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BS: Cooking for single people--help! |
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Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: The Fooles Troupe Date: 20 Nov 06 - 07:35 PM "If yer gonna make rice which isn't the %-minute stuff, the recipe is basic and fundamental. Two cups water to one cup rice." Ah - there is another way - put the rice in the pot and add water to "the first knuckle" over the top - i.e. if you put your hand flat over the rice, it will just cover your hand - the same height can be gauged by touching the top of the rice with your finger tip and the water will reach up your finger to the first finger joint - for techies like me - that's about an inch. You cook with the lid on basically as the rest of this tip from Peace said. Got this tip from "Simply Ming" - a TV cooking show by an American Chinese restaurant owner named Ming - search the web. "If you buy ground beef, buy the leanest you can get. ... etc" Actually we can get various grades of things called "steakettes" - which are square patties separated by paper strips. Good ones at some old fashioned butchers - if you can find them. "Rice will keep for a few days in the fridge" Made up sushi does not, however. "Salads are OK. but some kinds of lettuce do not keep worth a darn, so find someone else you can split a head with." In Australia, you can now get various types of 'salads' in sealed clear plastic bags - they are very expensive compared with the basic ingredients - but yo can get them in overall smaller quantities than the basic ingredients - they often clear old older stock - often up to half price - then they become on a price par with throwing away most of the uneaten basic ingredients! They will last a few days unopened in a fridge - they are supposedly sealed in pure nitrogen - these come with any dressings - and some of the ingredients like cheeses or ham pieces sealed in small bags inside. "When tins of stuff you like are on sale, buy lots" This saves money! We now have places like "Crazy Clarks" here - these are sorta like 'dime stores' used to be - and how Coles and Woollies were before they owned 80% of the market - they often have food cans etc (non-perishables) much cheaper than the big chain stores. "If yer in a hurry, peanut butter is OK," In Aus - we use Vegemite (none of THOSE problems!) .... :-) |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: LilyFestre Date: 20 Nov 06 - 07:11 PM This is one of my favorite recipe sites. www.allrecipes.com You can type in however many servings you want to make. Yes, you will get some weird measurements that way...but sometimes not and there is even a section for meals for one or two BUT you can make up a batch of whatever and freeze it. There are also plenty of sites for foods to cook in batches and freeze. That's always handy....just thaw, reheat and yum! All the taste and none of the work after a long day at work! Michelle |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: Peace Date: 20 Nov 06 - 06:50 PM "tablespoons are in a teaspoon" It's the other way around, and I think there are three teaspoons in a tablespoon. Some tips for those of you who like to cook. 1) Make enough so you can freeze two or three portions 2) When you cook pasta, make enough for about four meals, because when it's done al dente it will keep in the refrigerator. You can also freeze some, but it's better to freeze with the sauce already mixed with the pasta 3) If you like pesto sauce, freeze some in an icecube tray. When you are gonna have pasta with it, put the frozen cube or two on the pasta and nuke it for a few minutes 4) Bread will keep well in a freezer, but it sucks if you leave it in the fridge portion of your refrigerator 5) If you buy ground beef, buy the leanest you can get. Use a plastic wrap and put a 'scoop' of the meat in. Then fold the plastic wrap to the sixe you want the patties. Push down and it will assume the shape and size of the plastic wrap. Then put it in a freezer. You can take it from frozen to a fry pan and cook it. It still tastes like what I call hamburger 6) Salads are OK. but some kinds of lettuce do not keep worth a darn, so find someone else you can split a head with. Do not put salad dressing on the salad and then store in the fridge, because the whole darned thing turns to mush. Add the dressing just before you eat 7) When tins of stuff you like are on sale, buy lots 8) When I eat properly, I find it convenient to have left-over stuff which becomes lunch the next day 9) If yer gonna make rice which isn't the %-minute stuff, the recipe is basic and fundamental. Two cups water to one cup rice. Bring water to a boil and add rice. Wait until it comes to a boil again and let it for about two minutes. Then cover and put that burner on simmer. Leave it alone for about 25 minutes. Rice will keep for a few days in the fridge 10) If yer in a hurry, peanut butter is OK, but keep in mind that peanuts are not particularly good for guys with any prostate difficulty 11) If you like sweets, get frozen bars--ice cream thingies--because after a week, ice cream in thos plastic tubs gets 'freezer burn'. 