Food for single person in flat

level200

Hi Guys

I seperated from my wife last week and moved into a flat (Not my fault) The flat has a fridge but with a small freezer compartment at the top.

How can a single bloke eat healthily and plan meals for a budget without a freezer?

Any thoughts?

Also any other tips for a single life on a budget will be great as I was with my wife for 17 years and need to adjust.

Cheers
John

culpepper

I would buy enough meat to last a week or two and separate into portion sizes to keep in the freezer compartment of the fridge.
When we had only a little compartment at the top of our fridge,things could be frozen for 1 month but it depends on the star rating on it.
Cooked meals will be okay in the fridge for about 3 days.
If you are at work all day, it would be worth getting a small slow cooker so that you can come home to a cooked meal.
Good things to have in the cupboard are
Rice
Pasta
Cheap noodles
Tinned fish
Tinned meat of some kind(sausage and beans/ ham / chicken / chipolatas)
Tinned veg e.g. Peas/baked beans/tinned tomatoes/green beans/kidney beans/corn

Also
Potatoes
A bag of onions

Rely on fresh veg where possible then if you are having a day where you cant get to the shop,the tins will save you from thinking about take aways.

You can always cook enough for 3 or 4 days and just change things up a bit with spices or make into a pie or add cheese to keep the cooking to a minimum.

Badger_Lady

I always used to rotate between potato, pasta and rice (all of which can live in the cupboard). Then I'd make some kind of sauce with fresh vegetables etc to go with my chosen carb. Cheap and easy .

HelenYorkshire

Ahh sorry to hear about your situation.
Do you mind me asking whether you work / have time to cook etc and what kind of meals you're used to eating? What are the cooking facilities?

You can do a lot with tinned tuna, microwaved baked spuds etc.
Big tins of things are cheaper as long as you don't mind repeating meals.
I have found big saucepans of stew will last a few days in a fridge, but you must be happy to eat it those few days in a row! Also don't do this if you've made and blended soup, something about mushing it up makes it go off far quicker.
Probably not the season, but if you're into salads a whole lettuce will last longer than those prewashed bags, even better are those "living salads" you can get.

I think I would concentrate on having frozen bags of veg - they are nutritious, you can get the right amount out without wastage, and then there's no excuse for not eating them! If you pass shops regularly you could pop in and see what's on offer in terms of chicken portions etc, maybe freeze the rest of one multipack, then use that up before buying the next multipack?

This is quite tricky, I'm much more used to bulk-cook-and-freeze-it.

Don't forget friends and family!! I'm sure they won't mind the odd pub meal, and it'll be good for you to get out a bit too.

Aside from food, I presume the flat is rented for now? If it's going to be longer term, check out cheapest energy suppliers if you're allowed to switch; in the meantime think about lowering bills by keeping yourself warm - snoop around this board and there'll be all sorts about nice thick curtains, wrapping up in blankets, checking for draughts, "cling filming" single-glazed windows, even little things like keeping doors shut (I'm pretty sure my laptop can heat my teeny living room nicely!).

Remember the bits and bobs like initial meter readings. Not meaning to sound patonising, but having moved a zillion times it's the little things that get forgotten!

All the best

I_luv_cats

I'd suggest getting a 'Student Cookbook' as it gives you so many simple n tasty n cheap food options!! Also tips on ways to go.

squeaky

There's a long thread full of ideas here:- Single Money Saver living on my own

And an even longer one... Saving Money On Food For a SINGLE person


You're likely to need tips on shopping/budgeting/menu-planning and so on... so take a look here: The Complete 'Getting Started' Collection

And a bunch of other threads worth a browse: starting threads here on Old Style MoneySaving

Again you are likely to run into things that absolutely stop you in your tracks - for most things it's a pretty fair bet that we have a thread on it, and if not - just post and ask

On most boards - searching back a month is far enough - but here on Old Style threads don't go out of date. A recipe for pastry isn't going out of date, nor one for your own household cleaner; so to make the best use of the forum search facility have a quick read of our sticky on searching 'cos it can help a lot, honest

lovetopaint

Depending on space and budget, you could try looking for a 'table top freezer' or 'counter top freezer' on ebay. I would struggle without a freezer. Wish you all the best.

triticale

I also live in a flat with a similar fridge and 'frzr' (like a freezer, only tiny!).

