Food ideas for those that live/cook alone

[KestrelLowing]

I, like many others, cook alone. I don't actually live alone as I do have house-mates, but we don't cook together. I thought it might be helpful for everyone to pass along those meals that work particularly well for people who cook alone. It always seems much harder for me to cook for just myself.

Here are some of the things I tend to do

• Pasta - just cook how much you need and top with sauce - either homemade and then frozen in ice-cube trays (so you can thaw just a small amount) or sauce from a jar
• Breakfast - I do a lot of 'breakfast for supper' - so eggs, frozen sausage (I only thaw what I want or cut it into appropriate portions before freezing), frozen hash browns (so you can cook only what you want), or bisquick pancakes, etc.
• Fancified Grilled cheese - basically grilled cheese with a couple of cheeses (I usually use provolone and colby as I have colby around for general eating and provolone for sandwiches) and maybe some extra stuff - I like pesto and sometimes will throw some spinach in there if I've got it. Tomato's another popular one, but I'm just not a big fan of tomatoes. During the winter I'll also have one of those "soup to go" tomato soups as that's the perfect size for me
• Chicken and rice in a loaf pan - I like the standard chicken and rice casserole, but a standard casserole is waaay too big for me (and I'm not a huge fan of eating the same thing 4 times in a row) but if you scale down the recipe and use a bread pan instead, you've got a more acceptable size
• Soup - if you make a nice big pan of soup and then freeze it (I use pint plastic freezer boxes) you can have actually good soup with one serving size opposed to the not as tasty canned soup
• Salad - this one is always easy

Anyone else have stuff they like to cook when you're the only one eating?

(I'm hoping for more... normal stuff than the "single people eat weird things..." thread)

[Nath]

Most of my cooking nowadays is fairly unadventurous -- some kind of meat and some kind of frozen vegetable. The vegetable is often spinach or broccoli, heated in the microwave in a splash of water, drained, seasoned, and dressed in some kind of fat (olive oil or butter) and some kind of vinegar. A bit of grated parmesan or some red pepper flakes can help. Or sometimes I finish it in a pan with some garlic lightly toasted in butter.

The meat may be a cheap steak (flat iron or top blade), or store-bought chicken meatballs, or pork chops, or fish cakes (with canned fish). Burgers, chicken patties or fish cakes can also be eaten in sandwich form, with the vegetable side.

When I have more time, I usually make some sort of stew or curry. Onion and tomato base, whatever spices feel appropriate, and a can of beans, or some frozen chicken thighs, and maybe some spinach. Or sometimes chili, which follows a similar pattern. With or without beans, tomatoes and beer. Sometimes fish curry, though that's pretty rare, since good curry-suitable fish is kind of pricey.

I used to eat a lot of pasta, with store-bought tomato sauce and a can of tuna, or some browned ground meat. Nowadays I try to treat carbs as side-dish fare, rather than planning the meal around them. I also occasionally used to make risotto, but I found it kind of a one-note meal.

Another option when I feel a cold coming on is hot pot. Dashi (from powder), whatever vegetables are handy, a splash of mirin, a splay of soy, a splash of vinegar, some kind of meat, and sliced chillies. You can throw in some rice or a pack of ramen to round it out.

Right now, I'm about to cook up a late night meal of store-bought smoked chicken sausages, with scrambled eggs, frozen potatoes, and diced tomatoes. Might have some oatmeal with blueberries for dessert.

PS. Throw some kimchi or Indian pickles into your next grilled cheese.

[PAstrychef]

I do things like lasagna in small foil pans which I freeze, so I can cook up one piece of lasagna at at time. It helps that I have loads of freezer space.
Soup in the freezer is better than money in the bank, according to my Aunt Ruth. Cook up a pot of rice, and you can add it to any soup, make stir-fry from the odd bits in the fridge, make rice omelets, rice pudding, top it with any flavor gravy, etc. It will last about a week, and it's there, which is useful.
Buying some stuff from the salad bar at the grocery can be very cost effective if it's relatively expensive stuff, and you otherwise have to get so much that some rots in the fridge.

