrosting meat, melting butter, and heating up left-overs. Everything else is cooked on the stovetop or in the oven (or, occasionally, on the grill).

Super easy meals:
tacos
spaghetti
chili or chili mac
pot roast (especially if cooked in the crock-pot)
baked or roasted chicken
"loaded" baked potatoes
sloppy joes
beef stew
ham steak
pork chops (broil, pan fry, or bake)
hamburger stroganoff
meatloaf

If you don't mind using box mixes, etc. the Hamburger Helper line of products are super easy to use. Heat up some froz or canned veggies and you've got dinner. Rice-a-Roni, Stove Top Stuffing, and Kraft Mac 'n Cheese are all easy go-to sides. Even instant mashed potatoes can be decent if you make them with half 'n half and plenty of butter. The only thing with packets and boxes of stuff is they're loaded with sodium. But for the novice cook, they're a great place to begin!

You can always heat up some soup in a pot and make grilled cheese or grilled ham & cheese sandwiches for a quick, nutritious meal.

And don't be afraid of making more than what 2 people can eat at one sitting. "Left-overs" are awesome! It's just me and the hubby and unless we're having sandwiches or salads for supper, there is always leftovers. We either eat them for lunch or supper the next couple of days. Some stuff, like lasagna, that I just can't make without making a ton of it, I'll freeze at least half of it right off. Of course, we've got a big chest freezer in the basement...

The basic "have to have" kitchen equip. (other than what you eat off of) for those starting out as I see it:
chef's knife
paring knife
bread knife
serrated knife (steak knife will work for time beaing)
peeler
kitchen shears
wooden cutting board (for veggies & fruits and anything already cooked)
plastic cutting board (for raw meat & fish)
set of "dry" measuring cups
glass 1 cup measure
set of measuring spoons
strainer
box grater
medium sauce pan
large sauce pan or stock pot
large frying pan
medium non-stick frying pan (the other pans above should NOT be non-stick)
9x13 glass baking dish
8x8 square glass baking dish
Dutch oven (or crock-pot, then, later, get which ever you didn't get to start with)
whisk
bulb baster (best tool ever for getting the fat from ground beef out of the pan)
2 silicone spatulas
2 silicone spoonulas
2 wooden spoons or silicone coated spoons
1 plastic turner
1 pair of tongs
1 large glass or metal mixing bowl set (set of 3 graduated sizes)
2 cookie sheets/baking trays
2 cooling racks
2 or 3 8"x2" round cake pans
pie plate
broiler pan with drip tray (if one wasn't in with your oven, sometimes in rental situations they disappear)
electric beater
probe thermometer

Stuff to get once you have the basics:
garlic press
plane grater/zester
electric kettle
blender
food processor
extras of your knives
duplicates of your pots & pans
more baking dishes/casseroles
bundt cake pan
extras of your spatulas, whisk, turner, spoons, tongs
programmable probe thermometer
more mixing bowls

Pretty much everything else is either gadgetry that's not really useful or for when you get into fancier or more specialized stuff. We have a LOT more in our kitchen, but most of it's for making and decorating fancy cakes, cookies, and pastries.

Hope that helps! Feel free to PM me with questions!

[fireheart]

42_42_42, that is absolutely brilliant! THANK YOU!

Will be printing out the list to share with SO and housemate.

[Seshat]

It's out of print, but L Plates by Ian Parmenter is an excellent starter cookbook for Australian cooks.

It not only is intended as a 'newbies' book, it uses Australian standard measures, and where it has photographs or suggestions for ingredients, they're local brands.

Yes, there is product placement; but it's actually rather helpful. Especially if it's a less common ingredient that Ian's suggesting.

[42_42_42]

Oh, I forgot, all measurements above aren't metric. I'm so used to using the old English system for cooking that I forget that the rest of the world doesn't just use metric for science!

[MaggieTheCat]

I just made the world's easiest tacos tonight:

1 package chicken breasts (3 breasts, it was about 1.5-2lbs total)
1 packet taco seasoning (or make your own if you don't want to use the store-bought stuff, there are tons of recipes online for homemade taco seasoning)
1-2 cups salsa

Dump everything in a crockpot. Turn on high for about 4 hours or low for (I'd guess) 6-8 hours. When the chicken is tender, remove to a plate and shred with two forks. Place shredded chicken back into crockpot and stir to coat with the salsa sauce. Add more salsa or water to thin the sauce if needed. Serve on tortillas with shredded lettuce, tomato, cheese, sour cream, etc.

