It looks like I'm going to be working 12-14 hour days the next several weeks, so I'm looking for some meals/dishes I can cook on the weekend that will last me through the week, so I can just come home and heat them up with little fuss, and get right to dinner.

I don't need anything fancy, and I'm not too picky on food, so it doesn't have to be superb quality or anything. But I also don't want it to be too plain, where I'll be sick of it after a couple of days.

Maybe a good stew? I can come home, pop some rice in the cooker, shower, and just poor it over the rice when I get out?
Maybe a thick, hearty lasagna meant for a big family that I can just enjoy myself over the course of several days?

Those were really the only ideas I had, so hit me with your best shot.

Thanks.

pizza dough freezes very well. make a bunch of them, then thaw them, add sauce/toppings, stick in oven.

i've got a bread maker that works on a timer. can get freshly baked bread when you come home. similarly, rice cookers work well on a timer.

look into slow cookers. spend 5 min in the morning putting ingredients in the slow cooker and let it rip. they also come with timers so you can cook for 8h then switch to "keep warm" so it doesn't overcook your food into mush.

This post was edited by carteblanche on Jun 23 2015 09:22pm

As of right now, i eat a lot of pasta based dishes that i cook quickly during weeknights that last me 2-3 days. It is nothing great and something quick for me to make. I will brown ~1-1.5 lbs of ground meat (pork/chicken/beef - what is on sale for the week), drain grease, simmer meat in a jar of store bought pasta sauce, cook a lb of pasta, and then combine. Ill usually eat that with some garlic toast.

One i did like that, i just added another step - added the mixed pasta, meat, sauce into a 9x13 pan. Top mixture with shredded cheese and bake until cheese browned. For this, i usually used ground italian sausage / mostaccioli.


If you got more time on the weekends, i'm sure you could probably fancy up the dishes.



Slow cookers are also nice. I sometimes will put together ingredients the night before and start it up the next morning before i leave to work.

This post was edited by cialda on Jun 23 2015 09:17pm

Thanks fellas, great start for ideas.

I have a crock pot, but have not tried it out, since most recipes say to cook for 4-8 hours. I figured if it was going to be much longer than the suggested cook time it would ruin it. Am I wrong thinking that?

My slow cooker usually runs for 10+ hours as im at work as well and do not have a programmable slow cooker. For the things ive made with it, i have not noticed too much of an issue with going over the recommended time ;'/

This post was edited by cialda on Jun 23 2015 09:28pm

it's 9-10 hours for me before i get home. anything with rice/pasta will get mushy. chicken breast is super soft, falls apart when i try stabbing it with a fork (unlike grilled chicken). dunno how you like that. but most other things will be fine. nothing is going to burn as long as there's some kind of liquid. i've never tried 15h turnaround personally, so it might be slightly mushy.

try out a chili recipe or pot roast.

This post was edited by carteblanche on Jun 23 2015 09:33pm

Bolognese sauce seems to be your answer. Make big batch and keep for a week fresh easy or freeze . Come home and cook pasta, 10 min bam meal done. Thats what we do in restaurants for staff meal during busy season, no time no fuck around... 15 min later staff meal ready for 25 ppl...

Edit : lmk if u need good recipe.

This post was edited by hofx2 on Jun 23 2015 11:03pm

shepards pie

I'd love to see some recipes.
Found a good beef stew I'm going to try in the slow cooker.

Chili is always good for a few days worth of meals.
Many pasta dishes are easy to cook in large quantities and you can eat for a few days without tiring of them.