The food and mood cheaply thread

itsthelittlethings

I am going to try and eat better and drink more water as I read it can improve your mood (I get depressed sometimes). The problem is that I don't specifically cooking. Spending hours in the kitchen is not my idea of heaven, I like the result not the process. The other problem is that good food isn't always conducive to money saving. I wondered if anyone was interested in chipping in, sharing ideas, joining along to improve physical and mental health? I see some amazing food on the food thread here and I know there are some very talented chefs around.

First up, how much water should I be drinking? I love coffee so I was thinking of one glass of water to one cup of coffee.

What should I be eating to be in a good mood? I had a nice roast cauliflower dish with zaatar, turmeric yoghurt and pickled shallots tonight.

How do people store their recipes (mine are very simple but I still struggle for inspiration). I am fairly happy to eat a fairly limited cycle of meals but don't have a meal routine. Apps?

Thanks in advance.

joedenise

Do you like things like curries and stews? If you do a slow cooker (SC) is a very good investment and fairly cheap to buy if you need to.

Jacket potatoes can also be cooked in a SC and then frozen and reheated in the microwave. Plenty of topping which don't need cooking like tuna mayo and served with a salad is pretty healthy as well.

itsthelittlethings

I didn't know you can do baked potatoes in a slow cooker? I've never got one as I don't especially like stews but I could happily eat a baked potato every day.

elsien

According to Michael Mosley’s just one thing, it’s a good idea to have a glass of water every time you eat

BridgetTheCat

The recommendation is about 2L of liquid a day, but it doesn’t really matter what the liquid is (except alcohol for obvious reasons). You also get some hydration from food - mainly fruit and vegetables.

gwynlas

2 litres of liquid a day year round but more loke 3 litres during heatwaves.

What type of foods do you enjoy?

Your cauliflower dish sounds quite exotic so you can cook from scratch when you wish to

Loanranger21

If you are drinking enough then your pee will be straw coloured.

PollyWollyDoodle

Have a look at www.zoe.com, you have to search around a bit because obviously they are plugging their app, supplements, but if you find the ‘learn’ section there is a lot of information. Ideally, you should be adding some pulses into your diet, and they are cheap. Try and add lots of different fruit and vegetables.
Frozen veg are usually cheaper and just as nutritious, so that’s a good way to get variety. I buy dried pulses, cook three or four portions at a time and then freeze them. That way you don’t have to plan so far ahead to soak them, cook them etc.

I also usually cook twice, and eat once - so every time I cook there is a spare portion for the freezer. Do this couple of times a week and it soon builds up. At the moment I’m eating a lot of salads, I just chuck in anything in the fridge. Grated carrot, olives, broccoli, any leftover cooked veg as well as the usual lettuce, cucumber, tomato base. If you’re making a salad for a packed lunch, chuck in some frozen sweetcorn or peas and by the time you get to lunch they will have defrosted, there is no need to cook them.
If you don’t really enjoy cooking, try batch cooking or preparing ingredients. E.g. if you make a big tray of roasted vegetables at the start of the week you can use them in different things. Cook some potatoes and then they can be used in potato salad, heated up, roasted etc.

The freezer is really your friend, if you really hate prepping veg, you can buy ready chopped onions or soffrito although of course you’re paying more for them that way.

FlorayG

That's going to ENTIRELY depend on what you consider to be "healthy" eating because everyone has a different definition of that.

I consider I have a healthy diet. I eat meat bought from a local butcher not a supermarket and vegetables in season most of which I grow myself. I very, very rarely eat ready-made food. Other people would say that's not healthy because I don't eat whole grains and pulses...so...make your own decision

Brie

I've unearthed an old 500 ml Sigg bottle from when we used to go hiking a lot and have been filling it and putting it in the fridge so the water is nice and cold. Then I can enjoy it while I'm sitting at the computer. I do normally have a big mug of coffee in the morning, juice in the late afternoon and a mug of herbal tea later in the evening. I normally drink 2 or 3 glasses (250ml?) of water between bedtime and morning. So I put that at about 2 litres daily.

There's nothing the matter with being on a short cycle of meals as long as they are healthy. Jacket potatoes are good and easy. Add some roasted veg or tuna mayo or beans or beside a piece of meat and you're sorted. If you find it easier to buy a mix of salad leaves then great. A pizza cooked and then some added rocket on top is good too. Actually rocket is my leaf of choice as it goes with so many things - on, beside, over, in!!! Spinach leaves are great too - those raw on an opened hot jacket potato with some cheese on top, 5 minutes in the oven to melt the cheese - lovely!!

maman

Pulses are a good, relatively cheap way of getting protein into your diet especially if you are vegetarian or vegan but it's not the only way. Lean meat and eggs can be equally healthy.

Whatever protein you choose needs to be balanced by some carbs and plenty of fruit and veg. Make sure you have enough calcium and fibre.

How you cook the above is also important as the best of ingredients can be made unhealthy by using things like too much fat or salt, sugar or cream etc.

I appreciate @Nelliegrace was having a stroll down memory lane but lifestyles were different then. I'm not saying we shouldn't have an occasional pudding or cake as a treat but definitely not as a regular staple (and certainly not instead of the healthy foods) as most adults don't lead the physical lives people did back then.