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Tried and true weeknight meals
I know we've done this before, but I'm sure we have new posters and new recipes. Besides, I can't find any former posts 
I'm getting tired of our normal meal rotation and am looking for some variety.
What are your go-to recipes?
For us:
grilled, marinated chicken, veggie, with brown rice, cous cous, or quinoa
quesadillas (either veggie or chicken)
ww spaghetti with red wine meat sauce
tilapia--many different ways (grilled, baked with a light sauce) with rice
salmon (mainly grilled with an Asian marinade) again with rice, couscous, quinoa
slow cooker chicken (salsa chicken for burrito filling, bbq shredded chicken, etc.)
fettucine with homemade alfredo sauce--so easy
tacos or enchiladas, beef or chicken with lots of veggie toppings
pasta with marinara
anything with black beans
Re: Tried and true weeknight meals
Salmon croquettes (canned salmon is cheap)
Brinner
Roast in a crockpot (either with bbq sauce or cream of mushroom)
Grilled chicken and veggies
Hamburgers and sweet potato oven fries
Asian-inspired chicken and brown rice
Good post! I'm always looking for new dinner ideas!
I try not to make the same things over and over because I get like 8 cooking magazines and use those (mostly Cooking Light for super simple weeknight meals and more complicated ones on the weekends) to keep us out of a rut. If I'm feeling totally blah (or, more likely, DH is getting sick of my "experiments"
) though, I go to one of my standbys:
homemade mac and cheese with sriracha and chicken and apple sausage
split pea, leek, and carrot soup
baked potato and veggie soup
curried quinoia with raisins and almonds
risotto (Sweet corn and tomato in the summer, mushroom and peas or butternut squash and kale in the winter)
chicken sauce piquante in the crockpot over rice with a side of veggies
crawfish and veggie etouffee over brown rice
veggie curry over israeli couscous or farro
barbeque pulled chicken over baked potatoes
a variation on Bri's ziti with peas and spinach in the sauce and homemade bread
bean and veggie chili (DH says it's not really chili but who cares) over Hebrew National 45 calorie hot dogs (also not real hot dogs to DH) and hot dog buns (white bread because nothing else tastes right with a chili dog, damnit!), loaded with cheese
Lasagna- half meat for DH, half veggie for me
"Feta pasta stuff" a pasta dish with olive oil, fresh lemon juice, garlic, olive tapanade, sun dried tomatoes, feta, dried red pepper flakes, and whatever kind of meat and/or veggies need used up (usually chicken and/or broccoli but literally anything works)
breakfast for dinner
grilled shrimp po'boys
Big italian market salad
I probably make each of those standbys a maximum of 2x/year. I totally blame my mother who literally had a weekly rotation of 6 meals, which included spaghetti with meat sauce, meatloaf with mashed potatoes and butter smothered vegetables, something called "Dorito cassarole", creamed chipped beaf over biscuits, cube steaks with cream of mushroom soup or regular steaks with a different butter smothered vegetable like frozen lima beans, and some sort of chicken dish that I can't even describe.
To this day, I still detest all of those meals (and I'll eat anything!) I took over cooking in high school and expanded the rotation (which inspired both of my parents to do the same and start cooking new and more interesting foods.) However, mom and dad always made me stick with the "meat- potato- buttery vegetable" model at their house. As you can tell from above, my big rebellion in life is lots of cassaroles and 1-dish meals. I also like making just appetizers or fruit, cheese, and crackers for dinner, especially during the summer months, which would never fly at my parent's house.
meatloaf muffins
chicken kabobs (marinated in soy sauce, garlic and brown sugar) and grilled zucchini with party potatoes (frozen hashbrown, can of fav soup, sour cream, chz baked for 1 hr)
homemade potatoe soup with ham and corn
homemade broccoli chz soup- soups sound PERFECT for the weather this week!
salmon patties and rice (we use the frozen wild caught salmon from walmart-pretty cheap)
chicken, broccoli, chz and rice casserole
homemade pizza - from the jiffy pizza crust packets-like 30cents
Baked "hotwing" chicken thighs w/mashed potatoes & broccoli
Baked lemon & garlic salmon w/couscous and asparagus
Eggrolls & edamame (both from the frozen section)
Pasta w/sauteed mushrooms & garlic bread
Slow-cooker shredded chicken burritos w/black beans
Baked mac & cheese
Meatloaf
Steaks or beer bratwurst on the grill, w/salad and/or roasted potatoes
Any type of grilled meat, or we smoke it in H's electric smoker. Mainly chicken (bone in and boneless), pork loin/chops, and steaks. Crockpot roasts, BBQ crockpot chicken, meatloaf, ground beef enchiladas, Bri's ziti with mushrooms, grilled chicken salads, chicken salad sandwiches, vegetable beef stew, chili, deep dish Mexican pie, chicken and noodles, egg rolls and fried rice, meatballs and white rice, jambalaya and hot links, green chili casserole, hamburger roll up (this is so disgusting but so good...ground beef with onions, jalapenos, velveeta and ranch dressing spread onto pizza crust and rolled up and baked. SO white trash!). We usually pair our meats with a green salad and a bread, green beans, steamed broccoli/cauliflower/carrots, or some rice.
