Cooking for one (Mark Three)

melweeks73

Hi, I’m somewhat new here. I’ve lurked on other threads but now I find myself at home on my home after DD2 started university in September. I’m desperately trying to reign my spending in as well as getting over my slight phobia of reheating food and/or using leftovers up. I quite enjoy cooking from scratch but due to my little nuances with food, I usually waste the leftovers. Yes, I am ashamed.

I have a freezer full of meat etc but it’s all been in there for months and months (possibly over a year). I don’t know whether I should bin it as I honestly couldn’t say when it went in there. Or do I just use it all up?

Any advice gratefully received and lots of patience needed lol!!

Stoke

PasturesNew, you're right to be careful with prawns. Swear I've given myself bloody food poisoning today. Too many prawns lately

PasturesNew

melweeks73 wrote: »

..... slight phobia of reheating food and/or using leftovers up.

I have a freezer full of meat etc but it’s all been in there for months and months (possibly over a year). I don’t know whether I should bin it as I honestly couldn’t say when it went in there. Or do I just use it all up?

It's good to have others join in

Two quickies:

1/ We all have phobias, so don't ever feel you need to apologise because you can't/won't do something "because"....

2/ Meat that's frozen for ages is fine/edible... you just need to set your mind to get round to it. SCs are good for that as it's an easy way to just get it over and done with.... but it depends what you've got.

PasturesNew

Stoke wrote: »

PasturesNew, you're right to be careful with prawns. Swear I've given myself bloody food poisoning today. Too many prawns lately

They're evil
Nasty, creepy little things...

Farway

melweeks73 wrote: »

Hi, I’m somewhat new here. I’ve lurked on other threads but now I find myself at home on my home after DD2 started university in September. I’m desperately trying to reign my spending in as well as getting over my slight phobia of reheating food and/or using leftovers up. I quite enjoy cooking from scratch but due to my little nuances with food, I usually waste the leftovers. Yes, I am ashamed.

I have a freezer full of meat etc but it’s all been in there for months and months (possibly over a year). I don’t know whether I should bin it as I honestly couldn’t say when it went in there. Or do I just use it all up?

Any advice gratefully received and lots of patience needed lol!!

Welcome aboard

Shame you're just that bit too far away or I'd take that meat off your hands in a flash
As PN says, just use it, won't poison you but texture just may not be quite same as when fresh, stews, curries, minced is ideal

Caron, yep made the pea fritter type bubble & squeak, it was not as nice I imagined it to be, into the OK category, but that's all the veggie LOs used up, now I can start again

I must have lived somewhere posher than I thought, we never had "scraps" in our chippie, or if there were we never had them. Feeling deprived now, can I claim victim status & compo?:D

Misty start, but warm & sunny now, even summer like

Nothing special to tempt in L's this morning, it's getting worse for YS stuff in there since the new larger one opened in town:(

Lunch was PB baguette, with grilled bacon, lettuce & tom inside

I've taken a salmon fillet out to defrost, which I'll fry in olive oil / butter & have with salad & HM Actifry chips

The burnt pan has been chucked back in the dishwasher, with fingers crossed. It's coming clean slowly, the worst of the carbon is off now:j

PasturesNew

Fish, mash, peas were gorgeous, splash of ketchup added

I am still hankering after sausage rolls though .... but I expect I'll have a "run on fish meals" for some months to come now.

I'd like to get round to filling a giant yorkie with stuff ... but that means buying milk and then fancying the other 3-4 things I have to make to use the milk up

melweeks73

Thank you for making me feel welcome.

Well I did it, I heated up leftovers this evening from yesterday which was a Lancashire Hotpot. I just heated it up slowly on the slow cooker setting of my oven. Funny enough PN I had a solitary giant Yorkshire pud in the freezer so in it went with a pack of steamed veg. Hate to say it but it tasted even better than yesterday straight out of the oven. I have a pack of semolina that’s been lurking for quite a while so making that up for today and tomorrow’s pud. Tomorrow (well really the day after) will be the big test on though on whether I can reheat a chicken dish...

I will get the contents of the freezer used up ��

wort

Mm potato pakoras sounds good Caronc.
I made the potato cake tonight, hadn't thought what to have with it though! ! So had grated cheese tomatoes and onion. It was good just like a remember. I have written it down in case I fancy them again.
In the chippy when I was little batter bits were called scrapings, and a potato slice in batter was called a smack!!!!!! :rotfl:
I have never heard that song but I wasn't in the guides, but don't recall either of my dds singing it.

flubberyzing

OMG. What. A. Day.

This Year One class are THE WORST class I've ever had! :rotfl:
They are absolutely off the wall, bonkers. And not in the fun, quirky way either!

I'm just about managing to laugh about it! Telling myself I've only got 3 days left, and thinking of the money! I will have definitely earned a chippy tea at the end of the week after this! :rotfl: No wonder their usual teacher just didn't turn up one day!

wort

Welcome Mel :beer:
Hotpot and curries etc are often nicer the day after. In fact I was told to make it the day before it was required!
I've kept a turkey in the freezer from one Xmas to the next!!
Making a meal plan might help , also if reheating make sure it's nice and hot all through. Might be worth buying a meat thermometer if you are wary!
I often make twice the amount of veg then I don't have to prep and cook veg twice . And if you cook from fresh left over can go in freezer if you have room.