Ready meals and living alone

suki1964

sixtiesgal_2 said:

Hi, I live on my own and work full time. I keep trying to cook for myself and I do but I am often tempted to go back to just eating ready meals but the healthy ones from M&S. Do any others do this or is it really bad for you?

I personally don't think any food is bad for you, its just a matter of balance

Mr S worked in London living in digs for a long time. At first he was happy with a takeaway or a pub meal, then he went to ready meals and then he was on the phone to me every night - " how do I cook this "

He cant cook, his digs were a mixture, full use of a house or just a room

So we worked that if he bought the main as a ready meal. then got the steam fresh bags of veg or the wee individual bags of veg from M&S ( other supermarkets are available ) he could get a pretty decently balanced meal, and even he could manage to cook spuds

Now hes back home, he hates ready meals with a vengeance   He still wants to buy them, then when eating them he says they are carp, too salty , too sweet, very pappy etc

I cant even order a Chinese now as he says my cooking is so much better

I myself personally think that when cooking for one, you have to get out of the rut of it has to be meat and veg every night, the cooking for one thread confirms this big time

Theres nothing wrong with coming home and eating something dead quick and easy, an omelette, pasta, a steak. 

Home cooking is as a whole a lot more healthier then a ready meal. Ready meals do tend to be packed with sugars, even the M&S ones, and it does take a while for taste buds to get used to home cooked

But we all do what we have to do and if ready meals fit around your life then carry on. id just say try to eat fresh for the rest of the day

MoonChild91

I cook for one, and it can be a bit of a chore I agree. Sounds like I do what everyone else is recommending and batch cook something on the weekend - curries, chilli, lasagne, and risotto are my favourites, but I also will freeze leftovers if I have enough for another meal and I try to make a batch of pasta sauce every few weeks so I have an easy option for a quick bowl of pasta or can use it in more complicated recipes. I try and make sure I have a couple of things in the house that I can just put in the oven and have with a bit of salad or veg too for when I really can't be bothered. Frozen baked potatoes are a huge time saver and an easy way to have a relatively healthy dinner!