5 Lazy Back-to-School Dinners For When You're Too Tired to Cook | Allrecipes

Listen, back to school season is busy enough so dinner doesn't need to be. I've got five lazy dinners that practically cook themselves. Pulling out the slow cooker for my first dinner because this is the tool I use the most during this time of year. Starting with the chuck roast. This is something you can start in the morning and it's ready when you get home if you just do low and slow. If you don't have that much time or you want it to cook a little bit faster, you can cut your chuck roast into chunks because at the end of the day, we're gonna shred it. Just plop it in. Okay, I'm gonna go in with a little bit of onion. Then I'm going in with several garlic cloves. These will cook down and become sweet and like buttery. Also some grated ginger. They sell these in the freezer section. This makes your life a lot easier. They also have it in garlic, especially for busy weeknights. You just kind of plop some in and then I'm going in with some shredded carrots, about half a bag, just to bulk up the veggie. Now, everything else that just gets dumped in is a pantry staple and hopefully, I've taught you to stock up on your Asian condiments too because you use them more than you think. Going in with some brown sugar, soy sauce, sweet and salty and that's kind of what the end product will be. And then I'm going in with some beef broth and some sesame oil. We have a lot of richness in there. Now I'm gonna cut through that a little bit with some vinegar. And if you don't have this, you could just use plain white vinegar. Now just a pinch of crushed red pepper. This is not gonna make this spicy. It's just gonna balance it out. This is a very family-friendly meal. That said, I'm gonna go high for like four to five hours or you can do low for six to eight hours. See, now we can just go about our day. Okay, looks like how it did when we left it. Don't worry. Move those carrots over. You're just gonna kind of break it up. It's probably easier just to pull the roast out and shred it. That way you can get rid of any of the fatty bits. Mm, you could stop here and just serve it over rice. We're gonna finish the whole meal in the slow cooker. So I'm gonna go back in with the beef. Then you're gonna take some ramen. You're gonna discard the spice packet and just nestle it in. You just wanna be sure it is submerged under the liquid. And if you need to add a little more beef broth, you can. And then back on on high for just about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, find your green veggie. For me, it's a steamable bag of broccoli. Okay, and it's just saucy enough. This is not soup. Okay, it's just beefy noodles. Perfect. Forgot about the broccoli. Forgot about my veggies. Sneak those in there to finish. I like a little green onion. I like a little kick because it is, it's not sweet, but it has a hint of sweetness in there. So I like to, you know me, I like to add a little spicy. A little sriracha and then some sesame seeds, optional, but also beautiful. Pot roast done differently and lazily, but not one bit of flavor will be sacrificed. Mm, it's freaking good. It hits every taste bud in your mouth. Umami times a million. You wanna add your noodles at the last minute before you're ready, like right before you're ready to serve because they will get, you know, soft very fast. If you know you're gonna have a lot of leftovers, you might just wanna even cook your noodles separately and serve the pot roast right on top. Off to the races with about a 13 out of 10. Gonna be hard to beat, but let's try. Next up, meatloaf, but make it fun and make it faster. This is sheet pan cowboy meatloaf. Doesn't that sound good? So when we make it on a sheet pan instead of a loaf, it's going to cook in half the time. That's perfect for these busy nights, plus it can be assembled ahead of time and when you get home, just pop it in the oven. I'm gonna do ground sirloin so it's not super fatty when it cooks. And then I'm just gonna keep the mixture simple. I don't feel like chopping up onions or anything. So gonna go in with some onion powder and garlic powder. Of course, salt and pep. Gonna go with a little bit of barbecue sauce, couple eggs, little splash of milk. Okay, I like to give it like a little head start and then I'll add my breadcrumbs in. Give it another mix and let those breadcrumbs absorb some of that moisture. Okay, so we've got a little smokiness in there with the barbecue sauce. That's when we start moving towards that cowboy theme. You should think about cowboys and their campfire. Gonna go in with a little bit of cheese into the meatloaf because why not? Now as a kid, it's like meatloaf never used to look that good. It was like that ketchup topping was always just like too sweet. But now, I love a meatloaf. So now grab a pan. This is about a nine by 13 size. So the whole thing will fill it up. You can also do a bigger pan if that's what you have and then just shape it, you know, into a rectangle. Don't think I'll need this, but I'll give some little insurance. And then just press it down. And doing it like this would also make a perfect meatloaf sandwiches because you can just cut your slice, put it right on a piece of bread. You do want it to, you know, really hold together like a meatloaf, not just like a burger. So really kind of pack it down. I like to kind of press the sides in. It's kind of what I do when I make it as a loaf. Ta-da. Wash my hands. I'm washing my hands, Linda. Washing my hands. Some more barbecue sauce on top. And this is instead of our normal ketchup glaze. If your family's up for spicier things, you can use whatever your favorite barbecue sauce is. I'm also using all the lazy