I have a friend who says cooking for one is impossible and therefore you should not do it?

Question

She also is single. She also says that cooking for one options are very expensive in comparison. She says leftovers are best (especially for lunches the next day, etc) and if you're not used to eating them, you better learn asap. Is this true or not? I hate leftovers with a passion (pizza and spaghetti are the only exceptions) and given the choice between them and not eating, I'll pick not eating everytime. Fixing a meal for 2 or more, especially with leftovers in mind, seems like a huge waste of both money and food. Which of us is right?

Also how would a person train themselves to eat leftovers, much less enjoy them, if they've never been able to in the past?

Answer 1

I don't find cooking for one expencive. I eat alot of pasta and rice.I buy dry pasta and cook individual portions, I buy big re-sealible bottles of tomato sause and alfredo sause. I also eat alot of fruits, which are always individual servings, I buy bagged garden salads, they're re-sealible healthy and last forever in the fridge. I have a few different kinds of dressing for variety.
I buy chicken in bulk, and devide it into individual portions I wrap in plastic wrap.
Bacon and eggs are a nice weekend treat, eggs can be eaten a thousand differnt ways and you can put bacon in the salad or rice just to add something different
Breakfast is easy cerial or oatmeal.
The key to eating is just buying the right things keeping food frozen, and only thawing or cooking the amount you'll eat.

Answer 2

I'm single and I love cooking.

It is very difficult to make a meal for just one, so I don't.

When I cook, I make a meal for 4 (like I'm used to doing) and make up meals in containers and put them in the freezer. That is, if it's a meal that will freeze.

Otherwise, I will ad-lib a meal from leftovers. Its really easy and a lot of fun, too.

If, say, you had spaghetti bolognaise the night before and you have some spaghetti left over....

Put a little oil in a wok or pan and heat it, add some chopped garlic. The steak you had two nights ago gets cut into strips and added to the pan to heat it. Toss in some beans, baby corn, capsicum, grape tomatoes, olives, etc (whatever you have or takes your fancy) and toss them all together.

Now add the spaghetti and a little wine. Toss it all and allow the wine to cook off and the spaghetti to heat through.

You could add some sesame oil at this time if you like...

At the last moment toss in some fresh basil leaves -- just tear them apart and throw them in. Toss it all again to mix through and then put it on your plate. You now have a delicious meal made from leftovers.

The bolognaise sauce you made and is sitting in the freezer gets thawed and added to a pot to heat it up, add some red kidney beans, some chopped capsicum and some chili. Now, make some Nacho's.

The leftover chicken in the refrigerator gets made into chicken tortillas by adding what you need in a wrap. Another quick meal from leftovers.

You dont have to have the same thing that you cooked before. Just make it into something else.

The expensive part of cooking for one is in the buying of the product. Its cheaper to buy a whole something than a four quarter of something. Its the same amount but you pay for the service of cutting into quarters. Plus there is the inevitable waste because you have to buy more than you would eat just to get the variety of foods you need in your diet.

Store it properly in the refrigerator and get imaginative in your cooking. Experiment, even but don't just not cook because someone said it was a waste of time because it's not.

Now, doing this for one might seem like a lot to do just for a meal, but, to me, I am the most important person I know when I'm not in a relationship. Also, you'll keep up your cooking practice for when you do invite someone over...

.

Answer 3

Cooking for one is a nuisance but if you have to, then cook enough for several meals and freeze them and you can pull them out and have them on another day. Don't look at it as eating leftovers, but being economical - saving money and not wasting food. Eating alone is no fun at all either!! Also, think of all the starving people all over the world and you are complaining about eating leftovers!!! Your friend is right!! All the best and God Bless You!!

Answer 4

Cooking for one can be a challenge but it's not impossible. I cook for myself all the time. Here are a few tips;
buy your groceries as you need them, (don't buy a ten pound bag of potatoes).
only buy the portion that you will eat.
Somethings you just can't make in a small batch, a chicken, ham, meatloaf so you have a couple options. Rather than reheating the leftovers, freeze individual portions. You can eat these later and spread them out so you don't have to have the same thing two days in a row. Or you can make something "new" out of the remaining food. Use the chicken or ham to make a simple salad for sandwiches. dice up the chicken and mix with salt, pepper and mayo. Dice up the ham and mix with mayo, mustard and chopped pickles. Easy and good.
Hope this helps.

