Semi Homemade Cooking Makes Meals Faster

With some dicing here and spicing there you can turn store-bought meals into what is being termed as semi homemade cooking for quick and tasty meals for the family. As people's lifestyles change and family members are splitting their time running around with different schedules, the prospect of a home-cooked meal is fading. By using semi homemade cooking an extra treat can be served to the family.

A few years ago, there were meals being touted as starters, containing virtually everything needed to make a home-cooked meal by just adding water and possibly a meat stock, boiling for a short time and serving. This reduced preparation time and made semi homemade cooking more agreeable to many.

Today cooks are taking the process a few steps further by simply adding spices or other items to meals that are made to be ready to eat with a few simple adjustments. For instance, macaroni and cheese dishes, typically made by adding water, or milk and butter depending on the brand, cooking the noodles and adding the cheese powder prepares a semi homemade cooking meal in about 10 minutes.

Adding Spices Adds Interest

The next time you are making macaroni and cheese, even if as a side dish, try adding a half-teaspoon of chili seasoning in with the cheese mix to give it the distinct flavor of semi homemade cooking. On the other hand, if you are not in the chili mood, add some cubed ham into the meal for a new taste twist to the old standby.

It is amazing the different tastes you can add to a boxed meal, or even a prepared, canned meal or by adding some spices or other meats, you can turn a side dish into a main course. For example, cooking rice in chicken brother and adding chunks of cooked chicken takes about 20 minutes and gives you semi homemade cooking turning the side of rice into the main meal of chicken and rice. Add a little broccoli and cheese and you have a meal for another night as well.

As peoples' busy lives show little or no sign of slowing down being able to offer semi homemade cooking to the family can reduce the preparation and cooking times on many meals to make having what seems like a home-cooked meal more the norm instead of the exception. Additionally, being quick and easy, clean up will not keep you in the kitchen most of the evening.

Mediterranean Cooking Is Spicy and Delicious

Mediterranean cooking comes from the fascinating countries that lie on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. These countries include Morocco, Turkey, Lebanon, Israel, Greece and Tunisia to name a few. The cuisine from these countries include similar dishes and ingredients, but each country has specialties of its own. Many of the cooks from these countries are experts who present some of the most delicious dishes available. The dishes they prepare as Mediterranean cooking have exotic names that include moussaka, falafel, and hummus. The spellings in English cookbooks are spelled phonetically to represent the sounds of the foreign language so sometimes when looking for Mediterranean cooking the spelling of some dishes will differ. Do not let this deter you from preparing these dishes because they are tasty.

Mediterranean cooking is so delicious and many restaurants have appeared to offer cuisine from this area. Some of these dishes are available at fine restaurants, but fast food outlets have appeared that offer specialties such as Greek sandwiches. Cooks from other parts of the world have learned to cook some of the dishes from the area because these dishes are spicy and delicious. Mediterranean specialties are constantly gaining popularity in North American markets.


Mediterranean Cooking Produces a Healthy Diet

Research by medical experts has found evidence that Mediterranean cooking produces a most healthy diet. The ingredients used by cooks from the region seem to have nutrients that benefit those who eat this type of cooking regularly. The people who eat Mediterranean cooking seem to have fewer diseases than those living in other areas. Mediterranean cooking is not fat free, but the cooks use oils that are less harmful than others. Olive oil is a staple of Mediterranean cooking and this oil does not have substances that raise cholesterol levels. Olive oil also has antioxidants which provide benefits for better health.

Fish is used often in Mediterranean cooking and fish has substances that provide great nutrition. Red meat is not often used in this cooking so the harmful substances in this type of meat are usually avoided in Mediterranean cooking. The people from the countries along the Mediterranean Sea love fruits and vegetable and the cooks from the area include these in many meals. The benefits of eating lots of fruits and vegetables have been shown in medical studies. The cooks from the area also use other nutritious ingredients including grains, legumes and nuts.