by Ronnie Dauber

Created on: May 20, 2009   Last Updated: November 05, 2009

One pot meals can be quick and easy to prepare, delicious to eat and nutritious for you. When nutrition and time are the key factors in preparing a meal, we need quick and nutritious one-pot meals that meet all our needs.

There are two small appliances that are excellent for preparing quick and nutritious one-pot meals.

The first is the rice cooker. Contrary to its name, the rice cooker can be used to make a large variety of meals including tasty soups and stews, tender meat meals including beef and veal roasts or scrumptious chicken sauted in onions or stewed in sauce, delicious and spicy spaghetti, and even steamed salmon steaks. The rice cooker gives you perfect results but takes next to no time in preparation and clean-up. Perfect for the busy mom.

The second appliance is the slow cooker. This is a fabulous appliance because you can dump all your ingredients into it before you go to work, press start and when you come home you have a delicious meal waiting for you. It's like having your own chef and all you have to do is serve it up. Cleanup is a breeze and the cost of energy to prepare it is only pennies. And one of the amazing things about a slow cooker is that you can use any cut of meat and during the hours of slow cooking, even a blade roast becomes tender and succulent!

Try these exciting recipes once and they'll become a family favourite!

TWO SLOW COOKER RECIPES:

Cream of Chicken Casserole

Ingredients:

cup of water

1 large onion diced

4 chicken breasts (skinned)

salt and ground pepper to taste

onion powder (not salt) to taste

garlic powder (not salt) to taste

4 large potatoes, peeled and cut in half

2-3 cups of baby carrots

2 cups of sliced mushrooms

2 cans of cream of mushroom soup

1. Spread all the ingredients into the slow cooker in the order listed.

2. Press start and let it cook slowly for the day.

3. Serve with a fresh Caesar salad.

This recipe makes a delicious and nutritious meal and serves four people.

Beef Devine

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of water

One 4-5 lb. roast of any kind of beef (cooking it slowly turns it into a prime meat)

Salt and ground pepper to taste

4 large potatoes peeled and cut in half

1 large onion diced

1. Put all the ingredients into the slow cooker in order.

2. Press start and let cook all day.

3. Serve with steamed broccoli and fresh Garden salad with your favourite dressing.

This nutritious one pot-meal serves four people.

TWO RICE COOKER RECIPES

Chicken and Pasta

Ingredients:

3 cups of lasagne pasta (strips broken in half)

4 breasts of chicken sprinkled in salt and pepper

2 cans of condensed cream of mushroom soup

1 cup of grated cheddar cheese

1. Pour all the above ingredients except the cheese into the pot in order.

2. Press start.

3. Cook until the cooker shuts off or for about 30-35 minutes.

Sprinkle with the cheese and serve with a fresh garden salad and your favorite dressing.

This quick and nutritious one-pot meal serves four people.

Meatballs and Pasta

Ingredients:

3 cups of pasta spiral, elbow or flat

4 cups of uncooked meatballs

2 cans (approx 4 cups) of your choice of spaghetti sauce

1 cup of grated cheddar cheese.

1. Pour all the above ingredients except the cheese into the pot in the order listed.

2. Press start.

3. Cook until the cooker shuts off or for about twenty minutes.

Sprinkle the cheddar cheese over the meat and serve with garden salad and fresh garlic toast.

This delicious and easy to prepare meal serves four people.

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