Add Flavor To Your Meat or Meatless Meals with McCormick Skillet Sauces {#MCSkilletSauce}

When my youngest child started school full time this year, multiple friends of mine lamented that I would now be "living the dream." Something about the idea of having both kids in school all day made everyone (myself included) think that there would be oodles of extra time in my day and never again would I have to rush or stress.

Right. Reality check, please?

Instead, I find that my to-do list never gets shorter, the house is still in constant need of cleaning and, as usual, I am far from being on top of things when it comes to having dinner on the table. Why is it so difficult to come up with quick homemade dinner ideas that the whole family will love that aren't the same things over and over and over again?

Fortunately, I was recently introduced to a great new shortcut that any busy parent can appreciate, the tasty and convenient McCormick® Skillet Sauces.

Available in seven different varieties, McCormick Skillet Sauces are a completely new range of recipe sauces packed full of flavor that help you to create a home cooked, fresh tasting, family meal in no time. Options include:

• Fajita with Roasted Chili, Garlic & Lime Skillet Sauce
• Fire Roasted Garlic Chili Skillet Sauce
• Sesame Chicken Stir-Fry Skillet Sauce
• Sicilian Chicken with Tomato, Basil & Garlic Skillet Sauce
• Smoky Applewood BBQ Chicken with Bacon Skillet Sauce
• Sweet & Smoky Sloppy Joes Skillet Sauce
• Taco with Chipotle & Garlic Skillet Sauce

While McCormick Skillet Sauce packets come with a custom recipe right on the back, they are completely customizable depending on what other ingredients you have handy, what dietary restrictions your family may have or simply what meal your mood dictates. Instead of spending time seasoning the various aspects of your dish, just open one of these up and it provides all of the delicious flavor you need!

As a vegetarian, I was initially skeptical that any of the McCormick Skillet Sauces wouldn't contain meat. However, one visit to McCormick's website, where they offer ingredients and flavor tips of these packets, and I was thrilled to find just the opposite! In fact, out of the seven sauces, only the Smoky Applewood BBQ Chicken with Bacon Skillet Sauce contains bacon and the rest don't actually have any meat in them at all.

Well, heck! If these can ease my dinnertime dilemmas, then it was time to head to Walmart to pick some up and give them a try!

Although it took a bit of searching (and the help of a few different Walmart employees), we eventually found the McCormick Skillet Sauces in the aisle with other boxed mixes and cooking packets (e.g. stuffing, gravy, etc).

After looking them over and getting all sorts of dinner ideas, I decided to start with the Sesame Chicken Stir-Fry Skillet Sauce and Taco with Chipotle & Garlic Skillet Sauce packets first.

Unsurprisingly, Big Sister E asked when we would have stir fry for dinner (one of her favorites), so it wasn't long before I was reaching for the Sesame Chicken Stir-Fry Skillet Sauce. Of course most households would use chicken or another protein, but I opted for our favorite standby, tofu.

However, as it doesn't have a great deal of flavor on its own, I started by letting the tofu marinate in a bit of the McCormick Skillet Sauce in hopes that it would give it the extra sweet tastiness that it needs.

After the tofu had sat long enough, it took a turn in my skillet for a few minutes before being joined by the vegetables (a mix of frozen and fresh). Once everything was cooked through, I mixed in the rest of the Skillet Sauce and voilà!

Yum! This tofu & veggie stir fry turned out perfect as a side dish or, as I had let a pot of rice simmer while I was cooking, the two together easily became the main dish.

Ready to make cooking a delicious meal faster and easier around your house as well? You can find out much more about these great new Skillet Sauces (and find tasty recipes) by visiting McCormick.com and by connecting with them on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram.

Then head to your nearest Walmart to pick up these packets to see just how easy it is to flavor your entire dish!

I’m participating in the McCormick’s Skillet Sauce® blogger campaign and received compensation as part of the program.