things, okay? Bacon's that other smoky element. Some more cheese. And then I've got some onions. Ooh, sweet and salty, crunchy. We've got all the perfect bites right there. Going 375 for about 30 minutes. I'm also, to keep things lazy and easy, doing just a bag salad. So one that's kind of like a coleslaw. I found this dill flavored because it just goes with the barbecue theme. I love a bag salad. We always have this on here. Round out the meal with a veggie. Take a shortcut. Keep it lazy. Ooh, looks good. Cheesy, browned, smoky. And it was ready in 30 minutes. Unlike the typical hour that it takes. Could just get you a little square of it. This looks, I might be making all my meatloaves on a sheet pan. Round out the meal. And a little Texas toast. That's a good looking dinner right there. Making a meatloaf, start to finish with sides in less than an hour. Come on. Can't beat that with a stick. It's really tender. The way it just, the fork cuts right through it. Mm. That's not your mama's meatloaf. The sweet and smoky from the barbecue sauce with like the salt from the bacon and those crunchy onions on top. It's one of the better meatloaves I might have ever made. And I don't say that lightly. Oh, I kind of want to make the perfect bite. Mm-hmm. Mm. That bite couldn't be more perfect if it tried. This one might be the laziest one of the day. I'm making no peak coconut curry chicken. This is a set it and forget it. Sort of like the slow cooker. You dump, you go do something else, and you come back and eat. So you start with your rice. You just put it straight in. And because I'm being extra lazy today, we're not washing it. You gotta get the full fat coconut milk. It's just the way to go. When you get it, it's got like the thicker layer on top. So you want to stir your coconut milk first because I'm going to reserve a little bit for a sauce. So it's like the watery parts at the bottom, thick part at the top. Pour out about a quarter cup, and then just save that for later. The rest goes right in. I'm also gonna go in with some water. And then red curry paste. This is a great thing to keep on hand. It's very inexpensive, and it gives a lot of flavor without being too spicy. So this is still a kid-friendly dish. I served it to my kids the other night. They loved it. No one said this is too spicy. Couple tablespoons of soy sauce. See, we're pulling out those pantry staples again. A little bit of rice vinegar. Again, if you don't have it, you could just use plain vinegar. And some sesame oil. Also going in with ginger, and then some salt and pepper. All right, and then you just stir that up, and we're gonna place our chicken right on top. I've got a cup and a half of rice. Serves, for me, like five or six people. So you can also adjust that and just add a little more liquid if you use more. All right, then you just put your chicken right on top. I'm doing a bone-in skin-on chicken thigh. You can do whatever kind of chicken you like. I just always have these. They're like $2 a pound. All right, then just, you gotta season the top of the chicken. So I'm just gonna do salt, pepper, and a little garlic powder here. Now I'm gonna cover it with foil to bake it for most of the way, and then I uncover it during the last 10 minutes so that chicken can get a little more browned and crispy. But you wanna cover it, otherwise the liquid will evaporate out before the rice is cooked, and you'll end up with crunchy rice. You wanna cover it tightly so it doesn't escape. So you get double the flavor from that chicken as it cooks. The juices from the chicken drip into the rice, so it's not just like your rice is cooking in water. This is really the way I cook because I get the dinner going and then I can do all my other chores around the house that I was so lucky to come home to after work. Let's make the little sauce so it's ready. I've got the rest of the coconut milk. I'm gonna go in with a little more of the curry paste. Splash of soy sauce. And then just to really brighten it up, a little bit of fresh lime juice. This is what makes it, trust me. Because when I developed the recipe the other night, I was like, it's just missing a little something like it was like really flavorful, but I needed to brighten it up. Just a little squeeze of lime did the trick. And don't buy bottled lime juice, okay? These limes are cheap. Flavor is superior. Just mix this up and then I'll pop it in the microwave for just about 30 seconds to a minute just to warm it through. And this will tie our dinner right together. Get a glass of wine, kick your feet up, or go do 10 loads of laundry like I'll do. So you don't peak for the first 45 minutes. Then you uncover, turn the broiler on for just a couple minutes and brown it up. Got our sauce. We're just gonna kinda drizzle over. Lots of fresh cilantro. I mean, hopefully you like cilantro because this and that sauce tie it all together. It's gonna be hot. So you're gonna wanna let it cool off. I like some extra lime on here. This is another one where, you know, I mean, you could act like the cilantro is your green vegetable here, but I like to grab these little steam in the bag. Snow peas, this will make the perfect little side dish. Hot chicken and rice. Okay, my spoon over just a little more sauce. It's one of those meals that looks fancy for a weeknight, but downright delicious. Also, if you've got your stocked pantry, less than 10 bucks. That's what I'm talking about. Mm, that is not your typical boring chicken and rice. That little bright sauce at the end. This is just that perfect, simple meal, and it proves that we always overcomplicate things because good food doesn't have to be fussy. This dinner is all about shortcut ingredients because when it comes