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During lockdown, I've really been enjoying cooking. I feel like I have much more time for it when I actually want to do it, and when it isn't at the end of a long working day where both myself and my partner are too exhausted to do anything complicated.
That being said, while experimenting with new meals, I have discovered some favourites which are super easy, yet absolutely delicious.
If you knew me growing up, then this first one will be a shock to you, since I've always found the texture of prawns to be really weird. I have recently learnt that I actually do love them once they've been cooked long enough, (6-8 minutes works for me), so that they're softer and not as veiny. I'm super excited about this as it opens up an entire new section of the menu for me!
1. Soba noodles with prawns, broccoli, and mushrooms.
This recipe is entirely taken from a recipe book called '101 quick fix dishes' by Olive Magazine. I highly recommend this little book - we use it a lot and there's some fantastic meals in here, covering a full range of chef skill levels.
You will need:
Soba noodles (we used 2 nests of medium egg noodles for this!)
Chicken stock - made up to 500ml
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 small head of broccoli - cut into florets
8 button mushrooms, sliced
Prawns (we used Tesco ready-to-eat prawns)
This is honestly such a simple recipe and it takes no time at all to make, but I always insist on having these ingredients in the house now just in case I fancy making it.
Method:
Cook the noodles in boiling water for 3-4 minutes. Rinse and drain.
Heat the chicken stock with the soy sauce to a simmer.
Add the broccoli and cook for two minutes.
Add the mushrooms and cook for two more minutes.
Add the prawns and heat through (we did this for about 6 minutes)
Divide the noodles between two large bowls and spoon the soup over.
I'm obsessed with this meal - I can't get over how delish it is for something that can be made in 20 minutes.
2. Quick Tortilla Pizzas
I actually made this one for my fiancé as a breakfast in bed meal over the weekend and it was definitely a favourite of his. I found the recipe here
I love this as a quick breakfast, or a snack idea. It took under half an hour to make and it's super fun to customise. I actually used some sandwich turkey slices which we had in our fridge instead of the cooked chicken, and it was still absolutely delicious and cut the cooking time (and the washing up) down by a few minutes!
I also had mini tortillas around, so I was able to do two at a time. I recommend this if you don't want to wait - plus mini anything is just automatically cuter.
I served ours with a little lettuce on the side, but you can add any salad that you like. I love this one, and will be making it again.
3. Roast Chicken and Vegetables
We make this meal so often. It's a very quick meal, and it's super versatile - you can have it with flatbread, rice, or pasta of your choice. You can also add more ingredients if you want to - anything works with this as it's really just a selection of braised vegetables.
You will need:
2 Chicken Breasts
Seasonings of your choice: we use cumin, coriander, turmeric, parsley, salt and pepper
Chopped chunks of tomatoes (or whole cherry tomatoes are lovely too!) and bell peppers
Any other vegetable of your choice - aubergine chunks would work really well here too!
A drizzle of olive oil
A heaped teaspoon of butter
Method:
Drizzle some olive oil over the baking paper/tray
Season your chicken breasts and put them into the oven to cook alone for 10 minutes on 160 degrees celsius
Add the vegetables to the party - along with another drizzle of oil and the teaspoon of butter
Season with salt
Put this all back into the oven for 10 minutes on 200 degrees celsius.
Apologies for not having a photo of this one!
I'm loving all of these meals, and even though I've made more complicated meals (I recently made Lemon Crumb Salmon and Sweet Potato Mash with a Herb Mayo Dip. I felt like a real CHEF, but I will always come back to these quick, easy meals.
Which quick meals have you been loving lately? xo
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