I have never made quinoia (sp?), cous cous, or mostly ALL of the things on amanjay's list. AMANJAY, help me branch out please?
I copied and pasted the list I posted when Shansbride was asking about vegetarian dinners:
ziti (Bri's recipe with TVP instead of meat)
zucchini grinders
veggie burgers (I have a recipe that uses black beans)
pigs in a blanket (with tofu dogs)
chili (Shansbride's recipe with TVP)
hummus (usually a lunch, but I keep thinking of trying falafel with it for dinner)
spaghetti w/ marinara
red beans & rice
waffles or pancakes and scrambled eggs
lentil burritos
tacos (I use Quorn crumbles that are made with mycoprotein instead of soy)
chickpea, potato & cauliflower curry
lemon orzo primavera
navy beans
rotini tossed with olive oil & steamed veggies
quinoa & black beans (we serve in tortillas)
vegan potato casserole (with tempeh)
quinoa & lentil cutlets with mashed potatoes
stir fry with tofu
We eat these same things every month, some of them a couple of times a month (usually chili, breakfast for dinner, and spaghetti). Every few months I'll get sick of a couple and find replacements (we used to have veggie lasagna all of the time but I haven't made it in a long time).
And Amanjay, I would love to have the recipe for the curried quinoa with raisins and almonds. We are really big on quinoa lately. I love it for my two vegetarians since it's so high in iron, and a good source of protein and fiber too.
Lots of vegetarian meals (DH doesn't miss the meat and rarely eats it anymore):
* Spaghetti with veggie meatballs
* Stuffed pita pockets (usually just throw whatever veggies, cheese we have)
* Frozen waffles or English muffins topped with PB&J
* Mexican casserole with boca crumbles or fajitas with veggie chik'n strips and black beans
* Smart Italian sausage subs
* Whole wheat pizza
* Quinoa with chopped fruit, nuts
* Veggie chili
* Smart dogs, Boca burgers, Chik'n patties, Chik'n nuggets (As you can tell, I'm not the healthiest vegetarian)
* Tofu stir fry with brown rice
* Soups and salads
Quinoa reminds me the most of a lentil. It's a super food and an ancient Incan grain (according to what I learned on the food network this morning---I didn't just know that.) Make sure you rinse it well, then just cook it at a 1: 1.5 ratio with water. The regular grocery has it, but it may be in the natural foods section. My Homeland has it in bulk bins for super cheap.
Cous cous is a teeny tiny grain (I'm actually not a fan for some reason) but Israeli cous cous is a bigger version (think orzo). You can buy the regular stuff at the grocery. Akins may have Israeli cous cous, but I've been bootlegging it back from my Missouri Trader Joe's trips.
Farro is another grain, most like spelt, I think. The only place I've seen it in the OKC area is Mediterranian Deli and Imports, but it's really yummy. Toast it for a couple of minutes before you cook it. You can actually use it to make risotto.
You can cook any of them like you would rice...they taste good with sauces, with toppings like chili, or with dried fruits and nuts mixed in. They take seasonings well. They're also good hot or cold. Any kind of cold pasta salad you'd make, you can make with one of these grains. They're super nutritious.
When we first got married, DH was not food adventurous at all, so I would cook these things and, when he asked what they were, I'd just say, "It's just like rice." They're not, but close enough for him.
Critti- all I do is put plenty of curry powder (and a pinch of salt, and a little garam masala if I have it) in my cooking water, along with a handful or two of raisins (or dried cherries) and chopped roasted almonds. I cook the quinoa like I normally would, stir, and enjoy! SUPER simple. I eat it as a main dish; DH eats it as a side dish with chicken. If I want something a little saucier, I just top it with a spoonful of Greek yogurt and some mint if we have some growing (close enough to raita for a weeknight for my tastes.)
I worked at a cajun restaurant in high school, which is where my love for all things cajun and creole comes from. Plus, I got spoiled by the grocery stores in Ohio. I'd literally spend a couple of hours going through Trader Joes and Whole Foods and just trying new things.
I tend to make most of my meals during the weekend.
Chicken Spaghetti
Turkey lasagna
Cockpot roast w/veggies and potatoes
Mini pizzas on thin deli buns ( we do this if I don't feel like cooking)
Grilled chicken or pork with steamed veggies and some type potatoe or stuffing
BBQ chicken with beans or veggies