10 Simple Family Meals to Make (When You’re Uninspired And Cooked Out)
When dinner feels like too much, these 10 simple family meal ideas can save your sanity. Made right from basic pantry staples you already have, you’ll be turning “what’s for dinner?” into “what sounds good tonight?” in no time.
We’ve all been there girl. Either bottomless pits (also known as toddlers) are calling for sustenance again or the clock in your brain says it’s time to switch gears & get ready for dinner – again.
So there you & I both are staring blankly into a fridge that has food & doesn’t have food at the same time. Wondering yet again what to make.
Uninspired & all cooked out, you let out a sigh as you close the refrigerator door.
But that’s the old narrative!
By having a handful of some easy comforting family meals in your back pocket (or maybe the back of the cabinet), you can skip ordering in take-out.
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Pin it for later! 👇🏽📌
beef pepper rice (Japan)
Spicy Thai Shrimp Soup
Grilled jerk chicken
Smoky, Sticky BBQ Ribs
Homemade Chicken Pot Pie
Homemade BBQ Chicken Pizza
Where The Recipes Come From
Being uninspired is a true issue when it comes to cooking at home regularly. And if you make 3 square meals a day from scratch, it’s easy to cycle through the fallbacks too.
So, I dug out my floured-n-saucy, dirty lil black notebook to bring you 10+ of my family’s most loved meals.
Every home, family & kitchen table is different. We eat our fair share of traditional comfort meals like spaghetti & simply-seasoned chicken thighs with roasted veggies.
But my oh my – do we love our globally-inspired dishes the best. That’s why a lot of recipes & other foodies I recommend on this site or in my newsletter reflect flavors from the Islands & beyond.
Our kitchen pops out meals from the Caribbean all the way to the East Indies & neighboring countries.
So…if it’s inspiration you’re lacking, I’ll just say this: not after you read this post. 😎✌🏽
Important Note:
Some recipes in this post come from cookbooks I use.
For recipes I couldn’t find online, there’s a link to the book instead.
But know this: you don’t have to buy the book to try the recipe.
Check with a friend or your local library. Request your library order it even!
Once you have the book though, you have eons more great recipes to try out.
What Makes These Recipes Easy Like Sunday Morning
Nothing makes dishing up some comforting family meals easier than having the stuff on hand you need.
Least of which is because you won’t have to wrangle up kids to make a last-minute trip to the market.
Or delay dinner because you ask your husband to stop off after work.
Or settle for something so less than because you give up on that dish anyway.
OK so there’s actually several reasons. But the point is – when you’ve reached the point of low-energy & don’t wanna cook again, you need some well-qualified pantry staples to pull you through.
The meal ideas + the right essentials = a happy gathering coming to a table near you soon.
01
Comfort Casserole
This is a category of meals I reach for that includes pans of homemade lasagna with bechamel sauce. So creamy, so rich. Infinitely delish.
Or shepherd’s pie made with my fam-famous seasoned meat blend– a popular family meal idea & my husband’s favorite. It freezes & reheats beautifully making it one I like to batch & freeze.
02
Just…Beef & Rice
Simple dishes of meat & rice always carry a lil extra comfort because they were so low-lift on the cook, I’m able to add a few extra dashes of lovin’ while making em.
Yesterday was beef pepper rice from Japan.
Today it’s a Vietnamese comfort food dish like Andrea Nguyen’s Crispy Pork Crumbles (recipe from her book Vietnamese Food Every Day).
Tomorrow it’s the Korean Beef & Rice bowl I stumbled across 5-6 years ago that’s shown up many a night.
But none take the cake when it comes Japanese Gyudon. My husband’s favorite beef & rice bowl reminds him of the time he lived there before we met. And it excites me to think about going back with him someday. 🇯🇵
03
Old Fashioned Smothered Pork Chops
I didn’t eat this dish growing up but my mom did make liver & onions & something about that dish reminds me of this one.
Maya Angelou’s recipe for Bailey’s Smothered Pork Chops is all kinds of comforting.
The crackle of bacon sizzling & the smell of onions frying up in the pan are only pieces.
Reminiscing on the table scene from last night’s family dinner while enjoying better-the-next-day leftovers is the gravy on top of this one.
And if you ain’t got the chops then chicken, steak (or livers) work just as well here.
Peep the book 👇🏽
04
Classic Chicken Pot Pie
Personally, the best thing about our pot pies are the flaky crust (even though the recipe I use below calls for einkorn flour, I always sub 1:1 with all-purpose wheat flour).
And if you make 2 or three at a time, you’ve always got an Ace in your back pocket.
