Quick Fixes for Family Meals When Time Is Tight

The fridge is empty, there’s no time to grocery shop and everyone is getting hungry. A little creative thinking can help you get a healthy dinner on the table — and fast!

Here are a few options to try for last-minute family meals:

Use packaged and prepared foods but wisely.

Look for healthy options in the packaged and prepared foods sections to help round out a meal. (Just be sure to look at the Nutrition Facts labels. Many of them are high in sodium.) A grocery store rotisserie chicken can be a great timesaver for several meals during the week. Serve it as a main dish for one meal and use the remaining chicken to top a salad or add to a soup or casserole later in the week. Pick up prechopped veggies and washed lettuce when you shop to make putting together a salad quick and easy later in the week. 

Order groceries online.

With a little advanced notice, you may be able to get groceries delivered in a few hours or pick up pre-ordered items. Some stores also offer services that shop for you and assemble your items that you pick up at the front of the store. And food delivery apps and services can be helpful. Do a bit of research to identify some restaurants in your area that deliver and offer healthy menu choices. Look for special offers and discounts for signing up.

Shop your pantry.

Pull together a quick meal with staple ingredients, including canned beans and vegetables, dried whole-grain pasta, quick-cooking grains, and canned fish or chicken. You can transform no-salt-added canned tomatoes into a healthy sauce with some herbs without the excess sodium or added sugars of prepared sauces. Canned low-sodium broths can be the start to a quick soup just by adding canned or frozen (thawed) chicken and vegetables.

Try a meal kit.

There are meal kits to fit a variety of diets and tastes as well as available prep time. While many require a subscription for delivery, some are available at grocery stores, drugstores and other major retailers. This is a quick way to pick up everything you need to prepare a meal without navigating the store aisles. Read the nutrition info and watch portion sizes, which can be overly generous.

Shop the corner store.

A nearby convenience store always works in a pinch. Bypass the sugary, salty and fatty treats and look for fresh produce or canned/frozen vegetables. Walk around the store to scan what’s available and find the healthier options, rather than choosing impulsively.

Bottom line: Quick, healthy meal options are available. Just remember to make smart choices. Read nutrition label information and choose products with lower amounts of sodium, saturated fat and added sugars. And sometimes we need to look no further than our pantry and freezer and get creative with what we have on-hand.