HOW TO COOK EASY MEALS AT HOME AS A MILITARY MEMBER

It doesn’t matter if you’re coming in after a long day of training or if you’re enjoying retirement as a Veteran, who has time to cook these days? Even if you come up with an idea, shop for all the ingredients, and put in all of the effort for a meal, you face plenty of challenges. The dish might not come out right and among it all, you still have to make sure your errands are run, chores are done, that the kids are at baseball practice…the list goes on and on. Here’s how to get easy home-cooked meals so that there’s less on your metaphorical plate but still plenty of food for dinner.

Plan Your Meals Ahead of Time

The first key to enjoying easy home-cooked meals is planning ahead. While this still takes time, you can do so in a way that you stress less and actually gain time when it’s time to cook.

For example, while you’re scrolling through Instagram instead of watching whatever show you’ve decided to use as droning background noise, save recipes you’d like to try so that you can refer to them later.

It’s also a good idea to plan easy meals to cook at home utilizing the same or similar ingredients.

For example, you can make chicken scampi with pasta one night and then have it with a salad the next. Two different dishes, but the protein and cooking technique is the same.

Prep Your Meals Beforehand

When you can, easy-to-cook dishes at home work even better when you prepare ahead of time.

If a particular dish is going to take a little extra effort but requires passive time, such as marinading or using a pre-cooked component, then doing this part when you have time is a recipe to set yourself up for success.

Use Simple Ingredients You Already Have

If you want home cooking ideas to be easy, then it’s a good idea to start with the ingredients you already have.

There’s two reasons using simple ingredients already in your home is a good idea:

• For starters, you likely already have an idea of what they require to cook and can easily implement them in your dishes.
• Furthermore, there are some ingredients that you can keep in your home, likely to be used again and again.

While this might change depending on your tastes, things like herbs, onions, garlic, lemons, butter, olive oil, and various seasonings are a good place to start when looking for easy home cooking recipes.

Utilize Your Freezer

The easy food to cook at home you’re looking for may be in your freezer as you read this.

Before you shop, be sure to check your freezer for ideas and ingredients to utilize in your meals.

Furthermore, when you do cook, it’s a great idea to save small, medium, and large-sized leftovers to reheat later.

Think about it this way, if you’re a Veteran living with your partner, you may not need a massive meal to get the job done.

However, if you’re returning from your duty station and have a family of five to feed, a larger portion will be necessary.

Having different sizes can make it easier for you to always have an option ready for an easy meal.

One Pot Meals Are Your Friend

It doesn’t get easier than throwing everything you’re going to eat for dinner in a pot, letting it all come together, and simply enjoying the meal.

Easy home-cooked dinners can come from scratch, be something as simple as a sandwich after a long day, or come directly from a crockpot that has been simmering all day.

Discounted Easy Home-Cooked Meals for Life for the Military Community

Making sure you have easy home-cooked meals when you need them, is the #1 goal of Home Chef, who is offering a tremendous deal to the military community.

To show an appreciation for both active duty service members and Veterans, simply verify your status using your ID.me credential when signing up to receive a 50% discount for your first box plus 10% off each recurring box.

Home Chef isn’t a meal plan or a subscription service that simply sends you meals.

Offering three different menus, Home Chef, Home Chef Family, and Tempo Meals, you’re provided with an easy approach to dinner using fresh ingredients every single week.

Not only do you save time, but the easy-to-follow recipe cards provide you with simple meals bursting with flavors that will leave you feeling satisfied.

Enjoy mouthwatering flavors, regardless of your taste or dietary restrictions, all from the comfort of your home:

• Home Chef simplifies home cooking. All you have to do is pick the meals you want, customize them to your taste, and then cook your kits using the step-by-step recipe cards and pre-portioned ingredients. No matter your skill level or taste, you’ll find the right recipes for your home.
• Home Chef Family helps you spend more time together and less time cooking. There are 18 different rotating weeks of recipes, including taco nights, pizzas, and many more great options even your picky eaters will enjoy.
• Tempo provides you with 20 different chef-designed recipes that only take three minutes to cook, but use real, delicious ingredients.

Regardless of which menu works best for you, easy home-cooked meals don’t get, well, easier than this.

Get started with Home Chef today by clicking the link to redeem your discount and start your subscription.

Suggested reads:

• Happy 77th Birthday to the U.S. Air Force
• College or Military: Which Path Should You Choose First?
• Can You Own a Business in the Military?

This article is the result of a paid collaboration with Home Chef.