Rockerchic

He's the single dad. I'm "the other".....


I'm gonna make dinner tonight, but the kid's idea of good food is meat and potato's. I have a request from them for a chicken and rice dish.

I need HEALTHY kid dish idea's


and ALL other support materials that don't come included.....

Mikercw

hmmm..... How old is said kid? Cause right there would make a big difference.

But if you wanted a chicken dish: Grilled chicken breast, saute` Potatoes, and either a cajon rice or simple a Rice O Roni (Chicken).

Or as my mother use to always say, if you dont like whats being cooked......Dont eat!!!

wingman

[FONT="Arial Black"][SIZE="4"]well how about Simple Beef Pasta,or Tacos, or Steak Fajitas?[/SIZE][/FONT]

Washingtonblonde

Sweetie.. Don't stress over it. Bake some chicken.. make some rice-a-roni. And a veggie! Kids love that cheese covered broccolli that comes in the freezer section.

Rockerchic

kids are 11 and 13 and pretty picky eaters. I admit, they always try my food before they knock it (but you're talking to someone that failed at french toast 101) I have a bit of a more expensive taste pallet so not a lot of experience in the frozen food dept.


So I have rice, chicken and cream of mushroom soup- I know that can be blended to make something worth while...I have left over celery and carrot sticks from the party too (incorporate them somehow??)

and hey, thanks, wasnt sure I'd get any help

JuiceBox

riceroni? hamburger helper?

Rockerchic

never heard of that shit

mamarach

Okay, so you take the rice and chicken (either whole or cut up in bite size pieces) and put it in a casserole dish. Mix the soup in with it (you may need to add a little milk or water to get the right consistency). You can throw some frozen peas in for color. I would top with grated cheese. Bake it at about 350 for about an hour, or until chicken is cooked, rice is soft (you can cook the rice in advance, if you want), and everything is bubbly.

You can offer the carrot and celery sticks on the side with some dip. Or use them in a salad?

Rockerchic

fantastic! thats what I'm gonna do. I will post results later. It will be a pass or fail I'm sure

Plummy

Well, I'm late but whatever...

What I WOULD have done is just take the chicken, but it in a baking dish, smoosh the soup on top and bake for 45 minutes depending on the size of the chicken pieces and if it's bone in and whatever. Then just some brown rice cooked with a little olive oil for flavor. And the veggies on the side.

Rockerchic

well here's whats cookin-

Thick sliced the chicken and put in baking dish- and added the soup and rice... its baking....then I'm gonna sprinkle some cheese on top with some bread crumbs I think for a crunch top

Plummy

Oh, another really easy thing that tastes super good is Five Spice chicken. It's like, chinese five spice, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, salt, a little oil and water, marinate for a few hours, bake.

Rockerchic

awesome....new ideas are always good...I'll try that one next

adrenalinejunkie

ok its a kid and wants junk food and you wanting the kid to eat healthier be creative with the food. Here I will give you an example chicken Alfredo pizza and the last time I checked meat and potatoes or chicken and rice were not unhealthy for you.

Plummy

Nix the salt. Forgot about the soy sauce. Heh.

Rockerchic

they aren't, but there's a lot of Instant stuff in the cupboards....

adrenalinejunkie

Get creative with them add different things to them like spices cheese or whatever.

Rockerchic

u got an emergency or 1800-MRDAD phone number??? I think u should be on my speed dial


I may need you for more than just cooking tips

adrenalinejunkie

ha ha um no! i got enough nieces and nephews to take care of

Rockerchic

nieces and nephews are for feeding sugar..... they love me. Trying to impress a dad and his kids is a whoooole 'nother story.


So I pulled the dish out...it doesnt look edible....

Washingtonblonde

Haha.. but how does it taste??

Plummy

chinese takeout ftw!!

Rockerchic

a bit bland...okay, I need emergency help...how do I spice up this pile of sludge? it needs moisture and flavor...

Washingtonblonde

Oh geez.. and you've already added cheese? Pepper is my favorite seasoning.... moisture?? ACK! I dunno..

I make these rice/chicken dishes sometimes but it's more of a mexican rice... and for leftovers I throw sour cream into the mix and it's nummy.. not sure if that would work in your situation or not.

Rockerchic

I'm screwed

Washingtonblonde

You're just fine. it's late.. you haven't eaten yet??

Rockerchic

nope- they were driving in from out of town. I was gonna have dinner ready for em for when they got home...

