Please can you recommend really simple, really quick, healthy meals?

**[OP or Mod marked this as the best answer](/r/AskUK/comments/13pmmpv/please_can_you_recommend_really_simple_really/jlbp2t2/), given by u/Relenq** Meal prep plan for 3 for a week, £60 budget > >I'm making some assumptions starting off: that you have an oven, a freezer, and basic cupboard/fridge essentials (plain flour, vegetable oil, salt, pepper, vegetable spread, milk). Prices are calculated from Sainsbury's avoiding as many special offer/nectar prices as possible. Utilising offers or going for cheaper brands will save money, but I chose the ones I did for easy comparison > >I have given you two main cooking days on Sunday and Wednesday; this is not set in stone and can be moved to other available/better days for you but this will - hopefully - minimise the stress of cooking each day. I'm also assuming there's three people in your household so estimations reflect that > >Everything here is a suggestion but hopefully it gives you an idea of what you can do > >-- > >**SHOPPING LIST** > >1x sainsburys roast in the bag fresh chicken & garlic & parsley based 1.4kg - £5.75 >ALT 1x sainsburys fresh medium whole chicken 1.6kg - £4.50 >1x sainsburys mixed vegetables, frozen 1kg - £1.30 >ALT 4x loose carrots (~300g £0.21), 2x loose parsnips (~300g, £0.40), 1x small tin of Sainsbury's sweetcorn in water (198g, £0.75) - £1.36 >1x king edward potatoes 2.5kg £1.50 >1x medium eggs x15 - £2.60 >1x 4 pint semi skimmed milk - £1.55 >1x Sainsbury's chicken gravy granules 170g - £0.85 >2x Sainsburys plain tortilla wraps - £2.40 >1x frozen sliced mixed peppers 500g - £1.30 >1x frozen sliced red onions 500g - £1.50 >1x sainsburys medium cheddar cheese 400g - £3.70 >1x sainsburys double concentrate tomato puree 200g - £0.65 >1x sainsburys smoked paprika 44g - £1.10 >1x sainsburys inspired to cook white sauce mix 25g - £0.60 >3x sainsburys bistro salad 150g - £4.20 >2x sainsbury's passata 500g - £1.20 >1x sainsburys tuna chunks in spring water 4x145g - £4.20 >1x sainsburys penne 1kg - £1.65 >1x sainsburys italian seasoning 14g - £1.10 >1x heinz baked beans in tomato sauce 4x415g - £4.00 >1x hellman's light mayonaise jar 400g - £2.90 >1x sainsburys beansprouts 300g - £0.75 >1x sainsburys light soy sauce 150ml - £0.55 >1x sainsburys lemon juice 250ml - £0.80 >1x KTC red lentils 1kg - £2.00 >1x sainsburys easy cook long grain rice white 1kg - £1.60 >1x patak's butter chicken curry sauce 450g - £1.85 >2x amoy straight to wok medium noodles 2x150g - £3.90 >1x sainsburys roast british cooked breast chicken slices 180g - £3.40 >2x sainsburys closed cup white mushrooms 300g - £1.88 > >TOTAL £60.84 approx > >-- > >**DAY 1 - Sunday** > >Roast chicken, roast potatoes, yorkshires, gravy, and vegetables. Sort through the potatoes and set aside the largest ones - if your oven is not large enough to cook a roast chicken along with jacket potatoes, leave these potatoes for now. If you bought a plain chicken, add some salt and pepper from your storecupboard or alternate seasoning (suggested: garlic and herb; paprika). > >If you can cook the jacket potatoes at the same time as the roast, put them in for 1.5hrs minus however long the chicken says to cook. Prep the rest of the roast dinner as you would and - if cooking the jacket potatoes - put the jackets to the side to cool down. Put any offcuts or peelings from the vegetables in a bag in the freezer for now. > >Serve the roast dinner, pull/shred as much chicken off the carcass as you can and put the shredded chicken in a container in the kitchen. If you have enough energy to do so, add the chicken bones and scraps to a pan, add just enough water to cover, and let simmer. If you do not have enough energy, wrap in clingfilm and put in the freezer. > >Make sure that any leftovers or prepped items are stored away in the fridge (cooked chicken) or freezer (vegetable scraps, jacket potatoes, chicken stock) > >-- > >**DAY 2 - Monday** > >First day of leftovers from that roast chicken. Grab some tortillas and either assemble a cold wrap with defrosted peppers, onions, and some grated cheese, or add all minus cheese to the pan to heat up with a bit of watered down tomato puree and a bit of smoked paprika. With a few changes this can be made into enchiladas: > >ALT. Enchiladas. Take the chicken, peppers, and onions into a pan and cook until the vegetables have defrosted. Add the tomato puree and smoked paprika as above and heat until the tomato puree is warm. Scoop this mixture into the centre of a tortilla placed in a dish and wrap tightly, moving to the edge of the dish. Repeat for each tortilla until the dish is full. Make a white sauce from a packet mix and pour over the top, grating some cheese over it. Place in the oven at 200C for 10 mins until the cheese has melted and started to brown, and serve > >-- > >**DAY 3 - Tuesday** > >If you have any chicken left