Midweek meals are a struggle for many families as you have to balance healthiness with convenience. What tends to happen is you reach dinner time during the week, with hardly any time on your hands to cook something, so you opt for meals that are quick and simple. A lot of the time, this can include microwave meals, ordering takeout, or chucking loads of random stuff in the oven from the freezer.
Ideally, you want some midweek meals that are both healthy and quick to make. So, here are three ideas that can easily be made in 30 minutes or less:
Lentil dal
A dal is sort of a lentil curry that’s very popular in India and incredibly healthy. The whole family will love it as it has nice flavors and isn’t too spicy for kids. Plus, it contains lentils – a fantastic source of fiber and protein – along with spinach, which is extremely good for you. You can make a nutrient-packed homemade lentil dal in around 30 minutes with ease. There are plenty of recipes out there to try, and most of them involve very little food prep and not a lot of washing up. You can always cheat and use microwaveable packets of rice to save a saucepan if you want!
Pasta with red sauce
Making a simple pasta with tomato sauce is such a convenient thing to do during the week. It’s a meal that’s been good enough for Italian families for generations, so why won’t it be perfect for your own? Everyone loves pasta, and once you’ve made the sauce you can freeze some of it to use whenever you need a quick meal again. Pasta is healthy and a great source of energy, but you can make it even more nutritious by using wholewheat pasta – or even things like pasta made from spinach, lentils, or chickpeas. Anyway, the best thing about this recipe is the sauce; just put chopped tomatoes or passata into a pan with some garlic, oil, and basil. Close the lid and let it simmer for 30 minutes and you’re done! For more flavor – and if you have more time – simmer it for longer while you get on with your other chores!
Tomato and mozzarella salad
Lastly, you can make a lovely quick salad with tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, and basil. Chop everything up and mix it together with some olive oil, salt, and pepper. I like adding a nice balsamic glaze to the top as well and serving it up with some sliced crunchy bread. If you eat meat, you can also add some Italian ham or salami to the salad, adding more protein to it. Some people also serve this with Mediterranean couscous on the side, but that’s entirely up to you.
See, it is very easy to find recipe ideas that are both quick and healthy. Add these to your midweek roster and you’ve got three healthy meals at least! Plus, with the dal and pasta, they are both freezable so you can cook more than you need and have them ready to microwave if you are really short on time one day.