You can still batch cook for yourself, it just has to be done differently. For example, I make a batch of bolognese sauce that serves 4-5 and put each portion in a small ziplock bag, Laying these flat in the frzr means you can stack without taking loads of space. Chilli and stews/casseroles can be done the same.

I also do the same for rice, cook a 'family' portion, bag flat in single portions and stack in frzr.

Avoid the freezer sections of supermarkets though - one bag of oven chips and the frzr will be filled and useless! Also keep it free from frosty buildups - if it's starts getting iced up then you'll lose space rapidly.

Big_Hairy_Spider

"How can a single bloke eat healthily and plan meals for a budget without a freezer?"

Having been through the same, it's not as daunting as you think. I could cook already (my ex was lousy) so knew my way round the kitchen, When we split, I had the house but she cleaned out every room. She'd never used most of the stuff in the kitchen (nor knew how to) so really did start again from scratch.

The first thing to accept is that we're blokes. Planning meals? Err . . . we don't do that. Even with the best intent I doubt if it will work. Imho, spontaneity works better.

For 3 months I couldn't afford a fridge. My money was going into the divorce. On the food front it was a case of buy it & use it, or lose it.

On a budget - down the supermarket about 9pm - cheaper bread, diary, perishables on stuff reaching their sell by date. At the market be prepared to barter, becoming more bolder and brazen the nearer it was to closing time, you'll pick up stuff alot cheaper. I used to pester traders but always made sure I paid something even if it was nominal or a token payment. I never took for free - the next week they will remember you and won't be so guarded. I found I got fresher stuff and cheaper at the same time. I didn't think I could do it but surprised myself what I could do.

Keep a basic larder of eggs, flour, bread, half a dozen herbs, puree, olive oil, and then whatever is cheap. Learn to make bread. Learn to make pastry. Learn to make basic sauces. ( I can see reprisal for my we're blokes . . . we don't do that comment but . . .) Seriously, you'll save a fortune. I couldn't really afford proper meat and wasn't prepared to compromise with cheap processed offal/meat so made do with veggie meals and fish. Thats something I've never really changed since.

Be prepared to improvise (!) The first couple of weeks were the hardest, but I look back on those dark days with immense pride. It was wierd but having to go to the supermarket regularly, almost daily, improved my socal life. I met people I hadn't seen for yonks, started seeing them again. This opened up all sorts - unexpected too. I've since met some one else (who really can cook, but, never as good as me) and my ex's affairs had come back to haunt.

Good luck

daggy

I always find that mince is a very good meat so far as longevity (in the fridge) and versatility go.

I usually make up a large batch of ragu (bolognese); this is better slow cooked, but is also nice if you cook it quickly.

The bonus of bolognese is it gets better the longer it sits. I usually find it's good to eat for up to five days if kept in the fridge.

You can easily chuck in some kidney beans and spices on the second day and have a chilli; you can also have it as mince and dumplings and if you think ahead, you can keep some mince back and make it into burgers or meatballs.

I find that this recipe by heston blumenthal is good, but I don't follow it strictly. I also found this recipe and I tried adding honey, it does seem to go well...

mix and match is the nameof the game, baby!!

spike7451

Single bloke here as well!..Have a look on Freecycle or Gumtree for a cheap tabletop freezer first off.
Keep meats & perishables at the back of the fridge where it's the coldest,that will help them last longer obviously.Sausages are a must,they can be used for sausage casserole or breakfast.My local pound shop sells packets of bacon for a quid that last me a week,far better value than buying from the supermarket.
Make friends with your local butcher,I'll go into mine & ask for a fistful of mince,pork,ect that is enough for one.Batch cook a base of mince beef/chicken,peppers,onions ect then add spices ect for a curry or bolognaise.
Invest in some of those baggie clips so that if you buy a packet of Chili Con Carne mix,you only need to use half of it,then seal the unused spices & reuse next week.
Don't buy a bag of spuds,they'll just sprout so buy 4 or 5 large ones loose for chipping/mash ect.One large spud does me a meal.Store cupboard staples are things like Oxo cubes,Pilau Rice,Risotto Rice,Light Soy sauce,salt & pepper,ect.
Good luck.