5 ingredient dinner?

Call me ghetto, but I love either browned hamburger in a box of Kraft mac & cheese, or cut up hot dogs and corn in it instead. Also, there’s always quesadillas/tacos, crock pot concoctions where you throw it all in the pot and forget about it… simple casseroles with a noodle, a cream of something soup, veggies, and a meat… the list goes on.

Pre-prepped brown rice, barley and quinoa. Add some salsa and shredded mozarella cheese. Heat, and serve with a salad of baby lettuce from market.

@gailcalled Can I get those ingredients at any grocery store? I don’t even know what quinoa is.

@poofandmook. Hot dogs and corn in mac n cheese…interesting, I will have to try it sometime.

Brown rice and barley are available anywhere. Quinoa is a nice, small SA grain and another complex carb. There is also amaranth.

This falls in a slightly different place on the edible scale than weiners, mac and cheese, BTW.

I am the same way. I usually try to make stuff that is good as a complete meal on its own. Spaghetti and garlic bread is simple. Or even a cheeseburger and frozen french fries.

My sister does complex meals with a salad, a starch, and a protein. I cant be bothered with that. I only want to wash a single pan.

1. Roll of prepared Polenta
2. Minced shallots and garlic
3. Mushrooms, sliced. a mixture-include some chanterelles or?
4. Fontina Cheese (or whatever kind of melty cheese you like)
5. Salt and pepper
6. Olive oil
7. Choose one, white wine, vermouth, chicken or veggie stock
Slice polenta. Sear one side in pan with a little olive oil. Turn over, add cheese and put a lid on it and let melt. Meanwhile, saute shallots, garlic and mushrooms until they color. Add a generous splash of wine or stock to pan and let reduce for a minute. Season with salt and pepper. Plate the polenta and top with mushroom mixture.
Okay, it is seven ingredients but it just doesn’t get any more delicious for such minimal effort. Great by itself but consider adding a salad. I usually make a harvest grain mixture that I get at Trader Joes, that has red quinoa, spinach orzo, baby garbonzos and Israeli couscous and oven roasted peppers.

2 teaspoon olive oil
4 Boneless skinless chicken breast /or boneless pork loin chops
black pepper
1 yellow onion, chopped roughly
2 cups skinned & diced butternut squash
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
sage to taste or poultry seasoning

Heat oven to 400° F.

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Rinse the meat and pat dry with paper towels. Season the meat with some of the pepper and cook until golden brown on each side, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Add the onion and squash to skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes. Add the broth, sage, and the remaining pepper and bring to a boil. Return the meat to skillet. Transfer to oven and cook until the squash is tender and the chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes.

—when using pork I have used apple cider or apple juice in place of the stock

—I have also prepared this in a large electric frying pan, therby avoiding the oven step all together.

—I usually serve this with a steamed green veggy, like green beans.

-Chicken Breasts
-Rice
-Peppers
-Onions
-Soy Sauce

Directions:
Fry and stir

@fireside. Do I mix the rice in uncooked or do I cook that by itself?

@miasmom – I prefer my rice al dente, so i add it in after cooking the rest. Much better than sesame seeds for texture!

@fireside: I do something similar except I use Hoisin Sauce and throw in some cashews or bok choy. Yummy…

1. Bread
2. Peanut Butter
3. Jelly
4. Pretzels
5. Beer

@loser Nice. :0)

Brown chicken breasts and add a can of cream of mushroom soup. Simmer for a bit. Pour over cooked rice. Too good.

That’s the beauty of a crock pot. One pot and a complete meal when you get home from work.

Put a chuck roast in a crock pot. (or whatever kind of roast you prefer)
Add quartered potatoes and carrot chunks. (if you buy the packaged baby carrots you won’t have to peel and cut them) I sometimes add celery and onion chunks, and mushrooms. Top with a can of cream of mushroom(or celery) soup and a packet of dry french onion soup mix. (the soup mix adds flavor but you can skip the soup mix and just salt and pepper it) Cook on low for 8 hrs or till tender.

1. Brussel sprouts (or fresh peas)
2. Bacon
3. Shallots
4. Pasta
5. Fat-free cream cheese.

Chop sprouts into rounds.
Chop shallots.
Cook bacon and keep some of the fat.
Cook sprouts and shallots in bacon fat until tender and a bit brown.
Stir in fat free sour cream for ridiculously easy sauce.
Mix with pasta.

For six ingredients, top with cheese.

Salt and pepper to taste (do those count as ingredients?).

cream cheese or sour cream?

sour cream, sorry—I was eating a bagel at the time. :-/

If anyone tries that Polenta Mushroom Ragout recipe up there, please add some fresh thyme. I totally forgot that most important inngredient. I am getting frighfully forgetful.