What to Cook When You'd Rather Be Doing Anything Else

[elleng]

Low-effort, high-reward cooking for when you're hungry and exhausted.

Chanterelles, Soba, Salmon, +++

https://cooking.nytimes.com/68861692-nyt-cooking/2662871-what-to-cook-when-youd-rather-be-doing-anything-else?

[Alice11111]

1. Thanks. In other lives, I used to cook, a lot. Now, I don't

Know how. I don't like to shop or cook. There, I said it. No more vague excuses. I hate to cook. I'll clean up.
I know it isn't fair or attractive, as I like to eat good food. I'm a vegetarian, but I eat some, not all, fish.

I hate to cook. I hate to shop.

[elleng]

2. Almost ditto,

I hate to shop and I hate to clean up, and will cook easy things I've done often, especially by request of those for whom I cooked in the past, that is, my 'kids,' now adults themselves with their own 'feeding' obligations.

[Alice11111]

3. We aren't alone then.

[elleng]

4. Not at all Alice, I'm sure!

[Alice11111]

10. You have made my day. I'm out of the closet.

[TeapotInATempest]

15. Me too!

I know how to cook and bake and have done quite a bit of it in the past. But the whole process - from planning the menu to cleaning up the mess - is pure drudgery to me. And the worst part of it has always been that it needed to be done EVERY SINGLE DAY.

Screw that.

[Hortensis]

24. Opposite for me. My poor children were raised during

my must-but-hate-to-cook-days. I just had little interest in food or eating, normally didn't bother eating breakfast, wore a petite size 2-4, etc. Those were also the '70s, before the internet. I did try to do a good job with the few things I did cook, but for instance one of my easy-thus-frequent standards was a hamburger-canned-tomatoes-noodle skillet dish we called "Spanish slop" because the recipe included some bottled chili sauce.

About the time they grew up and moved away, my metabolism changed, my life changed, and cooking became more fun and interesting. Mostly I just just started enjoying food, but not most of the stuff I used to turn out.

[Alice11111]

28. People used to cook more like that, casseroles with

Mushroom soup. The canned green beans w onion. I think we are more health conscious or have to watch our weight now.

[Hortensis]

39. Yes. :) Never could stand that green beans thing, though,

never made it even once. Actually, I've never replaced my only regular canned soup recipe then that I remember, for tuna and noodles. We crave it a couple of times a year. Back then it was my idea of a bother, chopping celery and onions, melting cheese in soup. Opening the can.

I think I cooked moderately healthily considering the era and that both children were meh to gag on most vegetables. The concept had been invented, just very little variety at our house, no sophistication. Ham hocks and short ribs were both very inexpensive back then (!), so ham and beans and braises served too often as basically one-dish meals to make it easy. Broiled chicken and buttered noodles.

Still, too many processed foods I'd never lean on today. Corn bread from a box of course. Bottled dressing, Wishbone Italian mostly. Guessing I literally never considered mixing my own. That epiphany came way too late for the kids.

[Alice11111]

41. Yes, my kid (daughter) too. I regret how we ate, especially

when she was young. Yet, now we are all vegetarians. I usually eat fairly healthy. I find that it only takes an occasional mess up to throw the body off these days.
Exercise seems to be as important, if not more important,
than how we eat, unless it is extreme.

[Hortensis]

43. Yes, food's definitely something I'd like to have done better, and could

without hardly any more effort now that I know more about it. Our daughter's raising their sons very carefully, so at least it's not being replicated. She enjoys cooking but told me last year she doesn't really do much recipe exploring anymore because she keeps things very fresh and simple. Lol. Even she's loosened up over almost a decade of motherhood, though. Watching her guys get all excited by some current version of a "Spanish Slop" dish at a neighbor's house or a rare stop at McDonald's has crumbled her walls a bit.

So true about exercise, must be a bunch of synergistic interactions at play. Watching those boys run and jump everywhere, though, I suspect nature decided on a balance between wearing out young from all that fun or pacing our bodies for longer life.

[Alice11111]

44. I had the same reaction, watching my Granddaughters,

they are so unaware of how much they move, in their joyful play. I was thinking, if they had a pedometer, it would be at least 30000 steps a day, probaby twice that. My daughter was a purist about everything, but I see her walls crumbling too, as the kids get excited about what their nursery schoolmates are doing.

[forgotmylogin]

5. I would not survive with out my shallow Corningware dish with a lid.

I can line the bottom with a cut up potato or a single layer of frozen green beans, then lay pork chops or chicken pieces on top, season, cover, and then bake at 350 for 35 minutes if boneless, or 45-60 minutes if bone-in. The lid prevents it from drying out. If I'm feeling really fancy, I'll pour mushroom soup or cream of (something) soup over the top beforehand. Frozen boneless chicken breasts cook for an hour under cream soup and are fork tender. Microwave another steam bag vegetable and/or some rice and it's the whole meal prepped and cooked in under an hour with very little effort.

For nonmeat eaters, I bet it would also work with portobello mushroom caps stuffed with cheese or seasoned chopped cauliflower and olive oil.

[Alice11111]

12. I have lots of corningwear dishes, rarely used. I should try

something like that, baking in the toaster oven. I can almost tolerate the toaster oven.

[forgotmylogin]

14. Would a heavy dish like that fit in a toaster oven?

I think part of the magic is the dish heats up enough to create steam under the lid, cooking it thoroughly in a short time.

I know you can broil salmon in a toaster oven, but usually, that's on an open tray.

