Cooking for one

PasturesNew

Eating lunch now

EDIT 11.54: And finished and also done ALL the washing up too

EDIT For Photo: Here it is https://postimg.org/image/um935bc13/

EDIT for comment: I would say ... this is a MASSIVE meal - I just emptied the mixed veg bag, rather than putting a little bit back in the freezer. Didn't need TWO yorkshires, got half way through and thought "piggy, you didn't need all this".

Twas lovely though. Nice Bisto gravy on that.

PasturesNew

LameWolf wrote: »

... if you're at a free-for-all type buffet, unless you're a veggie with sharp elbows, what tends to happen is by the time you get to the buffet table, the meat-eaters have snaffled all the veggie food because "that looks interesting, let's give it a try".

They do that at pre-ordered dinners too, I've heard of it happening at works' dos where somebody's changed their mind since ordering weeks before, then when the waitresses shout out "vegetarian" they stick their hand up .... and it's only when the last veggie says "where's my meal?" that the waitress stands there with a steak pudding saying "I've only got this steak pudding". Many savvy organisers print out the list of what people ordered, under the guise of "in case you forgot", but to help minimise a cheeky f3cker thinking they can get away with it and nobody will notice.

LameWolf wrote: »

Am I the only person who never has take-away, and who actively dislikes eating out, btw?

Well, I like a good takeaway - say 1-2x a year would be nice, but it's less frequent than that as I feel I can't justify the £8 cost, plus having to go and collect it, for what's increasingly a poor product.

For eating out, there are 1-2 things I would do - e.g. All you Can Eat Carvery, max £8 ... or a pub meal where I knew they served food I could choose at a price I am prepared to pay ... and can avoid paying for those who want to "split the bill". As a rule, I will have a pub meal about 1-2x a year. I've never been to a "posh/proper restaurant".

firebubble

Interesting thread! These are my tips eating for one:

- Bread - always in the freezer, and just get out what you need. I don't eat bread every day, and if not a loaf will go mouldy and be wasted before you can eat it.
- Onions/garlic and any veg you use regularly: buy your normal bag, then do one big chopping session and freeze in ziplock bags...when you need to use, break off whatever you need. This not only saves money because you can buy a kilo bag of value onions rather a single full price one, but as most recipes start with 'chop onion/garlic, when you feel you can't be bothered to cook, eliminating the first faffy step will often start you off.
- Give up the idea of eating a different main meal seven days a week...there are too many ingredients (some ingredients can't be scaled down from serving 2 or 4, it's expensive to have cupboards of half used pots of this and that (which will probably go off)...I pick out 3 meals to serve two each week, then cook both portions, and eat one that day, and reheat the following day. For me this means that only having to cook every other day means I can factor in days when I just can't be bothered to cook (and wash up!). It also means my food still has a proper texture, rather than defrosted mush, which gets boring very fast and leads to snacking on crunchy, crispy things...
- Batch cooking and freezing ended up being really wasteful for me - I'd eat maybe one or two portions and then the dish started to get freezer burnt and unappealing. Also doing a lot of this will mean that your diet becomes all soupy stews...mushy food. It stops being satisfying really quickly.
- Having a hot, nourishing meal once a day stops me picking and snacking.
- I love eggs - I usually boil a few at a time, then write 'boiled' on the shell, and keep in the fridge until I want to eat them.
- Don't be afraid to look at more expensive supermarkets for nicer ideas and ingredients...if you're shopping for one, most cheap supermarket 'value' deals are based around getting more food for 'less' money, but as you're not buying those quantities, you'll find you won't be buying the stuff with the 'savings', even at places like Lidl. I found my grocery bill (eating lots of fruit and veg) never really drops below 40 quid or so a week, regardless of where I shop. And yes, I could eat toast and peanut butter all week and spend 10 quid, but that leads to a horribly joyless existence when food should be a pleasure.
- Lakeland half size slow cooker is a godsend, it just cooks two portions. Well worth the investment.
- Get yourself a smaller saucepan and frying pan if you only have family sized kit.

