Dos and Don’ts for quick and easy cooking
When life is life-ing, sometimes the last thing you want to do is worry about cooking for yourself or your family. However, we know that cooking at home is not only good for the body, but also the soul (and wallet). So here are a few dos and don'ts to help make cooking at home easier and quicker, allowing you to get back to your busy life.
Do take the help with some prepared essentials.
I love purchasing pre-prepped veggies from the store. This saves time from maybe the most tedious part of cooking: prep work. These could be baby carrots, veggie/fruit platter, cheese trays, etc. My favorite prep buy is the fresh mirepoix mix from Trader Joes. This mix includes the classic French base to many sauces or stews; chopped carrots, celery and onion. What I like most about this mix is that the three veggies are layered so you can easily use them separately in different dishes.
Can’t find a prep mix you need? Use a veggie chopper to easily chop your veggies and store them for easy use now or later.
2. Don’t use pre-seasoned meats.
Many times pre-seasoned meats are over seasoned and can result in a high sodium product (no hypertension over here!). Sometimes these meats are nearing their expiration date and stores are using a TON of seasoning to mask that not-so-fresh meat smell/taste. Instead, buy your meat fresh and season it at home. With fresh meat, properly prepared, stored and cleaned (of course you gotta wash your meat!), you can freeze your meat for months. Freezing seasoned meat helps the spices and seasonings penetrate the meat, creating an even tastier finished dish. It is best to store and freeze seasoned meat in airtight containers or zip lock bags.
3. Do make your own spice mix (when you can).
It might seem so much easier to just pick up a taco seasoning mix for your Tuesday night’s festivities, but first check out the nutritional facts. The levels of preservatives and sodium, in relation to the serving size, in many of these mixes are so high it should really be illegal (do we need to say ‘no hypertension’ again).
Now, there are some great low/no sodium seasoning mixes (shout out to Auntie Tabitha Brown) but for many seasonings, it's best to just mix at home. Not only can you control the sodium levels, you can save a coin as well! Purchasing and mixing bulk spices at home gives you the ability to be healthy, creative and economical. Store the spice mixes in air tight containers and make enough seasoning mixes for many, many Tuesdays to come.
Need inspiration? Here’s a quick and easy taco seasoning mix:
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
¼ teaspoon dried Mexican oregano (can also use general oregano)
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
4. Don’t toss out that leftover rice.
Whether from various take-out meals or a miscalculation of one cup meaning ANY cup (including that huge McDonalds souvenir cup), leftover rice is seriously the gift that keeps on giving. Cooked rice stored in an airtight container holds up really well in the fridge for a few days or can last months in the freezer. When reheating, you can just add a little water and microwave for a few minutes or reheat on the stove. If you want to make that left over rice the star of the show, follow our recipe on how to make homemade fried rice:
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