Here we go, you get to read 50,000 words before I get to the life hack. Just kidding, only 45,000.
I love cooking and so does Jason. We love exploring new foods, recipes, and ways to prepare our meals. It’s turned us a little bit snobby. We like grass fed beef, organic fruits and vegetables, and ethnic foods of all kinds.
Don’t get me wrong, we won’t turn away a good burger or easy comfort foods either, but low quality fare is just not worth it, even if it’s a burger. We’ve recently learned to make bibimbap, espresso, and we’ve been exploring recipes in our new dutch oven.
All of that has been so fun to do together. Jason has come a long way from his days of making boxed macaroni and cheese, and adding a few extra cheeses to dress it up. I’m glad those days are over!! That’s for sure.
That said, there are times when you just need a quick and easy meal. Let’s face it, we work, we have kids, and we have 10 acres to take care of. There’s laundry days, feeding the pets, and taking out the garbage.
We can’t always devote the amount of time we would like to our foodie endeavors. Sometimes we even get tired or lazy, or we’d rather spend time relaxing than cooking a fancy meal.
A couple of quick tips I’ve learned to make meals easy on those busy days:
Tip #1: Have fresh citrus on hand. A few limes and lemons can be the basics for a great salad dressing, or even simply squeezed over grilled chicken to give a little extra flavor.
Tip #2: Invest in a some good seasonings. Go to a spice shop when you have a little time and grab some real seasonings. Don’t bother with grocery store aisle kind, most of them are low quality. Seasonings last forever and then you have them on hand for a busy day. Oh and this says ‘salt free’ which doesn’t matter to me. In fact, that’s stupid! Food needs salt. Add it, always.
Tip#3: Use broth! Broth levels up any dish. I like to use chicken broth when I make rice, instead of water. You get tons of nutrients that are healing, and the taste gets infused in your rice. Win win. Beef broth is amazing to put on top of a dutch oven roast to give some richness of flavor for when you are ready to make your gravy when it comes out of the oven. It doesn’t have to be organic, free range, or grass fed, that’s just my preference.
So there you have it. Three of my favorite tips to level up any meal in just a few minutes. Enjoy!
Andersons of West Hills 