During lockdowns, I got so bored I tried all sorts of things, including quick dinners I’d never made before. I did fancy recipes and baked bread, too, but since cooking isn’t really my thing, I got tired of the cooking pretty quickly as supplementary take-out we were used to wasn’t as available during those early days.
As a Jamaican, a quick dinner typically means steamed rice and some vegetables or canned protein, but not in my house. My husband does not eat seafood and I have food sensitivities connected to canned goods, so for us, ‘quick dinner’ means some steamed white rice and some curried or brown stewed chicken.
Two of the three recipes I am sharing today include the option of minced meat, here is a quick look at how to make it. Your minced meat can be chicken, turkey or beef or pork. If you are a vegetarian, veggie mince works just as well.
How to Make Minced/Ground Meat (Poultry, Beef, Pork)
What you need
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Garlic powder
- Onions (Chopped)
- Scallion (Chopped
- Cooking oil
How to make it
- Add seasoning and massage into the meat.
- Heat oil.
- Add meat to oil and stir into pot thoroughly
- Cook and stir for until all of the meat is brown and cooked.
- Set aside
3 Quick Dinners to Try
1. Loaded Baked Potatoes
When I’m grocery shopping and come across large potatoes, I get some for baked dinners. Generally, I would serve the fam baked potatoes as a side, but that day, I served it on its own with the insides mashed.
The best thing about loaded potatoes is that you can ‘load’ it up with whatever you feel like. For mine, I added minced meat, cheese and so on.
What You Need
- Large potatoes
- Cooked Minced meat (optional)
- Cheese (Optional)
- Butter
- Seasoning(Powder and herbs)
- Sour cream
How to Make it
- Wash potatoes thoroughly
- Use a fork to poke random holes all over the potatoes
- Oil potatoes with olive oil and season with sale and black pepper.
- Wrap each potto in foil paper.
- Bake until potatoes are tender (the fork can go all the way through)
- Optional: Cook minced meat and set aside.
- While hot, remove potatoes from the oven, unwrap and slice 3/4 ways through. Don’t peel.
- Use a a fork to mash and distress inside potatoes.
- Add butter and continue to mash.
- Season with your favourite seasoning.
- Optional: Load it up with your meed cheese, sour cream, etc.
- Serve hot.
2. Chilli Dogs
I wanted to make something quick so I stood in my kitchen looking around to see what I had. I found hot dogs and minced meat. Just like that, I was making chilly dogs.
What you need
- Hot Dog Buns
- Frankfurters
- Optional: Cooked Minced Meat
- Condiments of choice (Ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, hot sauce, etc.)
How to Make It
- Boil frankfurters until tender
- Optional: Cook minced meat and set aside
- Remove cooked franks from water, dry and place in hot dog bun
- Load the hot dog to your preference with minced meat and condiments.
- Serve
You May Also Like: 7 Dinner Hacks for Busy Moms
3. Cheesy potato drumsticks
Okay, maybe this one is not so quick. But cheesy potato drumsticks were fun, easy, super delicious and a hit with the family.
I’m not a heavy fan of cheese and putting it in everything, but when I came upon a video making this stuff on Facebook and knew I needed to taste it. It looked too good not to try. Of all the new things I made during the lockdown, this one was my favourite.
It looked too good not to try.
I’ve seen a few varied directions on Pinterest since that first video. But here’s how I did mine.
What You Need to Make it
- Irish Potatoes
- Drumsticks
- Flour / Breadcrumbs
- Cheese (Cheddar or Mozzarella)
- Eggs
- Cooking oil
- Seasoning
- Garlic and/or Onion Powder
- All Purpose or Complete seasoning
- Paprika
- Salt
How to Make it
Chicken
- Boil chicken or cook down in seasoned broth until tender.
- Remove from boiling water and extract chicken bone from the meat. KEEP THEM.
- Shred chicken meat by pulling it apart with your fingers.
Eggs
- Beat eggs and set aside
Potatoes
- Remove skin and boil your drumsticks until they are tender.
- Peel potatoes and boil until tender.
- Once your potatoes are boiled, remove them from the water and mash them.
- Add salt to taste
- Optional: Season with powdered seasoning
- Add cheese to mixture.
- Mix well
Combine
- Wet palms
- Take a portion of the mixture and flatten it in your palm.
- Place drumstick bone into the mixture in your palm and shape your mixture like a drumstick.
- Coat makeshift drum in eggs, the flour or breadcrumbs
- Fry drumsticks until they are golden brown
- Serve hot.
I had fun trying these quick dinners. Did you try a new recipe you loved lately? Share it in the comments.
Xo, Shandean,
Find Me On;
Leave a Reply