over from Sunday and Monday, use it up here. Cook some pasta and add in 3/4 of a container of passata and let heat through. Add chicken if you have some left, then chosen vegetables and a bit of herbs and flavours (either an italian seasoning mix or reuse the paprika from Monday along with some salt and pepper). You can either serve this as-is when cooked, or put into a dish with some cheese and cook at 200C for 10 mins until the cheese has melted and started to brown, and serve with the bistro salad mix if desired and add a drizzle of lemon juice for flavour > >-- > >**DAY 4 - Wednesday** > >Today's another cooking day. If you were not able to cook your chicken bones and jacket potatoes on Sunday, this is now the day to do it. If you did both, then you can try prepping some foods for later in the week. If you have a microwave with a convection oven setting or an air fryer you can reheat the potatoes there, else get them out in the morning to defrost and heat in the microwave. > >Serve the jacket potatoes with 1/2 tin of tuna and 1/2 400g tin of baked beans per person and serve with the bistro salad mix and a drizzle of lemon juice if desired. > >ALT. Things to cook - today is a good time to bulk cook meals that you can freeze for later in the week or next week. Consider cooking some rice and portioning it out, making a lentil and vegetable curry, chilli, or a stew of some kind. > >-- > >**DAY 5 - Thursday** > >Grab your wok because it's stir-fry day today. If you've not done stir-fry meals before and feel daunted at the various options, don't worry. Grab a bottle of light soy sauce (*not* dark, but you may grab a low salt one if needed) and some lemon juice. Grab some beansprouts, some ready-to-work noodles, and frozen peppers and onions. Add a small bit of oil and fry the peppers and onions until defrosted and soft, add the noodles, then the beansprouts last to heat through. Add the soy sauce and lemon juice at the end and serve. Accompany with some fried or scrambled egg if desired > >If you can find it or are okay with buying it online, get some furikake seasoning. I bought [this one from Amazon](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Emma-Basic-Furikake-Seasoning-additives/dp/B098D5RKP9/), it's £6.99 for 100g but you use so little of it that it will give you value for money. Toss it on your stir-fry or add to rice for extra flavour > >-- > >**DAY 6 - Friday** > >It (might be) the weekend for you so kick back and relax with some tortilla pizzas. I'm presuming you have about 4 tortillas left from Monday, so add some tomato puree with italian seasoning, a light sprinkling of cheese, and chosen toppings. This is a good day to look through your fridge and see what needs to be used up, as well as the plan for Saturday's meal. Else, I have budgeted in a pack of mushrooms and some pre-cooked sliced chicken for additional options. > >Pre-cook the vegetables in a saucepan if needed, then put under the grill in the oven for about 8-10 mins. Keep an eye to avoid it burning, then cut into slices and serve on a bit plate for people to grab. If there's any bistro salad mix left over serve along with this > >-- > >**DAY 7 - Saturday** > >Chicken and mushroom soup is on the menu for today. If you had any vegetable peelings from the roast chicken, add them to a pot of water and boil before draining. Fry some of the frozen sliced onions to defrost, then add in sliced mushrooms to cook. I'd follow [this recipe from Tesco Food for a mushroom soup](https://realfood.tesco.com/recipes/easy-mushroom-soup.html) but add some chicken to heat through at the end to add some interest. Alternatively you can cook up some lentils and add those to the soup. > >-- > >**DAY 8 - Sunday** > >Today is a good day to check your cupboards, fridge, and freezer. We spent near enough £60 for this week but we have a lot of stuff left over. Depending on how much your family eats you'll have some things and not others which is okay. Making ample use of your freezer will give you options for quick meals and longer storage for various items. > >For instance, if you have some jacket potatoes left over and some eggs, you can think about an egg and potato scramble with some herbs or make it fancy with additional vegetables, ham, cheese, and more. If you prepped a vegetable curry and rice earlier in the week, you have a meal that you just need to defrost and heat up during the week. > >If you find on a week that you don't need to buy as much as you did the previous week (example you spend £40 on items for next week) then consider using that extra money to bulk out your store cupboard. Add some more herbs and spices if you can, keeping in mind that most last about 6 months before losing flavour, or grab a few more bags of frozen vegetables to ensure you have some later on --- [_^What ^is ^this?