Quick and Easy Lunches/Dinners On The Fly

Until we can devise a Jetson-style food system (or until we can create droids/AIs that won't try to take over the world and kill us), we are going to have to settle with preparing our own meals. As our time becomes more and more packed, we have to choose between fast food/convenience meals and the sickness and disease that comes along with that lifestyle, or healthy, whole food-based meals that will promote health and well-being.

I struggle with this just like you. I want meals that are quick, delicious, easy, and varied. Here's a list of things I keep in my house to make sure I always have what I need on hand.

The Essentials:

My pantry is WAY too messy to photograph!
From left to right: black pepper, sea salt, olive oil, bay leaves, vanilla

• Sea salt
• Black pepper
• Olive oil
• All-purpose flour
• Sugar
• Vegetable broth
• Rice
• Bread crumbs
• Fresh or jarred garlic
• Fresh or jarred ginger
• Parmesan cheese
• Pasta
• Butter
• Eggs
• Milk
• Mayonnaise
• Ketchup
• Mustard
• Honey
• Vanilla extract
• Frozen chicken or fish

Spices and flavorings

From left to right: cumin, oregano, cinnamon, cayenne pepper

• Cilantro
• Lime (or lemon if you like)
• Basil
• Bay Leaves
• Cayenne
• Chili powder
• Cumin
• Cinnamon
• Oregano
• Curry powder

Veggies

• Carrots
• Onions
• Potatoes
• Sweet Potatoes
• Garlic

Supplement this list with fresh fruits and veggies that are in season, and preferably local. For a more complete list, and for some lifestyle-specific pantry lists, click here.

Preparing meals:

Once you have gathered the essentials, the next part of the process is preparing the meals. Much of the process of planning quick meals is in knowing how to combine flavors and spices to achieve the tastes you want. A quick meal is not the time to play Top Chef, so you don't have to try to create new and different. We're going for simple and quick here.

Patterns in cooking:
Ginger, garlic and scallions create a Chinese flavor
Lime, cilantro and cumin create a Mexican flavor
Parmesan and oregano create an Italian flavor
Curry and red pepper create an Indian flavor
Cook meat or vegetables with any of these herbs and spices, cook some rice or pasta, and you have a quick and easy dinner. If you make extra, you can carry the leftovers with you for lunch the next day.

Use the ingredients available to plan your meals and menus rather than the other way around. Have you ever gone to the grocery store with a list for a specific meal, only to find that a key ingredient is not available? Look at what you have at hand and plan your meals accordingly.

I don't know about you, but I dislike the idea of my food being in the form of pills and I REALLY dislike the idea of Cylons preparing my food, so for now I'll keep doing it myself.

Feel free to share your quick and easy recipes in the comments section!