Comments on: Help: how to cook for one?

By: Ann

Ann — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 17:50:40 +0000

I am so bad about not eating all the food I bought or prepared and letting spoil that I now have a freezer full of single portion meals.

I wish I could be as good as the other posters.

By: Mandy

Mandy — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 17:14:07 +0000

When I’m cooking for just me I tend to cook rice or pasta,
with a nice jarred sauce (something with veggies in it already), and piece of chicken, beef, fish, or pork on top. If I’m cooking pasta (like shells or rotini), I’ll measure it out with the bowl I’ll be eating out of so I can ruffly see how much I’m making. If I’m making rice I make a whole pot of it because rice tastes better the next day anyway, and my boyfriend will make fried rice with it.

The other thing I’ll make is a stuffed bread roll, where you take bread/pizza dough make a big circle with it, then rub it with pesto, put a hand full of spinach, cooked chicken, and any cheese you like all over the top, then roll up the sides to make something that looks like a bread stick and sprinkle the top with garlic powder, chili powder and parmesan cheese. Then bake it till the out side is crispy. You can then cut a couple of slices, for dinner, and put the rest away in the fridge, you can even use it as a side to another meal.

^_^

By: Shlowzi

Shlowzi — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 13:45:27 +0000

I usually buy one or two vegetables and then eat them, prepared in different ways, every day until I run out. I use handfuls as measuring tools. It gets more complicated with rice, cause it absorbs so much. I rented a furnished apartment that had these teacups that were exactly perfect for measuring one portion of uncooked rice…but rice is a great thing to have leftover. You can make fried rice the next day! Or better yet, stuff a pepper with it. Half a stuffed pepper with some salad on the side is a good meal for one person, and you can make it in a toaster oven if you don’t feel like heating up a real oven just for one pepper.

By: Susan

Susan — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 22:29:58 +0000

My favorite solo meal cooked from scratch (as opposed to big batches made ahead which I should do but don’t) is:

1 skinless boneless chicken breast half

2-3 oz. goat cheese, softened

sundried tomatoes soaked in oil

1. Flatten breast as flat as you can without tearing it. Spread as much goat cheese as you want on the “rough” side — the side the skin *wasn’t* on before you flattened it.
2. Arrange a clump/line of sundried tomatoes along the fat end of the breast.
3. Roll from the fat end to the skinny and secure with toothpicks.

Saute in medium-hot non-stick pan in a little oil. You’ll have to fiddle with the toothpicks to get it browned on all sides, pushing them out of the way as your rotate the roll. If you want it to take more time you could truss your bird. Cook until done. If you get the chicken thin enough this can be in as little as 5-7 minutes; 5-7 on medium high followed by another 3-4 on low with a lid will guarantee doneness throughout. The latter method will soften some of the crunchiness of the browned outside, however. Life’s a tradeoff.

It is to die for. I usually skip starch and salad and eat two and call it good.

By: s'kat

s'kat — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 15:36:11 +0000

Sorry, McA, I just don’t think that it’s possible.

Although on the nights when my husband is away, I tend to cook small portions of shrimp or scallops, griddle up some paninis…. or even have bowls of cereal. Good luck!

By: katie

katie — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 14:36:29 +0000

sushi

i cut a pizza dough recipe in half and make either a small pizza or a couple calzones (good for using up extra bits and pieces of things and I freeze the extra calzone for a quick, prepackaged meal for later)

By: Kathy

Kathy — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 03:58:07 +0000

It was always hard for me to find enough motivation to cook something “just for me”. I did a lot of salads, pasta, grilled chicken and vegetables, omelettes, sandwiches, etc. When I made more substantial or interesting meals, I’d tend to make enough for a family and work on the leftovers each day until it was gone. I did find a cookbook that had decent offerings for a single or couple – “Cookery for 1 or 2″ by Barbara Swain. Nothing earth shattering in there, but there’s a recipe for Steak Diane, Eggs Benedict, really amazing individual quiches, crepes, etc. I still use some of the recipes, sized up for a bigger group, because they came out so well.

By: jen maiser

jen maiser — Sun, 03 Jun 2007 21:21:15 +0000

It gets more natural. Definitely. But it takes a while. And I think that, for me, the shift came when I realized that I was worth cooking for myself … not to get too hippy-dippy about it, but I think there’s some truth there. Worth dirtying the kitchen, worth standing at the stove for 30 minutes.

A couple nights ago I made a lamb chop and roasted porcini mushrooms on top of a salad of basil leaves. That was a good night. The nights of popcorn dinner, however, are not as healthful. Risotto made for one is a luxury. I need to find you those measurements … I originally got it from Joyce Goldstein’s Solo Suppers book.

By: Pamela Heywood

Pamela Heywood — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 13:04:51 +0000

I try never to cook for one, because it isn’t economical. Recently, I’ve been doing an experiment, where I made a meal plan with 7 different meals, each one I cooked for four over a week and froze the other three portions.

Cooking and freezing the dishes meant that they kept fresh, but what I liked best was that I didn’t have to cook for the rest of the month, got all my shopping done in one go and still had a proper dinner every day.

Interesting strategy, thanks Pamela.
I’ve never been a fan of frozen meals though.

But the bigger issue being that I *like* cooking and don’t generally see it as something to avoid. I’ll avoid washing dishes, but not the cooking part

–McAuliflower

By: Joe

Joe — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 02:23:49 +0000

my meal for ones are mostly salad. I always get heart of romaine, cut it very finely, then mix with either a small can of tuna and mayo or salmon and mayo.

quesadillas are also very easy, and you can put anything into them. they are a favorite of my kids.

i also like egg tostadas and broiled open faced sandwiches.