[poxic]

My latest trick is to buy a few days' worth of veggies and wash/chop them into stir-fry-sized pieces as soon as I'm home. Veggies that take longer to cook should be in smaller pieces. Dump the chopped bits into a storage container or big plastic bag and bung that inna fridge. If you eat animal parts, do the same with those (keep in a different dish from the veggies). If you bought onions, also keep the chopped onions in a separate container, and well sealed so you don't have Onion Fridge.

When it's food time, heat a little oil and/or butter in a pan and add some of the onion (and garlic/spices, if you want them). Toss in some animal parts if you got 'em. When those are nearly done, in go some already-chopped veggies. Sauce can go in shortly -- bottles of hoisin, black bean, and so forth can last quite a while. When all is done, transfer to plate and Dinner Like a Sir/Madame.

(Bonus: you can often rinse the pan in hot water for a few seconds immediately after plating the food, while it's still easy to clean. Don't put cold water in a sizzling-hot pan, and probably don't do this if the pan is non-stick since it could discombobulate the pan.)

[Bakemaster]

My old college standby was always either stir-fry and rice or black beans and rice. Brings back memories.

[PhoenixEnigma]

My go-to quick, easy, and fairly cheap meal is to throw a cup of minute rice, a cup of water (broth works, too, if you're so inclined) and a good sized handful of frozen vegetables (broccoli and cauliflower is good) in a bowl, and throw it in the microwave for ~7 minutes. Toss in some tuna (or other protein - there ought to be a way to work an egg in somehow), and splash with something like soya sauce if you want. I'm not sure I'd recommend living off of it, but it's a nice lazy meal.

[KestrelLowing]

...
Buying some stuff from the salad bar at the grocery can be very cost effective if it's relatively expensive stuff, and you otherwise have to get so much that some rots in the fridge.

Oooh, really good point. I've always got problems in using things up before they go bad. Another good way of buying just bits of things is to try to find a farmer's market/roadside stand in your area. While sometimes things come in set quantities, often they don't and you can just get what you need. Also, you can usually talk to the farmer to get something in a smaller portion.

[mosc]

Texas style chilli. Meat, meat, with some meat. Works best with lean beef but fatty turkey works well (keeping in mind fatty turkey is still pretty damn lean). Ground chicken can work but you'll have to add sauce. Brown up a pound of meat, dump out excess fat (leave what doesn't drain easily) and add super cheapy canned blando tomato sauce. As little as possible (4-8oz per pound of meat). Season the shit out of it. If you want to do it mosc style, chop up a cayenne pepper, add 1oz of chilli pouder, add black and white pepper, add peprika, add red pepper flakes, add a tablespoon of hotsauce too hot for your to eat straight. Bring the sauce/meat to a simmer for like 5 minutes, don't burn it into your pain. It's a great main course one night and then a side dish or snack another two times. Perfect easy venue for getting your favorite assortment of spices into your mouth as efficently as possible.

Beans can be added if your a sissy. Try habenero's instead.

[The Moomin]

I've never really got into the swing of freezing food if I make more than one portion, I'll tend to eat similar meals over a period of days.

For example, if I make a big dish of chilli, the meals could go like:

Day 1: Chilli in wraps with fresh lettuce, cheese and sour cream.
Day 2: Chilli and baked potato.
Day 3: Chilli with nachos/rice.

Or if I make a tomato based sauce to have with pasta, I'll also try using it prepare lasagne, or maybe add chilli powder one day to spice it up.

Essentially, it's all about rolling the meals into each other.

[CorruptUser]

Boiled lentils and rice is my default if I have nothing else. I prefer red lentils. Also, sometimes lentil soup with onion, carrot, and celery mixed in. Grilled cheese is also an option, as is tuna casserole. Sometimes I'll sautee vegetables and make rice. Peas (frozen or fresh, NEVER canned) and carrots work too, with lots of taragon. Hotdogs too, but I should avoid those and just get chicken thighs or ground beef. I had a crockpot that I'd use for cheap cuts of beef, with various vegetables thrown in as well as lentils, barley, beans, and/or rice depending on what I had available. My mashed potatoes with onions and mushrooms always came out wrong for some reason I couldn't figure out.