Nelski

PasturesNew wrote: »

Eating lunch now

EDIT 11.54: And finished and also done ALL the washing up too

EDIT For Photo: Here it is https://postimg.org/image/um935bc13/

EDIT for comment: I would say ... this is a MASSIVE meal - I just emptied the mixed veg bag, rather than putting a little bit back in the freezer. Didn't need TWO yorkshires, got half way through and thought "piggy, you didn't need all this".

Twas lovely though. Nice Bisto gravy on that.

That looks gorgeous and very healthy too :T

Wishing my dinner friends were not veg now and I could have done a roast dinner Having said that fish pies looking nice Ill take a pic when they are done

karcher

PasturesNew wrote: »

When you get canteens, that have three main course choices, I've never understood why only one was a veggie choice. If I were in charge I'd sneak in two at least twice a week. After all, what's the difference to most people if there's cheese/cheese&onion quiche rather than one with ham/bacon bits in it?

Meat eaters have three choices, veggies only one... and it wouldn't be hard to make a veggie dish that "presented like a meat dish" so it wouldn't even be noticed.

Catering for buffets is always the same. You can guarantee that the meat eaters will dive for the veggie options, which are under catered for, and leave the veggies with the option of, well, [STRIKE]sweet FA[/STRIKE] nothing.

Why not make the whole thing veggie with a couple of token meet offerings as the meat eaters only seem to want the veggie stuff:(

And I speak from experience as I was a non meat eater for 32 years!!

flubberyzing

I've been feeding myself alone for about 8 years now. I've never quite got it down to the fine art that some of you seem to have, but I get by!
My weekly food bill is about £20 a week, plus or minus a bit depending on what the cupboard and freezer already look like.

I go through phases of ready meals, and then don't bother with them again for ages. In my experience, they are actually quite economical for a single person, but they get boring quite quickly! At the moment I have one a week on the night I go out to choir. I only have about 45 minutes from getting in from work to having to leave, and don't get back until after 9pm, so a quick ready meal is a good choice that day.

Generally though, I do like to cook, but I work long hours and just don't have the energy during the week for much more than "whack it in the oven" or "boil some pasta". During the holidays I cook a lot more, and do most things from scratch.

I also do a "cheats roast dinner" maybe every other month. It's not cheap, but works well as a treat. I'll buy 2 giant yorkies, a few spuds, a bit of veg and some proper sliced meat. Then that'll do me two roast dinners over a couple of days. Probably £6-7 a meal, but easy and worth it for that "roast dinner fix".

My slow cooker also does a blindin' spag bol!

moneyistooshorttomention

karcher wrote: »

Catering for buffets is always the same. You can guarantee that the meat eaters will dive for the veggie options, which are under catered for, and leave the veggies with the option of, well, [STRIKE]sweet FA[/STRIKE] nothing.

Why not make the whole thing veggie with a couple of token meet offerings as the meat eaters only seem to want the veggie stuff:(

And I speak from experience as I was a non meat eater for 32 years!!

I've sometimes seen the "bring and share" meals where people have been told "Only bring vegetarian food". That way - in theory at any rate - everyone can eat everything. There's always one or two dimbos that weren't listening and bring something with meat in anyway:mad: - but at least it means the majority of the food is suitable for everyone.

caronc

firebubble wrote: »

Interesting thread! These are my tips eating for one:

