Help! They've taken my dishes!

[lorilei]

... well, not really. But my husband and I will be moving in the next few weeks, so I'm beginning to pack up my kitchen, and soon I'll be without most of my usual kichen amenities. I'm starting early to look for dinner ideas that will require few dishes/pots/pans.

The big challenge here: no microwave (you might recall from an earlier thread that we ditched our microwave in favor of counter space).

Any ideas on how to make this easier?

[This message has been edited by lorilei (edited 10-12-2000).]

[SandyM]

Dining out sounds like a winner to me!

[Vanessa]

You are moving? Congrats! My suggestion is pack some of the things you use the most (skillet, stockpot etc). You can cook so many things on your stove & oven.
I don't know how long it will take for the movers so my advice is to pack your knives, your cutting boards, skillets, rice pan, etc. The things you know you use constantly.
Cooking without microwave will be strange for a few days. Good luck in your move.

[sneezles]

You didn't say how long you'd be without or if you were moving very far?
Having just moved this summer...kitchen was the last room packed and the first room unpacked, although we are still in a sort of limbo waiting for the new house to be built. I have every pot I normally cook with, all the small appliances on a bookshelf and the perfect excuse to buy more cookbooks because all the rest are in storage! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

[lorilei]

We're not moving terribly far away, but I'm trying to avoid taking any vacation days BEFORE the move -- so most of our packing is happening on weekends. I'm suspecting there will be 3-4 days between my last bout of packing and the day of the move...

The kitchen is definitely the last thing we're packing up -- and the first we're unpacking.

My thoughts thus far:

1) Use paper plates
2) Try to cook most meals in saucepan or skillet (pack these at last minute)
3) Meal ideas: quesadillas, garden burgers, and baked potatoes

[ML]

We just moved about three months ago, and will move into our new home in two weeks- so to keep from going crazy- I only unpacked a couple of boxes for the kitchen.

It is amazing how creative you can be when supplies are limited. I am using a casserole pan for just about everything that goes in the oven- and every cake turns out to be a bundt cake! We have not suffered too much- although I absolutly can not wait to unpack my kithchen (the room that required the most boxes by the way!)- it is going to be like Christmas- everything will seem new!

Hang in there- the fun part is finding new ways to use your kitchen items

[Natasha]

And hot and cold sandwiches stuffed with a variety of veggies, cheese, etc. and served on different kinds of bread? Yummy, fast and neat.
Could you also make ahead and freeze a couple of things like soup or lasagna, so you can just reheat them (in the oven, granted) and eat?

[Mandy]

How about Pizza? You can buy the pre-made pizza dough, or crust and add your toppings. How about stir-fries? You can get those bags of pre-washed and cut veggies, just add some shrimp, or some chicken and some sort of stir-fry sauce. Or Broiled Steaks with Baked Potatoes and a bag salad. Just a few ideas...

[JodiL]

We love to grill and you don't need to use any pots and pans (a big bonus for me!). Could you use this as an excuse to buy a "grill cookbook"? There's recipes on making a whole dinner on the grill. Come to think of it, I've seen cooking shows where they use a saucepan right on the grill surface, if you kept one handy. Besides chicken and burgers you could also make pizzas,quesadillas, portabello mushroom sandwiches...

[This message has been edited by JodiL (edited 10-12-2000).]

[Margie]

The pizza idea can be pretty creative, if you make pizzas with untraditional things. I've made the precooked pizza dough with roughly chopped sun-dried tomatoes and shrimp, parsley and parm cheese,
or goat cheese, leftover checken and spinach leaves,
or white pizza.

Also, another moving hint. The day they come to move the beds, pack up the bed linens from each bed into a plastic gargabe bag and stow in your car. That way when the beds are set up in the new place you can make the beds up without finding the box with the linens in it.

[venus]

I think I could cook for a week using just a 2-quart sauce pan, a skillet and a cookie sheet, but I would be really happy to see my stuff again! I wish you luck, and I hope you like your new kitchen.

Find yourself a good deli. My old grocery store had a section where they had premade gourmet entrees and sides in oven ready containers. They were great. Start collecting take-out menus. Have BLT night, where you have BLT's and chips. Eat lots of finger food, like bread and cheese, cold cuts, antipasto in a jar, shrimp cocktail. Make one pot meals like clam chowder or ratatoulle and eat if for a few days. Good luck!

[Natasha]

How about breakfast for dinner? (e.g., pancakes, French toast). Also, how about latkes?
Good luck with your move, by the way. Hang in there!

[Leanne]

I was thinking the same thing as Natasha - it's cold enough now for chili & soups - make ahead of time & freeze. Heat them up in the one pot you keep out. Lasagne is definitely good for that too. You could also freeze chopped onion, peppers, etc to have around to add to recipes if you do want to cook with a little less hassle.
I would also keep out your cutting knife & cutting board. You can always have a box of kitchen items that you pack & unpack that day in your car when you go to the new place.

[mightyh]

Yeah--don't forget those monte cristo sandwiches that are so good. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

We lived at an Extended Stay America for six weeks this summer waiting for the former owners to move from our new house (long story). They have a two burner stove, microwave, and no oven. One skillet and one pot. It's amazing what you can live with if you know the end is in sight...

We made lots of quesadillas and pasta. An ate out a lot. Do you have a George Foreman grill? I found myself wishing we had one when we were there...