food as a bachelor

[BlackTigers]

okay, im living on my own (have for about a year and a half though...) but the one thing I hate is that I eat...horribly is the best way to put it,

chipotle/qdoba three times a week, wendys for lunch five days a week, mcdonalds and taco bell. I have a fast metabolism so I'm not gaining weight, but fuck I'm tired of feeling like shit. I didnt feel this bad when i lived at home and ate real food every night.

i know how to cook - that's not an issue. my issue comes in meal sizes, storage, buying food that sits for too long.

what are some things that i can make, freeze/store for lunch at work, save for a meal later in the week, etc, without worry about spoiling or the like? any recommendations?

 

[SillyOReilly]

Get a crockpot.

Look up recipes.

 

[xanis]

Get a crockpot.

Look up recipes.

This. Crockpots FTMFW.

Try making chili. You can make it as simple or complex as you want and it's super-easy to make with a crockpot.

 

[Oil]

Salad and sandwiches

 

[lxskllr]

Canned food keeps well, and is mostly good for you, though you have to watch the salt and fat with some things.

 

[xanis]

You can also make some really simple, fairly healthy pasta dishes. For example:

- ground turkey cooked in garlic and onion
- canned tomato sauce and canned diced tomatoes
- Italian seasoning and/or salt and pepper
- whole wheat pasta

Tasty, filling, and extremely simple to make.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

Screw all that. Porridge. Nothing but porridge.

 

[LagunaX]

Something like this?
http://shop.mitsuwa.com/eng/egoods/edetail.php?pid=1342

 

[zerocool84]

Chipotle? How can you eat that crap so often? I'd rather have Taco Bell than Chipotle.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

Chipotle? How can you eat that crap so often? I'd rather have Taco Bell than Chipotle.

I've only had it once. It wasn't amazing or anything, but I thought it was a lot better than taco bell.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

Salad is a good choice for the bachelor. Salads are stupid easy to make, stupid good for you, and just plain stupid because they aren't steaks. So, on second though, fuck salads, make yourself some steaks. Preferably wrapped in bacon.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Make larger quantities when you cook and divvy them up into freezer bags and put in freezer for when you don't feel like cooking. I like larger bags even if you have smaller portions to put in them. Get a marker or grease pencil and write on the bags before you fill them. What it is and when you froze it. You can fit more bags than plastic containers in the freezer.

A whole turkey can last quite a while if portioned out and it's cheap. If you like cheap steaks, buy a whole round of beef and make a marinade. Cut steaks and put one or two in a bag with some marinade. Freeze til hungry. Stews, lasagna, meats, pasta all freeze well.

 

[Kreon]

I handle the portion issue by cooking for 2. I eat 1 portion for dinner, and the other for another meal the next day (usually lunch).

I also eat a lot of porridge, usually for breakfast. Add some blueberries or other such fruit into it.

Though I love my crockpot, I tend to not use it unless cooking when friends come over or making a stockpile of chili.

 

[Matthiasa]

Well easy things... Ravioli in well... a sauce. (What I had tonight)
The sauce included:ground meat, some kind of pasta sauce/tomato sauce, diced onion, diced carrots, diced celery, diced bell pepper, Italian seasoning and garlic powder(would have prefered actual garlic but whatever)
Simple and not horribly bad for you if you get/ make healthier ravioli and learner meat.

All of that if refrigerated should last 4-5 days no problem. And the sauce can be frozen if that isn't long enough.

 

[SnipeMasterJ13]

I typically go grocery shopping for a week at a time with perishables - and supplement with frozen/canned food as necessary.

Typically I'll boil or grill 2.5 lbs of chicken breasts at a time to eat plain or use with sandwiches, which lasts a couple of days. Maybe rotate all natural turkey from the deli in there, too. Then a bunch of organic spinach to add on sandwiches or use as salad. Fruit - strawberries, pineapple, and bananas.

Then stuff that doesn't go bad in a week... Cereal - mainly regular Cheerios and Wheaties. Frozen "steam in the bag" veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, peas, corn, etc. Not as good as fresh, but stays good forever which makes it easier. Then a whole lot of peanuts, almonds, and whey protein.

Eating while single sucks cause it gets boring but you get used to it. Plus, I'm down almost 50 lbs since a year ago, and that's with gaining a ton of muscle (if you didn't notice the tons of protein listed). But that's my crazy gym routine - which will definitely help you feel better overall. That's the plus side of being single - free to spend all your time at the gym!

 

[alkemyst]

OP I'd recommend a good multi-vitamin. B12 is a serious need and a deficiency can really fuck you up like PERMANENTLY. Even if you are eating healthy fast food a lot of the vitamins and minerals get processed out.

The guys over in Health and Fitness can recommend a good multi. You don't need to go crazy expensive like an Animal Pack unless you want the convenience.

www.drumlib.org is like pricewatch.com for supplement pricing once you find out what you want.

When I was a bachelor I cooked a lot of ground 97 and 99% lean turkey and ultra lean beef. I didn't like ground chicken too much. I'd get chicken breasts though pre-prepared so I could just grill or bake them ahead of time.

Canned tuna and a little miracle whip lite was good in whole grain pitas with veggies...I liked adding salsa to them.

I'd have a few steak day/nights too.

A lot of this stuff is easier if you prepare it all in one night like say when you are waiting for your clothes to wash anyway. Get a bunch of plastic containers then freeze lunch and dinners complete. Some veggies can just microwave with the main course, some your can grill ahead of time then reheat for some extra flavor.

A good salad with any of the above on it is also easy, healthy and has the benefit of taking a while to eat so if you are a foodie type it's satisfying. For me the quicker lunch or dinner is over the better.

One of the cool things of making good lunches and eating them where others are around is it attracts women that are foodies. Once they see no ring, they will usually say something like "oh your g/f must be an iron chef (or whatever), what a lucky guy...I wish I had someone making me that..."

"Actually, I live on my own [she's pretty much assumed car and job checkboxes are covered now to ]; I like to eat right and for it to still taste good. Surprisingly this took very little time, want to hang out one evening or afternoon and play in the kitchen?"

When I was single and ate in the company lunch room and the food court at times, it became pretty fun the attention my meals got. At the same time I was a hardcore gym rat so it added another level of "you can eat stuff like this and still look like that?"

Good food doesn't have to taste bad, be hard to make or very expensive. I will say good fruits and veggies and real meats are a bit more costly than the 10 for $10 stuff and even the 3 for $10 meals probably some of the time. Definitely cheaper than eating out at any fast food place though and more tasty.

oh, if you invite a chick over to have a kitchen date, make sure you have some condoms on hand...just sayin'

 

[busydude]

Get yourself a rice cooker.

 

[Matthiasa]

Rice is like the easiest thing to cook ever, if you need a rice cooker you can't actually cook.
If you read the op though he said he can.

In-fact the first time I ever cooked rice it turned out perfectly, it's that easy.

Erm and rice doesn't exactly reheat well...

 

[alkemyst]

If you get a 'good' rice cooker you don't have to cook.

 

[Matthiasa]

If you're messing with the rice while it's cooking your doing it wrong.
It would save space on the cook top though.

 

[feralkid]

 

[alienb]

Dammit...was like..title calls for this...did someone beat me to it already...

 

[yllus]

Chipotle - a burrito bowl served without rice - is actually rather healthy. You wouldn't do badly to keep that part of your rotation in place.

 

[brainhulk]

cooking for bachelors:

http://youtu.be/GSYVe0hlpnc

 

[chitwood]

hot pockets