TEN Easy Dinners to Cook
when your house is for sale
DECEMBER 15, 2020
If you’ve sold a home before, you know the sprint to get it clean, staged and market-ready. We’re talking toothbrush-in-the-crevices level clean so the last thing you want to do is mess that up right before a showing. But, you also don’t want to spend all the profit you’re about to make on your sold home on fast food nuggets and fries for dinner every night.
So, to save you the headache and the mess, here are ten easy dinners to cook when your house is for sale including some of my favorite recipes that involve very few dishes and a super quick clean-up. I’m even sharing the recipe that won us the chili cook-off trophy this year!
Another tip? Stock up on paper plates, plastic cutlery and disposable cups to make clean-up even easier. This is not a long-term solution but one that is necessary while you get your house sold.
Quick notes: (1) I have made all of these and love them. (2) We primarily eat low carb/keto meals, and these mostly fit that bill. If something here isn’t carb-heavy enough for you, it’s easy to add rice, a tortilla or bread, or a potato side.
BAKED SALMON FOIL PACKS
Salmon, Asparagus, foil and a few pantry staples are all you need for this one. Requires one pan and since everything is cooked in foil, there’s hardly any cleaning to do. Pair your Salmon Foil Packs with a microwaveable rice side or serve over riced cauliflower for a complete meal. Makes dinner at 5 and a showing at 6 no big deal.
egg roll in a bowl
Hear me out. I thought this sounded odd and the idea of a whole bag of coleslaw mix didn’t sound that appetizing but both my husband and I really liked this Egg Roll in a Bowl and it makes for great leftovers. (Also a great option for lunch and easy to reheat).
green enchilada chicken soup
This is one of our current favorites. Takes only a crockpot, which is ideal for quick clean-up meals. If you are really short on time, you could even stick the whole crockpot bowl in the fridge after dinner and move to tupperware after the showing.
I usually serve Green Enchilada Chicken Soup with chips and salsa or queso to satisfy my husband’s need for carbs. Also delicious with these Siete grain free chips (I love the lime!) and my current favorite salad in a bag – Avocado Toast Chopped Salad Kit from Target.
buffalo chicken peppers
These are so delicious and can be made with as much or as little heat as you like. Very easy but if you are worried about time or clean-up, these buffalo chicken peppers are ideal for making ahead of time.
Instead of a rotisserie chicken (I don’t like having to clean the meat off!), I just cook a couple chicken breasts in the crockpot and shred.
TUSCAN CHICKEN
Tuscan chicken has become one of our go-to meals. We’ve also swapped the chicken for salmon and it’s just as delicious. For a quick meal, I serve with microwave-in-the-bag green beans so all this takes in one pan, which equals super easy clean-up!
Thai curry chili
Before you judge this recipe for being dairy-free, I have to tell you we actually won our chili cook-off this year with this exact Thai Curry Chili recipe. Shocked?! Honestly, I was a bit surprised to bring home the trophy but it was a total crowd-pleaser!
The ingredient list looks a bit overwhelming but it’s actually very simple and the recipe even includes options for simplifying further (i.e. canned potatoes).
I made a few edits when I cooked this. I used chicken breasts instead of canned (just put in the crockpot with everything else and then shred before serving) and I used sweet potatoes instead of white. I also prefer jasmine rice, so i served that instead of brown.
Put this in the crockpot in the morning and you have an easy dinner before your evening showing with hardly any clean-up.
PHILLY CHEESESTEAK TACOS
My sister introduced me to this recipe and thank goodness. This is another one-pan dinner that takes minutes to clean up and makes for amazing leftovers. Philly cheesesteak tacos are also delicious as a bowl if you are avoiding tortillas.
Speaking of tortillas, I feel it’s my duty to tell you. If you are still buying off-the shelf tortillas, please allow me to introduce you to uncooked tortillas. They are in the refrigerated section – near sour cream at my store – and I can promise once you have these, you will want nothing else. It’s the closest to Mexican restaurant tortillas I’ve found at the store.
salsa chicken
This is a crockpot meal that truly requires nothing other than dumping in the ingredients and turning it on. Crockpot salsa chicken is great as leftovers so I recommend making extra for an even simpler meal. Serve over rice or cauliflower rice.
sHEET PAN SAUSAGE + VEGGIES
This meal requires a cutting board and a baking sheet, which if you cover in foil should make for a very fast clean-up. Even the recipe author states “Sheet Pan Sausage and Veggies makes for the best simple, filling, and nutritious dinner with virtually no cleanup!” Great with rice or a side of fruit and can easily be tweaked to your tastes – add in shrimp or swap red potatoes for sweet.
CHICKEN CHILI
I almost published this as “nine easy dinners” and can’t believe I was so close to leaving this staple off the list. White chicken chili is a meal we eat year-round in our house because (1) it’s a crowded-pleaser and (2) it’s so easy. You need a crockpot and possibly a can opener.
You can eat this alone, with chips or with cornbread and because you stuck with me through all ten ideas, I’m going to give you my simple, delicious cornbread recipe as a bonus.
EASY CORNBREAD: 2 boxes jiffy, 1 can creamed corn. Follow instructions on the jiffy box and simply add the corn. I like to bake in muffin tins so we can eat some and freeze some for the next time.
Full Recipe fromA Mindful Mom
Do you have more ideas for easy clean-up meals for when your house is on the market and clean up needs to be a breeze? I’d love to know. Share with me on instagram, @birminghamplace.
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