Have Lost My Desire To Cook Meals
Judy
3 years ago
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Elmer J Fudd
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoaok27502
3 years agoRelated Discussions
Favorite cook for one meals/food shopping tips?
Comments (13)I agree its not only hard cooking for one its hard to eat healthy and not waste money and food especially on fresh fruits and veggies. I think it takes some thought and (my pitfall) a lot of planning since often when you buy something its more than you can eat and doesn't always freeze well by itself. So if you buy a big stalk of broccoli, separate some for eating and make a casserole for freezing, or certainly try to figure which is cheaper, frozen or fresh?. A bag of applies for fresh fruit may be a better deal than single applies but can't eat the whole bag before mushy? Make pie for freezing. Eggs on sale? Again, eat some fresh then make something freezable (is quiche freezable?) A couple of thoughts, Rachael Ray always mentions when using frozen spinach what a good deal it is since you get so much packed in the box for the price. Its good for you so you could google casseroles with spinach (I had a friend in college with no money, he ate one meal a day, spaghetti and spinach). Also lentils, and beans are high in protein and all sorts of good for you things. Back in the day people only ate meat a couple of times a week and ate things like lentils flavored with a chunk of salt pork or soup bone. Dr. Oz on Oprah was just talking about this very thing, cut back on meat and eat more lentils and beans (actually I think his wife is a vegetarian) You can search these forums, I'd search the cooking forum and even ask this question there for favorite recipes (actually I think there was a recent thread on depression food). You can check your library for older cookbooks, the kind that don't use a bunch of expensive ingredients. I imagine there are books on eating on a budget too. You might also keep your eyes out for someone in a similar situation - perhaps you can buy some things in bulk and split them. Last, you might look at the rest of your budget, how much do you spend on cleaning supplies when baking soda and vinegar would work? Do you have an Aldi's near you?...See MoreFirst meal cooked in unfinished kitchen!
Comments (10)caroline...yeah it wasn't easy running back and forth to the garage searching for some items, but I made do with what I could find! I will keep posting for newbies...but I am definitely not a newbie and I LOVE to peek at everyones kitchen! pbrisjar...that's pretty cool the way the flash did that little bling on that photo! rhome...I agree the spacing of the cabs feels just right and I am looking forward to that pantry! Thanks all for the cheers! vic...See MoreWhat do you cook for just yourself? (aka Meals for One)
Comments (10)It's really hard to suggest something without having some idea of what types of things he likes. My dad was a very fussy eater. When my mother died there was a similar situation. Not motivated is a good way to put it, but let's face it. He's probably still grieving and just doesn't really feel like eating and I assume cooking is a foreign concept to him. I know some people go crazy at the idea of convenience foods but isn't it better than nothing? What about a local deli? Get a rotisserie chicken and some side dishes. Pick up (or make) a turkey breast, small ham, roast or something and have some nice sandwiches. There's some decent canned soups, stews, chili, etc, even canned potatoes, veggies and the like. I take it he never has had to cook for himself? Perhaps therein lies the problem. Too often people try to force someone to make overly fancy "nutritious" meals when it's far better to start slow with something he'll feel confident making for himself. Maybe it's nothing more than a fried hamburger, a bagged salad, some instant potatoes and the like. Then maybe someone can show him how easy it is to take that hamburger, mix it with some cooked pasta, add some tomatoes and seasoning and you have a completely different dish. Then sometime, now that you know how to cook pasta, take some of the leftover chicken, mix it in instead of hamburger, etc. Another thing comes to mind is a crockpot or a Nesco roaster. Pot roast, potatoes, onions, carrots... chicken, or a turkey breast (or drumsticks if he likes dark meat, a small ham. Many people are apprehensive about a microwave. If you know how to use one, they're useful, but I don't rate it as a great cooking appliance. It's a utensil. I think a crockpot, Nesco or even a good set of cookware (non-stick - easy to clean) is a far better investment. But if you go with a microwave, definitely get the dial version. Someone new to cooking will be intimidated by having to program in the software code for Mecroshaft Wanders in order to heat a can of soup! An idea for an appliance that I use a lot is a convection oven. Mine is one of the simple little ones that's like a big glass dutch oven and the heat unit is in the cover. You set it on top and set the time and temp, flip down the handle and you're cooking. This is a mini oven. It bakes fabulous potatoes, makes pizza rolls in 6 minutes, warms things and you put a few quarts of water in it, add a couple drops of dish liquid and turn it on warm for a few minutes and it splashes ir around and pretty much cleans itself. OK, you do scrub it a bit if something is burned on, but especially when it's new it's not a problem and you can always line it with foil. I do that and cook bacon in it. It came with a second level rack to do 2 things but the hot stuff will be on top. I use it on one level. I've been known to use this together with the microwave and the stove to make a meal. One of my points that's maybe getting lost is to sit down and figure out what things he likes and doesn't like. How much time does he have, how much experience he has, etc. Then work on fitting some things in. And the first time you have one part of a plate cold while the other side is overcooked in a microwave, you'll soon quit using a microwave for cooking. Low and slow and you can keep an eye on things. And run less risk of burning, overcooking or failure in general. I'll say from experience, a SIMPLE, home made, or semi-homemade meal is FAR superior than the McDonald's drivethru. Tater tot hotdish may send chills up some peoples' spines but compared to what Mayor McCheese puts out... I'll take tater tots! Another thought, bacon & eggs? Omelets? Fritatta? Even a platter of sausage, cheese, veggie sticks and the like can be an enjoyable meal. There's times I just don't feel like cooking. But I will slice some sausage and cheese. Or take some bagged salad, add some cheese, tear up some deli meats and have a pseudo chef's salad. Especially with summer here pasta salads are good eats. Don't overlook good quality hot dogs or sausage. Brown & serve sausage and eggs, with a side of Simply Potatoes? Another thought for ideas is to look at the TV dinners he's getting. That should give an idea of what he likes. And you're more willing to learn to make something you LIKE than something you SHOULD eat. Again, I think it's more important that he get a start than to worry about it being the nutrionally perfectly balanced meal. Face it, this country doesn't eat right and we won't change that overnight. BTW, does he take vitamins? That might be a good idea. I've been cooking for one person for over 30 years. (OK occasionally 2 and for a little while more but that wasn't long). Groceries aren't sold for one person cooking but it's getting better. You can buy potatoes, onions and some things individually now but a head of cabbage, head of lettuce, stalk of celery, etc, and of course the 20# turkeys, 5# roasts, meat sold in bulk packs, etc, get real. But I digress. I'm just trying to say that for a first time cook it can be intimidating. Nuff of that. I'm hoping this is some help. I'll go through some of my menu idea lists and post back some of the things I have on there for ideas. Good luck!...See MoreYour Sunday meal! What's cooking?
Comments (38)I had breakfast out with my family this morning. Everybody else got their eggs bacon and pancakes. I had poached eggs and a side of veggies. All was yummy. For lunch I had a lovely shrimp sandwich on rye bread. For dinner I had whole grain fettuccine pasta with zucchini tomato and spices sauce and some cheese on top. Both were delicious. I don't have room for the fruit and yogurt so will have that tomorrow....See Morebpath
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Elmer J Fudd