We’ve all been there: You come home from a stressful day at the office—followed by a grueling workout—with little energy or enthusiasm left to hover over the stove and cook up an elaborate meal. It can make it oh-so-tempting to place a call for gut-busting Chinese or pizza.
Thankfully, supermarkets are increasingly stocking their shelves with foods that make it a breeze to put healthy meals on the table quickly. Forget soggy frozen dinners; the following recipes use some of the best canned, jarred, and frozen foods—staples you’ll always want to have on hand when life presents you with a major time crunch.
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Claire Benoist
Salmon Curry
A wealth of protein and omega-3 fats is reason enough to reel in canned salmon more often for your meals. Research from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has found that omega-3 fats have anabolic properties—that is, they stimulate muscle protein synthesis. Look for brands like Wild Planet that pack only sustainably sourced seafood.
Quick-cooking edamame (green soybean) delivers protein and healthy amounts of fiber, whereas curry paste supplies capsaicin, a fiery compound that can drive up fat-burning metabolism. Harvested at peak ripeness and quickly frozen afterward, frozen vegetables like carrots can have a nutritional leg up on imported fresh versions. Plus, they save you the extra time needed for peeling and chopping. To get this meal on the table even faster, look for brands of pre-cooked brown rice (like Annie Chun’s) that require just a quick zap in the microwave.
Forget the grease and sodium of delivery food. Using pitas and ready-to-go supermarket rotisserie chicken lets you enjoy healthy homemade pizza even on time-crunched weeknights. We know it’s delicious, but for a pizza with a better protein-to-fat ratio and reduced salt levels, be sure to take a pass on the chicken skin. Sundried tomatoes are laced with lycopene, a potent antioxidant that can help you dodge cancer and may improve muscle recovery from stiff workouts. Popeye was right: Spinach may make you as strong as an ox. Swedish researchers believe that nitrates found in the leafy green can improve muscular contraction.
Check out the full chicken pita pizza recipe here.
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Claire Benoist
Chipotle Bean Salad
Most guys don’t eat nearly enough beans. That’s a shame, considering convenient canned beans are a quick way to bulk up your lunch box with slow-digesting carbs, plant-based protein, fat-fighting fiber, and energy-boosting iron. Rinsing canned beans has been shown to lower their sodium levels considerably. Smoky-tasting chipotle peppers in adobo sauce are found in the Latin section of most grocers. As with other chili pepper products, they get their punch from the metabolism-revving compound capsaicin. Avocado provides creamy texture and a good dose of heart-healthy monounsaturated fat.
Check out the full chipotle bean salad recipe here.
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Claire Benoist
Chocolate Pumpkin Oatmeal
Soaking steel-cut oats overnight is a stealth move for enjoying a creamy bowl of the hearty grain for breakfast—without the need to set the alarm early. The lower glycemic index of steel-cut oats will help sustain your energy levels throughout the morning. Canned pure pumpkin is a source of fiber, and is brimming with vitamin A to help bolster immune health so you can spend more time in the gym than at the doctor’s office. (Avoid canned pumpkin pie filling, which is packed with sugar and other questionable ingredients.) Whey protein and Greek yogurt bring plenty of the amino acids needed to put a halt to muscle catabolism that occurs during an overnight fast. Extra oatmeal can be reheated for future morning meals.
Check out the full chocolate pumpkin oatmeal recipe here.
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Claire Benoist
Cheesy Sardines on Crackers
You’d be hard-pressed to find a better mid-afternoon snack than this dynamic duo. They’re often overlooked in the canned fish aisle, but sardines should be dropped into your shopping cart more often. Like canned salmon, they have a boatload of protein, omega-3 fats, and vitamin D, a vitamin that’s been found to bolster testosterone levels. Ricotta subdues the “fishy” taste of the sardines and has more muscle-friendly whey protein than other cheese varieties. Horseradish contains glucosinolates, compounds that can detoxify carcinogens. Rye crackers like Wasa are richer in fiber than other types and tend to dampen your drive to snack on sugary snacks later in the day.
Check out the full cheesy sardines on crackers recipe here.
