what to cook when you absolutely cannot cook

tried and true store-bought meals

This newsletter is meant to empower you in the kitchen: to make the idea of cooking dinner every single night for the rest of your life less daunting and frankly, less horrible.

And I think we’re succeeding in that! Hundreds of you made smash burgers with your honeys last week. 15-minte peanut noods have become a staple in homes across the US and beyond. If you haven’t made the 30-minute pork lettuce wraps, honestly, you’re doing yourself, and pork tenderloins everywhere, a disservice. Get on it!

But some nights, even 15 minutes of cooking is too much — the mere thought of pulling out and putting away multiple ingredients is enough to send me over the edge. On those nights, I turn to these store-bought meals.

1) Sukhi’s Tikka Masala

Don’t forget to grab some frozen rice to heat up with it, if cooking rice feels like too much tonight. I buy this at Costco or Safeway, and I often stir in frozen peas and fresh spinach at the very end. It’s SO GOOD. You’ll find this in the refrigerator section, near the raw meat (at my store, anyway!).

2) Rotisserie Chicken + Bagged Salad

Oh, the joy of rotisserie chicken. Grab your favorite bagged salad (I love the Southwestern Chopped from Trader Joe’s), toss it up, and serve it with a thigh or a breast. Perfect.

Hot tip: pull the remaining meat off of the chicken tonight, don’t refrigerate the carcass with meat still attached! Dealing with a cold, congealed rotisserie chicken carcass sucks. Make chicken quesadillas, chicken salad, or enchiladas tomorrow night!

3) Dumpling Party

I freaking love frozen dumplings. These are my fave (and Mattis’, too!). You can find them at Costco or Target, but I love all of the dumplings at Trader Joe’s as well. Follow these directions on how to cook dumplings and broccoli in the same pan. I throw the dumplings and broccoli onto a huge platter and we all eat straight off of it, so it really does feel like a fun dumpling party!

4) Pizza Insalata

I know you already know about frozen pizza. But what you might not know is the joy of turning a frozen cheese or Margherita pizza into Pizza Insalata — aka pizza with salad on top. While the pizza is cooking, toss 2 cups of baby arugula with your best extra-virgin olive oil, balsamic or lemon juice, and a big pinch of salt and pepper. I also like to add a handful of shaved parm but I realize that might be cheese overload for some of the weaker stomach-ed members of this community. Once the pizza is out of the oven, pile the greens on top. The hot gooey cheese with cold crisp greens is a delightful combo.

5) Chinese Take-In

I swear, this is better than Chinese takeout, and cooking it will take less effort than calling and placing your takeout order. The chicken is all white meat, the breading gets so crisp, and the sauces are delicious. Our favorites are orange chicken and General Tso’s, but this brand has tons of different flavors. They sell it all over the place so I bet your local store carries it! Again, don’t forget to buy some frozen rice if making your own feels hard. Grab a bag of those broccoli florets that you steam right in the bag in the microwave to serve with it.

Keep a few of these in the freezer for those nights when you absolutely cannot make yourself cook!

What are your favorite no-cook (but also no-takeout) meals?!