In a recent blog post, I told our story of our recent kitchen remodel. So, how did a family of 5 survive without a kitchen for about 2 months? Fortunately, the basement had a small bar area that we set up as our kitchen. We bought a cheap microwave and I was given this crockpot as a Christmas gift the year before. The crockpot is unusual in that it has a browning feature that basically functions like an electric skillet—which was a huge help. It makes it easy to cook the meat first in the same pot. But, I found that I could scramble eggs in it and even boil water to cook pasta as well!
So, here’s a list of several recipes that we truly enjoyed over the weeks we lived in our basement! All of these can be made in a crockpot with the browning feature and a microwave making each recipe an ideal meal during your kitchen remodel.
The Recipes:
Cheesy Mexican Chicken and Rice was a new recipe I tried while living in our basement. It has great flavors and we all enjoyed it! I just prepped the rice in the microwave and the rest cooked in the crockpot! As I write this, we are about to have this again for dinner, even with a full functioning kitchen!
Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff is a lightened-up version of a classic family favorite. I cooked the noodles ahead and stored them in the fridge for the few hours that the meat and sauce cooked.
Mongolian Beef is really tasty! My four-year-old couldn’t get enough of it. Just serve it with rice prepared in the microwave and a bag of steamed broccoli.
Crockpot Chicken Parmesan is a wonderfully cheesy dish. Just cook your noodles ahead again. Don’t worry about them drying out a little, once they are back in the sauce you will never know!
Slow Cooker Cheesy Tortellini is also tasty and easy to prep. Frozen tortellini are mixed in and cooked through after 30 minutes!
Crockpot Chicken Alfredo I was surprised how nice of a cream sauce was made with this recipe. My family loved it! I serve it with steamed broccoli.
Best Ever Crockpot Cowboy Beans has been my favorite bean recipe for a while. I just grill up some hotdogs or chicken to serve with it, and it makes a very good meal! I cooked the bacon in my microwave which isn’t the best, but it worked fine since it was chopped up in the beans.
Southwestern Pulled Pork Sandwiches is also a recipe I’ve been making for years. It has really nice flavor and isn’t too spicy for little kids. We eat it on hamburger buns with fresh veggies and chips.
Crockpot Chili The list wouldn’t be complete without my favorite Chili recipe! I love to serve this with sour cream, cheddar cheese, and Fritos on top!
Italian Chopped Salad is my current favorite salad. My husband really enjoys this as well as our 8-year-old!
Cheeseburger Salad has been a favorite summer dinner of ours for a while. This is so tasty. Cook the meat in the crockpot on the browning setting and the bacon in the microwave.
I hope this list of kitchen remodel friendly meal ideas helps you find some variety during a difficult time without a full kitchen. Remember the challenge will be worth it soon when you move into your new kitchen!