The filling itself sometimes depends on whatever needs to be used up in the fridge, but I often make a big pot of that too to freeze for later.
Those two components have saved dinner for us plentttty times lemme tell ya.
If you need an alternative, I have it on good authority that this is a delicious butter-free pie crust recipe.
And these homemade southern-style biscuits are insanely good on flavor & time – if you don’t wanna fiddle-diddle with a whole crust at dinner time!
05
Easy Thai Shrimp Soup
Is anything more comforting than a big bowl of creamy, spicy soup?
Other than a southern mac & cheese, I’d argue no.
So when my family raved about this after the first time I made it, it immediately went into our Hall of Fame.
It’s a bit spicy from the red chili paste but you can temper that by either using less (don’t necessarily recommend that…staying true to global flavors & all) or adding more coconut milk to the bowls of those who need it.
There’s always coconut milk in the pantry.
Sambal oelek (chili paste) in the cabinet.
Shrimp…ehhh…
But when there is, there’s this. ❤️
06
Fritters, Patties or Cakes
Salmon Cakes
Zucchini Fritters
Potato Latkes (link below)
Whichever you call it, whatever I have & whatever feels good. It’s going down in the skillet for a lil fry before devouring.
And if I have crab – which I rarely do…ohhh baby.
It’s really going down with the familiar DMV style lump-meat crab cake.
Roast, toast or bake any sides or veg you have or love with these. I happen to love sweet potatoes with cinnamon with my salmon cakes.
07
Instant Pot Oven Ribs
If your husband is working on his grill master game, you’ve got a few slabs of ribs in the freezer for practice.
And if he’s already a grill master, you’ve got a few slabs in the freezer anyway!
This one is a go-to because the Instant Pot can make quick work of the meat even if it’s partially frozen.
And after 3-5min in your oven’s broiler with some saucy honey BBQ, they are all the cookout vibe with none of the prep or cleanup.
Serve with these just-as-sweet glazed carrots & some baked potatoes.
Or make it real indulgent with this no-Velveeta baked mac & cheese & some bomb southern-style collard greens. BOTH of which you should be batching to keep in ya freezer like I do.
Makes the meal come together quicker when you do!
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08
This or That Rice (or Pasta)
This one is a fridge clean-out sort of meal that has no real recipe other than “cook, serve, eat”.
And it’s made from all the stuff I keep around for other dishes I don’t feel like making at the time I whip this one up.
It goes like this.
Chicken or Andouille sausages.
Rice or any variety of pasta.
Broccoli or peas.
Any kind of cheese to top it all with.
Cook the meat & side as desired. Then combine both with the veg & top with cheese.
Bake standard (meaning about 350F) til the vegetables are done & the cheese is bubbly brown.
Or, skip the cheese if you don’t have it & plate it up as is. Works just the same.
09
Anything but Ordinary Homemade Pizza
We used to subscribe to homemade pizza night that was just some diced leftover baked chicken & a quick melted-butter-garlic sauce.
Then I found the GOAT of all pizza books. Flatbread by Anni Daulter is now my go-to. (Along with a jar of my home canned caramelized onions in a pinch).
Who knew pizza could be so much more fun with a simple drizzle or a punchy dip?
And now, if it’s pizza for dinner any night, it’s because I usually 5x the Classic Dough recipe for the freezer.
This one is a burnout-friendly meal the exhausted adults & never-tiring kids in your fam will love.
10
Jerk Chicken
(& Other Things My Husband Makes)
Thanks to a lil marinade meal prep a couple months ago, I keep a decent stash of flavors in the freezer.
Just ready to set & go.
This homemade authentic jerk marinade is one I religiously pull out & baste all over some chicken.
Takes no time at all to grill it up. And that means, even after waiting for my husband to get home, it’s not long before dinner’s on the table waiting for us.
Goes well with coconut rice anytime or homemade burgers & fruit in the summer!
And there you have it, girl.
A smooth 10+ comforting family meal ideas that should help you break through the uninspired fog of cooking.
This post wasn’t about solving any sort of time issues you might have in the kitchen. But I that feeling too – not having enough time to make a meal happen.
That’s why I shared some pretty special everyday kitchen moments to remind you that maybe…just maybe it’s worth making the time to create & serve a home cooked meal.
Remember, food is too big to stress about. So when you’re in a rut, lean back on the foods you stay stocked up on. They’ll save you every time.
Love this line up! I am always looking for simple healthy meals to get on the table in a pinch.
Me too – I’m glad you found some you like!
This is such a great post to use when meal planning! Thank you!!
You’re welcome, thanks for reading!
The title intrigued me and the post lived up! Great ideas!
That’s so good to hear – thank you!!