Top 5 Worry Free Weeknight Meals
It’s dinnertime. Your stomach is rumbling and you’re ready to chow down on some food, but your exhaustion from the day doesn’t make you want to cook anything with too much effort. You might be tempted to bust out some microwavable ramen or pull out some old leftovers, but you deserve something a little heartier. If you want a really good meal but don’t want the stress of making it yourself, then keep reading for our top 5 worry free weeknight meals.
Pizza, Pizza, Pizza!
Bust out the parmesan cheese! If there’s anything that you could eat every day and never get tired of, it’s Pizza – no need to save it for weekends. Pizza is probably one of the most accessible foods for dinnertime. You can get a frozen pizza and leave it in the oven for about 20 minutes, or you can order from some fast food or local spots and wait roughly the same amount of time and make roughly the same effort. If you’re looking for some Austin Food, you can always order locally from Home Slice Pizza and pick it up. I’m personally a fan of their Pepperoni Sicilian Pizza.
Asian Takeout
If you’re looking to add a little extra flavor to your dinner, try getting some Asian Takeout. There’s too many categories to just dwindle it down to “Chinese” since really, Japanese, Indian, Korean Thai, and every other culture deserves just as much appreciation. There’s plenty of restaurants in Austin that you can choose from to get yourself a hearty meal, but my recent go-to has been an order of Steamed Dumplings and some Szechuan Chicken from China Family.
Burgers
No need to wait for Sunday! Cooking burgers on a BBQ is sometimes a bit of a hassle – needing to prepare the fire, the meat, all the condiments – so eating burgers you don’t make yourself is always a pleasure. There’s a wide variety of combinations, sauces, toppings, and more that can go into a burger, and there’s just as many places to get one too. If you’re looking for something quick and filling, then a Double Meat Whataburger might hit the spot. If you’re willing to wait a little longer, a Magic Shroom burger from Hopdoddy’s would be incredibly satisfying. If you’re vegetarian or vegan then you can try the Double Bac’N Cheeze Burger at Arlo’s who are 100% plant based. The sky (and your stomach) are the limit.
Tacos
The sight, the smell, and the flavor of some good tacos are something that deserve to be experienced. While there’s a lot of fun in making tacos yourself, there’s something about take-out tacos that make all your troubles just disappear. Perhaps it’s just the Latinx person in me, but they’re one of those foods that you can eat for breakfast, lunch, and most relevantly, dinner: and no, it doesn’t have to be only on Tuesday’s either. With a variety of ingredients, salsas, toppings, and even tortillas that can be used, finding the right one for you can be a little tough. Hispanic heritage month may be over, but supporting Latinx food venders is something anyone can do. For my meat-lovers, I’d suggest the Smoked Brisket Taco from Valentina’s Tex Mex BBQ. For my vegan/vegetarians, I’d grab the Super Fresco from The Vegan Nom.
Pasta
Pasta in any form is an amazing comfort food. It’s easy to make, has a reliable taste, and a comforting, soft texture to it that just makes you feel at home. Cooking up some spaghetti or making some mac n cheese is easy enough to do at home with just a box of pasta and some water. If you’re lucky enough to own one a pasta maker can be a great help in making a home-made dish. When you don’t have time or energy to do that work, ordering pasta from a restaurant is just as satisfying, and often a great way to expand your knowledge of dishes to try out yourself later. With a wide variety of restaurants in Austin it was hard to narrow down my own favorites. However, I’d have to go with the Rigatoni Aatriciana from Asti Trattoria, or the Tortellini Modo Mio from Mandolas.