We’ve been in the midst of a heatwave here in New York City, with the local utility and power company directing us to only use one air conditioner and set it to the highest comfortable setting to avoid outages. The temperature in my house is slowly inching down to 82 degrees Fahrenheit. Using ceiling fans helps.
Perish the thought of adding even a single degree of heat by cooking any meals requiring use of the stove and/or oven.
When it’s too hot to cook, it’s best to assemble dishes making use of what’s available until cooler days prevail.
Produce is easy. No need to cook vegetables in this heat—hot food can even be unappetizing in the heat of summer. Take advantage of salads and crudité right out of the fridge.
Move onto the pantry. Any canned salmon, tuna, sardines, baby mackerel? There’s your main dish. Any canned beans? A nice salmon salad with beans is great summertime go-to meal.
Keep it cool. Gazpacho is a delicious vegetable soup to whip up in your blender and serve chilled. Another go-to meal is ceviche, which is raw fish ‘cooked’ in plenty of lime juice. This Latin American dish is a favorite in my house!
Shop smart. For heartier fare, I’ll shop the prepared foods at my local supermarket. A rotisserie chicken, sliced roast beef or turkey, or prepared lamb chops or brisket make for easy, no muss, no fuss meals.
Rethink breakfast. I won’t even boil an egg when it’s this hot, so I’ll often enjoy a charcuterie board. I’ll break out the prosciutto, salami, bresaola, olives, a wedge of cheese, cornichon, a little summer fruit. Who needs to cook eggs?
Heck, you can do this anytime, not just during a heatwave. It goes to show you that you can still eat well, even when you don’t cook.
To your health!
Leyla Muedin, MS, RD, CDN
