Update: Thank you everyone, I been writing them down, The more less ingredients and calories the better.

I hate cooking with a capital H.

What food you make that can be a meal but  use only four or less ingredients. 

It' just me and my now 14yr old and he like to cook simple things, he said he will be helping me, well see.

No soup or chili, we hate it.

Thanks

 I know there are lots of cookbooks that are devoted to the idea of 3-4 ingredients or less (I have one with a 5-ingredient limit, but I like to cook and I like stuff with lots of ingredients :)

Anyway, if you go to the local library (where I always get cookbooks) I bet you can find several, where every recipe in the books is for only 3-4 ingredients.

Usually the title tell you right away: "The Three-Ingredient Cookbook," "Cooking with Five Ingredients," titles like that.

(actually, chili takes TONS of ingredients!!)

I haven't checked in for quite some time. Here are some easy ones

Salsa Chicken

4 boneless breast chicken

1 16 oz jar Salsa.

Put chicken breast in a small baking  pan. Pour entire jar of salsa over it. Bake at 350 for 30 to 35 minutes

Blue Cheese Chicken

4 Boneless breast chicken

8 oz bottle of blue cheese dressing

1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese

Put chicken in a small baking pan. Pour blue cheese dressing over chicken. Crumble blue cheese over chicken. Bake ina preheated 350 over for 30-35 minutes.

Very simple I generally serve both of these with rice and salad or a veggie.

Pot roast, put it in a crockpot, pour one of the following over it - McCormick Pot Roast seasoning mix with a cup of water, or 1/2 bottle of Italian salad dressing, or 1/2 bottle of barbeque sauce.  Let it cook 6-8 hours.

Chicken rice casserole (great with leftover stuff) - 2 cups cooked rice, 1-2 cups chopped cooked chicken, package of frozen chopped broccoli thawed, 1 can mushroom soup (or chicken soup), a little water or milk to thin it down a bit, mix and pour into a casserole dish, top with some cheddar cheese and bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes.  Okay, it is five ingredients, but good and kids usually like it.

Tostadas - Flour tortillas, cheddar cheese and whatever you want to put inside - shrimp, chicken, beans, onions, tomatoes, whatever.  Just load one tortilla, top with another tortilla and put in a medium heat saucepan until the cheese starts to melt and the outside is a little crispy (be careful not to burn it), flip it over (that is the hard part) and toast the other side.  Dinner.

Best quickie dinner around here is a ham slice, warmed in a covered frying pan, and a fresh green salad.  On the table in 15 minutes.  If we are more hungry, I'll either nuke some potatoes, or make up one of the Pasta Sides or Rice Sides mixes, just enough for two with no leftovers.

Along the lines of Alices's chicken dishes. I put pesto over chicken breasts and bake in the oven. Usually make spaghetti noodles on the side.

My best 3 ingredient recipe:

Chicken Stuffing Casserole

• ~1 lb chicken breast
• one box chicken stuffing mix
• one can of jellied or whole cranberry sauce, whichever you prefer (I like the whole berry)

Cut chicken into chunks and place in a 2-3 qt baking dish.  Prepare stuffing as directed.  Spread stuffing over chicken.  Spread cranberry sauce on top of stuffing.    Cover.  Bake 325  for one hour.

Yummo!

Just made stuffed pork chops tonight.  Take thick cut boneless pork chops and butterfly them.  Make up Stovetop stuffing.  Put the stuffing onto one side of the chop and fold over.  Place in hot, lightly oiled cast iron pan and sear on both sides. Salt and pepper both sides.  Cover the pan with foil and transfer to preheated oven at 375.  bake for about 45 minutes(or longer if your chops are really thick). make a salad or veggie and you are done. 

I count  two ingredients.  pork and stuffing.  (ok 4 if you count salt and pepper) pretty easy.  You could even get your butcher to butterfly the chops, so there is one less step. 

Thanks, writting them all down. 

Can regular rice be cook in the oven,  going to google it, wonder what i find lol.

Crockpot Roast:

1 beef roast
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
1 envelope dry italian salad dressing mix
1 can beef broth or 1 can cream of mushroom soup

Plop everything into the crockpot and cook on low 6-8 hours. It really is better if you add some veggies (a chopped onion, carrots, potatoes, celery, etc.).

Crockpot Chicken:

Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 envelope dry italian salad dressing mix
1 8 oz. block cream cheese, cubed

To the crockpot, add the cream of chicken soup, the chicken and the dry italian salad dressing. Cook on low about 4-6 hours or so. Add the cubed cream cheese and cook until it's melted. Stir well to combine. Serve over rice or pasta.

(The above aren't exactly healthy, but you can make them less worrisome by using low sodium, low-fat ingredients and by adding vegetables).

A favorite summer meal is a simple salad of sliced tomatoes topped with fresh (buffalo) mozzarella cheese, sliced, and sprinkled with chopped basil leaves. Add a little drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar, if you'd like. Corn on the cob and a loaf of crusty bread in addition to the salad is some good stuff on a plate.

A favorite fast meal is a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, with a vege and a baked potato or rice.

We also like a pork tenderloin in the crockpot. Add a can of black beans (rinsed and drained), a jar of salsa or enchilada sauce, a chopped onion and spicy seasonings. A chopped jalapeno or other hot pepper adds a kick. Cook on low about 8 hours, shred the pork and use in tortillas or taco shells. Add chopped lettuce, low fat sour cream, shredded cheese or any other toppings you'd enjoy. 

There is a cookbook I found at the library called "Two at the Table" which has been great for just me and DH (I think it would work with a kid, too).

It's sometimes to find recipes for just 2 people; but this book does it well and and most of them do not have many ingredients; all are quick and easy.

