Easy cooking

[TheSperminator Member of the Month Oct 12 Find all posts View Profile Close TheSperminator]

I live alone for awhile now but I'm having trouble cooking for myself. I really hate the chore of cooking and cleaning afterwards. I often go out to eat and this should stop as it costs a lot of money and is mostly unhealthy (think french fries, etc.). I thought maybe I should create a thread to get some good and simple meal ideas. Please post your easy to make and healthy dish here. Thanks!

[Party Senior Member Member of the Month August 2016 Find all posts View Profile Close Party]

Beer can chicken on the grill. Makes more than one meal. Use the left over shredded chicken in so many ways. In soup, chicken tacos, chicken salad with lite mayo or on a green salad. If you don’t wanna go to the trouble of cooking the chicken buy a rotisserie full bird at the grocery store for 7 bucks.

[TheZZMan Moderator Member of the Month Sept 2018PEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close TheZZMan]

I see you are in Belgium, so not sure what options you have available to you. Here in the states, we have numerous companies that have ready to cook meals that are delivered once a week. They contain all the ingredients to make a first class dinner with minimal preparation. My wife and I subscribe to a service called "Home Chef". We get 5 meals delivered each week (on Wednesday) with fresh ingredients and perfect portions. We started this service after the kids were both off to college and it was just the two of us. Great variety, different tastes, restaurant quality and simple meals to cook. Costs about $100 a week US but cheaper than going out and buying ingredients separately. Note that the meals do not come pre-assembled. You get all the ingredients and cook the meals yourself following simple guidelines. Would assume that you would have access to some service in Europe - let us know how you make out. Other than that, have a ton of simple quick meals to share.

[Dangler Senior Administrator☼ Wizard ☼ White Tiger Award 2015 Find all posts View Profile Close Dangler]

Cook for 2.
Eat for one.
Freeze leftover serving for another meal (got a microwave?)

[CUSP82 Administrator Admin of the Month Dec 2014PEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close CUSP82]

Be a big boy and learn to cook, which is easy, and clean, which is easy, and save the money you'd spend on prepared stuff to spend on the girl. I mean how much work is it to put a few chicken cutlets in a pan with olive oil, throw in some veggis and let it simmer 20 minutes until it's done.

[Lucian Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Lucian]

Google recipe "crockpot-cheesy-chicken-rice" and take the link to family fresh meals. It's a go-to for myself, simple, and makes a lot. Throw some hot sauce and jalapenos on it and it's good to go.

[CUSP82 Administrator Admin of the Month Dec 2014PEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close CUSP82]

Crock pot; great idea.

[TheGreatDivider Senior Member Member of the Month Dec 2015 Find all posts View Profile Close TheGreatDivider]

I live alone for awhile now but I'm having trouble cooking for myself. I really hate the chore of cooking and cleaning afterwards. I often go out to eat and this should stop as it costs a lot of money and is mostly unhealthy (think french fries, etc.). I thought maybe I should create a thread to get some good and simple meal ideas. Please post your easy to make and healthy dish here. Thanks!

You need a small crock pot, a George Foreman grill, and Tupperware big enough to marinade meat.

The basic setup is to make lots of food in advance and meal prep, freezing what you don't want to eat right away, but you can scale down recipes too.

I also recommend buying the basics chicken tenders or breasts, some beef, turkey, and fish fillets; eggs and liquid egg whites, any vegetables and fruits, and things like rice, quinoa, beans, and bread in bulk. You can read bread and cheese blocks, but other than that gone all with your dairy and don't buy anything that will go bad in a week.

You could also buy junk foods and frozen meals in the freezer section but I don't recommend it. These foods are loaded with salt and too easy to binge on. You don't need a 30 pack of taquitos and a 16 pack of corn dogs. Just go to the gas station for shit like that and make eating healthy at home a priority.

[TheGreatDivider Senior Member Member of the Month Dec 2015 Find all posts View Profile Close TheGreatDivider]

If you want to save money and eat good while you're single, I'm the guy to talk to. I make all my meals for about $2-$3 each and only spend about $50 a week on food. But I eat good at that price with high protein meals and eat things like meatloaf, chilli, spaghetti and meat balls, pasta carbanara, lasagna, fried chicken, hamburgers, pizza, pretty much whatever I want in 1-2 portions.

The trick is to make food you can turn into other dishes, that won't break the bank, isn't depressing, and won't fatten you up. So things like meatloaf can be made into a meat sauce for pasta, Indian naan can be made into a pizza, rice or beans can go with anything, and you can add cheap vegetables to any dish to make it more filling. The only thing you want to do is avoid things that will be too easy to binge on that will negatively impact your budget and your health like bread, bacon, peanut butter, butter, sugary sauces, mayonnaise, and cheese. These things should be a part of your diet but not the focus of your meals. Like for instance of you don't want to get I to the habit of adding cheese or bacon to everything because that will eat into your budget and add a lot of extra calories.