[Kogarashi]

I don't consider myself a very good cook, so here are some of my easy "go to" recipes. Advance apologies as measurements are not in metric.

Frankensoup
Requires: Crock pot

You basically empty a few cans of beans and veggies into a crock pot, add broth/water, seasonings, and pre-cooked meats as desired, and heat it up during the day.

Sample batch:
1 15-oz. can carrots
1 15-oz. can each black beans, red beans, and great northern beans
1 28-oz. can whole kernel corn
2 15-oz. cans chicken broth (you can substitute water and boullion cubes)
a double handful of dried onions (you can substitute diced fresh onions)
half a cheddarwurst polish sausage cut into smaller chunks
enough water to almost top off the crock pot (ours is a large one)
rosemary, basil, salt, and pepper to taste

Set the crock pot to high for two hours, then low for two more, and it should be ready to go.

I have also previously used canned new potatoes, carrots, green beans, etc. It's a good way to clear out food storage when you need to rotate it.

Basic Crock Pot Dinner
Requires: Crock pot (obviously)

Ingredients:
Meat of your choice (I usually use 2-4 chicken breasts, or a single large cut of beef, about 2-3 lbs.)
Onion soup mix pouches (one pouch per 4 cups of water)
Water to just cover the meat in the crock pot

Set the crock pot to high for 4 hours. Serve with your choice of sides (I like to microwave a stir fry veggie mix for a quick side).

Skillet Potatoes
Rquires: Large skillet or (my preference) chef's pan

Ingredients:
Approx. 4-6 large potatoes (or 10 small)
1-2 onions
Frozen vegetables (I tend to use stir fry mixes)
Salad dressing (Italian and balsamic vinaigrette are both good options)
Browned sausage, beef, or turkey, or sliced polish sausage (optional)

Cut the potatoes and onions into 1-inch cubes and place them into the pan with a small amount of oil (1-2 Tb, I think). Cover and cook on medium heat, stirring every five minutes or so until potatoes start browning, about 15-20 minutes (by my experience). Add the vegetables and cover again, stirring every five minutes again until veggies are warmed through (I add them when fresh out of the freezer, so I look for the ice to be completely gone and frozen clumps broken up). Then add the salad dressing, just enough to coat the vegetables. (Add the meat at this point too, if you're using it.) Heat through and serve.

As a note, the above amounts make enough for my family of five with at least two more helpings leftover, so reduce overall amounts if you don't want leftovers.

[Food Lady]

I love casseroles: dinner in one dish! Google tuna noodle casserole, scalloped potatoes with ham, and chicken broccoli rice casserole. Those are 3 easy ones to start with, and you'll get a taste of American comfort food. Oh, and shepherd's pie or cottage pie is nice, too. Oh, but it's summer in Oz....Anyone have any non-oven ideas?

[Kogarashi]

How about wraps?

Large tortillas, some sort of leafy green (I like baby spinach), shredded cheese, cubed apples, craisins, honey roasted peanuts, shredded cooked chicken (can be bought in a can if you don't want to cook it yourself) or sliced deli meats, some drizzled salad dressing...just about anything you want really, rolled up in the aforementioned tortilla. I know Mission brand in the US makes some nice large ones specifically for wraps, too. (Dunno what the Australian equivalent might be.)

[Teefies2]

My son's favorite easy meal (that I taught him!):

Take hot dogs, usually two per person, or more if you're really hungry. Slice them lengthwise, but not all the way through, making a pocket. Stuff the pocket with cheese, place them in an oven safe dish. Top with onion slices, lemon slices, and ketchup. Bake at 350 for about 10-15 minutes, depending on your oven the cheese will be melted and the onions/lemons will have a little brown on them. It's yummy! Serve with frozen french fries (cooked in the oven at the same time or in a fryer or in a skillet), or home made fries if you're really ambitious (peel potatoes, slice thinly, fry in a skillet that has about an inch of shortening or oil, turning them over when brown)!

Easiest cheapest meal ever - I came up with this during one of the many times I've been broke in my life! Lemons are expensive, so they're optional, but they do add something to the dish. Hope this helps!

[cleorose]

Fellow noob cook lol!

