How to Buy, Prepare and Store Food for One
They say the world is built for two, and the world of food is no exception. Cooking food you really want to eat with minimal waste is the goal of cooking for one, and fear not: you can do that too – with just a little thought and planning. Here’s how.
Get to know yourself and your real eating habits
Buying groceries with desire is death by eating at home, and you have to buy what you know you love to eat . To do this, make a list of those vegetables, fruits, meat and dairy products that you know you have enjoyed in the past, and try not to stray too far from it. If you enjoy trying new things, limit yourself to one or two adventure purchases per week so you don’t end up with a refrigerator full of things you don’t really like. If you find it difficult to make a list from memory, keep track of your food by keeping a food diary, or take a quick photo with your phone.
Likewise, it helps to deal with your true feelings about food leftovers. Are you the type who can eat the same thing for several days in a row, or do you need variety? You can make a large pot of chili on Sunday night and eat out of it until Friday, as long as you love chili peppers enough to eat for five days in a row. As an individual, you should always assume that you are the only one eating that large portion of anything; No one can save you from your chili.
Finally, take a close look at how much you eat outside the home, without judgment or criticism. I’m a big fan of eating out on my own, but sometimes I forget to subtract those meals from my overall meal plan and adjust my purchases accordingly. If you should buy a sandwich for lunch, instead of wasting time making it every night, just buy a sandwich and skip bread, ham, and sandwich bags from your shopping list.
Being realistic about who you are and what you eat is one of the most important factors in meal planning. Would I like to be the woman who starts every day with a bowl of acai smoothie? Yes, but I tried this and all I got was a bunch of wilted cabbage and a running blender. I’m the type of woman who starts their day with a can of Diet Coke, and knowing this helps me shop accordingly. In the words of Mary Bamford : “You cannot change people. You cannot change me … I am a sea cow. I know that the motor boats will cover me, but here I fucking swim! »When you have a clear idea of who you are and how you eat, it’s time to make a list (or multiple lists).
Plan your attack
Before even going to the store, search your refrigerator and pantry , throw away any old or questionable items, and take stock of what you already have. (This is a good way to make sure you don’t end up with seven jars of jam.)
If you’re making a list, consider keeping a summary journal to keep track of what you buy, how much you spend, and any favorite items or recipes you’d like to buy and / or cook again, which will make things a little more orderly. …
If you’re looking to bring things into the present age, there are some great meal planning apps like Cooksmarts , Paprika, and Plan to Eat . Copy Me That is also a great free option that works on all devices and generates shopping lists based on the recipes you choose. If you really want some really high falutin, take a look at Eat This Much , which creates personalized meal plans and grocery lists for you based on your dietary needs and food preferences. Of course, there is nothing wrong with plain paper and pen; the most hi-tech I have is to take a photo of my shopping list on my phone, so I don’t have to carry a piece of paper with me. In addition to keeping track of what you eat, it is also helpful to keep a log of the foods you throw away so you know whether to buy less or that item (or not buy at all). Once you’ve put together your lists, it’s time to head to the store.
Shop smartly and buy what you can actually eat
Given the fact that my refrigerator is smaller than usual and I don’t have a car, I prefer the more frequent trips to the smaller grocery store. Fresh food tastes better (which means you’re more likely to eat it), and an empty space in the fridge will help you really see what’s in there. When it comes to perishable foods, I try to follow the rule of “one or two from each category”:
- One Protein : Ground beef, fried chicken, tofu, and even deli meats fall into this category. Buying one at a time not only makes you eat it all, but it also encourages you to think of new and creative ways to prepare this protein.
- One dairy product (two if you drink milk as an adult): In addition to milk, I only allow myself one dairy product, such as labne or cheese, for each shopping trip. This is mainly so that I don’t just eat cheese.
- Bread alone : Bread is great and it can be tempting to stock up on sandwich bread, bagels and this delicious-looking baguette at the bakery all at once. It’s okay if you have enough freezer space (bread is well stored there), but it’s also a good way to get a bunch of sad, moldy, or stale bread.
- Two fruits : aim for one that will hold for a while (like apples or oranges) and one that you know you’ll eat pretty quickly (like berries).
- Two vegetables : You can increase this amount if you are frozen, but if you stick to two fresh vegetables, they will both be eaten.
- One treat : a bottle of wine, a pint of ice cream, whatever. I try to stick to one for every shopping trip, otherwise I will only buy treats and eat meals consisting of chips, ice cream and alcohol.
