Welcome to….
keeping your cool in the kitchen
a series for dinner on days when turning on the oven feels like a personal attack, but you still want food that’s exciting. Cooking should NEVER feel like punishment.
The next few weeks are all about:
big flavor and minimal heat
produce doing most of the heavy lifting
sauces and marinades that make simple things taste special
dinners that come together quickly without feeling like “just a salad”
Now this isn’t a zero-heat series, some recipes use a grill or a pot of boiling pasta water. But the heat stays minimal, so you’re not sweating over dinner.
to kick things off we have:
chili crisp salad rolls with spicy peanut sauce
And down below I have a list of 30+ low-cook from the archive. But before we dive in, over the years, I’ve learned the difference between an epic low-cook meal vs a sad thrown together one. My takeaways:
marinade is queen: the second you decide what you’re making, get something marinating (chicken, tomatoes, cheese). I’m generally anti-marinate overnight, so usually a very aggressive marinade can do it’s thing while you prep the rest of your meal.
low waste: things like sundried tomato oil, artichoke brine or pickle juice (duh) are flavor bombs waiting to be your next dressing or marinade.
texture it up: I’m ALLLL about texture and when food is cold or room temperature, texture matters even more. Keep it simple with things like crushed chips, toasted nuts, crispy onions, crispy panko breadcrumbs or even just crackers, it can really round out your meal
colder food needs more seasoning: if you’ve ever made pasta salad, you probably know cold dulls flavor. A dressing that comes out perfect should taste almost aggressive before it hits your salad or pasta. Once everything chills together, it balances out,
double the dressing: save yourself half the work! use half to marinate your protein and half to dress everything else right before serving. Plus it’s guaranteed to work together.
serve on ice: if you’re prepping ahead or serving outside, set your bowl over a bigger bowl of ice so nothing wilts before people actually eat it.
the low cook dinner library
📕 bookmark this page, I’ll keep adding new recipes throughout the month.
when dinner needs to happen in 20 minutes flat
balsamic marinated tomatoes and bocconcini
crispy rice and halloumi salad with orange vinaigrette
pan con tomate with sesame prawns
seared tuna tostadas with mango salsa
when you want dinner in your hands, not on a fork
sticky hoisin lettuce wraps with spicy yogurt drizzle
ginger beef lettuce wraps with crispy rice paper
lemongrass tofu summer roll burrito with peanut sauce
chipotle chicken caesar tostadas
lemongrass chicken lettuce wraps with crisp rice
greekish loaded lemony hash browns
when you want the grill to do all the work
grilled summer salad with basil vinaigrette
spatchcock chicken with whole lemon pesto and grilled asparagus
smoky turkey burgers with creamy corn relish
grilled lime chicken with mango chimichurri over coconut rice
when it’s too hot to do anything but toss a salad
watermelon halloumi salad with chili crisp vinaigrette
spicy brussels sprouts caesar salad with crispy capers
dense bean salad with chipotle vinaigrette
when the stove stays off, full stop
pineapple coconut shrimp ceviche
cottage cheese bruschetta toasts
micro chopped salad stuffed pitas
bbq chicken and cheddar sandwich with smoky dill mayo
15 minute cottage cheese chicken salad
when dinner needs a cold happy ending
strawberry coconut trifle pudding
chocolate peanut butter ice cream bar
strawberry dubai chocolate bundles
healthy-ish snickers date bites
reggie’s corner:
Summer isn’t just a people thing around here, Reggie needs some cool down treats too, especially when it’s too dang hot to walk a very high-energy dog…. A few easy ones we love:
Freeze plain low-sodium bone broth in an ice cube tray for an instant lick-able treat. I actually just give her the entire tray and it keeps her busy for an hour.
Mash a ripe banana with a bit of natural PB and spread it across a metal bowl. Freeze it and serve.
Puree seedless watermelon and freeze into cubes, perfect for a hot afternoon, or just give them a slice to gnaw on cause HOW cute is that.
share with the group if you have other favorite summer doggo tips!
That’s 30+ low-cook/no-cook dinners to help you prevent standing in front of a hot stove this summer. Bookmark this and know it’s here whenever you need it.
And be sure to let me know if you have any low-cook dinner requests in the comments.