No matter how much I enjoy cooking, there are times when I’m in a hurry or just don’t feel like making a “traditional” dinner.
Through the years, I’ve come up with a few simple meals that don’t require a lot of time or effort. I call one of them “noodle dinner.”
For the two of us, I use 2 cups of medium noodles, which I cook for 10 minutes, making them not quite soft. We usually have link sausages in the freezer. I use one. The noodles go into cold water to hold them, while the sausage goes into a saucepan with cold water. It’s boiled until the meat is done. While it’s boiling, I dice ½ cup of onions. I next put 2 tablespoons of olive oil into my 10-inch skillet, and set it on low heat. When the sausage is ready, I drain the boiling water and run cold water in the pan until the sausage is cool enough to handle. I quarter the link the long way and then cut the meat into pieces about the same size as the diced onion.
While I’m cutting the sausage, I turn the skillet heat up to medium high. Now, it’s time to heat the noodles. Once the temperature is up, I saute the onion and sausage in the oil, stirring often to keep things from burning. By doing it this way, both are ready at the same time. I drain the noodles and put them into the skillet to cook a short time with the other ingredients. While they’re heating, I add grated sharp cheddar cheese, about 1 full cup. Sometimes, if I have any on hand, I’ll also put in ¼ cup of tomato sauce. After everything has blended and is hot, I serve it. It’s easy and quicker than a full dinner.
Enjoy and be safe!
If you have questions or suggestions for this column, please contact me directly at guthrielarason@verizon.net.
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