_](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/comments/jjrte1/askuk_hits_200k_new_feature_mark_an_answer/)

**[OP or Mod marked this as the best answer](/r/AskUK/comments/13pmmpv/please_can_you_recommend_really_simple_really/jlbp2t2/), given by u/Relenq** Meal prep plan for 3 for a week, £60 budget > >I'm making some assumptions starting off: that you have an oven, a freezer, and basic cupboard/fridge essentials (plain flour, vegetable oil, salt, pepper, vegetable spread, milk). Prices are calculated from Sainsbury's avoiding as many special offer/nectar prices as possible. Utilising offers or going for cheaper brands will save money, but I chose the ones I did for easy comparison > >I have given you two main cooking days on Sunday and Wednesday; this is not set in stone and can be moved to other available/better days for you but this will - hopefully - minimise the stress of cooking each day. I'm also assuming there's three people in your household so estimations reflect that > >Everything here is a suggestion but hopefully it gives you an idea of what you can do > >-- > >**SHOPPING LIST** > >1x sainsburys roast in the bag fresh chicken & garlic & parsley based 1.4kg - £5.75 >ALT 1x sainsburys fresh medium whole chicken 1.6kg - £4.50 >1x sainsburys mixed vegetables, frozen 1kg - £1.30 >ALT 4x loose carrots (~300g £0.21), 2x loose parsnips (~300g, £0.40), 1x small tin of Sainsbury's sweetcorn in water (198g, £0.75) - £1.36 >1x king edward potatoes 2.5kg £1.50 >1x medium eggs x15 - £2.60 >1x 4 pint semi skimmed milk - £1.55 >1x Sainsbury's chicken gravy granules 170g - £0.85 >2x Sainsburys plain tortilla wraps - £2.40 >1x frozen sliced mixed peppers 500g - £1.30 >1x frozen sliced red onions 500g - £1.50 >1x sainsburys medium cheddar cheese 400g - £3.70 >1x sainsburys double concentrate tomato puree 200g - £0.65 >1x sainsburys smoked paprika 44g - £1.10 >1x sainsburys inspired to cook white sauce mix 25g - £0.60 >3x sainsburys bistro salad 150g - £4.20 >2x sainsbury's passata 500g - £1.20 >1x sainsburys tuna chunks in spring water 4x145g - £4.20 >1x sainsburys penne 1kg - £1.65 >1x sainsburys italian seasoning 14g - £1.10 >1x heinz baked beans in tomato sauce 4x415g - £4.00 >1x hellman's light mayonaise jar 400g - £2.90 >1x sainsburys beansprouts 300g - £0.75 >1x sainsburys light soy sauce 150ml - £0.55 >1x sainsburys lemon juice 250ml - £0.80 >1x KTC red lentils 1kg - £2.00 >1x sainsburys easy cook long grain rice white 1kg - £1.60 >1x patak's butter chicken curry sauce 450g - £1.85 >2x amoy straight to wok medium noodles 2x150g - £3.90 >1x sainsburys roast british cooked breast chicken slices 180g - £3.40 >2x sainsburys closed cup white mushrooms 300g - £1.88 > >TOTAL £60.84 approx > >-- > >**DAY 1 - Sunday** > >Roast chicken, roast potatoes, yorkshires, gravy, and vegetables. Sort through the potatoes and set aside the largest ones - if your oven is not large enough to cook a roast chicken along with jacket potatoes, leave these potatoes for now. If you bought a plain chicken, add some salt and pepper from your storecupboard or alternate seasoning (suggested: garlic and herb; paprika). > >If you can cook the jacket potatoes at the same time as the roast, put them in for 1.5hrs minus however long the chicken says to cook. Prep the rest of the roast dinner as you would and - if cooking the jacket potatoes - put the jackets to the side to cool down. Put any offcuts or peelings from the vegetables in a bag in the freezer for now. > >Serve the roast dinner, pull/shred as much chicken off the carcass as you can and put the shredded chicken in a container in the kitchen. If you have enough energy to do so, add the chicken bones and scraps to a pan, add just enough water to cover, and let simmer. If you do not have enough energy, wrap in clingfilm and put in the freezer. > >Make sure that any leftovers or prepped items are stored away in the fridge (cooked chicken) or freezer (vegetable scraps, jacket potatoes, chicken stock) > >-- > >**DAY 2 - Monday** > >First day of leftovers from that roast chicken. Grab some tortillas and either assemble a cold wrap with defrosted peppers, onions, and some grated cheese, or add all minus cheese to the pan to heat up with a bit of watered down tomato puree and a bit of smoked paprika. With a few changes this can be made into enchiladas: > >ALT. Enchiladas. Take the chicken, peppers, and onions into a pan and cook until the vegetables have defrosted. Add the tomato puree and smoked paprika as above and heat until the tomato puree is warm. Scoop this mixture into the centre of a tortilla placed in a dish and wrap tightly, moving to the edge of the dish. Repeat for each tortilla until the dish is full. Make a white sauce from a packet mix and pour over the top, grating some cheese over it. Place in the oven at 200C for 10 mins until the cheese has melted and started to brown, and serve > >-- > >**DAY 3 - Tuesday** > >If you have any chicken left over from Sunday and Monday, use it