My husband recently passed away and life has changed so much. One issue I have had was cooking for one. Buying things like celery and carrots was beginning to be a waste since I couldn't use up the fresh vegetables as fast. I finally realized the other day when making a pot pie that why wouldn't it make sense to buy frozen carrots since they would be cooked anyway instead of using fresh. I waited for a sale on frozen vegetables and got a bag of carrots to use when I want to do a casserole or soups. Celery was solved by just getting what I needed at the time at the salad bar. No more throwing a whole bag of celery away because it too would go to waste before I could use it. Time to learn to save smarter.
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I am a 63 year old female, and I eat on an $80.00 a month food allowance. I have high blood pressure and high cholesterol, so I have to watch what I eat.
I live alone, after having raised a family and losing my husband, so I am used to cooking for more than one. Also, a couple years ago I decided to give up processed foods, such as frozen dinners and convenience foods, as I am not a big fan of additives and preservatives. Plus, those foods are expensive for what you get. Most frozen meals are tiny and leave you looking for more.
Due to COVID-19 and being quarantined, Easter for everyone was different this year.Well, I told myself I would not get upset and would try to make a similar but somewhat traditional dinner for one. I bought a ham steak, a baking sweet potato, fresh asparagus and pineapple chunks.
When making a single serving of oatmeal, put the oatmeal (not the packet kind - too expensive!) into the bowl, then pour boiling water in, and stir. No boil-overs! By Linda
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
I live alone and have been trying to save money by cooking my meals at home. I know buying a whole chicken is cheaper but I'm afraid that the leftovers will go to waste, any ideas? The same goes for a roast.
I review store ads to find the best prices during the week, shop on Fridays, cook on Saturday mornings and freeze meals in appropriate size containers which then can be a used for lunch or dinners.
You can usually find a small 2 pound roast in our stores here. We cook about a 3 pound roast in the crockpot and eat it for the first meal. Then leftovers can be sandwiches, or cut it up and put it in a burrito.
I also live alone now and make different dishes which can be divided into individual portions and frozen. Some of the things I like are chili, lentil soup, chicken caccatorie, baked macaroni (what most people call baked ziti). Some I make in the crockpot, some on the stove or in the oven. I've been known to cook up a couple of pounds of at a time and freeze it. Beef stew is also good. Basically, it is just a matter of what you like and if it can be frozen. This way you have a healthy and easy meal to pop in the microwave if needed.
LI Roe
I just bought a turkey last week when they were on sale and thawed it in the fridge for 4 days. I took 30 minutes yesterday and cut it all apart. I thin sliced the breast meat to use for a quick fry to place in caesar salads and cut off all the legs, thighs, wings and individually wrapped them. Now I can, for about $.50 per person per meal, serve only as much meat as we actually need instead of cooking the whole turkey and having leftovers and leftovers and leftovers... I took the turkey bones and baked them in the oven for a few hours and now I have been nibbling on the leftover meat. I could have used the bones to make a turkey soup but my DH doesn't jump up and down at the thought of soup...so I didn't make any.
I have a home worker that comes, three times a week for 2-3 hours each time. One day is cleaning, one is laundry, and the third is cooking. We make up at least three things that can be put into divided containers and frozen. I can thaw out a container, and heat it up for supper or whenever.
I like having single (usually male) friends over for dinner w/ me and the BF. We get to hang out, no food is wasted, and the friend is grateful for a hot home cooked meal.
Cut up the chicken yourself, and freeze in parts.
Cook one meal you like, divide into freezer portions and freeze. I cook for a disable friend who lives alone. I place her meals in freezer dishes. If she doesn't get to them soon enough she puts them in the freezer. Any leftovers, freeze in small freezer safe things like different sizes plastic or glass jars.
al of the above tips indicate you have a freezer. I had a small one in my refrigerator but when I was widowed and cooking for 1 I found it just too small. I too cook like I still had family or at least a husband. I finally invested in separate freezer and I think within 2 years it will have paid for itself. I used to buy loaves of bread and after using about 2 servings of each it started to get stale. I now freeze it in 2 slice portions. The same will rolls, hamburger and hot dog buns etc. I bake cakes and freeze in single wrapped portions.(I use Glad Wrap that I can get at the Dollar store for $2.
Hiya,
I'm new here ... but thought I'd throw some info. in.
I'm separated at the time, all though husband does come by for a meal here and there, I just had major surgery ... so I'm not cooking now, but when I do, I bought the smallest, least expensive Seal-A-Meal and it's been great!
I freeze in small portions also ... and without air in package, it can keep for a LONG time.
