5 Minute Meals - I made a bunch of 5-minute meal recipes that you can use to save time or if you're in a rush!

Hi r/recipes! Not your normal post, but I haven't seen many recipes for people who work long hours and don't have a ton of time to cook. So, I made this guide! All of the following meals can be made in under 8 minutes each without using any pots or pans. If you microwave efficiently, you can get meal times under 5 minutes each. This took me 25 minutes total to make including cleaning. The only cooking utensils I used were: 1 knife 1 strainer 1 fork a can-opener a microwave Here's how it came out: https://preview.redd.it/q91lcxo4std51.jpg?width=3242&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8f78dfd8d1a394ee51f214daeff240e05859c54e https://preview.redd.it/9n8mkxn4std51.jpg?width=2609&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=427e35a22218455b765bd8a5f13b93b349b0c1fa The Ingredients https://preview.redd.it/ljg9wxkrstd51.jpg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6ca250c830688400e231978c98d35a6445059f61 Meal 1- Mexican Burrito Bowl (3 minutes) Ingredients for 2 portions: 1 uncle ben's ready rice (spanish, brown, or whatever you prefer) 1 can of black beans 1 can of corn 1 taco shell taco sauce feta cheese (or mexican cheese) Microwave Uncle Ben's Ready Rice for 90 seconds While that's microwaving, empty can of black beans and corn into a strainer and rinse with warm water, mix together with your hand or a fork Take out rice, pour into meal prep container on one side, and the corn black bean mixture on the other side Break a taco shell with your hand on top Crumble some feta cheese with your hand on top Drizzle taco sauce across https://preview.redd.it/jbvpx5h7std51.jpg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a51998c305186b87b61bb1c7336bcf7f0c05d2af https://preview.redd.it/pzbihxg7std51.jpg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f7facae2bce7acdc3561401b63cd20045aa3c22a Meal 2 - Greek-ish Salad (3 minutes) Ingredients for 2 portions: 1 large can of chicken 1/2 a bag of arugula, kale, or any other salad base 10-12 cherry tomatoes 1/2 can of chickpeas olive oil lemon juice salt, pepper pitted kalamata olives Lay your arugula in the meal prep container covering the entire bottom Sprinkle some cherry tomatoes, chickpeas on top Drain your can of chicken and rinse with warm water for 15-30 seconds and then add on top Crumble some feta cheese with your hands on top Sprinkle some pitted kalamata olives In a small container, add 1 part olive oil, 1 part lemon juice, salt, pepper - shake or mix - this will be the dressing, store on the side and add before eating https://preview.redd.it/dg5s89z8std51.jpg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d12c595d08f9ff7c644161d04ad1c60ea1208420 https://preview.redd.it/5pkstaz8std51.jpg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d8745959170badc4181754cb6131424fcf381889 Meal 3 - Lentil Tahini Protein Bowl (6 minutes) Ingredients for 2 portions: 1 can black lentils 1/4 cup tahini lemon juice 1 uncle ben's ready rice (brown or whatever you prefer) 1 frozen vegetable mix 1 tbsp pre-minced garlic (comes in a small jar) 1 teaspoon cumin Microwave the frozen vegetable mix according to instructions, mine took 5 minutes Drain the lentils into a strainer and rinse with warm water In a bowl, mix lentils with 1/4 cup tahini, a generous squirt of lemon juice, 1 tbsp (about) of minced garlic, salt, pepper, and 1 teaspoon cumin - mash with a fork until it becomes a mush When vegetables are done, microwave brown rice for 90 seconds Lay brown rice on 1/3 of container, lentil-tahini mash in the middle, and the cooked frozen vegetables on the final third of the container ​ https://preview.redd.it/n1kxvv4astd51.jpg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=078a7b54658a72f3f87b7fdcbbe2527112bd460e https://preview.redd.it/cyvxo15astd51.jpg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a481bee43d7243a1bead6efb214d72148f2bcb68 Meal 4 - Tuna Sandwich + Salad (3 minutes) Ingredients for 2 portions: 1 can of tuna 8 cherry tomatoes or so 4 slices of whole wheat bread (I used dave's killer bread) arugula 1/2 can of chickpeas 1tbsp light mayonnaise 1tbsp lemon juice 1/2 tbsp minced garlic from jar Drain can of tuna and add to a bowl Combine 1 tbsp light mayo, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1/2 tbsp minced garlic, salt, and pepper into the tuna bowl and mix with a fork Take a slice of whole wheat bread, lay some arugula on it, and then add some tuna salad onto it, then put another slice of bread on it, cut in half, add to meal prep container Lay arugula on the other side of container, with cherry tomatoes, a handful of chickpeas NOTE: You may want to keep the bread and tuna salad separate so the bread doesn't get soggy, and then combine when you eat it with a fork, shouldn't take more than 30 seconds ​ https://preview.redd.it/fdjb7nfbstd51.jpg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ba7c4184b496941ddf89a9163a71ca804a96934d https://preview.redd.it/qwwy5zfbstd51.jpg?width=2805&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5d7dd7acf38a937c841b1e2ce27a939bff78f809 Meal 5 - Chickpea, Rice, Sweet Potato Bowl (8 minutes) Ingredients for 2 portions: 1 can of chickpeas 2 sweet potatoes 1 uncle ben's brown rice or instant quinoa rice cups (that's what I used) 8 cherry tomatoes arugula hummus Wash sweet potatoes and poke holes with a fork, wrap in a moist paper towel and microwave for 6 to 8 minutes or until soft After sweet potatoes are done, microwave instant rice or quinoa Lay arugula down on 2/3 of the bowl Add rice/quinoa on top of arugula, then 1/2 can of chickpeas, and cherry tomatoes Cut sweet potatoe in half and add to container Add a dollop of hummus on top of the chickpeas NOTE: You may want to add the hummus right before eating so you don't heat the hummus when warming it up, otherwise, you can eat it cold https://preview.redd.it/1hp761qcstd51.jpg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=cba2d0d567f417f24d4eed7f9218287b6e182cec https://preview.redd.it/4efd4vpcstd51.jpg?width=2715&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c9fadbd6f4b9dd2b161e597d3f0202e0728e7a79 Final Notes I saved time by microwaving two uncle ben's instant rice at a time You can save more time by always making sure the microwave is going, i.e. immediately throw the frozen vegetables in, then the sweet potatoes, then rice I specifically chose cherry tomatoes as they don't need to be prepped or cut for the salads I also saved dishes by using paper bowls, and reusing the same paper bowl throughout (i.e. mixing the tuna and making the lentil-tahini mash) I think most of these will be quite filling, I'm going to be eating them over the next week and will report back Also, you can save even more time by making a smaller variety of meals, i.e. if you only made 2 or 3 different meals for the week, you'd save a lot of time, but I like variety so I did a bunch submitted by /u/zshakked [link] [comments]