Pinch of Nom’s No-cook Recipe Roundup

Not every tasty, slimming friendly recipe out there needs to be cooked before you tuck in. With our roundup of no-cook inspiration, you can get satisfying flavours in front of you with minimal effort and absolutely no heat involved! From zesty salads to delightful desserts, these no-cook wonders combine the simplest ingredients in ways that are easy to make and a treat for your taste buds. 

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No-cook Lunches

Recipes that are quick to make are always handy for keeping you on track when you don’t feel like cooking. Perhaps you’re having a busy day, or you just don’t fancy turning the oven on! 

Our Chopped Thai Chicken Salad recipe serves up all the delicious, aromatic flavours without a pan in sight. Colourful, crunchy and light, you can have this vibrant salad on your plate in less than 20 minutes. Serve with homemade peanut salad dressing to the side (or drizzle on top) to finish! 

You can also adapt recipes by swapping out core, fresh ingredients for ready-cooked versions. Our Herby Lemon Chicken Salad involves marinating chicken breasts in a zesty combination of lemon juice and herbs. To skip this step, a lemon-flavoured packet of ready-cooked chicken would be a tasty, time-saving substitute. 

The marinated chicken breasts from this recipe are freezer-friendly too, so even if they’re prepared in advance, all that’s left to do is defrost, reheat and slice on a no-time-for-cooking kind of day!

Using lettuce instead of a typical bready tortilla, our refreshing Low Carb Chicken and Ham Wraps are literally wrapped up with nutrients! We’ve partnered cooked chicken with cooked ham slices so that this crunchy lunchtime staple is quick to make without the need to pop the hob on. Ready in under 15 minutes, they’re far better for your health (and budget!) than supermarket versions…

You can experiment with the fillings in your lettuce wraps too! Why not try them with a tuna and low fat mayo filling, or rustle up a batch of Coronation Turkey? An easy, tasty way to convert plain turkey leftovers into an exciting lunch or dinner, you’ll be reducing food waste and keeping the calories low (just be sure to adjust accordingly if you’re counting).

Without meat to worry about, veggie or vegan lunchtime recipes are a tasty, reliable way to prepare plenty of flavour without getting the pots and pans out. Perfect as a light lunch or zingy side dish, our Courgette Ribbon, Lemon and Feta Salad will brighten up your day with Mediterranean-inspired flavours in less than 10 minutes. 

A vegetable peeler will come in really handy, as it’s the simplest and quickest way to prepare your ribboned courgette pieces.

The cheesy Feta cubes really bring the dish to life – just be sure to use a vegetarian alternative if you’re making it veggie-friendly.

No-cook Side Dishes

A side dish you don’t have to cook is the perfect answer when you want to add a little something extra to a home-cooked meal. Our Pineapple Salsa is a faff-free recipe that’ll zing up your dinner table in no time, and nicely complements the Fakeaway flavours in our Sticky Chilli Chicken with Noodles recipe. 

Mix the ingredients in a bowl and let the fresh, fruity flavours do all the work. The salsa’s at its most flavoursome when the pineapple flavours have a bit of time to rest and mingle together, but there’s nothing to stop you rustling it up to enjoy straight away.

Low on calories and filled with flavour, Coleslaw is another handy no-cook side dish you can rely on to elevate your lunch or dinner. Made using a mixture of shredded cabbage, onions, carrots and our very own low calorie sauce, it’s only 80 calories per creamy, crunchy, slimming friendly portion.

Enjoy it on top of a jacket potato as a low-fuss lunch, or serve it up next time you’re making Halloumi Couscous Burgers with Salsa (you won’t regret it!). 

Veg and bean-filled dips are another great option when you fancy levelling up a slimming friendly snack, without getting your cook on. Next time you’re enjoying a nibble on some low salt crisps or vegetable sticks, why not rustle up a portion of our Hummus Style Dip to make snack time all the more satisfying?

It’s really easy to make, especially if you’ve got a food processor that’ll do most of the work for you!

No-cook Desserts

When we fancy something sweet without the effort of cooking, it can be tempting to lean on chocolate bars or other shop-bought treats that could take you off track. Luckily there are plenty of sweet tooth satisfying, slimming friendly recipes you can whip up at home without the need to bake. 

It doesn’t get much simpler than our go-to Chocolate Mousse recipe. So long as you keep the magic ingredients (all five of them!) handy in your fridge and store cupboard, you’ll always be 10 minutes away from preparing this satisfying, chocolate dessert. Let it set in the fridge for around an hour before you dig in – how’s that for effortless?

Do you have bananas lying around at home that are looking a little sorry for themselves? Our Peanut Butter and Banana Ice Cream recipe makes perfect use of bananas that are on the riper side, with creamy, peanut butter-based indulgence, and it’s totally dairy-free! You can have the indulgent-tasting mixture in the freezer in less than 8 minutes, so it’s a no-brainer really…

Yet another dessert o’clock treat that doesn’t involve any baking whatsoever, our Chocolate Espresso Cheesecakes are a caffeinated, chocolatey delight. By using Oreo biscuits as our no-butter base, we’ve kept the calories nice and low and the amount of effort even lower (they’re prepped to chill in less than 10 minutes!).

How about jumping out of bed to a ready-made breakfast, without cooking at all? If you’re a lover of the coffee and vanilla flavours in our mini cheesecakes, you’ll be all about the sweet tones in our Tiramisu Overnight Oats recipe.

By combining the ingredients in advance and popping them into an airtight jar (we’ve used Kilner Preserve Jars for ours), the fridge will finish the job. All you have to do is wait!

Feeling inspired by our no-cook recipe round up?

If you’ll be making one of our no-cook recipes as part of your slimming journey, let us know over in our Facebook group where we have almost 1 million members waiting to support you. We’d love to see you there! 

Did you know that you can now share your hints, tips, quotes and photos in our PON Gallery too? It’s an all-new space for all the Nom community to contribute. (Psst! There might even be some SWAG up for grabs for our favourite submissions…)