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Cooking for one

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  • PasturesNew
    PasturesNew Posts: 70,698 Forumite
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    Re freezers.... if I bought four very very small whole chickens and one 1Kg bag of oven chips my freezer would be full!

    2.5 drawers, freezer baskets are 7" deep and 14" wide.
  • greenbee
    greenbee Posts: 16,142 Forumite
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    caronc wrote: »
    You seem to have found a way that works for you and your budget :D, I love that folk have so many ways of addressing CFO all are valid and helping me to make the transition from family cooking :cool:

    It's weird... I thought that recipe boxes would be WAY too expensive, but a friend got me a freebie as she's been using them (for her family) and found it has cut her bills. Turns out that it improves planning and therefore cuts waste. And you don't have to buy a whole jar/pack of something that you only use once. Each box is 6 portions. Depending on the recipe either ingredients or made-up meals can be frozen for another week. If there are bits left over as a result of making a meal for one, they generally can be incorporated into the rest of the week.

    Cooking has become a lot less of a chore since I've moved to deliveries rather than going shopping - and I only did this as a temporary thing to cover 2 weeks planned post-op recovery (which turned into a month). And it's now working really well for me now I'm back at work. I certainly don't miss the time wasted in shops!
  • greenbee
    greenbee Posts: 16,142 Forumite
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    PasturesNew wrote: »
    Re freezers.... if I bought four very very small whole chickens and one 1Kg bag of oven chips my freezer would be full!

    2.5 drawers, freezer baskets are 7" deep and 14" wide.

    That's why I don't buy 4 chickens and a kg of oven chips :) I buy a couple of chicken breasts, eat one & freeze one. Same with fish etc. I buy small quantities so I can have variety. And I freeze in single-person portions (roughly 100g of protein/pulse/grain) in small bags or boxes, so they are easily accessible.

    Tomatoes can be frozen and used for cooking if you don't think you'll use them up. Otherwise they're nice on toast as an alternative to beans with your egg & sausages.
  • caronc
    caronc Posts: 8,089 Forumite
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    greenbee wrote: »
    It's weird... I thought that recipe boxes would be WAY too expensive, but a friend got me a freebie as she's been using them (for her family) and found it has cut her bills. Turns out that it improves planning and therefore cuts waste. And you don't have to buy a whole jar/pack of something that you only use once. Each box is 6 portions. Depending on the recipe either ingredients or made-up meals can be frozen for another week. If there are bits left over as a result of making a meal for one, they generally can be incorporated into the rest of the week.

    Cooking has become a lot less of a chore since I've moved to deliveries rather than going shopping - and I only did this as a temporary thing to cover 2 weeks planned post-op recovery (which turned into a month). And it's now working really well for me now I'm back at work. I certainly don't miss the time wasted in shops!
    I've looked at trying the Gousto boxes but always ending thinking I could make that......but do use the meals they have for a bit of inspiration :)
  • PasturesNew
    PasturesNew Posts: 70,698 Forumite
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    If I'd stayed at yours this week I'd have eaten:
    greenbee wrote: »

    Monday
    [STRIKE]porridge & fruit[/STRIKE];
    cheese and salad sandwich ;
    couscous with stir-fried veg, salad and cold lamb

    Tuesday
    rice crispies and [STRIKE]milk[/STRIKE];
    salad, chickpeas, couscous & lamb;
    chicken noodle soup (defrosted chicken stock with some chopped cooked chicken leg, a finely chopped chilli, a nest of [STRIKE]wholewheat[/STRIKE] noodles and half a spring cabbage shredded into it)

    Wednesday
    [STRIKE]porridge[/STRIKE] ([STRIKE]rice milk, oatmeal, chopped figs, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds[/STRIKE]);
    [STRIKE]goats cheese[/STRIKE] salad with [STRIKE]bulghar wheat[/STRIKE], chickpeas, hm coleslaw, [STRIKE]avocado;[/STRIKE]
    salmon baked with harissa, rice, purple sprouting broccoli, carrots and [STRIKE]courgette[/STRIKE].

