A Week of Real-Life Dinners When I’m Too Tired to Cook
7 Go-To Meals With 5 Ingredients or Less
When I was a kid, I’d ask my mom for junk food at the store. She’d say,
“If you can pronounce every ingredient on the label, I’ll buy it.”
Spoiler alert: we never got the junk food.
Me and my sister would try our best to sound out those 15-letter mystery words, but nope, back on the shelf they went. That rule stuck with me. And now? I try to cook with that same mindset: real ingredients, no pressure, and zero shame if dinner isn’t fancy.
Because here’s the thing:
Dinners don’t have to be fancy—but they do have to be clean and nourish our bodies.
Especially after a long day when everything feels like too much, I still want to feed my family something that feels good, tastes good, and doesn’t come with a side of guilt (or dishes).
These 7 dinners are my go-to meals when I’m too tired to cook—but still want to do right by us.
1. Shrimp Pesto Pasta with Broccoli
Ingredients:
Fettuccine
Raw shrimp
Jar of pesto
Broccoli
Butter
Directions:
Boil pasta. Sauté chopped broccoli in butter, remove from pan. Cook shrimp in same pan. Toss everything together with pesto and serve.
2. Marinated Chicken Thighs + Rice
Ingredients:
Chicken thighs (frozen in marinade)
Coconut aminos
Garlic powder
Rice
Any veggie
Directions:
Defrost chicken in fridge overnight. Air fry at 375°F for ~20 minutes. Cook rice. Sauté or steam your veggie. Done.
3. Taco Night (Your Way)
Ingredients:
Ground meat or rotisserie chicken
Tortillas
Onion
Lettuce
Cilantro
Directions:
Cook meat (or shred rotisserie chicken). Warm tortillas. Chop toppings. Let everyone build their own tacos.
4. Grilled Cheese on Sourdough
Ingredients:
Sourdough bread (homemade or store-bought)
Cheese
Butter
Optional: tomato or spinach
Soup (optional, for dipping)
Directions:
Butter bread, add cheese, grill in a skillet until golden brown. Serve with soup or a handful of baby carrots and call it good.
5. Eggs, Toast & Avocado (a Lazy Dinner Classic)
Ingredients:
Eggs
Bread (sourdough or whatever you have)
Avocado
Olive oil or butter
Salt
Directions:
Toast the bread. Fry or scramble the eggs. Smash the avocado with salt and a drizzle of oil. Stack it up or serve on the side. Add red pepper flakes if you’re feeling bold.
6. Baked Teriyaki Salmon + Veggies
Ingredients:
Salmon
Teriyaki sauce
Broccoli (or carrots/onion)
Olive oil
Foil
Directions:
Place salmon and chopped veggies on a foil-lined sheet. Drizzle with oil and teriyaki. Bake at 400°F for 18–20 minutes.
7. Papa Murphy’s Take & Bake Pizza
Ingredients:
Pizza
Optional: extra shredded cheese
Optional: add-on veggies from home
Salad kit (if you feel like it)
Paper plates (you deserve it)
Directions:
Bake according to package. Toss together a salad if you want. Eat off paper plates and reclaim your evening.
Real Food. Real Tired. Still Fed.
You don’t need 14 ingredients or an hour of prep to feed your family well.
You just need a few clean staples, a no-pressure mindset, and permission to keep it simple.
Whether it’s grilled cheese, tacos, or pizza you didn’t technically make—if it feeds your people and fuels their bodies without wrecking your peace, it counts.