Home made ready meals

pavlovs_dog

Sadly OH has no control over what kitchen facilities are available to him in work. He has a kettle, normal microwave and fridge. That's it. I have access to a full kitchen, but we want things set up so that all either of us have to do is pop something in the micro to reheat.

ETA:

His commute to and from work is a 20 mile round trip cycle on main roads as we can no longer share a car due to his new working hours. This is on top of a reasonably physical job. He needs a decent meal and it needs to be a one pot job. He'll have 30 mins to heat it, eat it and wash up.

vanoonoo

chili and rice can also be served with tortilla wraps, flat bread, pitta or jacket spuds
fajitas, the inside bits can be reheated and plonked in a wrap
hot beef ciabatta - again only the insides need reheating really
jambalaya

moneypenny2k

How about
Chilli con carne
Fried rice (good way to use up leftovers)
Spare ribs in BBQ sauce with rice
Jacket pots with a filling (freeze single portions of fillings separately from pots which can be cooked in the oven wit a stew and kept in the fridge for a few days)
Carbonara sauce made with bacon or ham scraps and pasta
Chicken and bacon pies (leftovers again) top with potato or a carrot mash rather than pastry
A nice heart soup

HTH

Popperwell

I'm gald that there is a micro wave at work so you can cook a prepared meal or warm something up. Also access to most kitchen gadgets when at home.

A hot meal would probably most welcome but hopefully some cold alternatives are an option too(perhaps not in the cold weather)but perhaps during the supposedly Summer months...

I have depended on a lot of cold meals(sandwiches, salads, fruit and cereal) There are quick hot meals that can be done in a microwave...even scrambled eggs, soups, baked beans, jacket potatoes...but I can appreciate your wish to have mainly healthy meals...

babyshoes

Re: freezing cous cous:

I have never tried as it is so quick and easy to make. If I am taking it with a sauce for lunch (it is nice with curry / thai curry instead of rice sometimes) I put some in the lunchbox / old takeaway tub, pour over boiling water then put the lid on while I have my tea and do morning stuff. After a few minutes, I stir it with a fork then put the sauce on top, and go. Could also be done at work if he has easy access to a kettle.

I also often take leftover bits of roast and veg with gravy - I figure that would freeze ok if you had enough gravy on it (cut the slices of roast into bite size pieces though to make it easier to eat out of a lunchbox/tub). Things like roasties would go soggy, but roasted veg is ok (I do things like parsnips, carrots, mushrooms, peppers, sweet potato, squash, courgette etc). I often just put some baby potatoes in with the veg under the roast instead of doing separate, proper roasted potatoes.

If I am really stuck for a lunch and don't have money to go out and buy something, I just take a large potato and some cream cheese with me (we have communal marg at work) and bake the potato in the microwave. Works best if you can part cook it in the morning / freeze it part cooked and warm it up to finish cooking at lunch time (we have a short-ish lunch break) then eat it with marg/cream cheese. Could also serve it with baked beans / tuna / grated cheese / spaghetti hoops etc if he likes any of those.

It's a pity he doesn't have access to a toaster - you can freeze sandwiches then toast them using those toastie bags from pound shops - it's what I do if I have lots of bread and cheese to use up. If he got a toaster from freecycle or bought a cheap one, would he be allowed to install it for general use at work?

Remember, if you are freezing cooked rice, cool it as quickly as possible after cooking. A good way to do that is to run it under cold water in a sieve. The bacteria that cause botulism reproduce in cooked rice which is warm but not hot, and re-heating doesn't help as it is the toxin they secrete not the bacteria themselves which cause illness.

pavlovs_dog

vanoonoo some fab ideas there for avoiding death by rice/potato/pasta as the carb of choice. Thanks.

Moneypenny2k - how well do jackets reheat? I'm a bit of a snob about proper jacket potatoes done low and slow so they are super crispy on the outside and fluffy as a cloud on the inside

Popperwell - very true about cold alternatives, unfortunately in south wales the opportunities for them are often few and far between OH is a pain in the bum who can't face food early in the day, so whatever he is packed off with is likely to be the most substantial meal he has that day. whilst he won't come to any harm losing a few pounds, I don't want him getting ill because he's not eating properly. He works in an area packed with Mcdonalds, Greggs etc which is a habit we can't afford for him to develop, financially or healthwise

vanoonoo

we got these amazing wide necked flasks from aldi that you can put straight in the microwave - they keep things pretty warm and hold a reasonable serving size but primarily its an easy way to nuke something before leaving the house and then again before eating and its less washing up and faffing about. the brand is stanley and its similar to this (apart from the price!) http://www.amazon.co.uk/Thermos-Microwavable-Flask-Black-0-47L/dp/B000OW2HV4/ref=sr_1_24?ie=UTF8&qid=1341257568&sr=8-24

i reckon you could squidge a jacket spud in there and altho it might go a bit soft it would still be a bit better than a microwave one. on the thought of jacket spuds, apparently they are pretty good when done in the slocooker but I've not tried it myself - I think you have to scrunch up some tin foil and plonk them on it.

good luck with this - its sounds like its gonna be a step change for you but i also sense you will do great with it! remember to treat yourselves once in a while too x

adelight

Dishes where the pasta is mixed into the sauce reheat better IMO but i'm not keen on any pasta dishes reheated from frozen. So, pasta in vegetable/meat sauce? One pot rice dishes like pilaf, fried rice, chilli rice and peas. Meat and potato stews with scones wrapped separate so they don't go soggy.
I would also make some flapjacks, dense fruit loaf, scones etc to fill him up or eat when he arrives at work.
My OH's car insurance is so high he might be cycling 20 miles for work too soon

pavlovs_dog

adelight wrote: »

Dishes where the pasta is mixed into the sauce reheat better IMO but i'm not keen on any pasta dishes reheated from frozen.

If we were super organised then it could work that I cook the pasta the night before or he cooks the pasta in the morning before he leaves to work and adds it to both portions of pasta sauce. Not quite what I'd initially had in mind, but if the result is a more palatable meal then it's a workable compromise. will only take 15 mins to sort.

good idea on cakes etc, will add that to the list of things to research.

Sorry to hear you and OH are also feeling the squeeze.

pavlovs_dog

can you freeze flapjacks? :think:

just thinking of ways to ensure that it's not the same thing every day.