Nothing is harder than finding and cooking meals for the chronically ill. I’ve talked before about my favorite kitchen tools that I like to use, and I’ve even shared a few of my favorite kitchen tips, but I’ve had several requests for chronic illness-friendly recipes. These are not recipes that will fit a specific diet (because I’m not on one, besides avoiding sugar and caffeine as much as possible), but they are all things that can be done quickly.
Making meals when you’re exhausted and chronically ill
This month my kids have swim team practice every day after school, which means I leave the house around 2:30 pm and get home around 6:30 pm at the earliest (sometimes it’s more like 8:00 pm). After sitting outside in 95-degree weather for most of that time, I’m exhausted. Making dinner is the last thing I want to do, but as soon as we walk in the door my kids are asking about being fed. I have about 20 minutes to get dinner on the table before the hungry gremlins stage a revolution, so in order for a recipe to make it to my favorites list it needs to be quick.
Disclaimer- I promise my family doesn’t just eat meat. It’s just that recipes for salad are pretty standard, and you can buy some amazing salads at the grocery store with very little effort.
Non-Instant Pot Recipes
Salmon with garlic lemon butter sauce
Shockingly this is one my whole family will eat. I used to be afraid of cooking fish because a) I hate it and b) fish is gross. However, in an effort to eat healthier I baked some one day and found out that salmon isn’t too fishy for me. Also, it’s super easy to cook. Admittedly on my really tired days, I just throw some spices on the salmon and bake it and it’s still pretty tasty.
Southwest chicken salad
This salad is tasty and fairly easy to put together. Because I need to put this together fairly quickly, I cheat and use rotisserie chicken so I don’t have to waste time cooking it.
Slow Cooker Meatballs
This is quite possibly the laziest recipe ever. You dump in 3 ingredients and then you are done! Add some rice or quinoa, steam some veggies, and you are good to go.
Kid Friendly Slow Cooker Lasagna
Lasagna is generally a lot of work, but I promise this one is not. Since I discovered this recipe I have not made a lasagna outside of the crock-pot. It’s a pretty plain recipe, and I stick to it because it’s kid friendly, but if you have less picky people in your house you could adapt it pretty easily.
Slow cooker Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork
This recipe is a Texas staple. Every time you go to a bbq you are guaranteed to have some Dr. Pepper pulled pork. Partly this is because Texas is obsessed with bbq, but another part is that it is incredibly easy to make.
- You throw in some Dr. Pepper
- Throw in some pork
- cook it in the slow cooker
- shred it when it’s done cooking
- mix in bbq sauce
And that is it.
My Favorite Instant Pot Recipes
My absolute favorite tool for cooking these days is my instant pot. If you do not have one and frequently cook I would recommend buying one. The bonus for me is that I don’t have to use my hot stove that heats up the whole house in the summer.
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Kid Friendly Macaroni and Cheese
Healthy this is not, but it is my go to “I don’t have time to cook but I have hungry kids and at least we’re not eating McDonalds” meal. If we’ve got a night full of sports and I have no time to cook anything, this recipe is perfect because it cooks in 4 minutes. I don’t think there is anything easier to cook than this, and my kids both love it.
French Dip Sandwiches
This is my family’s favorite recipe ever. It’s a little more involved than the mac and cheese, but the result is amazing. The meat comes out so tender, it is to die for.
Potato Corn Chowder
If I could eat soup every day I would, but it’s way too hot here to eat that much soup. However, I love this recipe and for soup it’s not too involved. Perfect comfort food for those of you who experience cold winter days.
Chronic pain and cooking
It’s never ideal to have to cook when you’re exhausted and just need a break. However, a home cooked meal is both healthier and cheaper than eating out. Ideally you’d eat even healthier than some of these recipes suggest, but when you have kids like I do this is about as good as it gets.
TY so much…when I was reading about the Salmon it was like you were reading my mind.. .i promise to defrost the salmon in my freezer.