[pkcommando]

I've never really got into the swing of freezing food if I make more than one portion, I'll tend to eat similar meals over a period of days.

For example, if I make a big dish of chilli, the meals could go like:

Day 1: Chilli in wraps with fresh lettuce, cheese and sour cream.
Day 2: Chilli and baked potato.
Day 3: Chilli with nachos/rice.

Or if I make a tomato based sauce to have with pasta, I'll also try using it prepare lasagne, or maybe add chilli powder one day to spice it up.

Essentially, it's all about rolling the meals into each other.

For my chili, it's just chili in small dishes for lunch at work. In the evenings, I crumble tortilla chips into the bottom of bowl. Then I top with the chili, zap it in the microwave and then top w/ either ranch dressing or sour cream. It's quite nice and by splitting it up like that, I've somehow tricked myself into not feeling like I'm eating the same meal every day.

When I'm making the chili I just use the jars of pasta sauce to save time. There are some nice ones with garlic and Italian sausage that work really well w/ chili once you add the rest of the chili ingredients, especially a can of diced tomatoes if you don't go w/ the chunkier sauces. The sweet sausage of the sauce works well w/ a lot of different meats.

As for other meal options living on my own:
I've found Asian markets sometimes have big bags of the plain Ramen bricks, like 16 noodle bricks together. Cook one and toss a steam-in-bag broccoli pack in the microwave. Top with your own assortment of spices/sauces, sesame seeds, and crushed peanuts (unless allergic, obviously). Reuse the leftover broccoli as a side dish for a few more nights, or just make the noodle dish again while experimenting w/ different spice/sauce combinations.

In the Poor People Eat Strange Things thread, I listed a recipe for a mac & cheese/potato/spam casserole that tastes better than it sounds. Using a can of beans instead of spam works well, but the beans can end up a little drier.

[ahammel]

Boiled lentils and rice is my default if I have nothing else.

Toss some cinnamon, cloves and allspice in with the rice and lentials, and then add a whole lot of caramelized onions when it's done and you've got yourself a pretty kickass dish right there.

[litcrit42]

I've never really got into the swing of freezing food if I make more than one portion, I'll tend to eat similar meals over a period of days.

For example, if I make a big dish of chilli, the meals could go like:

Day 1: Chilli in wraps with fresh lettuce, cheese and sour cream.
Day 2: Chilli and baked potato.
Day 3: Chilli with nachos/rice.

Or if I make a tomato based sauce to have with pasta, I'll also try using it prepare lasagne, or maybe add chilli powder one day to spice it up.

Essentially, it's all about rolling the meals into each other.

I do this too - like many people who live alone and don't eat a lot, I guess! I actually made chili last week: I added in a bunch of different beans and olives, so it's almost a whole meal (okay, once I add cheese and sour cream.) Before that, I made a gigantic casserole dish of homemade macaroni and cheese, and tossed in half a bag of frozen peas to make it a "real meal."

One of my very favorite "cheap n' lazy" dinners is calzones. I buy a 75-cent pizza dough pouch at the grocery store, and it makes enough dough for two calzones: and half a calzone is enough for dinner, for me. Add some sauce, some cheese, some pepperoni or salami, more cheese, egg the edges and pinch 'em together, cut some air vents, then hey-presto: Ten minutes in a 500-degree oven and I've got dinner for four days!

But pasta is always a good fallback option. I've always got about three different kinds of macaroni floating around my pantry...

To any of you who get "lunch hours," what do you tend to do for lunch? That's when I really struggle, since I don't eat lunchmeat or bread fast enough to keep sandwich ingredients around. And I don't always have the option of a microwave, or I'd just do leftovers. Other than eating out, do you guys have any favorite solutions for an hour or half-hour lunch break?

[KestrelLowing]

To any of you who get "lunch hours," what do you tend to do for lunch? That's when I really struggle, since I don't eat lunchmeat or bread fast enough to keep sandwich ingredients around. And I don't always have the option of a microwave, or I'd just do leftovers. Other than eating out, do you guys have any favorite solutions for an hour or half-hour lunch break?