Hugs,
Dee
I cook daily for one, but plan my meals to be available for as many as necessary for company times. I buy whole roasting chickens, family packs of ground beef and chops and roasts, whole tenderloins of pork and beef, all on special sale. (Not on the same day, of course). I cut the pork tenderloins into small roasts that serve 2, wrap all the portions that are not going to be prepared that day in Press 'n Seal, and bag in a Zip Lock Freezer bag, dated, making sure the air is squeezed out. The beef tenderloins I trim and cut into into individual "mignons" and treat the same way in another Zip Lock bag. The ground meat is separated into 3/4 lb packs for meatloaves and individual burger sized portions. These can be combined as needed for larger amounts for spaghetti sauces to larger meatloaves to feed greater numbers of people as needed. The beef roasts I cut into thirds, using one to roast, one to slow cook with barbecue sauce, and one to slow cook for pulling into packets for carribbean recipes. It sounds more labor-intensive than it actually is. I always have a variety of meat on hand, it is always fresh-tasting, and I am always prepared for company whose tastes may vary.
I cook the chicken and have a roast dinner first day, and then cold the next. I make some good homemade stuffing to go with it and use the chicken stock to make the gravy for hot and cold chicken. The next day I make a chicken and vegetable curry which is delicious and you can always freeze this if you have too much for one meal.I hope this helps!
When my 4 kids were still at home, I made 4-6 different casseroles at a time in large amounts. I froze individual portions in styrofoam bowls. When the boys got off the bus, they chose one bowl, put it in the microwave while they changed into work clothes, buttered a couple of slices of bread, poured a glass of milk and they had a full meal before they were off to work in the field for 3-4 hours. It still works, with just my husband and me only I don't cook such large amounts now. My husband loves baked potatoes, so I bake several for supper and save the leftovers for fried potatoes the next day, creamed potatoes after that, etc. They can be shredded for has browns or put into soups or mixed with cut up fried bacon - his favorite. I still find it difficult to cook for two, but with some creative packaging, we can have meals of the same meat in different ways for days - or even next month if it is frozen.
I found that roasting a small cut of meat uses the same energy in the oven as a larger roast. I live alone and like many others who live alone cook as I did before my husband passed away; then package into small servings to freeze. When company comes I merely thaw more than one portion. Works great for me.
One way that I found to economize while cooking for 1 is I buy a bag of boneless chicken breast, which are extremely easy to use 1 at a time. As for roast and other meats, when I buy them, I cut, then freeze them into indivudial portions and just cook as needed. I used to cook the meats all at once, then freeze, but I have found that cooking each portion as needed made for a more flavorfull meal. I usually have just enough leftovers for lunch.
I had trouble with milk going south on me. It is cheaper by the gallon, but not if 1/2 of it goes south on you. My sister and nephew drink a lot of bottled water, so I have them to save me their bottles. I now buy the gallon jugs of milk, pour it into the water bottles, being sure to leave 1" to 1 1/2" air space for when the milk freezes. As the milk gets emptied, get another one out of the freezer and place it in the refreigerator, so it will be thawed out by the time the other one is empty. You will always have milk on hand for cooking, cereal, coffee, etc.
My son is in a new town with a new job, having graduated from college. I asked him what he was going to have for dinner, and the answer didn't make me happy. Frozen pizza, TV dinner, mushy salad in a bag destined for the trash and hot dogs were all he had in the fridge. Not nutritionally balanced.
Make a lot of one thing and freeze leftovers, when you come home all you do is pop it into the microwave! Saves you time from having to cook a full meal again :-)
I subscribe to an email newsletter called allrecipes.com and if you go to their website you can find delicious recipes and they can be changed to suit different sized servings, including for one person. Underneath the recipe is a box where you put in the number of servings you want to change it to.
I agree! Cook for 4, 6 or 8! After you have eaten, and your 'leftovers' have cooled, divide into individual portions, (I use recycled takeaway containers), and freeze for later use - work lunches, when you can't be bothered cooking, unexpected visitors, etc. It takes the same amount of pots, pans and utensils to cook one meal or 8 so it saves time in preparation and cleaning up, etc., as well. I never cook a single meal for myself - I either eat the same thing 2 or 3 days running or ring the changes with my freezer meals.
Regards
Jo
It doesn't seem worth cooking just one serving. I suggest freezing any leftovers. Another idea is to share your meals with family, friends, co-workers, etc.. Every time I make a pot of homemade soup, I take a container of it to my sister & brother-in-law. He is a very fussy eater, but he really loves my soup, so I always share ours with them! I also make soups, stews, etc. for my husband to take into work occassionally, to share with his co-workers and they all really enjoy it for their lunch. Perhaps you know of another single person that you can share your food with, and take turns in preparing and sharing.
