Things You'll Need:
- Quick meal recipes or cookbooks
- Kitchen pantry items: spices, canned soups and mixes, plastic baggies
- Fresh fruits and vegetables
- A mix of fresh meats and precooked (your choice)
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Step 1
Before you even begin cooking, gauge how much time you have to devote to meals for the week. Is it 15 minutes? 20 minutes? A half hour? Or does it vary from day to day, depending on your or your spouse's and children's schedules? Factor in your availability for grocery shopping, how often you want to shop, and what you might need to keep stocked at all times.
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Step 2
Browse through recipe collections online or in cookbooks. Look for timesaver recipes, including those highlighting the cuisine of famous chefs such as Robin Miller, Sandra Lee, Paula Dean, or Rachel Ray.
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Step 3
Once you've found a few recipes to try, take a quick inventory of what you've got in the house, so you avoid buying ingredients you might already have. Make sure to keep on hand at all times: plastic baggies (gallon size freezer bags work best for quick dredges), butter, eggs, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, bread crumbs, canned and dry soups, and cooking spray.
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Step 4
Keep things simple as you cook. Do all prep work in an orderly fashion, starting from when you come home from the grocery store. Wash produce to use (or store and refridgerate if you have the extra time), chop all fresh ingredients and place in bowls, THEN move on to chopping meats.
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Step 5
Clean as you go. This is true whether you are sauteeing chicken on the stovetop, or baking a casserole. Those moments where you have time to kill in between steps is a great time to tackle at least part of the dirty dishes and utensils you have used along the way.