to lazy dinners, they are essential. This is chicken, spinach, alfredo, crescent roll, casserole. Say that three times. Shortcut ingredients we are using. Pre-cooked rotisserie chicken. I've taught you before to get your chickens, shred it, keep it in your freezer, and then you've got your ready-to-go chicken when you are. Crescent rolls, store-bought alfredo sauce, and pre-shredded cheeses. Come on now. And this is going to be one of those things that you're like, I don't even care that it was shortcut. It tastes so dang good. Just gonna take my rotisserie chicken, add it to a bowl, and then I'm adding spinach here. If you don't, or if your kids don't do spinach, you could always add some broccoli into the casserole or just serve it with another vegetable on the side. This is just a box of frozen spinach we've thawed and drained. But you know me, I like, if a green vegetable is in it, that is a complete meal in one pan. Gonna add in a little onion powder and garlic powder and a little salt and pepper just to flavor up all our layers. And then I'm going to add in a little grated parm into the inside. Put that filling inside of our crescent rolls. So just unroll them and separate them into triangles. Fill up your crescent rolls and roll them up. It's okay if it peaks out a little bit. It's all going to the same place. Just line them up in your casserole dish. They don't have to be perfect. You're just gonna kind of squeeze them in there. All right, for the sauce, take your alfredo. Also gonna add a little milk into the jar. Give it a little shake. Pour it in. Just mix this together and just pour it right over. All right, then finally top it with shredded Italian blend cheese. Could also do just mozzarella. I mean, why not? Now we just cook this until everything is browned and bubbly. It goes in at 350 degrees. Probably about 40 minutes. See, takes no time to put together. Then you can be having your little happy hour or helping with homework while it cooks. Hot, brown, and delicious. The cheesy smell is so good. Clearly, we cannot take a bite of that. So at this point, you wanna let it stand for at least 10 minutes before serving. Freshen it up with some fresh parsley and let's dig in. If you have any leftover sauce, you could spoon that over. Little more parsley and a little more pepper. Chicken, spinach, alfredo, crescent roll, casserole. Longest recipe title ever. The way the cheese has kind of browned right there, you know that's gonna be the best bite. So good. It's like you're having chicken alfredo, but with like a cheesy roll on the side and you're putting it all together. The flavor just soaks into the crescent roll and then it gets that cheesy crust. It's comfort food, slightly elevated. While this is so fitting for a busy weeknight, it's also special enough to serve company. I could eat this whole thing. My kids are gonna love this. My final trick is another one pan dump and go and it's perfect for your taco Tuesday. This is lazy chicken enchiladas. See, I'm doing this because I know they're not real enchiladas. You've probably seen a version of this before, but I kind of judged it up a little bit to make it more of a hearty, full meal. So I'm gonna kind of create some layers here, starting with some refried beans. Just add this to a bowl because I'm gonna stir it together with some cream cheese. If you've ever had Texas trash dip, kind of what I'm creating on the bottom. Then I'm going in with just a little bit of my cheese right here. And then this goes on the bottom of our dish. Casserole dish. Now we build. Spread it out. Then taquitos. I'm doing chicken taquitos. This is just such a good shortcut. This is very customizable based on what size casserole dish you're using, how many people you're trying to feed. We always have these. If you have any leftover, they make great after-school snacks. Then enchilada sauce right over the top. As it cooks, the tortillas really absorb the sauce. You can get this big old jar at Trader Joe's, or you can do two of the smaller cans. All right, now you're gonna top it with the rest of the cheese. Everything in here is cooked, so you can cook it uncovered just until it's browned and bubbly. Melty and bubbly, I should say. Now you could stop here, or you can give it enchirito vibes. I mean, we're just mixing all the foods. Then into the oven we go. 375 till hot and bubbly. Probably take about 25 minutes. Oh yeah, perfect. Hear that? Hot and bubbly. It's the way we like it. We've got time. Cause you don't wanna let this sit for about 10 minutes. That is just the right amount of time to make a margarita. Now we're talking. It's just gonna make it all taste better. Mm. Okay. Nicole back to business. Some green onions. You can do salsa. You can do guacamole, avocados. Whatever. I'm just gonna dig right in. This smells so good. I like a little sour cream on top. I'm also going with a little cilantro cause I have some left over. So easy. Sometimes easy is just the answer. Mm. Excellent. There's nothing not to love here. The sweet corn tortillas with that chicken. It's subtly sweet, but there's so much punch of flavor from just the enchilada sauce. And this dish is super hearty. It's gonna feed a lot of people. It's gonna keep them full. And it took us all of about five minutes to prepare. That's my kind of lazy right there. The refried beans at the bottom. That did it for me. You'd think I'd be stuffed by now. And I am. When it's so good, you just can't stop eating. This dish tastes anything but lazy. I hope I've helped you out. You shouldn't have to worry about dinner because you have enough on your plate during this time of year. You have five new lazy recipes that should help save you nights. Or a margarita will help.