Hello Elise!

In the introduction to your wonderful new cookbook “You Never Cook Alone” you talk about your family making meals eventful and spending time together in the kitchen and around the table.  Unfortunately, many families seem to be busier and busier these days.  Can you share some advice and tips on how families can make cooking and eating together more of a possibility and a priority?

Thank you for making this your mission and for sharing all your delicious recipes!!

Debbie F.

Clayton, North Carolina

 

Dear Debbie,

Thanks so much for your great question and I am so happy you love You Never Cook Alone. My family and I were thrilled to see it published last year.

Statistics tell us that 80% of people value family mealtime but only 1 in 3 is cooking 3 times a week. Unfortunately many families are going out to eat regularly and staying at home for special occasions only.  The funny thing is that it can sometimes take longer to eat out at a restaurant than to make a 30, 20 or even 15 minute meal at home. It sure is more expensive as well!  In The Family Table Equals SUCCESS, I share why cooking and eating is so important.

 Here some helpful tips to make mealtime quick and easy every family:

  • We’ve all heard the saying “time is money”, so take help where you can get it. Paying a little extra for things like raw deveined shrimp over shrimp you have to clean, or boneless skinless chicken breasts over the breasts you would have to trim and split is worth the extra cents. I also love using canned foods like beans, tomatoes and stocks, because of the time savings.
  • A well organized stock pantry is the secret to fast meals: store up on basics like pastas, rice, broths, low-sodium organic stocks, canned tomatoes, various types of oils, and canned and dried beans. A full well organized pantry won’t leave you scratching your head wondering what is for dinner.
  • Be prepared: The prepared home cook who makes a list of weekly meals to shop for, will never have to wonder “what can we or I make for dinner?”
  • Having a well-stocked, organized freezer is just as important as a well-stocked, organized pantry. Keep boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pork chops, ground beef, turkey and chicken in the freezer. Defrost them in the morning before you leave for the day, and you’ll have the protein part of the meal ready to cook when you return home.
  • My grandmother taught my mother and me some very helpful time-saving methods like peeling and cutting potatoes, placing them in a large pan, covering with water and setting aside on the stove the night before. When you return home you simply add a nice amount of kosher salt and boil away.
  • Always prepare your menu items according to the time it takes to cook them. For example, start longer-cooking foods first. While they’re cooking, prepare the rest of the menu.
  • Purchase and cook foods with other meals in mind. For example, chicken breast breasts can be Asian Chicken and Vegetable Skewers one night and chicken fried rice tomorrow next.
  • Get the whole family involved in making dinner. Children benefit greatly from helping in the kitchen. They learn about how to be creative, have a better self esteem, they develop math skills and learning how to eat well.  Also think about it: you are spending quality time with your children teaching valuable skills all while they are helping you cook, you’re not distracted or interrupted, so dinner can be done on time.
  • Take help from your local grocery store. Here are more ideas:
  • Supplement the main dish with prepared salads and/or side dishes from the supermarket or natural foods market deli. Packaged salad greens have just about eliminated the need to tear up fresh greens.
  • Cook in large amounts and refrigerate or freeze the leftovers. Include ingredients such as beans, rice, ground meat, and vegetables. For example, steam enough fresh green beans for a side dish one night, and use the rest for a salad the next evening.
  • Use convenience foods that cut down prep time like packaged fresh pasta.
  • Skinless, boneless chicken breasts cook up in no time. Season or bread them for a quick sauté or stir-fry, or cook them whole in a sauce or marinade. I purchase my chicken breasts in bulk at BJ’s Wholesale Club. I make several marinades before I head to the store. When I return I simply divide the marinades in the bags that have been labeled and dated and place four to six chicken breasts in each. Freeze the bags and pull them out when you are ready to use them. The same can be applied to beef and pork.
  • Slow cookers actually make quick work of getting a meal on the table. Just toss the ingredients in the cooker in the morning, and dinner is ready when you get home. Your home will smell yummy, too!

15, 20 and 30 Minute Meals Ideas

 

Happy Cookin’!

Elise xo