Lots of great suggestions. I also suggest that pot roast is pretty easy. 3 lbs of ground chuck, 2 cans of beef broth, 3-4 potatos peeled and cut, 3-4 carrots (can use baby carrots), 2-3 stalks of celery chopped small (you can buy celery already diced ), throw in some onion soup mix (knorrs ) put in crock pot for 6 + hours or in a dutch oven in 6+ hours on low around 300.

IF you are pressed for time box dinners like hamburger helper and homestyle bakes are pretty good. they are quick and done in 15-20 minutes. Beef Pasta or Cheesy beef pasta is our favorite, we get biscuits and it feeds 2 adults and 3 kids. 1 pound of ground beef is all you need for that.

[dalesys]

Burnt water with ramen?

[Jester]

I am going to assume you have at last a cutting board, a stove, a skillet, and a knife. If you do, you can pretty much make a lot of my quick and easy recipes. Here are two of them. The amounts listed (when I actually list amounts) are for 2 people, as I normally only cook for myself or myself and one other. If you need to feed more people, simply expand the recipes appropriately. Remember, if you make too much, you can always stick it in the fridge and have tasty leftovers another time, but if you make too little, someone's gonna be hungry!

Polish Confusion

1 lb. kielbasa sausage, sliced into disks.
1/2 a medium white onion, chopped.
1 green bell pepper, chopped.
3 cloves of garlic, minced.
Sauerkraut.
Lighter beer. (I use Foster's Ale, but any basic beer will work. This is not a time for something overly flavorful or dark.)
Salt
Black pepper
White pepper
Emeril's Essence (my favorite premade spice blend).
Deli mustard. (I use Gulden's, but any decent spicy brown or coarse mustard will work. Hell, I suppose boring yellow mustard would work, but ugh, no, not happening in my kitchen.)

On a medium high heat, sweat the onion and pepper for a few minutes, till they get a bite soft. Add the kielbasa, getting it browned. Add the garlic. (Add this after the kielbasa is just about done browning, as if you overcook garlic, it will get unpleasantly bitter.) Add seasonings. Make sure throughout this process you are mixing everything around in the skillet. Add the sauerkraut, using a fork so as to not add extraneous kraut juice to the mix. Add the mustard. (Not too much....I find that about three to four squirts, or a healthy Zorro "Z" pattern, is enough.) Stir to incorporate the mustard into the whole dish. Add a dash (maybe 1-3 ounces) of beer. Stir, cover the skillet, letting the beer steam the whole dish. Drink the remaining beer. After a few minutes of steaming, the dish is ready. Portion it out on plates, serve with beer. (Polish or German beers, such as Zywiec (Poland) or Spaten (Germany) are great with this dish, though you could always use the crap you cooked with. Lol!) Enjoy!


Quick and Dirty Jambalaya

Jambalaya is a dish that often takes hours to make, and years to master. This is not one of those versions. Lol!

Jambalaya rice pouch or box. (See below.)
1/2 medium onion, chopped.
1 green bell pepper, chopped.
Several cloves of garlic, minced.
Boneless skinless chicken tenders, chopped, AND/OR
Headless deveined shrimp AND/OR
Sausage, preferably Andouille, chopped. (See below.)
Salt
Black pepper
White pepper
Red pepper flakes
Emeril's Essence

Make the rice. There are several brands of rice out there for this, both in pouches and boxes. I recommend Zatarain's jambalaya rice, but any jambalaya rice or dirty rice or red rice will do. If you can't find any of these, just choose your favorite flavorful rice. Follow instructions in package, keeping in mind that I've found that using 50% more liquid than the package says produces a far better rice. These packages will come with microwave and stovetop directions. I'm glad you don't have a microwave (fuck microwaves!), because these are much better when made in the stove top.

In a second skillet, cook the onion and pepper, same as in the above recipe.

Cook the meat(s) in the veggie skillet. I use all three, but price, allergies, or preferences may force you to limit it to one or two. Your choice. Remember, shrimp cooks much faster than chicken. Plan accordingly. Season the meat veggie combo.

Add meat veggie combo to rice. Admire the fact that you just made jambalaya. Ignore the criticism of New Orleans folks that would dispute this fact, as you are a new cook and not from New Orleans.

Serve. Bask in the glow of praise from your dining companions.

[42_42_42]

Fellow noob cook lol!

pot roast is pretty easy. 3 lbs of ground chuck

Ground chuck for pot roast? Ground chuck is hamburger meat.

Methinks you meant a chuck roast?