The trick to making easy three ingredient dinners

By Jane de Graaff|

If you think three-ingredient cooking is a mythical magical beast that never really turns out that well and is just a lovely story that doesn't really deliver results, then I'm here to give you hope back.

I've always been keen on keeping cooking dinner for the family as simple as possible when you're time strapped. Weeknights are not a time to be attempting multistage recipes or three course dinners. What you need are things that are easy to manage while also bathing the kids, overseeing homework and planning for the next day. If you can yell out 'put your pyjamas on' in between stirring the pot, then so much the better.

Three-ingredient cooking is more a state of mind than just tipping a tin of sauce, a packet of beans and a sachet of flavouring into a pot. It's just the idea that sometimes simple is better, and that is OK.

I was more than thrilled to join reporter Britt Cohen for Today Extra to cook up some of the simplest three ingredient recipes I know. But really, often with such simple ingredients, you don't need a recipe at all.

Here are three of my favourites:

Slow cooker pulled pork: Let the cooker do the work

(Today Extra)
  • 1 kg pork shoulder
  • 1 can ginger beer (you could also use root beer, cola, lemonade, apple or orange juice for slightly different flavour results)

OK, so this looks like two ingredients (and really it is), but that leaves you plenty of room to move on the extras. In the US they use root beer for a more liquorice type flavour, but the can of soft drink just adds sweetness and liquid for the cooking. I like to use ginger beer because it has a little of bit spice and extra flavour from the ginger.

Place the pork and the ginger beer in your slow cooker, set to low and then cook for six hours. If you put it on n the morning, when you come home the house will smell amazing and dinner is ready to plate up.

Just take the pork out, shred it up (it will fall apart), and then serve it with whatever veg you have in the fridge on the side and a bit of BBQ sauce. You can even use the ginger beer left in the slow cooker mixed with a little BBQ sauce to make a great sort of gravy. We like to serve ours in burger buns for the kids and with a bit of 'slaw on the side. But it's really whatever needs using in the fridge.

Apple juice chicken: The ingredient hack you'll love

Apple juice chicken
(Today Extra)
  • 4-6 chicken thighs
  • cloudy apple juice
  • whatever veg needs using up in the fridge, lightly steamed

Again, this starts with just two ingredients, which lets you add whatever sides you like (that's the steamed veg from the fridge), and my kids adore this one.

Warm a large flat frypan on medium heat. Add two cups of apple juice to the pan and bring it to the boil. Lower the temperature to a simmer and add the chicken pieces. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes, then turn the chicken pieces over and simmer for another 15 minutes or until your chicken is cooked through. Remove the chicken to a warm plate and simmer the sauce until it thickens and turns syrupy. Serve the chicken with whatever veg needs using up in the fridge and pour the apple juice sauce over the chicken and veg.

Healthy steamed fish parcels: Keep it all tucked into one little bag

Three ingredient fish parcels
(Today Extra)

I have been making this dish since I was a teenager. I love it because it keeps all the fish juices inside each parcel, which means no fishy smells or pans to clean up. It's also the easiest way that I know to cook fish and you can't stuff it up.

  • 3-4 white or pink fish fillets of your choice (basa or ling works really well, it's best if you use skinless and boneless fillets, but not a deal breaker)
  • 2 lemons, one sliced in rounds, the other for juice
  • 1 leek, cleaned thoroughly (but you can use any veg you like; fennel, carrot, tomato, broccoli pieces all work well)

Cut your leek into pieces about the length of your fish fillets and then cut the leek pieces into half length-ways and half length-ways again so that you have long, thin quarters. Lay a sheet of foil (big enough to wrap a fish fillet) shiny side up on the bench. Lay a slightly smaller piece of baking paper on top of that. Put one of the fish fillets in the middle, layer 2-3 slices of lemon on top, and add two pieces of the leek on either side (more if you like). Season with salt and pepper and squeeze a dash of lemon juice on top. Fold the sides of the foil up around the fish, creating a small bag/parcel with the fish cradled in the paper inside. Seal it along the top by folding the foil over itself. Make sure it's sealed to keep all the juices in.

Repeat the process with the other pieces of fish. Place them on a tray in a 180°C oven and cook for 15 minutes. The fish will steam in its own juices along with the leek.

Serve the individual parcels with a side of rice. The leek will be steamed and sweet and the fish will be flaky and moist, while the parcel will have its own sauce in the bottom.

Butter chicken
One-pot curries so easy the kids can cook them

Auto News: Skoda sales hit 1.24 million in 2019 -