Chocolate pudding
The chief ingredients for a good family meal include ease of preparation so dinner can be made while simultaneously testing year 1 spelling or discussing the post-modern paradigm with a stressed HSC student. A low pot-to-food ratio is important to reduce washing up. Vegetables need to be an easy add-on if not intrinsic to the dish and the whole thing needs to be tasty without the addition of buckets of olive oil or gobs of butter.
Frugal is good, leftovers for lunch even better and cook-once-eat-two-ways are labour-saving dishes the chief family cook looks for.
The choice of dinner will depend not just on what's in the fridge but on post-5pm activities. On some days, cooking may involve teaching children how to cut onions, pick parsley, make gravy or peel a potato. Family cooks treasure these moments, not just because of the heart-warming value of passing on life skills but for the glimmer of possibility of abdicating, even one day a week, the responsibility for thinking about the family dinner.
CASSEROLE
Best for Late home from soccer/netball/band.
Why Slow to cook, quick to prepare and keeps well for days.
How Spend a few minutes chopping vegetables and browning cubes of chuck or shin. Add other flavourings, such as spices, herbs, wine, beer or tomatoes, cover with stock, bring to the boil, then cover and put in the oven. Cook at 180C for 90 minutes for most casserole cuts, add another 30 minutes for every 10 degrees you turn the oven down to suit your own timing.
BOLOGNAISE
Best for Emergency.
Why Cheap, easy, satisfying, freezes well, much loved and hugely open to being manipulated into other dishes.
How The key is in bashing the mince up as it fries so it breaks into small crumbs rather than big chunks and cooking for a few hours to amalgamate the flavours. Make in two-kilogram batches and freeze.
BAKED TOMATO PENNE
Best for Expanding to fill hungry teenage boys.
Why Incredibly, baked pasta is more filling than boiled pasta so the box that feeds four on top of the stove will serve eight baked. If you are not feeding teenage boys there will be leftovers for tomorrow's lunch.
How Make lots of tomato sauce, add fresh basil, mix into half-cooked pasta. Top with bechamel and parmesan. Bake until golden.
ROAST CHICKEN
Best for Sunday night dinner.
Why It smells good and comes with roast potatoes and other goodies.
How Rub chicken with fresh lemon, season well, roast at 200C until cooked. While it's resting, use the pan juices to make gravy.
A PIE
Best for Kitchen goddess moment.
Why As any chef knows, you can sell anything if you wrap it in pastry.
How Cover your favourite stew with a puff-pastry top or stretch out leftover chicken, duck or lamb with cooked vegetables, or poach fish in a white sauce, then make into a pie.
BAKED TUNA RISOTTO
Best for Nothing-fresh-in-the-fridge days.
Why Made from pantry staples.
How Fry any or all of: chopped onion, celery, anchovy and chilli. Add a cup of arborio rice, then a can of chopped tomatoes, plus a can's worth of water, a drained big tin of tuna, a pack of defrosted frozen spinach. Bring to the boil, season, bake until done, about 25 minutes.
DIY BURRITOS
Best for Plenty of time to catch up.
Why Everyone gets to decide what they want from the range of ingredients on the table.
How Prepare bowls of meat and kidney bean sauce, shredded iceberg lettuce, diced avocado, sliced tomato, grated cheese, sour cream or yoghurt, fresh corn, herbs of choice, warm tortillas and whatever else is a family tradition.
BARBECUED BUTTERFLIED LAMB
Best for Family dinners with extra relatives or friends.
Why It's easy, delicious, impressive and in one big slab of meat are choices from well done to rare.
How Marinate the lamb in lemon juice and oil and oregano, or rub it all over with a slurry of oil and salt and cumin and pepper, then barbecue on a hot grill for 10-20 minutes each side. Rest, slice and serve on a platter.
CRUMBLE
Best for Dessert.
Why Fruity, tasty, quick and good the day after.
How In a food processor, put half a cup each of self-raising flour, brown sugar, rolled oats and about 100 grams of butter cut into pieces. Process until it looks like breadcrumbs. If the mix won't press together, add butter. Pile cooked fruit into a pie dish, top with crumble, bake until done.
CHOCOLATE PUDDING
Best for Chocolate craving.
Why Crispy cake top, gooey chocolate bottom, warm from the oven in less than an hour.
How Find your favourite recipe; the key is the quality of the cocoa.
