Easy GOOD dinners for two

I bet it was the bag cheese... some are ok and I've definitely used it before as well, but the cornstarch or whatever they use can definitely throw something off!
 
But yeah. my wife is really picky as well when it comes to eating...it has taken her 24 years to learn to like Ketchup. who in the hell doesn't eat ketchup? :)
She walways craves these things that neither of us know how to make, so we stick with what he know. I want to branch out from that. My sister in law can make something great from nothing and that pisses me off :)
 
It just takes practice. The internet and youtubes makes anything possible. ;) Thank goodness no one in my house is truly picky, though, and the kids are 1 and almost 3 and haven't turned their noses up at much. I have heard, "there's no food!," more than once from a certain someone... had to argue that "ingredients" are still, typically, "food." :lol:
 
I made this yesterday for my family http://allrecipes.com/recipe/creamy-herbed-pork-chops/ and it was awesome. The kids all loved it. It had a powerful flavor, but wasn't overly spicy. I did substitute half-and-half for the milk to make the sauce a little heavier. I served it up with a side salad and applesauce. Bear in mind, my kids are 4,5 and 8 - picky eaters everyone.

I've become a pretty good cook being a stay-at-home dad. I try not to get too crazy with spices, though. Just because I like it, doesn't mean my kids will.
 
I like to put boneless pork chops in cream of mushroom with preferred seasoning in the crock pot on low in the morning. Come home from work, boil rice or mashed potatoes and serve. I have used pork shops, cubesd steak, round steaks, chicken, it's all good. You can't go wrong.

My fiancé makes killer taco soup that I just can't get enough of. Add a little Texas Pete, sour cream, cheese, use tostitos scoop chips instead of crackers and its killer.

The key is read recipes on the Internet, try them, modify them, mess them up, make something awful then order pizza. Try it again. You have to try and figure out what you like, don't like, what works and what don't.

I personally love to cook when people are around to enjoy it. For a good meal like cubed steak and gravy and anything rich, hearty and gravy based, a cast iron pan is a must and the more you use it the better it will be.
 
trailhugger said:
It just takes practice. The internet and youtubes makes anything possible. ;) Thank goodness no one in my house is truly picky, though, and the kids are 1 and almost 3 and haven't turned their noses up at much. I have heard, "there's no food!," more than once from a certain someone... had to argue that "ingredients" are still, typically, "food." :lol:
Click to expand...

this right here.
We go with the philosophy "If its terrible or messed up, it only takes 20 minutes to get Chinese take-out."
And let me tell you... I've eaten a lot of last-minute sweet & sour chicken.
 
RatLabGuy said:
this right here.
We go with the philosophy "If its terrible or messed up, it only takes 20 minutes to get Chinese take-out."
And let me tell you... I've eaten a lot of last-minute sweet & sour chicken.
Click to expand...
Close to mu philosophy.... Worst case is we eat again in 4-6 hours!!
 
Cant beat cornbread. I mix a full batch but freeze half for later.

Cornbread

2 c. corn meal self-rising
½ c. oil
1 small can cream style corn
1 large onion (chopped fine)
2 eggs beaten
1 cup buttermilk
3 Jalapeno or banana peppers (chopped) optional
1-1/2 c. cheddar cheese grated

Mix first 5 ingredients well, stir in chopped peppers and onions, pour ½ of batter in heavily greased skillet or pan, sprinkle 1/2 of cheese over this, add remaining batter and sprinkle top with remaining cheese. Bake at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes.


edit: best if made with cast iron skillet. Its pretty dang good made on the smoker too.
 
That reminds me of another one of my favs. Cook the chili mac hamburger helper, put in a casserole dish. Mix up jiffy corn muffin mix pour on top and bake.
 
I've gotten into frozen fish fillets lately. Have tuna steak and salmon on hand pretty much always. Usually make it with some of the Ben's 90 second stuff and a can of veggies. I'm gonna pick up some of the steamfresh stuff the next time I go to the store. It takes only a few minutes to make.
 
