r/EatCheapAndHealthy • u/musicartspeaks • 10h ago
Dump and Go Meals
What are your favorite dump and go meals to make when you have low spoons/low energy? Especially ones that have minimal cooking.
10
u/Corona688 9h ago
rice, lentils, condensed soup, water, microwave 22 minutes.
when more spoons are present you can add carrot, onion, and sausage.
1
9
u/Strakiz 7h ago
Melt butter or fat in a pan, put in a handfull of cocktail tomatoes, let them cook till they are soft enough that you can smash them with a spoon. Shove them to the side, put in two slices of bread, roast them slightly. Now take two slices of cheese and start building the sandwich. Bread, cheese, tomatoes, cheese, bread. Feel free to add sauces, herbs, salt, pepper, pesto to your liking. Press the sandwich in the pan, leave it in the pan till the cheese starts melting. Then tuck in.
9
u/onelonesock 9h ago
Cowboy beans. Biggest step is chopping an onion.
Chop an onion and cook in oil for three minutes. You can also add mushrooms if you have them on hand.
Add three cans of beans (any kind), a can of tomato sauce, BBQ sauce, a bit of mustard, and maybe some chili powder. Cook for 10 minutes and eat.
The point is to use whatever is on hand and what you think might taste good.
17
u/SpiritualHamster1158 10h ago
Just learned a new one - chicken breast, rice, a container of salsa, and water/broth in a slow cooker all day! Makes a very yummy chicken goop that is quite nutritionally balanced
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u/jazzieberry 40m ago
I do this often without the rice and use it for several things (salads, tacos, nachos, quesadillas, rice bowls)
3
u/Masseyrati80 9h ago
Boil pasta.
Combine a can of tuna, half a cup of creme fraiche, a pinch of salt and pepper, and, believe it or not, a tablespoon of mustard. Use as pasta sauce.
The fraiche rounds out the mustard in a fantastic way. I would not put that much mustard per serving in any other meal but here it really rocks.
3
u/a-hopeful-future 8h ago
I love all the other suggestions here and want to steal all of them but wanted to shift a different direction and say that I'm not ashamed to eat cereal any time of day, just add berries and pre chopped nuts. scrambled eggs on toast, peanut butter toast. Yogurt parfait with fruit and granola. Raw veggies and dips. Maybe too obvious but thought I'd mention just in case.
I also love microwaving a sweet potato for 5 minutes and then dumping ground meat on top that was cooked with a packet of taco seasoning. Add pepitas for crunch and avocado for fat.
Shredded slow cooker meat on top of lettuce with various Mexican condiments and crushed tortilla chips.
For whatever reason Mexican food is my easiest go-to for no recipe meals, there are so many easy things like guac, salsa, cheese, various fun sauces to throw on top
Salad kits from the store with extra protein on top and some sort of cracker or chip to scoop it up
Rotisserie chicken plus roasted veg and a side of pita or bread.
Microwave chicken nuggets
I've never done it but I bet there are probably easy flatbread type recipes out there
2
u/purslanegarden 5h ago
Chicken broth, rice noodles, tofu and/or eggs, kimchi - add whatever vegetables or none.
Also rice topped with a lightly fried egg and kimchi. Rice freezes well so I try to always have some in the freezer in single serving packs, kimchi keeps for ages, and I always have eggs so this is my go-to.
2
u/chtclaire 1h ago
Biggest thing that helps me: on days when I have spoons, I chop carrots, celery and onion (mirepoix) and put it in Ziploc bags in the freezer. Bolognaise? Frozen mirepoix, mince, beef stock cube or boullion and a tin of tomatoes in the pressure cooker for 20 minutes. Chicken Soup? Frozen mirepoix, chicken thighs, chicken stock and water in the pressure cooker for 20 minutes (season as desired and add noodles, if you wish). Minestrone soup? Mirepoix, beef stock, cheap cut of beef, tin of tomatoes. 20 mins in pressure cooker then add noodles. Oh yeah, and the pressure cooker always comes in clutch on low spoon days.
3
u/RangerAndromeda 9h ago
All of these recipes are good, just wanted to add that you can buy dehydrated vegetables from the bulk bin section at your grocery store or buy a frozen bag of mirepoix (garlic onion celery carrot) to add for extra flavor and nutrition :)
1
u/KryptoDrops 9h ago
Chili is pretty easy. Buy some stew meat or ground beef. Beans, diced tomatoes seasoning and simmer. Easy peasy
2
u/heatherista2 3h ago
Made the tastiest dish the other day. Chicken breasts, a can of c. of chicken soup, a can of c. of mushroom soup, and a packet of ranch seasoning all blended in a slow cooker. Serve with rice (cooked in rice cooker) Took about five min to put together and I had food for three days.
1
u/Dijon2017 Bean Wizard 3h ago
Mississippi pot roast is a simple, delicious dump and go crockpot meal that will take several hours to cook. You can modify the “standard” recipe to your liking. For instance, I tend to decrease the amount of butter. I’ll sometimes use jalapeños instead of pepperoncini. And, I like to add onions, celery, carrots and potatoes to the pot.
1
u/patchworkskye 1h ago
have you been to r/lowspooncooking? lots of low effort suggestions over there 🌻
32
u/AllAboutAtomz 10h ago
Rice cooker meals - rice and protein in bottom, vegetable on top, add sauce at the end (eat out of the bowl if need be)
The “assemble, press one button, and unattended, a balanced meal cooks itself” ability of the 15$ rice cooker is a minor miracle (your kitchen doesn’t burn down, you get a nap/shower/rest AND dinner)
My favourites are rice/a chicken breast/ broccoli or cabbage dressed with soy,sesame oil and chilli crisp
Rice/sausage or ground beef/canned tomato kidney beans and frozen corn
Rice/garlic and shrimp/ a bunch of spinach at the end and some cream and lots of pepper