- Bread - always in the freezer, and just get out what you need. I don't eat bread every day, and if not a loaf will go mouldy and be wasted before you can eat it.
- Onions/garlic and any veg you use regularly: buy your normal bag, then do one big chopping session and freeze in ziplock bags...when you need to use, break off whatever you need. This not only saves money because you can buy a kilo bag of value onions rather a single full price one, but as most recipes start with 'chop onion/garlic, when you feel you can't be bothered to cook, eliminating the first faffy step will often start you off.
- Give up the idea of eating a different main meal seven days a week...there are too many ingredients (some ingredients can't be scaled down from serving 2 or 4, it's expensive to have cupboards of half used pots of this and that (which will probably go off)...I pick out 3 meals to serve two each week, then cook both portions, and eat one that day, and reheat the following day. For me this means that only having to cook every other day means I can factor in days when I just can't be bothered to cook (and wash up!). It also means my food still has a proper texture, rather than defrosted mush, which gets boring very fast and leads to snacking on crunchy, crispy things...
- Batch cooking and freezing ended up being really wasteful for me - I'd eat maybe one or two portions and then the dish started to get freezer burnt and unappealing. Also doing a lot of this will mean that your diet becomes all soupy stews...mushy food. It stops being satisfying really quickly.
- Having a hot, nourishing meal once a day stops me picking and snacking.
- I love eggs - I usually boil a few at a time, then write 'boiled' on the shell, and keep in the fridge until I want to eat them.
- Don't be afraid to look at more expensive supermarkets for nicer ideas and ingredients...if you're shopping for one, most cheap supermarket 'value' deals are based around getting more food for 'less' money, but as you're not buying those quantities, you'll find you won't be buying the stuff with the 'savings', even at places like Lidl. I found my grocery bill (eating lots of fruit and veg) never really drops below 40 quid or so a week, regardless of where I shop. And yes, I could eat toast and peanut butter all week and spend 10 quid, but that leads to a horribly joyless existence when food should be a pleasure.
- Lakeland half size slow cooker is a godsend, it just cooks two portions. Well worth the investment.
- Get yourself a smaller saucepan and frying pan if you only have family sized kit.

Hi firebubble thanks for the tips. I've not had a great deal of success freezing bread not sure why. Yes once I get some space in my freezer I fully intend to make the contents more solo diner friendly and chop up lots of core veg. I actually find batch cooking is working ok for me at the moment and it's not all grey mushy stuff. Kitcken kit wise I'm ok but good to see a baby SC recommended I think one is definitely going on my wish list. I do like to eat varied meals though don't mind occaisionally having something a couple of times in a row. It's interesting how us solo diners have different approaches to feeding ourselves

Karcher - completely agree I'd be quite happy with veggie/vegan options with a token meat-based dish

PN - your meal looked lovely if I hadn't just eaten bacon and eggs I would happily scoff the lot:D

iammumtoone

shopping list:
Butchers: 1 piece liver, 3 sausages, 1 pork chop
Supermarket: 6 part baked rolls or small loaf bread, tin tomatoes, mushrooms, onion, tin sardines, two jacket pots, one fresh tomato, pack stuffing mix, eggs, pack bacon.
Store cupboard: Pasta, cheese, frozen veg, milk, flour

Monday
snack: egg sandwich
main meal: Pasta with Pasta sauce made with tin tomatoes. mush,onion, frozen veg, sardines (note I like this you could substitute tuna) take out some plain tomato based sauce before adding extras

Tuesday
Snack: Sardine/tuna sandwich left over from Monday
Main Meal: Liver topped with stuffing (use half pack) and bacon. Skin of jacket pot save insides filled with frozen veg. serve with tomato sauce from Monday

Wednesday
Snack: Bacon and fresh tomato sandwich
Main Meal: two sausages (cook three), Mash using inside of jacket pot from Tuesday, frozen veg, stuffing balls use rest of mix from Tuesday, onion gravy.

Thursday
Snack: sausage and stuffing sandwich
Main Meal: Pork chop, mushroom sauce, rice, frozen veg

Friday
Snack: Cheese Sandwich
Main Meal; Omelette (2 eggs) use up rest of onion, bacon and mushrooms. Potato wedges made with the other jacket pot.

I make that I am left with 3 eggs and 1 part baked roll/some bread.

Please feel free to pick apart and point out my mistakes (I am sure they are a few, PN I am expecting you to be good at this :rotfl:) It was actually quite difficult to do (a lot of thinking, I'm not used to it :rotfl:) not something I would want to be doing every week.

I will follow my plan but it wont be for a while as I am working long hours for the next three weeks so will be eating from the canteen so it wont work as I need a week I have time to prepare sandwiches.

PasturesNew

iammumtoone wrote: »

Please feel free to pick apart and point out my mistakes .... PN I am expecting you to be good at this

What ARE you suggesting?


I CBA to read through it to be honest. It wasn't my 'challenge' (hate that word with a passion ... and passion is another word I hate), so I don't feel guilty.

I switched off when I saw your shopping list

Liver ewwww..... chops ewwwww ... bacon ewwww ... sardines ewwwww


EDIT: I had a quick look, you forgot to buy the rice you'd expect to eat on Thursday.