Busy Mom Tips: Ready-To-Eat Meals By Fairprice

Do you know what I hate more than cooking?

Thinking about what to cook!

Everyday, I wake up in the morning thinking about what to cook for lunch. After lunch, I immediately think about what to cook for dinner. Then, I have to think about what to cook for lunch the next day and whether I have the ingredients to cook that dish. Urrrgh! I hate it.

I use to have a wonderful helper for eight years who whipped up delicious home-cooked meals for our family. After she left (two years ago), I have taken over this role as head chef for the family. I am a decent cook, and grateful that my  children enjoy the meals I cook (ok, it’s their mom’s home-cook food so maybe they are bias).

The meals I cook are very simple. Usually, they are no-brainer, easy-to-make meals like pasta, lasagna, pizzas. I have recently expanded my meal planner to include one-pot meals (LOVE them). When my maternal instincts kicks in, I whip up something healthy like steam fish / eggs, chicken soup, cod fish  and soya sauce chicken.

AND that about sums up the extent of my cooking repertoire. Luckily, there are really healthy options like tuna sandwiches (which my son loves), egg mayo sandwich (which my daughter loves) and the all-time favourite, ham and cheese!! Throw in a pack of chips and a ribena juice box and you’ve got a meal!

My kids are older now, so I am teaching THEM how to cook, so I don’t have to. They have been able to whip up maggi noodles and sandwiches on their own. My daughter shows great promise, so I am nudging her into the kitchen more often these days, haha…

On the days when I am rushing around dropping off one kid, picking up the other, fitting in an errand in between and trying to churn out a post because the deadline is coming up, I try to be Supergirl and almost always end up falling flat on my face. Luckily, we live on an island filled with people who loves food. A food court or hawker center is readily accessible with a wide variety of economical ready-made home-cooked food for me to choose from. I relied on that until one day my son asked why I was not cooking anymore. Ooopps!

So, back to the stove I went.

Then I discovered frozen pizzas and CP chicken nuggets. THEY were perfect for Friday playdate nights when my kids’ friends stay over for dinner, but not ideal for everyday meals. So, it is still back to the stove for me.

Then last week I received an email that got me really excited.  The email asked if I would like to review CP ready-to-eat meals?

Of course! When is it arriving?

On Thursday, a food kit containing four of the CP Ready-to-Eat meals arrived for my tasting. Yay!! (Imagine me doing a hoorah dance!)

Inside the very nice green NTUC thermal bag were four CP Ready-to-Eat meals — Teriyaki Chicken with rice, Stir-fried Chicken & Basil with rice, Green Curry Chicken with rice and Spaghetti with Chicken Sauce. (Yipppee!! Again, picture me flipping with joy!) 

CP Ready-to-Eat meals should be kept in the freezer until you are ready to eat. Choose the one you want, tear open the outer covering and poke 3 to 4 holes in the protective film (a chopstick will do the trick) and pop it in the microwave for 6 to 7 minutes.

A Delicious Meal In Minutes!

I had a corporate event to attend yesterday (Friday) and did not have time to cook. When I came home, I prepared these for my son and husband (my daughter was out on a playdate). Here are their verdicts.

My son thought that the Spaghetti with chicken sauce was DELICIOUS! I sampled it and it WAS DELICIOUS – a tad salty, but delicious nonetheless. My 10-year old lapped it up. He finished all the pasta and had some chicken sauce left over. 

If your kids like their pasta separate, this will be the perfect packaging. Since I had popped it in the microwave, I served it to my son on a plate (below) to avoid any oral accidents from concentrated heat. You can see from the picture the mushroom and chicken pieces were quite substantial.

As for my hubby, he chose the Stir-fried Chicken & Basil with Rice. Being a more discerning diner, he likes his food spicy and flavouful.  I was anxious that the dish would not meet these requirements. Surprising, he really liked and enjoyed the meal, and commented that the dish WAS spicy enough — remember this is Indian palate we are talking about.

AND he wished there were MORE of the chicken and basil.

He rated the dish 8 out of 10, saying that the portions were just right for an adult and most important of all, it DID NOT taste like it came from a frozen package. Now, that is high praise from a picky adult eater!

I don’t advocate frozen meals, but once in a while or during emergencies, CP Ready-to-Eat meals are convenient to have in the freezer. I know I am stocking up on them.

FairPrice Thai Fair

From NOW till 20 May, FairPrice is holding a Thai Fair at all its NTUC Fairprice outlets. You will find many interesting and exclusive Thai foods and products during the Thai fair and you can save more with promotional prices on certain items.

Purchase any participating product and stand a chance to win a 3D2N trip to Bangkok for 2 in their Lucky Draw!

So, the next time you have a brain-freeze moment over what to cook for your family, or do not have time to whip up a delicious meal for them, let CP Ready-to-Cook meals help you out a bit.

Disclaimer: I don’t really hate to cook. I just prefer to eat and be served. And I enjoy looking at the wonderful photos of food posted by home cooks on social media. So, if you have any food you will like me to taste-test for you, I am wide open! Our CP Ready-To-Eat Meals were kindly sponsored by NTUC Fairprice for us to review. The views and opinions expressed here are strictly the blogger’s own.

If you like this post, connect with me on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram or share with me in the comments below what you think of the CP Ready-to-Eat meals or any recipes that you think I can try out for my family.

Talk to you soon…