1. Quick Thai Noodle Curry. Stir-fry some strips of onion, red capsicum, baby corn and snow peas (or any stir-fry vegetable mix) in a large pan or wok. Add a tablespoon of red curry paste. Prepare a packet of instant noodles according to directions. Add the noodles to the vegetables with enough of the liquid to make a sauce. Stir in a tablespoon of coconut milk, heat through and it’s ready to serve.
Tip Canned coconut milk or cream, can be poured into ice-block trays, frozen and then kept in a plastic bag, making it easy to add just a tablespoon to a dish. Alternatively coconut milk powder can be kept in the pantry and mixed as needed.
2. Speedy Spaghetti. Bring a large pot of water to the boil, add the spaghetti and cook according to the directions on the packet. Meanwhile, open a jar of chunky tomato pasta sauce and heat. Make a green salad with lettuce, spring onions and cucumber or a bag of mixed lettuce. Serve the spaghetti, topped with the pasta sauce, a good sprinkle of Parmesan cheese and a green salad with vinaigrette alongside.
3. Fast Fish and Tiny Taters. Take a boneless fillet of fresh fish. Dust it with seasoned flour. Heat a non-stick pan with a film of oil and pop the fish in to fry. Wash a handful of tiny new potatoes and microwave or steam them until tender. Squeeze lemon juice over the fish once you have cooked both sides and sprinkle with pepper. Serve immediately with the potatoes and a salad or mixed vegetables.
4. Quick Pita Pizza. Spread a round of pita bread with pesto or tomato paste. Top with sliced tomato, mushrooms, roasted capsicum, black olives, chopped spring onions and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. Heat through under the grill or in a hot oven.
5. Oriental Noodle and Vegetable Stir-Fry. Stir-fry 2 rashers of diced bacon (all fat removed) or ham. Add a packet of oriental stir-fry frozen vegetable mix, cooking according to the directions on the bag. Mix in some fresh egg noodles or prepared instant noodles a few minutes before the end of cooking time and heat through before serving.
Tip Look for the packets of frozen stir-fry vegetable mixes that have noodles and a sauce sachet included.
6. Time-saving Tortellini. Boil a packet of spinach and cheese (or your favourite filling) tortellini according to packet directions. Heat some bottled tomato pasta sauce and serve this on top of the tortellini with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. Add a salad and vinaigrette alongside.
7. Racey Rice and Lentils. Put some Basmati rice on to cook. Heat a heavy-based frypan with a little oil. Add a finely diced onion, crushed garlic and a couple of teaspoons of minced chilli. Saute until the onion is soft. Meanwhile dice a tomato. Open a packet of Quickpulse™ ready-to-eat lentils and add to onion with the tomato. Add ground cumin, salt and pepper to sea-con, heat through and serve alongside the rice.
8. Easy Chicken Pasta. Set half a packet (125 g) of shell pasta on to boil. Meanwhile, thinly slice half a red capsicum, a handful of button mushrooms and a stick of celery. Chop some leftover barbeque chicken into bite-size pieces. Drain the pasta, add the capsicum, mushrooms, celery and chicken and pour over some ‘low oil’ creamy salad dressing. Top with chopped spring onions and serve.
9. Tomato and Tuna Pasta. Set some pasta on to boil. In a small pan saute some chopped parsley, garlic and chilli (optional) in a little oil until aromatic. Add a can of chopped tomatoes (undrained) and small can of flaked tuna. Season with pepper and heat through. Serve the tuna and tomato sauce over pasta.
10. Mexican in Minutes. Brown a handful of lean minced meat and a finely diced onion in a pan. Add a small can of Heinz Mexi Beans™ and taco seasoning if desired. Heat through. Serve with tomato salsa, shredded lettuce, avocado and grated cheese in taco shells or pita bread.
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