Hey, let’s not mince our words here; solo cooking can be a challenge. It’s all too easy to just eat beans on marmite toast ad infinitum (just us?) or to grab a takeaway when the mood takes you, which, let’s face it, is every night. Why bother doing more, right?
Let’s strike that negativity from the record and start over. Not only is there joy to be had in cooking for one, but it also brings other benefits, both mental and physical.
Domestic goddess Nigella Lawson is an advocate of cooking for one, and who’s to argue with her? Except over her pronunciation of microwave, perhaps. Anyway, she tells the Evening Standard that lockdown showed her just how much she enjoyed cooking for herself, and that she has always been a believer in cooking for one.
Indeed, she reveals that she finds it “such a wonderful way of cooking without stress, because there’s no anxiety about whether it’s going to find favour”. Moreover, she posits that cooking for yourself is a great way to gain confidence in the kitchen, behind closed doors before your newly learned skills are unleashed on the hungry world.
We couldn’t agree more. That said, cooking for yourself does involve a fair amount of planning and preparation, in order to avoid wasting food, over shopping or underfeeding. With that in mind, here are 9 tips on meal prepping and cooking if you live alone.
PLAN MEALS AHEAD OF TIME
Planning your meals ahead can save you time, money and effort, and will give you something to look forward to during the working day, too! Knowing that you’ve got a delicious bowl of spaghetti pomodoro or Hanoi style beef noodle soup waiting at home could get you through even the darkest of days, don’t you think?
Planning meals ahead of time also means that you’re less likely to impulse buy at the supermarket on the way home from work, or snack unnecessarily during the day.
Your meal plan is the blueprint for your shopping list, so consider investing in an A4 sized whiteboard that you can stick to your fridge with the days of the week and intended meals listed on it. Doing so will help you stay disciplined and focused as the week progresses, and will help you lessen your food waste, too!
Read: 5 tips for healthy, thrifty family meal prepping, IDEAL for those looking to diversify deliciously
SHOP SMARTLY
Speaking of shopping, when you’re cooking for one, it is, conversely, essential that you don’t shop for one. Buying solo portions and single pieces of fruit, vegetables, meat and fish isn’t the most economically efficient thing to do. Neither is it all that good for the environment, considering all of the single use plastic involved.
Instead, consult that meal plan of yours and shop smartly for the week, buying in bulk and deploying the same ingredients in several dishes throughout the week.
EXPAND YOUR REPERTOIRE
Having some regular, go-to recipes is a wonderful, reassuring thing. Hey, you might even call your homemade Thai green curry your ‘signature dish’. And there’s certainly nothing wrong with taking pride in your cooking.
However, cooking the same old dishes night after night can sometimes make cooking for one a little uninspiring. By diversifying your dishes and expanding your repertoire, you can keep mealtimes interesting each and every night of the week. For inspiration, get a food encyclopedia and look up food that starts with N, for instance, a build a dinner from that random reference point. Or, invest in a recipe book from a country you’ve never visited or a cuisine cooked from.
For inspiration, there are lots of cookbooks out there aimed at and celebrating solo cooking. Take “Solo: A Modern Cookbook for a Party of One” by Chef Ania Lo or “Solo” by Signe Johansen, both whose recipes are tailored to feed one.
EXPERIMENT WITH NEW INGREDIENTS
Living alone presents a unique opportunity to experiment with your cooking by incorporating new ingredients that can transform the ordinary into the extraordinary. For instance, consider the magic of buying honey packets – not just for sweetening tea but for thickening stocks into rich, velvety soups while adding a subtle sweetness that can balance the flavours.
MSG, often misunderstood, is another pantry staple that can add an umami depth to dishes that might otherwise taste bland; just a pinch can elevate a simple stir-fry or a batch of roasted vegetables. Don’t overlook the versatility of nutritional yeast, either, which can be sprinkled over pasta or popcorn for a cheesy flavour without the dairy, or the complexity that a dash of smoked paprika can bring, giving a smoky edge to your favourite egg or potato dishes.
By keeping these ingredients at hand, you can easily add a twist to your meals and keep your solo dining experience both exciting and delicious.