[Alice11111]

20. We have cooked bread pudding in corning in the toaster

On bake. It cooks faster. My large microwave is a convection oven too. I bought it to replace the oven, as it is very low and hard for me to use. Back, hand issues.
I honestly don't know how to use it correctly. So pathetic.

I think my daughter took my small cornings. When I used to cook, I had all sizes. Now, i mostly have very large ones. It's easy to leave those at parties when they are still half full.

Clearly, I need to get a few EZ.recipes, the right size of corningware, and get a frw things down.

[Alice11111]

25. Would the corning ware dish work with fish, like sea bass?

[forgotmylogin]

26. I would think so...

The trick with fish is to not overcook it and dry it out. The Corningware heavy dish with a lid might buffer the heat and hold in any steam during a longer bake. Definitely worth an experiment!

[Alice11111]

29. Thank you. I tend to overcook.

[forgotmylogin]

40. I'd try perhaps 15-20 minutes with the lid on at 350F

(Depending on the thickness of the fish.) That sounds like forever, but it will take time for the dish to heat up.

Spray or butter the bottom so it doesn't stick, or put down foil/parchment paper. Lay the fish down with seasonings and some lemon juice, lid on, and set it in the preheated oven.

The best indication of doneness is when you get a tasty aroma in the kitchen. Don't let it cook too far past that. If anything, take fish out a little under and it will finish on the stovetop with the lid on - that dish gets hot.

Let me know how it works!

PS - here's an actual recipe if you want to be sure. This is pretty close, but they suggest lid off at 450F to make a crust.
http://www.food.com/recipe/simple-oven-baked-sea-bass-351631

[Alice11111]

42. Wow, thank you!! I have something new & easy to try.

I know I will like it.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

6. I'm sure you've already heard this one...

I just made my favorite thing for dinner..........


A reservation!

[elleng]

8. Did that for lunch today, Peg, even easier:

NO reservation!

[CaliforniaPeggy]

9. Good for you, my dear elleng!

[Alice11111]

13. !!!

[procon]

7. I'm in a rut, cooking the same things all the time.

Hate to shop. Hate clean up. Now I even hate prepping, but still like to cook because I like to eat yummy food. The lack of inspiration and motivation is frustrating. If I lived closer to downtown, I'd probably eat out or get take more often than I cooked. Thankfully it's summer and easy to throw together a bunch of fresh veggies for a salad or steamed.

[elleng]

11. Have similarly been in ruts,

probably able to write a 'short story' The Ruts I've Known!

Likely get back to the same autumn/winter, curried chix that begins with grocery rotisserie chicken and goes through stages: First, enjoy the thighs (and legs) with some kind of potato, then maybe a sandwich, and then with 'left over' meat, do the curry, with James Beard's 'sauce' recipe. AND finally chix soup with what's left ON the bones.

But that will be in a few months. Now

[procon]

17. Oh, elleng, I do the same thing!

Once the breast meat is gone, the leftovers usually get transformed into fajitas, tacos, enchiladas or quesadillas... typical California fare, and a major part of my cooking rut. I love a hearty soup made from the carcass of a rotisserie chicken, and it makes me pappy when nothing goes to waste.

[elleng]

19. Makes me very happy when nothing goes to waste,

and IF the chix soup tastes like grandma's, HOW GREAT! Fresh DILL, lots of it!

[procon]

21. I do like dill, but never thought to add it to my rotisserie soup.

Stuck in the rut like I am, I generally use rosemary and thyme, but now I want to try adding dill. Good idea!

[elleng]

22. and CARROTS!!!

[Alice11111]

27. "The Ruts I've Known," by elleng

Probably a best seller. I see it as being funny, like something by Nora Ephron, "I Feel Bad about my Neck"

Well, now I'm imagining a whole series. Maybe we should co write.

[elleng]

30. PLEASE, Alice11111,

I SO need a co-writer!

[Alice11111]

32. It could be good, something most people relate to, like Seinfeld,

but NOT really like Seinfeld. I just mean the reason Seinfeld worked is because everyone could relate to the silly situations.

I'm on.

[elleng]

33. Gotta include this, for DAD!

Ode to the Buttered Roll, That New York Lifeline
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/01/dining/buttered-roll-new-york.html?

[Alice11111]

35. Interesting comments too. I take it your dad has to have his

[elleng]

36. HAD to have fresh bread/roll every day,

and had a Roll with Butter (and coffee and orange juice) for breakfast every day!

Missing him!

[Alice11111]

38. I understand. Missing mine too.

[Alice11111]

16. What a Great Thread. Thanks, Elleng

[elleng]

18. Working well, isn't it?

One never knows!

[Texasgal]

23. Great link!

When it gets too hot I always seem to go to salads and such. It gets boring after a while! I honestly cannot wait until fall! That;s when I really enjoy cooking!

[NCDem777]

31. On the 8th day

God made crockpots

[elleng]

34. ;-)

[Neema]

37. I keep a few things in my fridge at all times so when I'm really busy or not feeling like

cooking I can still make something decent for dinner.

One is garlic slow-roasted in olive oil and lime juice, all mashed up and stored in jars in the fridge. It's sooo delicious. You can roast or saute vegetables in it, marinate or saute meat or fish in it, make a quick dressing, top pizza, toss it with pasta, fortify sauce or soup, or make bruschetta.

Another is Trader Joe's Aioli Garlic Mustard Sauce. It's another easy meal-maker.

If all else fails, there's always eggs.