What about a stir frying in a Wok? you can make some dang good and very healthy dinners w many cheap, simple, fresh ingredients; meat, veggies, peanut oil for stir frying, seasonings-garlic,hot pepper,soysauce,chile paste, etc. If you have a sideburner on an outdoor gas grill it's perfect for a wok as stir frying can smoke up the kitchen w the high heat of stir frying, but you cannot beat the great taste and good for you eats of stir fried fresh ingredients. Cutting the food into small pieces before cooking is 90% of the job, the cooking takes only minutes, add some instant rice and you'll have a fantastic dinner. You can cook any combo of things you like and countless mixtures of ingredients to find what you like best. I've no experience w electric woks but some peeps I know like them, just turn the exhaust fan on the stove on if your Woking in the kitchen. Get a Wok, Google Wok recipies and techniques and try it out, I bet you'll spend less nights getting takeout or going to any resturant for dinner, re-heated leftovers are awesome too.
 
I've never understood how some people don't like to cook....I freaking love it. Hell, I've gotta eat it so I might as well enjoy making it! Plus, when you enjoy cooking, you just go in the kitchen and make stuff.

That being said...all of my recipes are in my head and I have no idea what I'm going to cook until I look in the fridge or the freezer :D
 
These Campbell's slow cooker sauces are pretty tasty and extremely easy to make.


Campbell’s-Slow-Cooker-Sauces.jpg
 
Sloppy does

Brown a pound of ground beef, I usually use deer instead of beef, add a can of chicken gumbo soup, spoonful or two of ketchup, spoonful or two of mustard, spoonful of a1, some sirachi if you like spicy. And let it simmer covered for 30-45 mins. Make you a samich. I like Harris teeter macaroni salad so that's usually what I eat with it.
 
Some kinda pasta thing I like

Brown 1-2# of cube steak in about a cup of oil. Take out cube steak and drop a diced onion in the grease and cook some. Put in 2 cans beef broth and the meat. Salt and pepper it up, I throw in different spices almost every time, paprika is good in it. Cover and let simmer for 2.5-3 hrs. After a couple hours add another can of beef broth and bring to a boil. Throw in some egg noodles and cook till done. Then grub out
 
Being a single dad now I am subscribed to this thread! I don't get home from work until 5, my son plays three sports. Football, basketball and lacrosse so we are on the go all year round. Its hard as hell to get dinner ready and get to a 6pm practice and its too late to eat at 8pm. I need more options for fast but good meals.

Keep them coming, my pencil is sharp now LOL!
 
Cook things that take the same amount of time to cook. For example, here is a typical menu at our house 2-3 times a week:
Skinless chicken thighs in the oven 30 minutes@350*
Asparagus in a covered pan with minced garlic and soy sauce on low heat for 30 minutes

Now hop in the shower while they are cooking.

Toss a sweet potato wrapped in a damp paper towel in the microwave for 5 minutes towards the end of the chicken and asparagus' cycle

Enjoy good, lean chicken, a green veggie and a very healthy sweet tater for about $3 a person.
 
The other thing to keep in mind is to cook larger meals then make your own "tv dinners" to freeze in ready to serve portions. We will cook a 10lb boston butt for 4 people, then shred or chop the rest and freeze into the proper portions for tacos(add seasoning) or as the main course. Makes meals easier on ball nights or boyscout nights...
 
I'm with Jody, that sounds like a lot of my wifes meals. Swap out the chicken with some pork chops, steamed broccoli and carrots in the microwave and its pretty easy meal with good nutrition and flavor. I think most of her meals come out of Cooking Light magazine. On a side note, we had homemade Calzones last night.......mmmm
 
Tonights menu:
2.5 pounds of Denver cut steak in casserole dish with blackened seasoning at 375* for 35 minutes. This will make 5 meals for me (supper each evening). I'll add a can of green beans and a sweet potato each night. For the wifey (who can't have pork or red meat) we do "piece chicken Sundays" (@frankenyoter ) where we smoke/grill/bake a bunch of chicken for the week and toss it in the fridge. Add a can of beans, frozen veggies, etc and you're done.
It's cheaper and healthier than eating out frequently.
 
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I fixed homemade chicken noodle soup tonight. My kids love it!

1 pound of chicken breast cut into small chunks, boiled until done, then add 1 quart of chicken broth, fresh cut carrots and celery, one pack of chicken seasoning. Boil for 10min on a slow roll then add the egg noodles and boil until done. Serves 6
 
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