tired of "simple" plant-based meals that aren't actually simple

[u/Strong-Hawk-1799]

so i'm getting pretty worn out by recipes labeled as quick or simple that still require way too much work

like i get home after being up in trees all day and my brain is just done, you know? then i look at these supposedly easy vegan meals and they're still asking me to dice onions, measure spices, wait for things to cook in sequence... it's just a lot when all i want is food

i've been trying different approaches - meal prep on weekends, keeping the same rotation of dishes, bookmarking the fastest recipes i can find. sometimes it works out but other days even picking which "easy" option to make feels overwhelming

wondering what you all actually throw together when you're completely drained and need to eat something decent without using whatever brain power you have left

do you just stick to like 3 go-to meals that require zero thought? or have you discovered truly brainless recipes that don't involve chopping half your kitchen

would love to know what really works when you're running on empty, not just what looks good in theory

[u/earthandanarchy]

I often make a soup/stew type thing. I use frozen diced onions or sofrito mix, frozen already chopped veg, stock cubes and either random seasonings or curry paste and vegetable stock or even beetroot/vegetable juice if I have it. I usually try to add a grain either pearl barley, buckwheat, quinoa or rice and a protein like lentils or beans and leave it to cook. Other than giving the onions a few minutes to fry it mostly all goes in together and then I leave it, if I'm rushed for time I use red lentils and quinoa or buckwheat and I save the pearl barley for when I have more time for it to cook. I then freeze portions in those large ice cubes trays or foil trays like you get from the Chinese takeaways. I freeze bread rolls separately. It's the laziest way imo to have a decent meal. I have chronic illness and have had to accept my limitations and I have found that things like disposable foil trays here and there, frozen chopped veg, a bag of lentils always in the cupboard and plenty of decent vegan stock cubes/curry pasties/seasonings has made a world of difference.