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After a long day at work, making a meal from scratch might not seem like the most appealing way to spend your precious off-hours. But if you don’t want to pony up the cash for takeout (or just can’t stomach one more frozen pizza), we have a nice compromise for you: a home-cooked(-ish) meal that you can throw together with just a (very) few key ingredients.
Contrary to what cooking shows (or Instagram) might have you believe, you don’t need an entire day (or even a full hour) and a dozen exotic sauces and seasonings to achieve a tasty, filling, and nutritious meal. Yep, less really is more sometimes. “I am a big proponent of the simpler, the better,” Amanda Averett, MS, RD, a registered dietitian at Redefined Nutrition, tells SELF. “You definitely do not need to break the bank.”
And what better way to keep things simple than making a dish that only requires a few ingredients? Using Trader Joe’s—which is known for its wide array of delicious snacks, freezer staples, and ready-to-eat products—as a supermarket baseline, SELF reached out to a few RDs to ask for simple dinner recipes that can be made with three TJ’s items or fewer. We were specifically looking for ingredient combos that complemented each other in both a nutritional sense and a culinary one. Meaning: It’s important for the combo to taste good, too, Janice Dada, MPH, RDN, a certified intuitive eating counselor based in California, tells SELF. With that in mind, here are six TJ’s-sourced dinner ideas that you can whip up in minutes.
1. Mushroom risotto bowl: Frozen mushroom risotto + frozen grilled chicken strips + broccoli florets
You can serve this dish a few different ways—as a stew (with the risotto as the base and the grilled chicken and broccoli florets mixed in) or as a more traditionally plated meal (with the risotto as the main and the chicken and florets as sides). Either way, you’ll take in a healthy array of nutrients, since each component brings a little something to the table.
Like other lean meats, chicken is an excellent source of high-quality protein. “Then, the risotto will have carbs and already some fat built into it,” Dada says—and those three macros together play a vital role in keeping you full and satisfied. Finally, broccoli, as a veggie, will contribute some gut-boosting fiber, plus important micronutrients like vitamin C, calcium, potassium, and iron. Ideally, you’d liven up the broccoli with a drizzle of olive oil, “but otherwise, it’s probably pretty good to go,” Dada says. (And if you want to fudge the three-ingredient rule a little more? For a finishing touch, try sprinkling some shaved parm or cracked pepper over top to enhance the flavor.)
2. Southwestern black bean salad: Southwestern chopped salad kit + black beans + avocado
This salad kit makes an excellent base for one simple reason: It does most of the work for you. “It has pretty much everything you need ready to go,” including veggies, dressing, tortilla strips, shredded cheese, and roasted pumpkin seeds (a.k.a. pepitas), Averett says.
In fact, once you pop open the bag, only a few steps remain: Crack open a can of black beans, drain it, dump the contents onto the salad mix, and toss everything together. With the beans, you’re getting “healthy carbs and protein and fiber,” Averett says. Besides, the addition will help beef up and stretch out the salad for a more filling and long-lasting meal overall. To further increase the bulk, you can also add some avocado slices, as the creamy-textured fruit (yep, avocados are fruits, not vegetables) happens to be an acclaimed source of healthy fat.
Whatever direction you choose, you have a couple different serving options: Eat the mixture as-is for the quickest option, nuke a bag of microwaveable rice to turn it into a bowl, or spoon it into a tortilla or taco shell to act as a filling. “I’ve done all sorts of crazy things with it,” Averett says. If you want something snack-y, you can even turn it into a nacho topping. Just spread a portion over a sheet of tortilla chips, sprinkle on some shredded cheese, and bake the whole thing in the oven.
3. Miso ginger noodle soup: Tofu sheets + Thai wheat noodles + miso ginger broth
Even though this Asian-inspired soup is super easy to make, the array of textures and flavors makes it feel “elevated,” Christine Byrne, MPH, RD, a registered dietitian and the owner of Ruby Oak Nutrition in Raleigh, North Carolina, tells SELF—like something that took longer to prepare than a handful of minutes. With its peppery zing, the broth base is a particular highlight. “It really adds a lot,” she notes.
Start by cooking the noodles in the broth, then add the tofu sheets (which are a solid source of protein and major minerals like calcium and selenium, FYI). “Anyone who likes tofu will like these,” Byrne says. If you have any leafy green veggies stashed away in your fridge (like spinach or bok choy), toss those in too for a burst of color (and a boost of fiber), according to Byrne.
