30 minutes meals?

I was shocked hearing this but I was impressed when I saw Rachael Ray doing it for real. I was curious of how she do it so I follow her show to know how she makes her 30 minute meals. I thought she got a secret but I noticed that she prepare what she need right then and there. That's one secret. If you know what you have in the kitchen and where to locate them then that will make it easier for you to just grab them when you need it. After watching Rachael Ray for more than a year and other food network chefs for less than a year, I kind of figure out the trick in making quick and easy meals but delicious ones when finished. I do have lots of different cook books but I don't follow everything especially if I don't have the ingredients needed. I mostly modified the recipe and most of the time the result were acceptable to hubby, some are great and some are okay according to him. There are entrees that I need to eat rice so I cook rice almost everyday when I need to. Then I figured out how to save time for cooking rice. Cooking the rice in the rice cooker only takes 30 minutes and that's good for 2 persons. I cooked 2 cups of jasmine rice which is more than enough for me and hubby and I put the left over in a Ziploc bag and put it in the fridge. The next day, I just heat the rice in the microwave before dinner. In this way I can concentrate in cooking one entree for me and hubby or just for hubby only. As a Filipina, there are foods that are easy to cook but hubby doesn't like to eat. Like the sardines and egg. Others don't know about this so I'm sharing this to everybody.

I mashed the sardines (ligo); add 2 eggs and a little salt. Mix them together with the sauce of sardines and cook in a skillet. No oil needed. Stir the mixture every now and then so the bottom part will not burn. You know that it's cook if it's almost dry. Serve with rice.

If you have left over, put it in a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge. You can put the left over also in a microwavable plastic container and the next day you just heat and eat.

Another thing is using the crock pot. I tried this many times and it really works great for me and hubby. You just put the ingredients into the crock pot before going to work then set the timer to cook the food inside for 8 hours. As soon as you come home, the food is ready to serve and still hot.

But if you and your partner are okay to eat foods over and over again then multiply the ingredients so you'll have left over’s for the next day. In that way you just heat and eat the next day and go to bed early.

Another recipe that is quick and easy is making a casserole. I cook tuna casserole for hubby almost every Friday. It's really quick and easy that I noticed I can cook this in 30 minutes. You only need pasta, Campbell’s cream of mushroom soup or other flavors that you like, tuna in a can and cheese for toppings. Cook the pasta according to package instruction and once cooked, drain and pour the tuna and cream of mushroom soup in the same pot, then mix together. Transfer the mixture into the casserole dish then top with shredded cheese. Heat in the microwave until the cheese melts. Serve hot.

If you are into multi-tasking like me then you can cook an entree, a steamed side dish plus rice or steamed potato in just an hour. Want to know more? Ask me. :)

PS.
I'm not an expert but I want to help my friend jenn who's willing to learn the quick and easy meals. Just want to share this to those who are interested to learn what I know and tried.