Washingtonblonde

bread and butter.. if the dish is dry.. the butter on the bread will help. Do you have some frozen corn or anything to dish up with it? If it's not covered, cover it NOW - that will help keep what moisture it has in it.

adrenalinejunkie

sorry took me so long to respond been watch movies and had to take my smelly ass to the shower

adrenalinejunkie

also just put butter in it if its dry and bland butter has salt in it and also a good flavor, if you want saute some garlic and then put it on it or put some garlic salt on it

Washingtonblonde

I personally think you should show them this post so they can see how much love you put into this meal!

adrenalinejunkie

Or how much she is trusting our words and trying to cook instead of looking at cooking websites hahaha

Mikercw

I can only imagine how it turned out....WE NEED PICS...lol

Rockerchic

ok, so back from dinner.

I didn't see the salt or pepper shaker leave rick's hand the entire time. We attempted gravy (but was out of milk)...so we dished it up for the kids and they ate the fuckin entire plate and didn't say a word. WTF? I COULDNT EVEN EAT IT! I think I even got a couple of thank you's. Rick did inform me he didn't think its possible I can cook. I better come up with something soon....

Washingtonblonde

Haha.. we will work on this one babe!!!!

mamarach

I'm sorry it turned out bad.

Do you have a crock pot? If not, get one for next time... it's almost impossible to have something turn out gross if you cook in a crock pot- just throw everything in.

Plummy

a quick gravy that doesn't require milk:
butter
flour
water or chicken broth or a mix of the two
salt and pepper to taste

melt butter, put in equal amount of flour and let cook a little so it doesn't taste like paste. slowly start putting in liquid with a wisk until you get the consistency you want. or rather, put in a little more liquid than necessary and let it evaporate out to make sure you get it right.

i put that on top of porkchops and rice using the pork fat rather than butter. omgsogood

Rockerchic

awesome...these are all going in a "tips" file for cooking...

Yup, I have a crock pot. Here's a simple yummy I make actually....

Country style ribs, sourkraut and brown sugar...I just start making layers then simmer all day. Even if you are not a big fan of sourkraut- it freakin rocks!

adrenalinejunkie

here's another idea google easy cooking receipes!

JuiceBox

30 Minute Meals : Food Network

Rockerchic

don't have cable or dish...but I do have GOOGLE

JuiceBox

woman...they recipes and show clips on the web!!!! you didn't even click the link did you?

mamarach

We can all contribute our favorite easy recipes, too.

Rockerchic

nooooo...I only know to clicky on New Posts

Mikercw

Youtube is your friend

JuiceBox

you's a dork

Rockerchic

i iz

Rockerchic

so taken receipes for singles now

Plummy

i wish i could help you there. after five years, i still can't figure it out.

JuiceBox

quick one that's easy.


get a bottle of soy vey hoisen garlic sauce, get some pre cut beef or chicken for stir fry (not the frozen shit). marinate the meat in the sauce for an hour. if you like spicey throw in some cock sauce (sriracha). you can use fresh or frozen stir fry veggies. throw the meat and the marinade in on med-med high heat, start cooking the meat, throw the veggies in at about 1/2 way.

throw in some brown rice on the side

Rockerchic

that's funny....cuz i came up with "add one bottle of pinot noir"

JuiceBox

ya sure, if you want to make a night cap out of it

Washingtonblonde

Hahaha! You said what I was thinking.. I'm perfectly happy with a bottle of wine.

cityxslicker

Ok, I am not in this section cuz I am not a single parent.... but you all are talking FOOD!

I love to cook. I am king of what is in the cupboard and what can I make with it.

That campbells rice dish isnt as easy as the tv commercial makes it look. If you get the wrong done rice, or the soup is the wrong concentration ugh.

If you have a crock pot, that will do for getting the rice better than a boiling pot, plus it will leave you time for other prep. The best is a rice cooker, they are cheap, they will save your next rice dish. cook top rice.... worthless.

The rice shoudl be mushy, and not stale tasting or stick (unless making sticky balls)
the soup does need to be cut, what I do is cook that in a separate pot, use 1/4 the water sugested for soup, or 1/3 the milk.
chop the chicken, into chunks (cooks faster and it is easier to get around the dish)
peas and carrots are great. I like pepper as in jalapenos in everything, but that is me.

if you are looking at a cupboard full of packages your best reference is Sanda Lee from the FoodTV .com and her SemiHomade. She takes box prepped stuff and finishes it with fresh incrediants and final cooking mods.

good luck. If you are in a pinch again drop me a note,with what is in the pantry !

Best way to keep kids from complaining about dinner? have them help you cook it. It will shut the lil shiates up and show them that it isnt so easy.