Now, there are some areas where you can save money buying in bulk or larger portions but it would be better not to and just buy smaller more expensive options less often. These are things like junk foods, desserts, sugary breakfast foods, and fruit that will go bad. For instance, you can buy a premade cake for $5 but you really shouldn't. Because you're probably going to eat way too much of it, eat cake instead of real food, and finish it in few days. Instead just go to a gas station or a bakery every week or two weeks and buy a $5 piece of cake or scoop of ice cream, or invest in some protein powder to keep the cravings at bay.

I know I'm harping on eating healthy but you don't want to be a fatass bachelor if you can help it. You wanna stay in somewhat decent shape and avoid problems like back and knee problems that can come from putting on weight and never getting it off. Plus, it's going to save you money down the line if you get into the habit of eating healthier now.

[incogneeetoe Moderator Member of the Month Sept 2017*Special Appreciated Moderator Nov. 2021* PEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close incogneeetoe]

Rice n stuff:

2 cups of cooked rice
2 eggs
2 (or more) cups of frozen vegetables ( I buy at Costco)
300g of cooked chicken (Costco again)
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
3 table spoons of oil
garlic (optional)
black pepper (to taste)
salt (to taste)

beat and fry two eggs in a tablespoon of oil. break up into small pieces, set aside.
fry veggies n garlic in 2 tablespoons oil, toss, until tender.
Toss in cooked chicken, rice, soy sauce, spices, fry
Toss in eggs, mix.
Eat.
Good for about 4~5 servings. Get some bread an cheese as a side dish.

[TheGreatDivider Senior Member Member of the Month Dec 2015 Find all posts View Profile Close TheGreatDivider]

I actually followed my own advice here tonight. I almost bought 2 cake mixes and 2 icing containers for $3 from the dollar store, but I put them back because I know I can't be trusted. But I spent about $60 for a week's worth of groceries with some items that will last longer.

My plan is to make the bases for tacos, a meat sauce for an egg noodles psuedo lasagna, bacony mac and cheese, and thaw some chicken for fried chicken tomorrow morning. Then prep out a few meals if I have time before school.

I bought what looks like a lot of food but most will go pretty quickly. I eat a lot of chicken, turkey, and vegetables, and I have to supplement it with grains, breads, TVP and beans, and a few scoops of protein powder, and some fiber powder or I will be hungry.

Then for drink options I keep it nice and cheap with black coffee, stevia sweetened tea, sugar free drink mixes, and water. I buy one sugar free soda once or twice a week and a dessert once a week.

[Pegasus AdministratorPE Gym EditorPEGym Hero ☺ Admin of the Month Mar 2015 Find all posts View Profile Close Pegasus]

I thought the belgians were big on steak and chips?

[petrpan Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close petrpan]

When I used to live in UK I often ate this:
beans in tomato sauce (canned) with sausage and bread. All I did I cut the sausage put it in the pot together with sauce, let it boil for a bit (actually warming the food is sufficient). And eat it with bread. That was my super lazy food.
Nowadays I cook it more like this:
(no sausages anymore)
get canned beans - rinse them in water, add tomato passata, a bit of honey, squeeze out some lemon, add thyme, oregano, basil - stir all that in pot while heating up (again no need to boil it). Eat with bread or cooked rice.
Beans can be also eaten with potatoes, etc.. There are also many recipes for white and red beans. And when combined with cereals the meals provide quite good protein intake.

Oh and if you don't want to kill the vitamin C, you just add the lemon at the end when the sauce temperature is below 60 degrees Celsius.

[TheSperminator Member of the Month Oct 12 Find all posts View Profile Close TheSperminator]

I thought the belgians were big on steak and chips?

We are! but it's not that healthy ..

[TheGreatDivider Senior Member Member of the Month Dec 2015 Find all posts View Profile Close TheGreatDivider]

Here is a picture of the kind of foods I cook that save money. It's a turkey lasagna made with a pound of turkey, most of a jar of pasta sauce from my fridge, a container of ricotta, half a block of mozzarella cheese, and egg noodles. It cost me less than $5 to make, I can portion it out to have it all week, and I can freeze it or turn it into another dish if I want. Best part it it's HEALTHY! I didnt don't the math yet but it's only something like 400 calories a piece.

I also have a crock pot chili I'm making from scratch.
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