4 Tasty easy to make recipes that will help you conquer the No Eating Out Challenge.

Denise –

When Jamah and I first decided to try the No Eating Out Challenge we already knew our at home cooking game was a hot mess. This wasn’t a big surprise. Since we ate out so much our cooking muscles were out of shape.  Since we were committed to conquering the challenge we started researching and trying new recipes.

Here are some of our favorites.

Red Beans and Rice – This is one of our favorite go to recipes, but for different reasons.  My husband loves it because it tastes great. I love the taste too, but more so it is easy to prepare. The recipe makes up enough for several meals.    You literally throw everything in the slow cooker and let it do its thing.

A couple of things to know about this recipe is that it has some bite. If you are not big on spice consider going light on the seasonings. If you like spice like we do, you can add a spicy smoked sausage to amp up the heat.  The choice is yours.

And heads up! There is some chopping involved with the veggies. Can you say, Ninja?

Click to see the Red Beans and Rice Recipe!

Spicy Chicken Stew – they call it spicy but I don’t really consider this recipe spicy at all. I will let you be the judge.  I love this recipe because it doesn’t call for a lot of processed ingredients.  I can get most of the ingredients fresh out of the produce or meat section.  Minimizing processed foods in our diet is another goal of mine. But we will save that discussion for another date.

Another quick and very important tip about this recipe is that it calls for chicken thighs and chicken breasts.  I used both the first time I prepared the stew, but found the chicken breast was a little over cooked when following the directions. Since then I have added only the thighs. Another alternative is adding the chicken breast a little later into the cooking time.

Click to see the Spicy Chicken Stew recipe !       

Fish Tacos – A simple great option when you want something light and fresh tasting.  This recipe is super flexible.  You can select your favorite whitefish (for us that would be catfish or mahi-mahi) and season it according it to your taste.  Sometimes we sub the cabbage with lettuce to switch things up.  You can really make this dish your own.  Please note that the lime dressing is the star of this recipe!  Truly delicious.

Click to see the Fish Taco Recipe!       

Jamah –

Being a true country boy from the south, I like hearty meals. For breakfast I prefer a big bowl of cheese grits, bacon (which I break up into the grits), three soft scrambled eggs and a biscuit. Occasionally, when we are feeling a little fancy, we will substitute shrimp (shrimp and grits) or a catfish fillet (fish and grits). On special occasions I can go for fried pecan crusted whole chicken wings and waffles. Like I said, I am a country boy. My wife always says I like full meals. She is a much lighter eater than me so this can sometimes be a point of contention when making our meal list for the week. These meals are less healthy (something I am coming to acknowledge over time), which is why we cook them less frequently. We only cook these types of breakfast meals on the weekend and not every weekend. Most days during the week my breakfast comprises of a bowl for mixed fruit (pineapples, grapes, blue berries and strawberries).

Aside from breakfast meals, a dinner dish that I find myself making frequently is slow cooked barbecue ribs. I start cooking this meal earlier in the morning. It takes 8 hours to cook in the slow cooker. Prep work for the ribs takes about 10 to 15 minutes, which includes rubbing down the ribs and mixing up the barbecue sauce.

Slow Cooker Barbecue Ribs

Barbecue Sauce:

• 1 and ¾ cups of mesquite or hickory smoked barbecue sauce
• ¼ cup of spicy barbecue sauce (fyi…spices transfer very easily into the rib meat during cooking)
• ¼ cup of brown sugar
• 4 TBSP of cider vinegar
• 3 TSP of oregano
• 1 TSP of Worcestershire sauce
• 1 TBSP of cayenne pepper (optional/or use smaller amount…remember the spices will easily transfer into the rib meat during cooking)
• 1 TBSP chili power
• Nicely whisk together the ingredients to get an even consistency

Ribs:

• 1 slab of St. Louis Style ribs (cut in half)
• Use your favorite dry rub to season ribs, or season with salt and pepper

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Cooking Instructions:

• Place the first half slab of ribs in the slow cooker.
• Pour half of your mixed barbecue sauce over the half slab.
• Place the second half slab of ribs in the slow cooker.
• Pour the second half of your mixed barbecue sauce over the second half slab of ribs.
• Set your slow cooker on low for 8 hours. If time is short you can set the slow cooker on high for 4 hours.
• Sit back and enjoy the hearty aroma that will fill your home.

Serving:

• Once the cooking time is up, remove the ribs from the slow cooker and place on a cutting board.
• Use a freshly sharpened kitchen knife to cut your ribs.
• Place 2 or 3 ribs on a plate and serve with 2 of your favorite side dishes.
• If serving for 2, there should be enough left for seconds or save the leftovers for lunch the next day, which will make you the envy of your coworkers during lunch time.

Note:

If you are using a 6-quart slow cooker, you can fit in 2 more half slabs of ribs. Same cooking time. Just double your ingredients for the barbecue sauce.

Here is a link to a video of this recipe: Slow Cooker Barbecue Pork Ribs   

We have really enjoyed sharing our expereince on meals to prepare at home. This transition to eating at home is breaking our habit for eating out that has formed over the past years. A lack of planning, coupled with the ease as well as convenience of fast food and sit down restaurants has eaten away our empowerment to be financially free. Reclaiming control of our personal finances has added a sense of peace and greatly reduced financial stress. It allows us to spend more time together which has helped us strengthen our marital bond.

We would love for you to share your favorite recipes with us in the comment section below. We are always on the look out for great, fun and tasty food.

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