Debbie from New Jersey
i am also single. it gets pretty boring making 5 or 6 servings when you are the only one eating the meal. it also gets very expensive taking food to other people. you only have one income you cant feed the family and the neighborhood.
i do make soup at times. have a pot on stove now.
find recpipes you like and then halve or quarter them.
hope you find some stuff.
Buy a plastic tube of pork tenderloin (not marinaded) and cut it into about 1 inch cross sections. Stand up each cross section and pound flat with a meat pounder. You will get about 8 to 12 pieces from each tenderloin. Keep out 2 or 3 pieces for one meal, and freeze the extra pounded ones between pieces of waxed paper. Again, keep 2 or 3 together, and unfreeze enough for one meal at a time in the future. They can all be frozen in one ziploc, but don't allow too many pieces to freeze together. For one meal, dip each piece into milk, then press into bread crumbs. Fry on medium high in a small amount of oil. Only takes about 2 minutes a side to get nicely browned. Serve with any veggies and/or salad. All the messy work is done at once, and you'll have 3 or 4 more easy meals in the future....and the beauty is....THEY AREN'T LEFT OVERS!!!!
Lisa
Thank you Songbird100! I just checked out the allrecipes.com site and it is an excellent resource.
Do thriftyfun folks have any good recipes for a single person to cook for one?
Jessie
I've been single for a long time so have had to deal with this problem. Part of the problem is that the best deals on meat are often in "value pack" or "family size" packages or a 10 lb. bag of chicken leg quarters, etc. The only way I can take advantage of such deals is to freeze a lot, and it doesn't take long to fill a freezer. So where possible I make a lot of soups and stews in huge quantities. After they sit in the fridge for a couple of days for the flavors to blend well, I put what is left in portion sized ziplock freezer bags and freeze it like that. You can pack them together and they don't take up too much space.
One of my biggest problems is with vegatables, but they can usually be done the same way. Also I shop for deals on bagged salad greens and make a huge variety of salads, especially in the summer. I keep an assortment of pickles, olives, pickled peppers, etc. and a few fresh tomatoes and such, then build a basic salad with that stuff. Then top it off with half a can of red sockeye salmon or flaked tuna, or mushrooms or any kind of meat. Keep an assortment of dressings and choose one that complements the meat. This is a fast way to build a healthy meal, it affords a lot of variety, and doesn't heat up the kitchen.
The main thing is this: even if you are alone, keep reminding yourself that you are worth the trouble. This was the hardest thing I had to learn, but don't ever forget it. Treat yourself to things you like and enjoy the fact that you don't have to get anyone else's approval. Throw a carefully chosen ribeye on the grill, bake a potato and toss a salad, pour a glass of wine and enjoy yourself, because you are worth it!
cooking for one sometimes doesn't seem "worth the effort"
one solution is to make large batches of favorite meals and then split them up for freezing
you can even put them in microwavable bags for single meals
For freezing and storing foods, I bought a bunch of those plastic disposable gladware containers (e.g., 20 containers), all the same size. Then it's easy to store food and it's easy to store the washed containers.
For food I usually buy the convenience products such as boxed dinners, rice-a-roni, noodle mixes, soup/stew in a can, precooked chicken patties, frozen stirfry bags, frozen waffles, sandwich from the grocery store deli, individual canned fruit packs. For a family convenience foods are much too expensive. As one person, I find that I have to throw out a lot of food if I do fresh or scratch cooking. For example, the fresh brocolli dies before I get it all consumed. So does the pancake mix. I've opened a can of pineapple put it in the fridge and then forgot it for 3 weeks so had to throw it out. If I do convenience foods, then I have enough variety so I don't get bored. Nutritionally fresh is better, granted, but a frozen stirfry bag is better nutrition than a frozen pizza.
I also have some quickie food things which are decent in nutrition and taste -- like I'll eat breakfast cereal and toast or pancakes for supper sometimes when I don't feel like making anything. Breakfast food is usually a faster prep than regular supper foods. I also always have a few boxes of microwave frozen dinners for that reason. Those are fairly nutritious and they are good for when you just don't want to cook at all.
I always store my bread in the freezer. Then it stays fresh enough until I finish the loaf.
goodluck.
coolchinchilla
May I first suggest that you ask him if he wants help with his meal planning. He's in his twenties, lived away from you for a few years and is a grown man. He may not need help planning his menu. It would be horrible for you guys to start off on the wrong foot. I sometimes disagree with how my boys eat but sometimes we need to let them make their own choices. Our grown children need their space and our respect too. I know that we go on being Moms long after college but we sometimes need to be a different kind of Mom as they age. :) If he is wants your help planning his menus then you could try cooks.com or kraft foods has wonderful online recipes. A counter top grill is always a great way to get a quick, healthy meal. That might be a great house warming gift for him. Good luck
I have found the grocery store a valuable resource. I purchase roasted chickens and turkey breasts from the deli, bake a potato in the microwave for 5 minutes on each side, cut some broccoli and microwave 3 minutes and add some good bread.
