Dinner is chicken thighs, roasted vegetables and rice. Every part takes a different amount of time, so one thing always sits getting cold while another finishes. I'm finally trying to plan backward from when we want to eat: oven on first, vegetables prepped, rice started later, meat rested briefly. How do home cooks coordinate a three-part meal without turning the kitchen into a restaurant service? My biggest problem is remembering the resting time.
Cooking several components for dinner without everything finishing at different times
- practical-cooking
- cooking
- several
- components
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4 replies
I’d start the oven and the rice earlier than you think, then use the rest time for the chicken. The chicken can sit while you finish the veg...
I’d start the oven and the rice earlier than you think, then use the rest time for the chicken. The chicken can sit while you finish the vegetables if you tent it loosely.
I usually treat the veg as the flexible part. If the chicken is ready a few minutes before everything else, I just keep it warm off the direct heat instead of chasing the rice.
The trick for me is writing the times on a scrap of paper. I’m not above needing a schedule for dinner.
Same. Otherwise I wander off for one minute and suddenly the vegetables have achieved a level of char I did not authorize.
I’d also season the chicken early and get the veg cut before turning anything on. The more prep you do before the first burner starts, the l...