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Cooking Shortcuts

Created January 10, 2017
Keep these food items in the refrigerator and pantry for fast meal prep and you’ll never come up short.
Cooking Shortcuts

Meat Shortcuts

  • Pre-cooked beef roast, roasted whole chicken, fried chicken pieces and smoked salmon (slice and use for fajitas, soups, salads, sandwiches and casseroles)
  • Canned salmon, clams, tuna, shrimp and oysters (use in jambalaya, casseroles, fried rice and appetizer recipes)
  • Frozen meatballs, chicken nuggets, fish fillets, minute steaks and pre-formed hamburger patties (meat and freezer aisles)
  • Skinless, boneless chicken breasts and thinly cut beef and pork for stir-fried (meat aisle)
  • Betty Crocker Complete Meals®, including Chicken & Buttermilk Biscuits, Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo, Ham & Au Gratin Potatoes, Homestyle Dumplings & Chicken and Stroganoff (bake in the oven, skillet or microwave)
  • Pre-assembled vegetable and meat kabobs (in the meat aisle
  • Pre-cooked shrimp (seafood case)
  • Thick-sliced deli ham, turkey and roast beef (deli aisle)

Vegetarian Shortcuts

  • Frozen vegetarian seafood, including salmon, tuna, crabs and shrimp (soy-based)
  • Frozen meat substitutes, including ham, steak, lamb, chicken breasts and nuggets, hot dogs, turkey, pork chops, BBQ ribs, bacon, sausages, beef chunks, ground beef and egg-less fried eggs (soy-based)
  • Tofu and tempeh (soy-based)
  • Shelf-stable meat substitutes, including vegetarian turkey and chicken (soy-based)

Vegetable Shortcuts

  • Pre-cut vegetables and stir-fry vegetable packages (produce and frozen aisles)
  • Pre-washed vegetables from grocery salad bar, including pea pods, Chinese cabbage, bok choy, bean sprouts, baby carrots, celery and miniature corn cobs
  • Minced garlic in a jar
  • Bagged salads and lettuce
  • Canned, seasoned tomatoes (diced, stewed, and whole)

Sauce & Seasoning Shortcuts

  • Dry packets of seasonings, sauces and salad dressing mixes (stroganoff, taco, sloppy joe, spaghetti, white sauce, gravy, hollandaise, Alfredo, pesto, honey-Dijon and Caesar)
  • Bottled sauces, marinades and salad dressings (teriyaki, stir-fry, sweet-and-sour, barbecue, mesquite and lemon dill)
  • Ethnic tomato sauces

Dairy Shortcuts

  • Pre-shredded cheeses (coarse and finely shredded)
  • Shelf-stable milk in cartons
  • Pasteurized eggs (can be safely used in meringues and eggnogs)

Bread & Pasta Shortcuts

  • Quick-cooking meat- and cheese-filled pasta in dairy aisle
  • Betty Crocker Bowl Appétit!® rice and pasta bowls, ready in 5 minutes (Pasta Alfredo, Three Cheese Rotini, Homestyle Chicken Flavored Pasta, Cheddar Broccoli Rice, Herb Chicken Flavored Vegetable Rice and Teriyaki Rice)
  • Corn and flour tortillas for fast meat and veggie wraps (can be frozen)
  • Pocket pita bread and submarine sandwich rolls (can be frozen)
  • Instant rice, potato, couscous and pasta mixes