Quick and Easy Meals After a Day at the Beach
After a long day on the beach, the last thing you want to do is spend hours in the kitchen making lunch or dinner for the entire family. In order to continue having a relaxing day, and ending it with a delicious meal, here are 5 quick and easy meal ideas for your beach vacation:
1. Fresh Fish
One of the many perks of vacationing by the coast is the fresh catch you can find at markets and groceries stores all throughout town. Whether you are a fan of salmon smothered in lemon or your mouth waters over blackened tuna lightly sprinkled with pepper, the fresh fish offered for purchase around Virginia Beach are always tasty and a great, fast meal for the family. Wrap your favorite catch in aluminum foil, top with cut lemon, seasoning, a pinch of salt, ground black pepper or fresh dill weed and pop them in the oven (preheated at 450 degrees) for about 15-20 minutes, or until your fish easily flakes with a fork. Add a couple sides to the main course, such as pasta with Parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning, or mixed vegetables and call it a day!
2. Tacos
A quick and easy meal that is most people’s go-to. Tacos can be made with ground beef, chicken, steak, shrimp or any other fresh poultry and topped with all the fixings: sour cream, shredded cheese, avocado, diced tomatoes, rice and beans, hot sauce and lettuce. Speaking of lettuce, if you rather not use a hard or soft taco shell, make a taco salad instead! Either way this meal takes less than 20 minutes and it’s always fun creating your own yummy masterpiece.
3. BLTs
If you are a fan of the three, simple ingredients of BLTs then you know that this is a tasty meal that is often forgotten about. Toast a couple pieces of bread, cook a few strips of bacon, slice up a tomato and slap on a piece of lettuce. Boom! You’re done in matter of minutes. Add a couple sides such as potato salad made fresh at the market, corn on the cob or mac and cheese.
4. Chicken Salad
Chicken is always available at a nearby grocery store or market and takes little time to cook thoroughly. Dice up as many chicken breasts needed for the family and boil, grill or bake it until cooked. Cut up some fresh romaine lettuce, tomatoes, dill, walnuts and cucumbers. Top off with lemon dill dressing. You can bake french bread and top with garlic salt and some butter for a classic side!
5. Chicken Bow Tie Pasta
- In a large skillet, heat the 1/4 cup of olive oil over medium heat.
- Saute two chopped garlic cloves for about a minute.
- Add in 1/2 pound of boneless, skinless chicken strips and cook until white.
- Add in 1 1/2 cups of small broccoli florets, 3/4 cup of oil-packed sun dried tomatoes, 1 TSP of dried basil leaves, a pinch of crushed red pepper, salt and pepper for taste.
- Then, add in 1/4 cup of white wine, 1 TBSP of butter and 3/4 cup of chicken broth.
- Toss the cooked pasta with the chicken mixture and add Parmesan cheese if desired
- Eat! Yum!
