Guest Post: 30 Minute Meals That Will Save You Time and Energy

Nowadays people have so much to do that it seems that they are always in a hurry. They have to go to and from work. They have to take their children to and from school. They have to feed the baby, change his diapers, and put him to bed. They have to go shopping, do the yard work, and clean the kitchen… With a thousand different things to take care of, even for those of us who live alone, how do we find the time to prepare for ourselves the food that we need?

Many of the top chefs have seen the problem and decided to do something about it. They have come up with meals that take no more than thirty minutes to prepare. Some of them are featured below.

1) Rachael Ray

Rachael Ray is one of the world’s foremost experts on thirty-minute meals. Her recipes have been featured on Food Network’s TV channel and website and in her magazine. She has also put together a cookbook full of such recipes. Among those you can find on the Food Network website are:

• Parmesan crusted chicken breasts with tomato and basil and potatoes with peppers and onions—this is one of Rachael’s easiest recipes: It takes only twelve minutes to prepare and fifteen minutes to cook. It is also one of the most delicious. The cheese should be shredded and not grated. Two kinds of peppers are called for—a red bell and an Italian mild green pepper. Red pepper flakes are also among the ingredients.
  
  
• Garlic roast chicken with rosemary and lemon—this recipe cooks for 25 minutes, but it can be prepared in only five. Other ingredients are olive oil, a grill seasoning blend of some sort—Rachael herself has recommended Montreal seasoning—and dried white wine or chicken broth.

2) Moms Who Think

Of course Rachael is by no means the only authority on quick and easy meals. There is a whole organization called Moms Who Think made up of such expert chefs. Here are some of their most original and unusual:

• Coca Cola chicken with herbed potatoes—actually a double recipe; you make the chicken and the potatoes separately. Coca Cola chicken means exactly what it says—you combine the chicken with Coca Cola, ketchup and barbecue sauce and cook them in the oven for a half hour, uncovered during the last ten minutes. The herbed potatoes are made with sage, rosemary, thyme (but not parsley!), ground pepper, oregano and oil, plus celery and garlic salt to taste.
  
  
• Chicken focaccia sandwiches—roast deli chicken, roasted red sweet peppers, basil, light mayonnaise and spinach leaves on focaccia bread, served with steamed corn on the cob
  
  
• Sloppy Joe casserole—beef with sloppy Joe sauce, shredded cheddar cheese, Bisquick mix, two lightly beaten eggs, milk and sesame seeds
  
  
• Pizza smothered baked potatoes—a very original idea. It consists of split baked potatoes stuffed with a mixture of peppers, pizza sauce, beef and green pepper.
  
  
• Italian chicken with pasta—chicken with Italian seasoning, parmesan cheese, garlic powder, angel hair pasta and spaghetti sauce. The broiling time can be anywhere from ten to twenty minutes.
  
  
• Skillet macaroni and cheese—ingredients for the recipe include evaporated milk, Monterey Jack and cheddar cheeses, dry mustard, Tabasco sauce, cornstarch and unsalted butter. Takes from nine to eleven minutes to cook.

3) Jamie Oliver

Our last thirty minute meals chef is Jamie Oliver. Steak Indian style is one of his best—it may sound complicated as it consist of a number of different components, including steaks, yoghurt dip, naan breads, pioneer and spinach salad, curry sauce, seasonings and a mango desert—but the things are easy to put together. He also has recipes for spring lamb, mustard chicken, tapas feast and greed curry. A thirty minute meals video can be watched on his website, where the recipe of the day is also featured.

With these and other thirty-minute meals you will no longer have to worry about not having enough time to cook a good meal for yourself and your family. They are also guaranteed to be quite yummy!

Author Bio

Debra Howard is an elder care blogger for Assisted Living Today who writes on a variety of topics including how to stay active in retirement.