SALT LAKE CITY — You’re hungry. It’s dinner time. You have some things in your fridge, but nothing fancy that will fulfill that recipe you’ve been eyeing.

Everyone has those days when we get home from work, don’t want to go grocery shopping but need to make dinner. Below, you’ll find four easy and versatile meals you can make from scratch with ingredients you likely have on-hand.

Tacos =====

The best thing about tacos is that they are delicious whether you use chicken, pork, ground beef, steak, fish or shrimp to fill them, making it easy to use what’s on-hand. There are few limitations on how you can prepare your meat, as well: boil it, grill it, fry it, marinate it, shred it or saute with some onions and peppers.

Top it with lettuce, tomatoes and cheese, make it supreme with sour cream and guacamole, or make it sweet with some mangos or peaches. Don’t forget the lime and cilantro, either. Many of these ingredients are easy to keep on hand (tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, sour cream) at all times, while the others make a nice change once in awhile.

Tip: Keep cilantro fresh longer by placing the stems in a jar with a couple inches of water (it should not reach the leaves) and cover with a plastic bag. According to vegetablegardner.com, it can keep the leaves fresh for up to four weeks.

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Stir Fry ======== This is a meal that you can practically pull out of the freezer and cook. Every week when you go grocery shopping, stock up on your favorite meat and frozen vegetables – many grocery stores sell frozen stir fry vegetables, bell pepper mixes – as a quick, healthy backup meal.

Another virtue of stir fry? The ability to mix and match. Use chicken, steak, tofu, pork, or shrimp for your protein. Then, throw in a hefty mix of veggies: bell peppers, broccoli, baby corn, sugar peas, bean sprouts, green beans, water chestnuts, cashews or peanuts. Serve atop noodles (drained Ramen noodles are a cheap and yummy option) or rice.

Tip: For flavor, use a premade sauce like hoisin or soy and add shredded garlic and ginger. Or, find a recipe online as a base sauce and mix up the vegetables and meats.

Eggs ====

Incredible, edible, versatile. Scrambled, poached, fried, over-easy, hard boiled or soft boiled, this staple food is an inexpensive protein that plays well with other flavors.

Omelets make an easy and versatile meal in a pinch. Whip up some eggs and cream or milk, slice some sausage, bacon or ham and chop up any number of vegetables (peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, chives, spinach, garlic, etc.).

Top with salsa, chile sauce, cheese, more vegetables or greens.

Tip: The trick to flipping your omelette in one piece is threefold:

1. Grease the pan.
2. Pour it thin (½ an inch of liquid is good) so it can cook to a solid state before it burns.
3. Wait for it to reach a solid consistency before using a rubber spatula to loosen it, then flip.

Macaroni and Cheese ===================

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Do you have other tried-and-true dishes that you can make with whatever is on hand? Tell us in the comments section.

Homemade Macaroni and Cheese can be as rustic or sophisticated as you have ingredients on-hand for.

Making a roux is the most difficult part of preparing macaroni and cheese and once you’ve got that down, it’s easy. You can add all kinds of spices to the sauce mixture. If you want to give it a kick, mix in a little cayenne. Mix in a bay leaf for a traditional take. Powdered mustard is an interesting addition. Experiment.

Cook some noodles, any short noodle with ridges or crevices: macaroni, fusilli, penne, cavatappi, gemelli, rigatoni, shells.

Use whatever cheese you’ve got on hand: cheddar, white cheddar, colby, pepper jack, gruyere, parmesan, fontina,

Mix-ins are a nice way to switch things up, as well. Meats like ham, bacon, prosciutto — hot dogs if you must — add great texture and flavor to the dish.

Finally, play with your toppings. Mix up some panko crumbs, old fashioned bread crumbs, crushed cornflakes or cheese with spices. If you want a crispy topping, mix in some butter or oil to your breadcrumbs. Spread a thin layer over your casserole dish of macaroni and cheese.

If you just want to eat it and don’t care about the topping, prepare your sauce in a dutch oven pot and mix noodles and mix-ins in the pot. Let it cool to thicken for 10 to 15 minutes and serve warm.

Tip: To make a roux, melt one part butter (or other fat) in a saucepan over medium heat and whisk in one part flour until lumps are gone. From there, proceed to add liquid recipe calls for while continually whisking.

Do you have other tried-and-true dishes that you can make with whatever is on hand? Tell us in the comments section.

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