You can also debone the chicken and use it in tons of other recipies from a good ole hot chicken sandwich to chicken and soup mixed and served over noodles or rice along with a bagged salad.
I got the turkey breasts yesterday and served with broccoli, boxed stuffing and canned gravy. Was a good meal.
Or how about a little stir fried shrimp with some veggies of your choice and add a little Jerk sauce - quick, easy and healthy.
My grocery deli also has prepared soup and some great salads with a meat base which, after adding some bread, would make a great meal.
Hope he survives the junk food world out there!
Mitzi
I am also single and hate having to cook for one and eating leftovers for a week. I also left home when I was in my early 20's. I went through my KoolAid and Mac and Cheese phase and survived. LOL
I would suggest that he might want to check out some websites like foodnetwork.com and I'm pretty sure kraft.com has a section for cooking for one or two.
In addition to cooking up chicken and keeping it in the freezer I would also suggest doing the same thing with ground beef. I do that and when I need meat it is already cooked and ready to go. I also measure it in one cup measurements so I know exactly how much is in each container.
Also, usually in the winter, I make a huge container of chili. My neighbors love it. :) I measure it out and put into containers and freeze. After it is frozen I pop it out of the containers and put into a ziploc baggie. You can do the same thing with soup but find that it doesn't keep as well. Mushy vegetables. I then have chili to eat for several months. Chili is great over rice, with spaghetti (for real - use like spaghetti sauce), as a baked potato topper. All kinds of stuff.
Hope this helps.
(From a fairly healthy single person) :)
I have been cooking for one for 20 years. What I have found that works is to have the staple seasonings, condiments and jarred vegetables from a place like Trader Joe's, Henry's, Whole Foods (Capers, Green Olives, etc), as well as some of the better seasoned veggies in the frozen section. Trader Joe's, for example, has a delish Melange mix of green, yellow and red bell-peppers, along with onions that I toss in with an omelette, or if it's evening, with some pasta and some e.v.o. All he'd have to do afterwards is add whatever meat (or no meat at all) he'd like to have as the key protein ingredient. The frozen and jarred veggies spice up a dish like nobody's business and yet, keep fresh for future use!
There are other sites and blogs--I know of a great one: www.cookingsingleinthecity.blogspot.com ;) that help with resources, as well...such as cooking classes for singles! Best wishes!
I have been cooking for one for 20 years. What I have found that works is to have the staple seasonings, condiments and jarred vegetables from a place like Trader Joe's, Henry's, Whole Foods (Capers, Green Olives, etc), as well as some of the better seasoned veggies in the frozen section. Trader Joe's, for example, has a delish Melange mix of green, yellow and red bell-peppers, along with onions that I toss in with an omelette, or if it's evening, with some pasta and some e.v.o. All he'd have to do afterwards is add whatever meat (or no meat at all) he'd like to have as the key protein ingredient. The frozen and jarred veggies spice up a dish like nobody's business and yet, keep fresh for future use!
There are other sites and blogs--I know of a great one: www.cookingsingleinthecity.blogspot.com ;) that help with resources, as well...such as cooking classes for singles!
Flavorful dishes are the best. Left-overs are only taste-worthy for a day, two at best. Best wishes to your son!
I don't enjoy cooking because most of the time I'm eating alone. What are others in my situation eating? It has to be fast and not have a lot of cleaning up. I buy fresh veggies and often times they go bad because I never get around to cooking them.
By Betty from Lubbock, TX
Spend one day a week cooking everything you want to eat for the next 7 days, and then put the cooked food in serving size containers either in your refrigerator or freezer. When mealtime comes around, all you have to do is reheat the food you already cooked.
I was single for many years & ate a lot of soups & stews in the colder weather - You can make a big pot & then eat it in several servings over a few days - I also bought ramen in a cup & broke an egg into it, added soy bacon bits, garlic powder & dried onion flakes for a really quick soup meal. Then one can add salad.
I discovered pickled red peppers in a jar, which was another quick vegetable - Ditto marinated mushrooms and such. (Many of which are available at my local dollar store & can be stored in the cupboard.) I also baked potatoes & scooped out the center, putting in egg, grated cheese, and soy bacon bits for another fairly quick & thrifty meal. Buy pre-chopped cole slaw mix & either use it as salad or in your soups - it will also last a long time.
Also remember you can make a ploughman's meal with just bread & cheese (add salad or veggies or a cup of tomato soup.) Just a few suggestions.
I am looking for a chicken leg quarter recipe for one. Does anyone know a good recipe for me?