12) Wnen you make a sauce for spaghetti, make lots. Freeze in individual portions 13) McDonald's may be the place you end up, but ending up there too often isn't such a good thing 14) Avoid foods that have lots of sulphites and sulphates. They will make your urine smell funny and neither of those things are good for you 15) Remember when you are eating oats for the tenth time in two weeks that some people around the world would envy you, especially if you have milk and sugar to go with the oats |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: The Fooles Troupe Date: 20 Nov 06 - 06:32 PM Now this will be controversial. *1) depends on the ambient temperature - not recommended in 40 deg C/100+ F. A pot of stew (or similar), if left unopened with the lid firmly on after boiling for at least 5 minutes, is likely to stay 'mostly sterile' - if then simmered/lightly boiled for 5 minutes is usually safe - unless your kitchen is next to an open sewer... I've done that sort of thing for years, and it never affec... affec... affec... affec... affec... affec... |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: jeffp Date: 20 Nov 06 - 06:29 PM So you said many, but only listed one. Are there others? |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: Linda Kelly Date: 20 Nov 06 - 06:12 PM Cheerios Weetabix and for special occasions-honeynut crunch cornflakes. |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: artbrooks Date: 20 Nov 06 - 05:56 PM I don't know anything about your friend's basic cooking skills, so I'll throw this in the pot..if it's inappropriate feel free to throw it back out again. Several years ago my job required me to live single for a year and, for one reason or another (home to army to marriage), this was really the first time in my life that I had had to do so. My wife and daughter gave me a neat book called Dad's Own Cookbook, which included basic information on such things as how many tablespoons are in a teaspoon and how to boil water. While it does have recipes for the multitudes, it also provides good guidelines on how to reduce them to meals for one. |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: Richard Bridge Date: 20 Nov 06 - 05:46 PM Curry. Spagh bol Stew. Eat for 3 or 4 days at a time. Saves wasting a lot of time pfaffing around cooking, which must be the most boring job ever invented. |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: Rowan Date: 20 Nov 06 - 05:07 PM Vitamin C is particularly fragile in both treatments; I flinch when I see people freezing orange juice because they've got it in bulk. My parents' generation used to boil vegies to within an inch of their lives, removing many vitamins in the process. Most modern cooking of green vegies (woks, steaming etc) usually leaves them with some crisp crunch by exposing them to only a minimum of heat. This leaves some of the vitamin content intact. Most nutritionists emphasise the intake of fresh fruit and vegies as a major part of our intake and this is part of the reason. Cheers, Rowan |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: Scoville Date: 20 Nov 06 - 05:02 PM Okay, now Amazon is behaving. I must have had it set on DVD or something. Not many DVD's on that subject. Well, freezing sometimes makes things turn to goo and taste like crap, too. And, like I said, the freezer isn't large and it's not all hers. Look--can we do this with a minimum of smart-assery? I was asking for suggestions. She's not a kitchen incompetent, she'd just like some imaginative recipes but isn't the type to accumulate cookbooks, etc., like I am. She needs quick, inexpensive, and easy, without tasting like what we ate in grade school cafeterias. I was just trying to find a girl a Christmas present. Sheesh. ***** Actually, I'm thinking of the intro to the cartoon "Futurama", which sometimes featured a billboard for a product called "Bachelor Chow". Ha ha. But, seriously, we're trying to avoid the Alpo food aesthetic. |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: jeffp Date: 20 Nov 06 - 04:52 PM Rowan: can you be specific about which vitamins are destroyed by freezing? Many more are destroyed by cooking. The heat contributes energy which can break the chemical bonds. |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: Liz the Squeak Date: 20 Nov 06 - 04:43 PM Delia Smiths 'One is fun' is pretty good.... look out for my father in law's handiwork in the photos - he put the kitchens in her home and her studios. LTS |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: Rowan Date: 20 Nov 06 - 04:37 PM Freezing has a few myths attached. Many vitamins are destroyed by freezing so don't rely on frozen food for more than the basic nutrients, the taste and texture etc. It takes a little while though, and you can always add fresh greens to anything recooked, either as garnish or as substantive ingredients. Cheers, Rowan |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: SINSULL Date: 20 Nov 06 - 04:25 PM There are a number of cookbooks about "Cooking For Two" geared towards newlyweds and empty-nesters. If I can find mine, you are welcome to it. Some dishes, especially stews, soups, chilis and casseroles just don't work for one or two unless you can freeze or use leftovers. I freeze. |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: lady penelope Date: 20 Nov 06 - 04:19 PM Er, just use less ingredients? Honestly it's not rocket science. If a recipe says it makes 4 portions divide by 2 or 4. Go mad, experiment. Even if you follow a recipe