Thank you, been writing all this info down.

Omelettes are simple.  Get your pan hot and fry your fillings... mushrooms and onions, or chicken and tomatoes, or beef and potatoes, dump the fillings out on a plate and put your beaten eggs in the hot pan... when they start to set up, put your fillings in.  If you're skilled, you can slide the omelette neatly out of the pan  onto a plate, and if you're not, you have scrambled-up eggs with some yummy extras mixed in with them.  Add ketchup or salsa if it seems dry.

On the thought that the OP may need a few more receipes, this is one for "Goulash" my mom got out of a newspaper when I was 6 yrs. old. She made it often, and so do I.

1 lb. hamb. mt., 1 can stewed tomatoes, (reg. flavor), 1 box Kraft Mac. & Cheese, (prepared according to directions), and one med. onion, chopped. Salt/Pepper to taste, or, I use Cavendar's Greek Seasoning Mix in mine.

Brown meat and onions in a medium sized soup pot, on med. heat until meat is no longer pink and onions are translucent. Add the tomatoes and break up with a wooden spoon, (or, I cut mine up inside the can with kitchen scissors). Add the mac. and cheese. Stir until blended. Continue to heat on med. or med/low until heated through. Takes me about 25 mins. to make if the mac and cheese isn't already prepared. You can make that up the day before and refridgerate it, if you want., to use the next day.

If I have left-over mac and cheese, this just takes about 15. mins., or so. We like this served over cornbread.

Mini Pizzas: Start with English Muffins or Refridgerated Biscuits. The Muffins are faster, the biscuits taste more like "Pizza". If you use the biscuits, separate and flatten into mini Pizza rounds, (curl the edges up slightly). Spread Pizza sauce on rounds, sprinkle with cheese and your choice of toppings.

Heat the muffins in a 350 degree oven until the cheese is bubbly and the muffin edges golden brown.

Bake the biscuit Pizzas until the biscuits are golden brown, and the cheese is melted and bubbly. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, if desired. My kids loved these when they got home from school, and for dinner.

I don't know if you eat salads, but, that's a good way to add veggies and protein fast and easy. Start out with a bag of good greans mix, or baby spinach, add chopped boiled eggs, ham, chicken, or your favorite, (or leftover), meat, baby carrots, mushrooms, etc. Whatever takes your fancy, (or you have on hand). Add your favorite dressing on your own plate, (your son can add his), and, dinner in a hurry! Croutons are another ingred., but, for me, they Make the salad! You could also serve crackers with it.

In a rush I will saute chicken breasts on both sides for a few minutes with salt pepper and olive oil. Then pour mariana sauce over it and simmer until chicken is cooked. My kids like it topped with a little cheese. Yummy and easy.

Easy italian saucy chicken

8 chicken patties

1 large jar of spaghetti sauce

parmasan or mazerella cheese.

Place patties in a baking dish in 1 layer, pour sauce over it, put cheese - shredded, grated, or sliced your preferance - bake in 350 oven for 30 mins or until sauce is bubbling and cheese is melted.  Serve with noodles of your choice. 

Yummy!  

Taco salad-saute cut up onion, add can of beans rinsed-pinto, black, whatever, leftover meat if you have some cut up, packet of taco seasoning with the water. Cook until looks like sauce. Put on greens. Can top with cheese, avocado, tomatoes, etc. Can also use up peppers or other fresh veg of any kind (zucchini, etc.) in saute part, or put it in salad part if very fresh. We are having it tonight with leftover pork. If you have chips or tortillas, great, but you don't have to.

My sister puts cheese on the end of cooking her salsal chicken (same way as above).

Pasta can stretch anything you have leftover. Add fresh sauteed or leftover vegetables, frozen, cheese, you can stir an egg in to hot, add salsa or tomato sauce, spices of whatever you like.

Bacon spaghetti- Cook pasta. Seperate pan, or same if you have finished the pasta or have leftoverpasta, cook bacon or ham with some onion. Can remove some of fat if fatty bacon. If you have some cream, add it, and put in pasta when it is thick. Before serving stir in an egg or two, it will cook in the heat, and then some mozzarella or parmesan if you have that.

Simple dessert-Whip some cream, add pieces of leftover cookies or cake. Spoon into a glass and fridge before eating. Also can add a little liqueur to adults, or cocoa, or even fruit.. Good for fruit that is not bad, just a little mushy like berries can get sometimes. Can top with a light drizzle of ice cream sauce when you serve even.

Even my husband's super-picky kids love this one and they say they HATE onions and mushrooms and will not touch them. Now when they come over and I ask them what they want for dinner they say "Beef and Rice! Beef and Rice!!" HA! Got them fooled 

Just throw some stew-beef into a crockpot with a can of Cream of Mushroom soup and a can of French Onion soup and cook 4-5 hours on low or 8-9 on high. Serve it over some Minute rice.

I recently discovered something that's makes an impressively good side dish considering how easy it is. Roasted onions.

Take an onion. Peel it and cut it in half. Coat with olive oil (just enough to cover). Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 425 degrees for about 25 minutes.

The onion comes out so sweet that it could almost be for dessert. It's a perfect side dish for almost any type of meat. And, it can probably be topped with a lot of different herbs and spices. I haven't tried the latter yet, but I'm planning to.

Lots of vegetables can be given the same treatment. I've done sweet potatoes, crookneck squash, zucchini and radishes so far. Be careful with that last one. The radishes come out tasting a lot like turnips. I like turnips, so I didn't care, but I know some people don't.

-- RT

Sorry, haven't been on this post for a while, but i been printing them out slowly.

Update: Thank you everyone, I been writing them down, The more less ingredients and calories the better.