Are you always in a hurry, late home from work or too tired to spend much time in the kitchen? It can sometime be tricky to balance a proper healthy diet with a busy hectic lifestyle so check out these top 10 tips on how to ensure you get to eat healthy, tasty meals without chaining yourself to the kitchen.

Top Ten Tips:

1) Use Cous Cous:
If you need something really quick and simple use cous cous instead of pasta or rice. It takes less than 5 minutes to prepare from start to finish and is a great accompaniment to any meal.

2) Be Prepared:
If you know you have a busy week coming up plan ahead with a meal planner so that you know what you’re going to have on what day. That way you know exactly what to buy and it saves you time during the week trying to decide on what you’re going to make that night.

3) Make Extra:
Once you decide to make something it takes hardly any extra time to just make a bigger batch. If you make an extra few portions they can go in the fridge or freezer ready for another day when you really don’t have time to cook anything but you want something tasty and wholesome and homemade.

4) Order On Line:
With so many great fresh produce delivery services around its easy to go online and order all your fruit and veg to be delivered to your door. That saves you spending time and hassle shopping and means you can have a fresh supply of goodies on your doorstep.

5) Try A Stir Fry:
Stir-frys really are one of the quickest meals to prepare, all you need to do is a little chopping, and if thats too much effort these days you can even buy the veggies pre chopped! Throw them into a hot wok and add some noodles, garlic, ginger and soysauce, a tasty fresh dish in minutes.

6) Frozen Veg:
Keep a bag of frozen veg in the freezer, they are quick and easy to cook when you’ve nothing fresh in the house and still have a really high nutritional value.

7) One Pot Wonders:
One pot wonder are great when you’re short on time or want minimal effort. Pick anything that just involves throwing it all in a pan and leaving it to cook while you go and unwind or finish those last minute jobs. Soups are great for this as are stews and casseroles.

Stock the Pantry:
Make sure you always have some basic’s in the cupboard so that you can add some zing to any dish. Things like soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, a selection of dried herbs and spices, chilli sauce, tinned tomatoes can all help to flavour a dish.

9) Eggs:
Eggs are very versatile, nutritious and cook quickly. Stick to the basic’s with eggs on toast or whip them up with any leftovers in the fridge for a great tasting omelette.

Last but not least if all else fails….

10) Cheat:
If you want to eat healthy and not indulge in too many processed foods but just don’t have the time to cook then there are some great fresh organic soups and sauces available in the fridges at supermarkets. Keep a couple in the fridge as they are great to heat up in 5 minutes and eat by themselves or pour over some steamed veg for a more hearty meal.

If you have any tips, ideas, questions or great recipes please leave a comment.
For more infomation on our cooking classes call us on (02) 9976 3372 or email georgina@simplysumptuousfood.com.au