exactly it doesn't mean it'll necessarily turn out the way you like it. I like soup, I like to make my own soup. Soup is down right impossible to make in single portion batches. But as has already been stated, this is where the freezer is your friend. Look at it this way. If you find you really one recipe, you can a huge batch and freeze it and you only have to cook the once!!! Cooking's all about taste - what are you hungry for? |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: Scoville Date: 20 Nov 06 - 04:16 PM Damn--Amazon was giving me crap a minute ago. Will try again. She's not a vegetarian, luckily. But she has a roommate and thus only has use of technically 1/2 of the freezer (and the roommate is a Jewish vegetarian so they don't share a lot of food). She does freeze stuff, but . . . well, you know how that goes. |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: Lox Date: 20 Nov 06 - 04:15 PM Peace LOL You are a bad person ;-) |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: MudGuard Date: 20 Nov 06 - 04:13 PM It is often very difficult to cook for just one helping (some ingredients come in packages too big for that, and will spoil if not used quite fast). Therefore, besides cooking equipment, get yourself: Freezer + Microwave Oven + Tupperware. Step 1: Cook 4 or more helpings, eat one, put rest in Tupperware, freeze. Step 2: goto step 1 till freezer is full. Step 3: eat meals from freezer (heat in Microwave oven) till there is room for 3 or more helpings. Step 4: cook again for 4 or more helpings, eat one, freeze 3 (or more) till freezer is full. Step 5: goto step 3. Whenever you feel like it, you can interrupt above mentioned proceedings with single helping stuff like pancakes, scrambled eggs or whatever. |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: Peace Date: 20 Nov 06 - 03:57 PM Can, can opener, spoon. Let your imagination be your guide. |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: ClaireBear Date: 20 Nov 06 - 03:55 PM Assuming your friend is not vegetarian, my suggestion is to develop a collection of rubs, spice blends, and marinades to enhance the flavors of salmon, chicken, steak, pork chops...and some kind of grill (I use a Korean-style stovetop grill, a dome-shaped thingy that sits on a moat-shaped water reservoir...but actually a good, heavy griddle will do the job almost as well). Then the next task is finding a live butcher (as opposed to a grocery-store meat department) who will sell the above meats in units of one or two. A baked potato or yam -- or rice for one, easy enough to do -- a generous serving of steamed vegetables, and maybe a luxurious salad makes a feast fo one -- and it's even reasonably healthful, unlike many stews, casseroles, and big-production dinners that have to be made for 4 to 6. Also, pasta sauces -- bolognese, pesto, marinara, etc. -- freeze well in small units once made, and then you can cook just a little pasta to go with. Oh, and to drink...roll glass marbles gently into the wine bottle to bring the level of wine back to the top of the bottle (preventing oxygenation), recork, and the same good bottle of wine will go with several days of those excellent meals. |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: MMario Date: 20 Nov 06 - 03:41 PM I would say a freezer is one of the biggest helps in cooking for singles; larger dishes can be subdivided and portions put away for another time; you can make a big batch of something and not have to eat it for 6 days running. Creative seasoning can also help - the same basic ingredients can be very different when seasoned differently - Scrambled eggs in the morning are extremly different then a supper omelet with diced chicken and salsa. |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: Wesley S Date: 20 Nov 06 - 03:36 PM Freeze it. |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: Lox Date: 20 Nov 06 - 03:35 PM Cook for your friends regularly. Get a culture going where you all cook for each other on different nights. Become so familiar with cooking that you are able to visualise and create recipes for yourself when noone is available. |
Subject: RE: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: jeffp Date: 20 Nov 06 - 03:33 PM Go to amazon.com and search on cooking for one. It brought up 6549 results. |
Subject: BS: Cooking for single people--help! From: Scoville Date: 20 Nov 06 - 03:30 PM Okay, this is a bit weird, but a friend of mine was lamenting recently how boring eating had become. She was irritated that recipes all seem to say "serves 4" or "serves 6" or whatever, and she doesn't want to eat the same thing all week, but she does want to follow the recipe to make sure things taste right and to avoid dealing with weird subdivided measurements. I've tried poking around online but haven't had much luck. Does anyone know of any modern singles-oriented (one or two serving portions per recipe) cookbooks? Preferably something that doesn't require expensive specialty ingredients or loads of preparation time. Like I said, she cooks but she's not really INTO cooking. Failing that, I'll take any favorite hints, recipes, etc. that would fit the bill and compile the sucker myself. I was hoping to get it to her for Christmas but she said I could design her a tattoo instead, so that gives me a year to get it together if I have to. |