up here. Cook some pasta and add in 3/4 of a container of passata and let heat through. Add chicken if you have some left, then chosen vegetables and a bit of herbs and flavours (either an italian seasoning mix or reuse the paprika from Monday along with some salt and pepper). You can either serve this as-is when cooked, or put into a dish with some cheese and cook at 200C for 10 mins until the cheese has melted and started to brown, and serve with the bistro salad mix if desired and add a drizzle of lemon juice for flavour > >-- > >**DAY 4 - Wednesday** > >Today's another cooking day. If you were not able to cook your chicken bones and jacket potatoes on Sunday, this is now the day to do it. If you did both, then you can try prepping some foods for later in the week. If you have a microwave with a convection oven setting or an air fryer you can reheat the potatoes there, else get them out in the morning to defrost and heat in the microwave. > >Serve the jacket potatoes with 1/2 tin of tuna and 1/2 400g tin of baked beans per person and serve with the bistro salad mix and a drizzle of lemon juice if desired. > >ALT. Things to cook - today is a good time to bulk cook meals that you can freeze for later in the week or next week. Consider cooking some rice and portioning it out, making a lentil and vegetable curry, chilli, or a stew of some kind. > >-- > >**DAY 5 - Thursday** > >Grab your wok because it's stir-fry day today. If you've not done stir-fry meals before and feel daunted at the various options, don't worry. Grab a bottle of light soy sauce (*not* dark, but you may grab a low salt one if needed) and some lemon juice. Grab some beansprouts, some ready-to-work noodles, and frozen peppers and onions. Add a small bit of oil and fry the peppers and onions until defrosted and soft, add the noodles, then the beansprouts last to heat through. Add the soy sauce and lemon juice at the end and serve. Accompany with some fried or scrambled egg if desired > >If you can find it or are okay with buying it online, get some furikake seasoning. I bought [this one from Amazon](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Emma-Basic-Furikake-Seasoning-additives/dp/B098D5RKP9/), it's £6.99 for 100g but you use so little of it that it will give you value for money. Toss it on your stir-fry or add to rice for extra flavour > >-- > >**DAY 6 - Friday** > >It (might be) the weekend for you so kick back and relax with some tortilla pizzas. I'm presuming you have about 4 tortillas left from Monday, so add some tomato puree with italian seasoning, a light sprinkling of cheese, and chosen toppings. This is a good day to look through your fridge and see what needs to be used up, as well as the plan for Saturday's meal. Else, I have budgeted in a pack of mushrooms and some pre-cooked sliced chicken for additional options. > >Pre-cook the vegetables in a saucepan if needed, then put under the grill in the oven for about 8-10 mins. Keep an eye to avoid it burning, then cut into slices and serve on a bit plate for people to grab. If there's any bistro salad mix left over serve along with this > >-- > >**DAY 7 - Saturday** > >Chicken and mushroom soup is on the menu for today. If you had any vegetable peelings from the roast chicken, add them to a pot of water and boil before draining. Fry some of the frozen sliced onions to defrost, then add in sliced mushrooms to cook. I'd follow [this recipe from Tesco Food for a mushroom soup](https://realfood.tesco.com/recipes/easy-mushroom-soup.html) but add some chicken to heat through at the end to add some interest. Alternatively you can cook up some lentils and add those to the soup. > >-- > >**DAY 8 - Sunday** > >Today is a good day to check your cupboards, fridge, and freezer. We spent near enough £60 for this week but we have a lot of stuff left over. Depending on how much your family eats you'll have some things and not others which is okay. Making ample use of your freezer will give you options for quick meals and longer storage for various items. > >For instance, if you have some jacket potatoes left over and some eggs, you can think about an egg and potato scramble with some herbs or make it fancy with additional vegetables, ham, cheese, and more. If you prepped a vegetable curry and rice earlier in the week, you have a meal that you just need to defrost and heat up during the week. > >If you find on a week that you don't need to buy as much as you did the previous week (example you spend £40 on items for next week) then consider using that extra money to bulk out your store cupboard. Add some more herbs and spices if you can, keeping in mind that most last about 6 months before losing flavour, or grab a few more bags of frozen vegetables to ensure you have some later on --- [_^What ^is ^this?_](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/comments/jjrte1/askuk_hits_200k_new_feature_mark_an_answer/)