COOK WITH FOOD WASTE IN MIND
Cooking for one whilst causing zero waste is a tough ask. According to research reported in the Times, those who live alone throw away 40% more food and drink than those who don’t. They continue, saying that “the edible food discarded by the typical one-person household is worth £290 a year, £90 more than for the average person.” Blimey.
It’s widely known that each forkful of food we throw away contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. As reported by the BBC, “if food waste was a country, it would be the third highest emitter of greenhouse gases after the US and China, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.”
So, even though you’re cooking for one, it still pays to be mindful of how you’re doing so to mitigate the implications of food waste. Cooking with thoughtfulness where waste is concerned will not only save you money, but your conscience, too.
Read: How to avoid wasting food and turning anything leftover into something downright delicious
REPURPOSE LEFTOVERS
Leftovers can often lead to exciting, delicious meals in their own right. So, start repurposing your leftovers and eat like a king, queen or monarch for longer.
Today’s risotto could be tomorrow’s arancini balls. Your beef ragu can be turned into a lasagna, a cottage pie, chilli con carne or taco topping. That massive bag of carrots you had to buy can be redeployed as a dip for hummus, a carrot soup or even made into a quick pickle to liven up your next salad. Leftover mash can be turned into croquettes or potato cakes. Hey, the list goes on and on and on…
But we won’t do.
PORTION MEALS AND USE THE FREEZER
The freezer is a solo cook’s best friend. Use it to prolong the life of your leftovers:
- Portion Food: Unless you’re going to a butcher, it’s pretty impossible to get the exact right amount of meat for a solo diner. As such, it’s a good idea to freeze meal size portions. The same goes for if you’re cooking pasta or rice. Get some scales and measure out single portions each time, to ensure you’re not unnecessarily overfilling your plate.
- Batch Cook and Freeze: On a rainy day, put on a podcast and get cooking. When you’re in the kitchen alone, sometimes the silence can feel oppressive and make cooking feel like a chore. Welcome some company into the kitchen and luxuriate in the experience!
- Make Extra and Freeze it: Let’s face it, batch cooking at the weekend for your meals during the week can get pretty boring. If this is an activity you don’t enjoy, there is another way; simply make double of what you’re cooking for dinner each night and freeze the additional portion, ready for the most delicious, healthiest ready meal when you’re feeling too tired to cook from scratch.
Hey, we’re not done yet! Stock your freezer up with frozen vegetables. This means that you can have healthy produce on hand, eliminating the worry of sourcing direct from the increasingly empty-shelved supermarket.
Frozen berries are your best friends, especially when you are not in the mood to open the stove. Aside from fresh berries being expensive, frozen berries are cheaper and last longer. Shop for frozen grapes, sweet cherries, and berries – they are absolutely fantastic snacks, and you can also make them into a smoothie!
Soup is one of the simplest, most affordable and healthiest meals available, too. It’s also a great one to freeze, portion by portion.
Read: 5 easy, delicious meals you can make from your store cupboard and freezer
LEARN HOW TO ORGANISE
If your food is badly organised and scattered across your cupboards, kitchen and fridge, it can be hard to make economical decisions about what to eat next. Box items up in leftover takeaway containers (from those days when you used to eat too many) and label them up. Keep your spice rack neatly organised and where fresh food is concerned, operate a FIFO (first in, first out) policy in your fridge to ensure you’re eating ingredients before they go off. All of this will make cooking a joy, not a chore.
Read: 8 useful tips for living alone first timers
THROW A DINNER PARTY
We don’t mean to hamper the progress you’ve made since reading this article on cooking solo. However, as reported by the Independent “research is revealing the negative impacts of eating alone, which has been found to be linked to a variety of mental and physical health conditions, from depression and diabetes to high blood pressure”.
Indeed, while solo cooking can be fun, it would be remiss of us not to admit that cooking for two, three or even a group of people is far more fun. So why not join forces with your friends and take it in turns to throw a dinner party every other week? Doing so will keep you inspired about new recipes and cooking techniques, and give you a fresh impetus to keep cooking on those solo nights.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Cooking for one is a tender, gentle act of self love that shouldn’t be underestimated. Good for the body, soul and bank balance, we hope you’ve found some inspiration above on how to do it efficiently, economically, but even more so, joyfully.