Answer 5

What absolute rubbish.

I lived alone for years and ate well.
Alter the quantities to suit.
If you get a decent sized piece of stewing steak, cook and flavour to taste. If it is brilliant freeze the leftovers for a later meal.If it is only so-so curry the leftovers.

The same could be done with a roast and could include a cold meat dish with chow-chow, tinned beetroot and so on.

An assortment of frozen veges could be rotated through the week.

Select fresh veges carefully for longevity.
A bag of onions or carrots will last for ages, as will cabbage, cauli corn if properly cared for.

The secret is to buy quantities you can get through in a week. If a cabbage is too big see if you can get a half.

Buy expensive food when they are on special, the same with bulk foods that will keep, just try not to be saddled with having to buy several expensive items in the same week.

Get your self some cook books and look out for ones that have section with "meals for one or two"
In a book for two you just divide the quantities by two


Bon appetito

Answer 6

Well, cooking for one is a bit complicated unless you love those frozen meals for one!!

When you do cook for one you should look at "left overs" a bit differently. First explore your local store and find freezer to microwave containers that you like...maybe even the ones with dividers. When you cook & prepare your plate, do two and freeze the second at once. (use your new purchases) You can freeze just about anything for a couple of weeks/months without a problem if you make sure your freezer is the correct tempture & you take the time to mark each item with a date & contents. To prevent freezer burn make sure that the containers are sealed properly and are made to go in the freezer.

You can cook & freeze for a couple of weeks or even a month then start to use those "fresh frozen meals" on those nights when you are too tired to cook, don't feel well, or just don't want the bother & mess. If you can eat leftover pizza and spaghetti you can do this...it's all about mind set, and what is important to you.

I have a friend that has 10 kids. She gets together once a month with two other ladies with big families and they spend 3 days cooking & assembling meals & freezing them for their families for a month worth of meals at a time. It is a great system & in the long run saves them all time, effort, energy & is easier on her budget. Not to mention she never has to worry about "what's for dinner".

All you have to do is find a system that works for you.

Answer 7

What are you going to do, eat take-out all the time?
That's even more expensive and not healthy for you
.
If you won't eat leftovers, you really are a bit spoiled.
I freeze mine in meal size portions for when I don't want to cook. (Didn't your Mother ever tell you about the starving kids in somewhere far away. I know mine did repeatedly. Maybe that's why you dislike leftovers.)

You can try cutting down the recipe. If it says feeds 4 then quarter the ingredients and follow the recipe as usual.
It's simple. Really, it is.

Answer 8

Cooking for one is an expensive task if you aren't into leftovers. You just have to shop smart. Buy a lot of store brands to cut costs. Try to buy things that have fewer per unit even if it is a little more it cuts back on waste. Make a lot of things from scratch so that you have better control over portions.

Answer 9

I hate leftovers, but I cook for myself at lunch all the time, one trick is I will marinate a few chicken breasts but prepare them differntly for lunch or dinner. I marinate chicken in a mix of honey mustard dressing and a glob of horsradish. For lunch I cook up one chicken breast in olive oil, add a little pasta sauce, 2 tbsp of heavy cream, and then I cook enough pasta for myself, cut up the chicken, combine the chicken, pasta and sauce.

Then for dinner I will take another of the chicken breasts (this can be the next day) and I sautee it in olive oil with a sliced onion, I add a little white wine, chicken broth and salt and pepper, I dash of cream. I serve this with a serving of minute rice and green beans or spinach.

Use your imagination!

Answer 10

If I only had myself to cook for, I would never cook another meal. Now, don't get me wrong, I love to cook, but to just have one to cook for is a waste of time. There are so many restaurants out there now that you can get good deals at, I would eat take out every night. I would probably stock some soups and salad stuff, just for days when I didn't feel like getting out, But I would hit the restaurants all the other times. It would be just as economical. I would save on power, cooking supplies and time. In the long run it would all equal out.