    Thursday
    [STRIKE]smoothie[/STRIKE];
    [STRIKE]courgette [/STRIKE]salad with [STRIKE]parmesan [/STRIKE]and [STRIKE]sunflower seeds;[/STRIKE]
    chicken curry with rice

    Friday
    pain au raisin;
    chicken with [STRIKE]spelt[/STRIKE], radishes, tomatoes, carrot & beetroot salad;
    [STRIKE]aubergine [/STRIKE]curry, rice, [STRIKE]tzatziki[/STRIKE], steamed green veg.

    Saturday
    roast veg (broccoli, pepper, tomato, [STRIKE]mushrooms[/STRIKE], asparagus if there is some) with a poached egg & [STRIKE]smoothie[/STRIKE];
    tuna, [STRIKE]olive [/STRIKE]and pasta salad;
    moussaka

    Sunday
    [STRIKE]yogurt & granola[/STRIKE];
    [STRIKE]quinoa superfood salad[/STRIKE];
    pasta with bacon and tomato.
    There's some stuff there I'd eat if it were put in front of me ... but I'd not "choose" them from a menu. Things I can "put up with" (like couscous), but not really enjoy/like.

    There's some stuff there I simply don't like - the moussaka would have the aubergine picked out ...

    And there's some stuff I've never had (salmon/harissa) and some I'm not even sure what it is :)

    Looking at that menu though ... on the whole I'd arrive with a secret stash of snacks in my bag .....
  • greenbee
    greenbee Posts: 16,142 Forumite
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    caronc wrote: »
    I've looked at trying the Gousto boxes but always ending thinking I could make that......but do use the meals they have for a bit of inspiration :)

    I thought that. Never did though :) I do like the fact that they have EVERYTHING in them I need, so there is nothing missing (which is often the reason something else goes off).

    Of course, once I have a proper kitchen again I'll probably go into cooking overdrive, and end up with all three freezers full and having to invite people over all the time to try to get through it all! I used to cook for vast numbers of people - I can quite happily cook a multiple course meal for 20 or 50. Not so good at one - but the two portion recipes are helping.
  • greenbee
    greenbee Posts: 16,142 Forumite
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    PasturesNew wrote: »
    There's some stuff there I'd eat if it were put in front of me ... but I'd not "choose" them from a menu. Things I can "put up with" (like couscous), but not really enjoy/like.

    There's some stuff there I simply don't like - the moussaka would have the aubergine picked out ...

    And there's some stuff I've never had (salmon/harissa) and some I'm not even sure what it is :)

    Looking at that menu though ... on the whole I'd arrive with a secret stash of snacks in my bag .....

    But you'd still have had plenty of variety. The point is, there's no need to eat the same thing every day for a week.
  • caronc
    caronc Posts: 8,089 Forumite
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    greenbee wrote: »
    I thought that. Never did though :) I do like the fact that they have EVERYTHING in them I need, so there is nothing missing (which is often the reason something else goes off).

    Of course, once I have a proper kitchen again I'll probably go into cooking overdrive, and end up with all three freezers full and having to invite people over all the time to try to get through it all! I used to cook for vast numbers of people - I can quite happily cook a multiple course meal for 20 or 50. Not so good at one - but the two portion recipes are helping.
    Yep give me a crowd and I know exactly what I'm doing..... LOL ;)
  • PasturesNew
    PasturesNew Posts: 70,698 Forumite
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    On the basis my entire day's food today's cost about £1.10 - and I just had a quick look at Gousto boxes and the 2 recipe box is £7/serving for one meal... I think we can safely say I'm not of the Gousto using financial classes :)

    To me ...turkey twizzlers would be a big treat. Although I would say I've never actually had a turkey twizzler....
  • caronc
    caronc Posts: 8,089 Forumite
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    PasturesNew wrote: »
    On the basis my entire day's food today's cost about £1.10 - and I just had a quick look at Gousto boxes and the 2 recipe box is £7/serving for one meal... I think we can safely say I'm not of the Gousto using financial classes :)

    To me ...turkey twizzlers would be a big treat. Although I would say I've never actually had a turkey twizzler....
    Yep they can be really expensive but there is always offers on Facebook where you can get 6 meals for a tenner, I would never consider one at full price:eek:
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