We often associate fast meals with unhealthy food and assume that healthy food has to take a lot longer to prepare. This can really put you off enjoying a healthy diet because it feels like it needs to take up so much of your time. But when you need to get a healthy dinner on the table for your family, you can't really make excuses. However, that doesn't mean you have to spend hours slaving away in the kitchen. There are plenty of ways to quickly get dinner ready without resorting to frozen or processed foods. Try these ideas to make it happen.

Meal Prep in Advance

One of the best time-saving methods for parents is to make meals in advance. It does take some time to do the initial prep, but it means you can save time when you really need it. Prepare your meals at the weekend and refrigerate or freeze them, and you can then pull them out to reheat during the week. If you're smart about your meal prep, you can get multiple meals done in a few hours. Enlist the rest of the family to help out so that everyone can play their part in preparing healthy meals.

Find Reliable Speedy Recipes

If reheating food doesn't really appeal to you, you might prefer to focus on using speedy recipes that allow you to get dinner ready quickly. It doesn't have to take an hour or more to make dinner. In fact, you can have it done in 30 minutes or less with the right recipes. Take a look at this Pad Thai recipe, which you can have on the table in just 15 minutes. One thing to note is that the time for recipes isn't always reliable, especially as everyone cooks at different speeds. It's a good idea to look at reviews if they're available, and maybe test out a recipe before you really need it.

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Use a Slow Cooker

A slow cooker is one kitchen appliance you won't want to be without if you want to have dinner ready quickly. It might seem paradoxical, but using a slow cooker means you can have your food ready right away when you want it. Just get everything going in the morning or afternoon, and it will all be ready to eat by the time dinner rolls around. You can serve it up straight from the slow cooker, along with any sides you have.

Don't Bother with Recipes

You don't always need to follow a recipe. Sometimes it can really slow you down, especially if it's something you haven't made before. The fastest way to make dinner can often be to go off-piste and cook what you feel like based on what you have available. It doesn't take long to throw together some pasta and vegetables, make fried rice with various leftovers, or boil some eggs and have them with toast and avocado.

Getting a healthy dinner on the table doesn't have to take a long time. You can do it speedily if you're smart about it.