Fast Food

Healthy Meals in 30 Minutes or Less

It's already past 6:00. You just walked in the door and you're bushed–too tired to dig for inspiration in cookbooks and too beat to go out. You want to enjoy a satisfying and healthful evening meal, but you can't face another night of off–the–shelf–ease or out–of–the–box convenience–and cooking from scratch just seems like too much hassle. Well, take heart (and take your time), these easy–to–make dishes don't sacrifice flavor or nutrition–or your evening–on their way from the kitchen to table. Each quick and simple meal takes you from fatigued to well–fed in just 30 minutes. So you CAN have a healthy, satisfying seafood meal that your whole family will love.

Quick Accompaniments

Fish naturally cooks quickly and makes for ideal "fast food" meals. The trick is choosing quick–cooking accompaniments to round out the meal with minimal extra time. But you don't have to rely on frozen or prepared vegetables and side dishes. Here are just a few ideas for fast, delicious and nourishing vegetables and grains–from scratch.

Fresh Vegetables–Fast and Easy
Allow about 4 ounces of vegetables per serving, provided that there is little waste in cleaning and trimming. The size and freshness of the vegetables account for the range in cooking times given below.

Steaming
Set a steaming rack in a pan, and then add water to within 1/4 inch of the bottom of the rack. When the water boils, add the vegetables, cover the pan and simmer until the vegetables are done to your liking–the times given below are for tender–crisp vegetables.

Simmering
Heat 1/4 to 1/2 cup water or chicken broth to boiling. Add the vegetables and simmer to desired doneness. Vegetables will cook faster in simmering water than in steam.

Seasoning
For a quick dash of flavor, sprinkle fresh or dried herbs over the vegetables before cooking. Tender fresh herbs such as mint, basil, thyme or tarragon may simply be minced and tossed into the hot vegetables before serving. Squeeze on lemon juice for added zip.

Sugar Snap Peas
Sweet, crisp sugar snap peas are best raw or just heated through. Simmer about 30 seconds or steam 1 to 2 minutes. Season with fresh or dried chopped mint, basil or tarragon.

Green Beans
Simmer or steam green beans 5 to 10 minutes to keep them bright green and crisp. Toss with a little lemon juice, Chinese oyster–flavored sauce or sesame oil or sauté 1 or more minced garlic cloves in a teaspoon of oil, then add the beans and a couple of tablespoons of water; cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until beans are bright green and tender–crisp, about 3 minutes.

Asparagus
Simmer or steam just until stalks will bow but are still tender–crisp, 5 to 10 minutes. Toss with a little lemon or orange marmalade, lemon juice or grated fresh orange zest (just the orange part of the peel).

Zucchini
Cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices and cook 3 to 6 minutes. Season with butter, salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese or sprinkle with thyme, tarragon or basil.

Tomatoes
Keep under–ripe tomatoes at room temperature to ripen. Once refrigerated, tomatoes will not develop any additional flavor. Slice tomatoes thickly, and then drizzle each slice with a few drops of vinegar–balsamic, red wine or herb–flavored. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese or crumbled blue cheese. Serve at room temperature or slightly oven–warmed.

Grains in a Hurry
Grains have moved into the nutritional spotlight as providers of complex carbohydrates and dietary fiber–very important parts of a healthful diet. So don't forget to include some sort of grain-based accompaniment with even your quick meals. In most cases you'll want to heat the water to a boil or start cooking grains before cooking the fish, since grains often take longer to cook.

Couscous
Fast and foolproof, these golden grains of semolina pasta cook up fluffy like tiny pieces of bead-shaped rice. Bring 1 1/2 cups water or chicken, beef or vegetable broth to a boil in a small pan. Stir in 1 cup couscous, cover and let stand off the heat 5 minutes (a few minutes longer won't hurt). Fluff the grains with a fork and serve. Makes about 3 cups. Variations: Add 1/4 cup currants or raisins and 1/3 teaspoon ground cinnamon or cumin to broth before heating. Or add 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme to cooking liquid, then stir 1/2 cup chopped toasted nuts and 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese into the cooked couscous.

Rice
Instant rice cooks in just 5 minutes; regular white rice takes 15 to 20 minutes. Stir 2 cups instant rice into 2 cups boiling salted water, cover and let stand off heat 5 minutes. Fluff the grains with a fork. Stir 1 cup regular white rice into 2 cups boiling salted water. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan and cook until water is absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes. Sprinkle plain cooked rice with seasoned rice vinegar, soy sauce or lemon juice. For added-flavor, cook the rice in low-salt chicken broth rather than water.

Pasta
Allow 4 ounces dry pasta or 6 ounces fresh pasta for 4 side dish servings. Stir dry or fresh pasta into 2 quarts boiling salted water. Fresh pastas cook in about 2 minutes, dry angel hair in 2–4 minutes, and dry orzo (rice-shaped pasta) in just 6 to 8 minutes. Other small or thin dry pastas such as letters, linguine and stars all cook in just minutes. Season with olive oil or butter, garlic and Parmesan cheese. Or stir pesto or other prepared sauce, such as Alfredo or tomato sauce into hot pasta.

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