- One Dozen Eggs : Eggs are the best food for one person. They instantly add protein, vitamins and delicious yolk to every meal, and they last much longer than other proteins like meat.
In addition to all of these fresh items, your one-person pantry should be chock-full of non-perishable items that can be used to make hearty meals quickly and easily. These include, but are not limited to:
- Dry beans, lentils, and rice: They all last for a long time and are a great base for a healthy meal.
- Canned Fish: Tuna, sardines, anchovies, and other canned fish add a lot of protein and fatty acids to salads, cereal bowls, or whatever you add them to.
- Canned Beans: While I prefer dried legumes, I like to keep a few cans of black, pinto, and garbanzo with me to make soups and salads or make quick hummus or bean sauce.
Instead of buying meat, cheese, and seafood from the prepackaged section, make friends with gourmet, meat and seafood counters throughout the grocery store. Cheese sellers are always more than happy to cut the meat to your specifications, and getting the meat for dinner from the deli allows you to customize your order right down to the slice. For meat, if your cut only comes in a pre-packaged container of eight, you can usually take it to the meat counter and ask for a smaller amount to re-pack.
It’s also a good idea to have some sort of system for keeping track of expiration dates, be it a spreadsheet or whiteboard . If you are looking for a primer on shelf life and expiration date, check out StillTasty , which explains how and how long to store food, and a graph showing how to keep a pantry fresh.
Finally, don’t forget about small additions that will make you want to cook on your own. This can be fancy butter, crisp, flaked salt, or a flavored condiment like harissa. We tend to think of “good cooking” as something we do for others, but you deserve great food, whether you share or not.
Get started cooking (or not)
First of all, know that no food is forbidden for you as one person, not even pancakes . Almost any recipe can be reduced by small divisions, but if you don’t like math in your head, our handy calculator can help you. Kitchn also has quite a few recipes specially designed for one person, including a muffin , brownie, and a delicious bowl of soba noodles .
If you don’t feel like doing math at all, try choosing recipes that you can change and format so as not to get bored in your mouth. Fried chicken (or roast pork or roast beef) is an obvious choice as it can be added to salads, sandwiches, frittats or pasta, and almost any grain dish can be given new life by treating it with fried rice. Don’t even try to reheat the leftover steak, but instead turn it into a cold salad . I’m also a big fan of just stuffing something into an omelet; I once cut a slice of pizza and folded it into a cheddar omelet. It was good.
In terms of takeout food, the video above has great ideas on how to use yesterday’s spaghetti (make sliders), cheese steak (use the filling for egg rolls), and even fries (toast them with a waffle iron). I’m also a big fan of buying too many noodles from my favorite Thai eatery and then adding more vegetables to them to pick up what I didn’t eat the first time.
Make friends with the freezer
The freezer is your secret weapon in the one person food storage. Aside from the foods on this list (mostly raw foods with a high moisture content and creamy foods), almost anything can be frozen, giving you time to eat it. A few things you can freeze to use your freezer:
- Big batches: As mentioned above, it’s important to know if you are the type of person who enjoys eating the same thing over and over. If you don’t, you can still make a large batch of something simply by dividing it into individual portions so you can eat as much or less as you like in a week. If you need tips on how to properly store food in the freezer, check out our guide on the topic here .
- Bread: I love bread, but good bread spoils before I even have a loaf of bread. To prevent this tragedy, I take about half of the package, put it in a freezer bag, and leave it there until I’m ready for it. (This goes beyond sandwich bread, but can also be made with whole homemade loaves, bagels, English muffins, tortillas, or any other type of bread.)
- Bacon: I never actually had a problem eating a packet of bacon before it went bad, but if you only eat a few pieces a week, it’s best to freeze the strips individually .
- Herbs: Herbs are the opposite of bacon to me in the sense that I never, never use them completely unless I freeze them. The best way to do this is to blanch, dry, cut and coat with neutral oil , then freeze in plastic bags . Not only will this allow you to separate a little of the oil and herb mixture in one go, but it will also take up less space than an ice cube tray.
- Desserts: Cookies, cakes and pastries freeze very well and can be eaten straight out of the freezer without defrosting. True story: I just had one of the frozen birthday cakes just a few minutes ago and my birthday was in August.
If none of this sounds appealing, there are always frozen burritos and hot pockets. Sous vide Hot Pockets are great food for one person .