When a recipe states that it’s quick, easy, and delicious, my first response is typically skepticism. Quick and delicious? Sounds too good to be true.
I’ve certainly made some things that have fallen short, but with the right ingredients and recipe, there really are painless and delicious meals out there. Here are just a few that I’ve tried that have been approved by the whole family–including myself, as the cook!
What’s the secret? Canned meat.
If you haven’t cooked with canned meat before, you may be apprehensive, but I assure you, with these recipes, you won’t be able to taste any difference and you’ll love the time you save.
Lehman’s has several options for canned meat: beef, pork, turkey, and chicken. Regardless of the type, the key when using the meat is to drain and rinse it before cooking to rid it of any excess fat. To do so, I use a mesh strainer from Lehman’s.
Here are some of the recipes that I enjoyed:
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Easy Peasy Chicken Salad
Enjoy on croissants like I did or on your bread of choice. You can even serve on just lettuce for a bread-less option.
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 servings 1x
Ingredients
1 – 28 oz can Lehman’s Chicken
1/2 cup onion, diced
1 cup celery, diced
1 1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 T lemon juice
2 T sugar
1 t curry powder
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper
Use one of the following combinations:
1 cup chopped apple
1/2 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup walnuts
or
1 1/2 cup grapes, halved
3/4 cup pecans
or
2 – 11 oz cans mandarin orange segments, drained
1/2 cup almonds, toasted and sliced
Instructions
Drain and rinse the chicken. In a large mixing bowl, combine chicken, onion and celery. In a smaller bowl, stir together mayonnaise, sugar, curry, salt and pepper. Pour over chicken and blend. Add fruit and nut combination and gently stir together. Chill for 1 hour. Serve on bread, as a wrap, or on top of lettuce. Serves 4-6
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
Keywords: chicken salad, canned chicken, canned meat recipes
Turkey Fettuccine
Want to serve a warm meal? Try Turkey Fettuccine.
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: Serves 6
Ingredients
- 1 – 28 oz can Lehman’s Turkey
- 1 lb Fettuccine noodles, cooked according to directions
- 1/2 cup butter
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 2 cups fresh grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 T basil
Instructions
- Drain and rinse the turkey. Set aside.
- In a sauce pan combine butter, cream, cheese and basil. Heat slowly until cheese is melted. Add turkey.
- Cook Fettuccine noodles and drain.
- Combine noodles with turkey and cheese mixture. Toss well. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
Keywords: fettuccine, canned turkey, canned meat recipes
Turkey Pear Pair Salad
Turkey Pear Pair Salad is refreshing and flavorful.
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: Serves 8-10 1x
Ingredients
Salad:
- 1 – 28 oz can Lehman’s Turkey (drained and rinsed)
- 2 lbs fresh spinach and romaine lettuce
- 2 pears diced
- 1 cup pecans or walnuts
- 1 cup feta cheese
Dressing:
- 7 oz raspberry vinegar
- 3 oz fresh pureed raspberries
- 2 T sugar
- 2 t poppy seeds
- 2 oz olive oil
Instructions
Combine and shake well.
Notes
If you are preparing in advance, toss the diced pears in some of the dressing to prevent browning.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
Keywords: salads, canned turkey, canned meat recipes
These first three recipes are all ones that I made immediately before serving. The sauce for the Turkey Fettucine can be frozen and used at a later time, but I would recommend eating the salads fresh. These next three recipes were just as loved and are also great for restocking the freezer!
Chicken Enchiladas
Chicken Enchiladas…are you hungry yet?
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4-6 1x
Ingredients
- 1 – 28 oz can Lehman’s Chicken, drained
- 1 – 10 3/4 oz can cream of mushroom soup
- 1 – 8 oz can enchilada sauce
- 1 – 4 oz can chopped chilies
- 8 small tortillas
- 2 cups cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Mix together chicken, soup, enchilada sauce and chilies.
- Put ½ cup of chicken mixture in each tortilla. Roll up and place all 8 filled tortillas side by side in a greased 9”x13” casserole dish. Top with any leftover chicken mixture and then top with the cheese.
- Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Serve with chopped tomatoes, lettuce, cilantro, salsa and sour cream.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
Keywords: enchiladas, canned chicken, canned meat recipes
Beef Enchiladas
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4-6 1x
Ingredients
- 1 – 28 oz Lehman’s Beef, shredded
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1 t minced garlic
- 2 T vegetable oil
- 2 – 4 oz chopped green chilies
- 1 – 28 oz jar tomato sauce
- 1/2 t salt
- Pepper to taste
- 1/2 t oregano
- 1/2 t cumin
- 8 oz cheddar cheese, grated
- 2 cups enchilada sauce
- 12 soft tortillas
Instructions
- Saute the onion and garlic in the oil until onion is tender.
- Add chilies, tomato sauce, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper. Add shredded beef and cook for 10 minutes over medium heat.
- Let cool, then divide the beef mixture evenly among the 12 tortillas roll and place side by side in a greased 9”x13” baking dish. Top with enchilada sauce and then the cheddar cheese.
- Bake at 350 degrees uncovered for 15 minutes.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
Keywords: enchiladas, canned beef, canned meat recipes
BBQ “No-Pull” Pulled Pork Sandwiches
These pork sandwiches take little time to make!
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: Serves 6-8 1x
Ingredients
- 1 – 28 oz Lehman’s Pork
- 1 bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce (I like Old Carolina or Sweet Baby Rays)
Instructions
- Drain the pork and put in a pan to heat.
- Shred the pork, add the BBQ sauce and heat until hot.
- Serve on buns
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
Keywords: pulled pork, canned pork, canned meat recipes
I can’t emphasize enough how pleased I am with how each and every one of these recipes turned out. My family and guests loved each of them, and my freezer is stocked with plenty of leftovers, too! I’ll be sure to keep canned meat on hand from here on out.
thank you for the recipes. i really am not sure what to do with the beef. any ideas
Thank you for these time savers~ I’m going to write them in my card file for future reference!
To Gerri Smith~ a can of beef added to Minestrone soup is delish and also a Must have to Barley Beef soup!
As a senior with less appetite than previously, who lives alone, these recipes, while tempting and sounding delicious, even in the size one make an awful lot of food, so would it be possible to give us some recipes for one person or two, as it is far easier to double quantities in a recipe than to reduce the size of recipes.