Well, what I do is buy lunch meat from the deli counter (usually a third or quarter pound makes 2 sandwiches for me) and rolls from the bakery for my sandwiches. You can buy 2-3 rolls many places so it works out quite well.

Another thing is that I have a thermos (this one, specifically). I use it for cold and hot food and it works great. In the winter I eat a lot of soup and bring along some crackers as well. One of my favorites to take along is to make cornbread muffins and chili. Most of the time I use canned chili (I know, blasphemy) and a corn muffin mix because I'm lazy.

Another lunch I do a lot is crackers (I prefer triscuits) with summer sausage and cheese. I'll also do a lot of ritz crackers with peanut butter.

Finally, I also do salads. I get one of those pre made salad green mixes and then add in whatever I feel like. I like craisins and apples, but whatever floats your boat. The tricky part for that is to find a container that doesn't leak salad dressing, but most of the time I just put a small tupperware container in a ziplock so it doesn't really matter if it leaks.

[The Moomin]

To any of you who get "lunch hours," what do you tend to do for lunch? That's when I really struggle, since I don't eat lunchmeat or bread fast enough to keep sandwich ingredients around. And I don't always have the option of a microwave, or I'd just do leftovers. Other than eating out, do you guys have any favorite solutions for an hour or half-hour lunch break?

Have you ever tried pasta salad? Cook a bunch of the pasta and let it cool, then you mix in a selection of the following: cubes of cheese, grapes, walnuts, diced pepper, celery, cucumber, apple, sweetcorn, diced onion.
I would make a lot and keep it in a large tupperware in the fridge, then scoop some out in a smaller tupperware for that day's lunch.

Vinegar and oil mixed together with a little sugar makes for a salad dressing shaken in the small tupperware.

[hoppypress]

I'm cooking for one most days of the week and I lean towards salads in the summer and crockpot meals during the cooler months. Having the same meal multiple times in a row has never really bothered me, but I understand most people prefer more variety.

One of my favorite trickses to pick up day-old rotisserie chicken in the morning, usually for a buck off. It's perfectly good, the supermarket just didn't sell it the night before for take-home dinner. I pull it apart and make freeze single-serving bags of shredded chicken.

Also good, affordable standbys for single servings: eggs and canned tuna!

[pkcommando]

I'm cooking for one most days of the week and I lean towards salads in the summer and crockpot meals during the cooler months. Having the same meal multiple times in a row has never really bothered me, but I understand most people prefer more variety.

One of my favorite trickses to pick up day-old rotisserie chicken in the morning, usually for a buck off. It's perfectly good, the supermarket just didn't sell it the night before for take-home dinner. I pull it apart and make freeze single-serving bags of shredded chicken.

Also good, affordable standbys for single servings: eggs and canned tuna!

Oddly, one grocery store near me no longer has day-old rotisseries chicken and I doubt they've somehow managed to always calculate the EXACT number they need, so.... Yeah, I'm hoping they're just pitching them. The other store still has them, but they dropped the $1 Off deal around the same time the prices went way up. So, cold, day-old chickens -- same price as the fresh, hot ones...... Oooookay.....

Canned beans and diced potatoes -- great items to have in general, but especially when you live by yourself. A quick couple of meals, or awesomely easy side-dishes.I practically stockpile those two whenever there's a sale.

[poxic]

Oddly, one grocery store near me no longer has day-old rotisseries chicken and I doubt they've somehow managed to always calculate the EXACT number they need, so....

They're likely doing more or less what hoppypress is: shredding them to add to their deli salads and whatnot.

[paulisa]

My standby when I'm not feeling up to doing anything much is still pasta, though a lot less since I've actually started taking my lunch break at work. I like cooking large amounts on Sundays and freezing it, so that's what I often take to work for lunch and I can pretty much choose what I feel like in the morning. Otherwise I take a few slices of bread and some cheese or salami, but on those days I usually cook a proper meal in the evenings. What works for that is stuff like diced bacon and eggs, either freid on pasta or with bread; mashed potatoes (real ones) with fried bacon; baked potatoes...

One thing I really like to freeze is my very own pizza-sauce, because it can be added to rice, pasta, bread and probably a whole lot more and still tastes amazing.