I'm single and finding it hard to cook only for myself. Have you ever noticed that almost all recipes are for 4-6? I know, I know, just make half the recipe and take half for lunch the next day!!! But it's sooo easy to say that it's too much effort to cook for one and sooo much easier to go through the drive-thru. Hence why I'm 235 lbs.
I'm working on this...I'm committed to avoiding the drive-thru and I will only allow myself take-out sushi once/week. Man, is it tempting!
I do what you said. I cut to 2 servings, and have leftovers for lunch most days. Works well. Some things, like soups and stews, I usually end up with more like 3 servings (using a can of beans and a can of tomatoes), so I freeze one, which is really handy to have sometimes. I feel like I do a lot of work (cooking AND washing dishes), but, the alternative is to not eat well, and I've just decided that's not an option. By "well" I don't mean diet food, I mean excellent food .
Why not have "cooking days" once a week where you make a couple of things in 4 serving batches. Stick in the freezer and pull them out for lunches and dinners. You can amass your own little collection of re-heatable dinners, then just grab and go on nights or days you don't want to cook.
I figure out on Saturday's what I'm going to cook, usually 3 or 4 recipes, and on Sunday's I spend pretty much all day cooking, dividing into the proper portions, labeling the outside container with the food item, the date, and how many points. I place most of it in the freezer. This is the only way I am able to stick to plan. This way I have plenty of food stocked in my freezer so the day before I figure out what I'm going to eat, pull it out of the freezer to thaw and go ahead and right everything down for the following day. Sounds like work, and it can be but it's the only way I am able to really stick with the healthy WOE.
Lean Cuisines are another good strategy--easy to heat up, and you know what you're getting in terms of calories and nutrients. Add a salad or an additional vegetable, and you're set.
Hi Viking Girl,
I'm single as well. What I do, is take one day on a weekend and cook a couple(maybe 3) of meals and freeze them in individual servings. My freezer ends up stocked with healthy meals ready to defrost and I can still change it up with the occasional can of lite soup, turkey sandwich or such.
I am a widow so also only cook for one. I subscribe to Cooking for 2 Magazine and I also have MasterCook on my computer. I enter larger recipes and it scales down to 1 or 2.
Oh gosh. I find it much easier to cook for just myself. When I start cooking for other people I wind up cooking more for THEM and less for me. And then I feel like I have to eat more because I made more.
It's so much easier for me to bake one or two chicken breasts, fix one filet of fish, make a small pot of soup (ok, that one is harder, but I can freeze the extra), etc. And when I cook for me I don't have to do a "meal". If I want an omelet loaded with veggies for dinner, I can do that w/out feeling like I'm making my husband give up his "real dinner".
I used to think it was harder to cook for one. Now I wish I could cook for just myself all the time!
I agree, its so much easier to cook for a crowd. There are only two of us so I will usually cook something in the crockpot on Sunday which we will eat for dinner and lunch the next day. I freeze the rest of portions so we always have something healthy in the freezer so I am not tempted to pick up some garbage food. I have the seal a meal and I portion everything out with it for the freezer. I buy in bulk, cut up and seal. I also cut up all of my veggies and wash my salad greens right when I get home for the market so I always have something healthy to grab and make quickly for the two of us.
Thanks for the great advice. There is no quick fix to weight loss but the extra work is worth it.
Mastercook sounds interesting and I'm thinking of getting a crockpot...it sounds like that is an easy way to make a bunch of meals in a small amount of time.
I'm going to start preplanning my meals for the week and load up the fridge with salad fixings.
I live by myself and in general, I cook in huge quantities. If I make something in the crockpot (and I have the 5 or 6 quart one - I am a metric person so the quart spec means nothing to me) I make it full (well, the recommended 75% or so). I would HATE to cook every day. It does not bother me to eat the same meal for a few days in a row - I usually make two different meals so that have A for lunch and B for dinner. Some of it goes into the freezer and I always bring lunch / snacks with me to work so that I don't spend money on restaurant food but mainly, so that I know what's in it (how much fat, how many carbs, etc).
Really, I would go insane if I had to make a new meal every single day. How would I find the time to go to the gym?
I've ended up eating a lot of fresh vegetables and fruit. Uncooked green beans are easier to eat than cooked ones, etc. I also do the cooking days where I make more.
Cooking for One
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