Veggies or no veggies, this soup may be especially well-suited to wintertime. With flu season in full swing, many people are dealing with gnarly respiratory symptoms, and some soothing broth could come in clutch. “It’s warm, and everything in there is soft, so it’s easy on your throat,” Byrne says.
4. Meatball sub: Frozen mini French baguettes + frozen Italian-style meatballs + organic marinara sauce
With this combo, you can make a delicious meatball sub in no time at all. For the most basic version of the recipe, start by reheating a baguette or two (a good source of carbs). “You can actually put them in the air fryer and they’re so fast [to cook], and they taste just like fresh-baked bread,” Dada says. Meanwhile, the meatballs will contribute some protein and fat to help promote fullness, and can be reheated in either a microwave or conventional oven. (Not into meat? A plant-based alternative made with soy is available too.)
To serve, cut the baguette open, stick the halved meatballs inside, and sluice on some marinara sauce. While parm isn’t exactly necessary, if you’ve got some handy, you’ll want to shake it on.
You could stop right there, but Dada recommends making a few extra additions for the best possible culinary experience—like TJ’s garlic shiitake green beans, which you can buy frozen and reheat on your stovetop or in your microwave. Veggies not only contain vitamins and minerals—green beans in particular are an especially strong source of vitamin K, vitamin C, folate, iron, and potassium—but also fiber, a type of carb necessary to streamline digestion and prevent constipation. You can actually pop these right onto your sandwich for a little extra crunch that pairs surprisingly well with beef and tomato flavors. But if you don’t want to use them as a sandwich filling, you can always have them as a side instead.
5. Creamy chicken gnocchi soup: Kettle-cooked chicken soup + frozen cauliflower gnocchi
While the chicken soup on its own contains protein and some fiber, that alone doesn’t really amount to a complete meal: You’re going to want to add in a carb to make it more filling, according to Averett. “Without that, it is going to just leave you feeling a little bit hungry,” she says.
Hence the gnocchi. Whether you opt for the traditional stuff or the cauliflower alternative, this dense Italian pasta will help fill that nutritional gap to yield a more hearty, balanced meal. Besides, the cauliflower stuff even brings some additional benefits, like a boost in fiber. (Not to mention, it’s also “a great way to sneak in some extra micronutrients in there,” including vital minerals like vitamin K, Averett says.) Combine the soup and gnocchi in a medium saucepan, heat on medium, and bring to a simmer for around 10 minutes.
And while you can definitely skip this step, Averett also suggests adding a dash of whipping cream to enhance the richness of the overall texture. However, you’ll want to hold off on making any further adjustments: Since the soup is already “quite flavorful at baseline,” Averett says, do a taste test first before dumping in a bunch of seasoning—though if you do feel the need, she suggests thyme, oregano, salt, and pepper.
6. Ravioli pasta: Frozen cacio e pepe ravioli + organic marinara sauce + grated Parmesan cheese
Fine, fine, this dinner recipe might seem a tad obvious, but we think the substitution of ravioli instead of regular ol’ pasta is innovative enough to make it worthy of inclusion. Compared to bowties or pinwheels, shells or elbows, and linguine or fettuccine, after all, ravioli has a little more substance thanks to its cheese-y filling. Besides, pasta is always a reliable fail-safe—and this hearty dish is no exception to that rule, according to Byrne. “I would say this is a pretty comforting meal,” she says.
While Byrne personally likes to use TJ’s cacio e pepe ravioli (which contains cream, ricotta, and Pecorino Romano), you can obviously sub in another flavor of ravioli. Just reheat the pasta, pour on spaghetti sauce (Byrne suggests standard marinara or even the spicy cousin arrabbiata), and sprinkle on some Parmesan. Buy a fresh block and grate it yourself, or save some time and effort by opting for the ready-to-go stuff instead. Either way, the cheese in the ravioli filling and the parm will help elevate the protein content and provide a natural umami note. (Yep, cheese can indeed be a protein source, in case you were wondering.)
And if you feel so inclined, you can work in a veggie without too much trouble, according to Byrne—say, by mixing a leafy green into the sauce to round it out, like spinach, kale, or broccoli. Not only will that addition improve the sauce, it’ll also help ensure your dinner overall represents a diverse and delicious mix of nutrients—both macro and micro.
Related:
- 6 Trader Joe’s Meal Prep Hacks That’ll Get Lunch Ready, Stat
- 20 Tasty Trader Joe’s Snacks That Are Perfect for Summer
- The 5 Skin Care Products a Dermatologist Buys at Trader Joe’s
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