I've recently discovered an easy, foolproof way to make dinner in under an hour. There's very little planning involved and it's mostly hands-off cooking time. I was so excited when I discovered it that I blabbed about it at work all day. I even decided to design a class to teach at my work on it (we hold cooking classes on the days we're closed). It might be totally old news to you and maybe you've been making dinners like this forever, but JUST IN CASE you haven't been, I want to share my secret.
BOWLS!
These bowls consist of:
2. a steamed vegetable
3. a bean (or tofu/tempeh).
4 a flavor/sauce
My grain is almost always
brown rice. I cook it in Peter's really old rice cooker and it cooks just fine in under an hour (but it does take about an hour). My sister told me she buys rice at Trader Joe's that she microwaves and eats in a few minutes, but I just put the rice in the rice cooker the moment I get home and it's ready by the time I'm ready to eat.
(And I'm pretty sure it's a lot cheaper to buy a big bag of brown rice than to buy "minute" rice, but I haven't explored the price difference myself).
I do 2 cups rice with 5 cups water (1:1.5 ratio rice:water), always with a sprinkle of salt and sometimes a splash of olive oil. I don't think my rice cooker does so well with less than 2 cups rice, so I always make 2 cups. Peter and I always have some leftover, which I place in the refrigerator and use the next day
(I will have posts on "what to do with leftover rice?" -- look out for 'em!). So 2 cups rice is enough for about 2-4 people.
(You obviously don't need a rice cooker to cook rice; it's just what I find the easiest. Follow the instructions on your bag of rice).
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My steamed vegetable is usually something green, most often broccoli. I sometimes switch it up with another
cruciferous vegetable, like cauliflower, brussels sprouts, or purple cabbage. I use my inexpensive
steamer basket that fits into a pot. Once the water starts to boil, I cover the pot and let it steam for about five minutes. I prefer lightly steamed veggies with a little crunch.
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My bean is most often canned, either black, kidney or garbanzo. I just rinse well and drain. It's as simple as that. I sometimes cook green lentils (simmer for 30-45 minutes) if I have more time. You could also use tofu or tempeh. I prefer mine marinated and baked. You could also simply spray plain (firm or extra-firm) tofu cubes with oil, bake at 375 for 30 minutes, flipped halfway through and sprayed with oil again (bake a little extra for chewier tofu).
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The flavor part can be as simple as a drizzle of soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, agave (or your preferred sweetener), and a squeeze of lemon. But use any sauce you like.
Another way to boost flavor is to use onions and garlic! They add a ton of flavor and the
allium family is good for your health! In the bowl pictured above, I caramelized onions using
this method (replacing the butter with olive oil). You could also use
roasted garlic or minced raw garlic (or raw onions, too!).
You can also boost flavor with healthy fats! Diced avocado (or
guacamole) or a simple
nut butter sauce.
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And don't forget about dessert! How about a
seasonal fruit to complete the
PCRM Power Plate?
