Cooking for one

Prophet

Prophet

Prophet

Soldato
Joined
5 Oct 2004
Posts
7,395
Location
Notts
I'll admit when it comes to cooking I'm rubbish and being on my own doesn't really inspire me to cook meals which may go to waste. So I'm looking for meals which can be frozen or stored in the fridge for a few days.

This will also help save me money as I just buy ready prepared food ever day.

There's a wealth of knowledge here so post up your favorite recipes so I can blatantly copy them :)

Help me!
 
Stews are brilliant for freezing portions and reheating when you need them.
By stew I basically mean most things that involve slow cooking, so lots of curries, chilli, bolognese sauce can all be included in there.

For reheating you want to ensure that you use the right cut of meat though.
For instance if you do a chicken curry that you want to freeze portions of make sure you use the thighs rather than breasts as they will reheat much better without becoming rubbery.

Chicken thighs, pork shoulder, braising/casserole steak and lamb leg are all cuts that I use if I want something to freeze and reheat.

One of my favourites is a chinese style chicken curry, this makes about 3 portions.

Sauce:
1 pint of chicken stock
1 tablespoon of curry powder
1 teaspoon of turmeric
2 tablespoons of light soy sauce
2 garlic cloves
piece of fresh ginger the size of your thumb.

Warm the chicken stock up, add the soy sauce, curry powder and turmeric and then grate in the garlic and ginger.

Fry a coarsely diced onion in a wok or large frying pan for a few minutes on a medium heat until it starts to colour.
Add 500g of chopped chicken thighs and cook for a further few minutes.
Add the sauce and leave to simmer on a low light for 15 minutes or until the onions are tender.
Add 2 tablespoons of cornflour mixed with water to thicken the sauce up and then add 150g of frozen peas.
Cook for another minute or two until the peas are cooked through.

Serve with plain boiled rice.
 
Soups, I also cook for myself but I just generally make large portions and eat it over 2 days -.- Depending if its suitable to be stored in the fridge :p
 
This is one of my favourite recipes ever. Easily store either in the fridge or freezer. In the fridge it will last a week in tupperware, the freezer for months.

To make is simpler I skip the plum tomatos and just bang in tinned ones. You can also skip the coriander / parsley, and even the celery. I regularly do.

I jazz mine up a little further by using Hot Smoked Paprika (delie section in Sainsburys) and / or some chilli flakes.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/food_and_drink/recipes/article2582370.ece
 
Im looking at these and now i want a huge lunch :(

Im struggling at the moment to think of lunch time food i will enjoy
 
1st: Get some microwavable food containers/boxes (100 for around £9 at Costco); I wash and reuse mine a few times but you can chuck 'em at that price. If they are the same size and shape, you can stack in the freezer more easily too.

2nd: Plan a cooking day for Stews, Curries, Soups, Dauphinoise potatoes etc, etc .... have recipes and cookware ready.

3rd: Go to the local market and buy the freshest ingredients that are available.

4th: Cook said ingredients and allow to cool, then put in containers and freeze. Use a CD marker pen to identify contents and date. Date can be when frozen or when to use by but keep to the same system otherwise it gets confusing.

Most stuff will keep almost indefinately but I would suggest working your way through the contents of the freezer over a 4-6 month period.

This stuff is great when you live alone, especially great for coming home 'tipsy and hungry' and pinging in the microwave; a lot safer than trying to deep fry chips without a thermostatically controlled fryer too ;)

Can also be taken to work for lunch if there is a microwave; saves a fortune on buying stuff.

Good luck and happy cooking.
 
Great thread!

Atm im trying to find ways to cut down my spending costs as i work at Sainsburys i tend to spend £5 a day on food :o (£100 pm) bye bye wages!

I only do this as its cooked food..i don't feel the need to take a packed lunch as i find it booring
 
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I usually make stuff in bulk, in fact I made a massive cottage pie on Sunday which I'll polish off tonight after eating it every day since :D

My list of things usually consists of..
Stews
Curries
Cottage/shepherd's pies
Bolognese sauce
Lasagna - you can use the Bolognese sauce above for this too.
Soups
Chilli con carne
Pies - although if you microwave them the pastry can go a bit soggy
Pasties

I'm sure more ideas will come along too :)
 
Really awesome advice guys :)

I'll be hitting the supermarket on Saturday to buy some supplies and some cookware as I'm seriously lacking pans etc.

Interested in Chili, stews and curries so post up your recipes :)
 
Mp4 said:
Great thread!

Atm im trying to find ways to cut down my spending costs as i work at Sainsburys i tend to spend £5 a day on food :o (£100 pm) bye bye wages!

I only do this as its cooked food..i don't feel the need to take a packed lunch as i find it booring
Click to expand...

I work less than 5 minutes away from Sainsburys, Mc D's, KFC, BK, Pizza Hut and Costco then have numerous snack vans coming round.

My daily spend is almost always more than £10 which is why I'm so interested in this.
 
I've found when I've frozen meals in a fairly runny sauce e.g. chicken casserole that when they have been defrosted and cooked the sauce goes a bit jelly-like.

My favourite meals to cook and freeze are

Spaghetti Bolognese (without the spaghetti)
Thai Green Chicken Curry (The philadelphia cheese recipe)
Chicken Fajitas (without tortilla wrap)
Chilli Con Carne

To resolve the jellylike sauce issue I've started to cook chicken and vegetables and freeze them separately, then once defrosed and cooked I add a gravy, sauce or alternatively make them onto a stir fry.

Another recipe I love is http://allrecipes.co.uk/recipe/1123/carol-s-arroz-con-pollo.aspx
I haven't yet frozen it but it's sooo yummy.
Although be consciencious of the wine you choose. The first time I tried it with J.P.Chenet and added the saffron. It was delicious but I felt the saffron was giving it an unusual after taste.
Second time I bought a cheap bottle of white wine from Lidl's and left out the saffron and it just didn't taste as good.

Usually I keep frozen meals for a month or so.
 
I normally make chilli/bolognase on a Sunday at least once a month, that gives me a good sized meal that day, left overs in the fridge for the next and two portions for the freezer for whenever. If I am making curry during the week it'll almost be the same, (normally only one portion for the freezer though as I tend to make smaller currys than chillis).
 
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