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What started as a game \u2014 \u201cWhat can we make in 15 minutes?\u201d \u2014 to keep her son occupied during the COVID-19 pandemic, quickly turned into a full-fledged cookbook. 15 Minute Meals<\/em><\/a>, out this month, is novelist, cookbook author, and TV host Ali Rosen\u2019s<\/a> bible for anyone who doesn\u2019t have the foresight (or time!) to think about dinner hours ahead.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The long list of salads, soups, noodles, rice bowls, desserts, and more she\u2019s created are proof positive that \u201cthere\u2019s a lot that you can do in a few minutes.\u201d She credits a big part of that to the veritable mountain of quality frozen shortcuts (and pantry staples) that exist today, calling it a \u201cgolden age of ingredients.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n As an often spontaneous meal planner (planner being generous), I wanted to know the one<\/em> thing every lazy cook should always have in their freezer. So, of course, I reached out to Rosen to chat. Here\u2019s what the woman who wrote the book on quick-yet-satisfying meals had to say.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cI would say frozen peas<\/a> is my number-one thing \u2014 like I love frozen peas,\u201d says Rosen, and maybe not quite for the reason you think. Their neutralness is what really makes them stand out: \u201c[They] don\u2019t add as much texture and flavor,\u201d which oftentimes is what she\u2019s going for when she wants to add some nutritional value into whatever she\u2019s making \u2014\u00a0and with minimal effort.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cIt\u2019s no work, and because of their size, you don\u2019t have to do anything to them. You\u2019re not going to get a whole bite of them in anything, so they\u2019re not going to ruin any flavor.\u201d Plus, \u201cThe quality of how we freeze things has really shifted in the last number of years,\u201d adds Rosen, who also wrote a freezer-meals cookbook<\/a>. \u201cSo you\u2019re often getting more nutrients from a frozen vegetable than you are from the broccoli you bought six days ago.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cIf you want to make mac and cheese<\/a>, great! Throw some frozen peas into it and then you\u2019re getting your vegetable quantity for the day.\u201d Same goes for ramen, rice bowls, pasta bakes, soups (she\u2019s a big fan of creating them from pantry ingredients like coconut milk and chickpeas, along with frozen peas), and ground meat for tacos.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Beyond frozen peas, Rosen swears by broccoli florets, medleys (like the pea, green bean, and carrot blends), and frozen spinach, which is especially great for melding into sauces and hiding from picky eaters \u2014\u00a0of all ages. \u201cFreezing garlic and herbs in ice trays (in olive oil)\u201d is another one of her favorites; she also recommends buying the frozen garlic or ginger cubes, like the ones at Trader Joe\u2019s<\/a>, with \u201cas few ingredients listed as possible,\u201d along with frozen stock and ice cream. (She grew up with Haagen Dazs Chocolate and still considers it one of the best.)\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cMy freezer is mostly full of ice cream \u2014 ice cream, stock, peas, and some gin.\u201d<\/p>\nWhy You Should Always Have Frozen Peas (and Other Portioned Vegetables) in Your Freezer<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n