Eating alone can be an immensely pleasurable, gratifying thing. We wouldn't want to do it every night, although many do, but once in a while it's nice to eat what we want and enjoy it without conversation. What to fix, though, is a different matter. Not many recipes are created for a single serving...
It's sometimes hard for us even to cook for two, since so many recipes serve four or six. We like leftovers, but a full lasagna or an entire pork shoulder, well, that can take a while to eat on your own. But the single-size alternatives that are so often peddled to solo eaters (frozen dinners) can definitely be improved upon. Here are a few of our tips.
Consider the egg. A fried egg over some sautéed vegetables or on top of soba noodles gives it dinner importance far beyond its breakfast beginnings. It's even packaged as a single-serving item. Scramble it with some greens and put it over toast like the tartine pictured above.
Avoid recipes that have rare ingredients you won't use often. It is, of course, easy to cut a recipe in half or in quarters to serve just yourself. But if the recipe calls for a bunch of an expensive ingredient that you can't buy less of, you may waste it. If, for example, a recipe calls for several different fresh herbs, just buy one that you love and use more of it.
So shop in bulk bins. We love bulk bins that allow us to buy a tiny scoop of nuts or a little bit of a few different grains. You get fresher ingredients that you can use up on a single meal, and you save money.
Make soup or pasta. We know, not a groundbreaking idea. But both are great warmed up (sometimes cold, in the case of pasta), so no harm in having extra. See our archives, which are full of good soups and pastas.
Use greens in more than one way. Greens are the first thing to go in our refrigerator, and yet you can't really buy half a bunch. So if you have a lot of spinach, make it a salad and also add it to your main dish. Lay some in a foil packet and cook one piece of fish, or stir it into soup.
Roast a cornish hen or a chicken breast. Buy a little bird or just one bone-in chicken breast and roast it in a pie plate or a small gratin dish with a potato, carrot, turnip, or other vegetable cut up underneath. It's like a downsized roast chicken.
Make dessert in a ramekin. We do this all the time. Cut up one apple or pear, put it in a ramekin, then follow this template for cobbler dough, which goes like this: equal parts flour and sugar, with enough melted butter to make a dough. For one ramekin, we'd say start with 1/4 cup flour, 1/4 cup sugar (brown sugar is great, too), and 2 tablespoons of melted butter (maybe three). Mix, pat, lay on top of your fruit, and bake.
Cook without recipes! Cooking for one allows you to use a little bit of this, a little bit of that, and adapt to your liking. After all, you're the only one eating it.
What are your tips for cooking for one?
Related: Julie Powell On Cooking for One
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When my non-mussel eating SO goes out of town, I like to buy a sack of them and eat half steamed with wine and cream in one sitting, and have the other half in a chowder. So I guess my tip is, eat things that other people find repulsive when you're on your own!
my solo eating consists of spaghetti o's over the sink right now or subsisting on a huge bag of trail mix i bought at costco. I end up buying food but it spoils because i am never around to cook it. so sad.
I do the soup thing. And eggs. I love to cook, but I don't eat that much, and soup keeps well for a week. I just got so sick of everything I bought made going bad. At least I don't mind eating the same thing several days in a row. I like to get together with friends to cook larger fancier meals, to get my more extravagant cooking fixes.
I do a lot of cooking in packets. I buy a bag of frozen fish fillets or a fresh fillet from the market and stick it in a packet with veggies and some liquid (an acid is best). Pork chops are great in packets as they come out less dry (my favorite combo is a pork chop, onion, apple, sweet potato and a bit of apple juice for moisture).
Use the broiler to cook one or two chicken breasts at a time (buy a bag of individually frozen boneless skinless breasts). Marinate them in ziplock baggies overnight. A single acorn squash is the perfect size for a meal. A personal sized pizza can be made using a pocketless pita bread and tomato paste for the sauce with veggies and cheese on top. The variety of creative ways to top a baked potato is staggering (excellent with spinach, btw!).
Play with flavors. Use spices and herbs (fresh and dried), make your own spice blends and rubs, etc. Pick one ingredient and get creative with it - try preparing it three different ways to use it up.
I also have several cookbooks for "singles" or that have recipes for one or two. Cookbooks geared for students have lots of cost effective small meals. And it's easy to multiply recipes if you need to make more than just enough for two.
Finally, plan ahead. If you make lists and plan for specific recipes, you're less likely to overbuy or impulse buy.
I eat a lot of eggs and greens. Soup is another fave (especially now that the weather's getting cold) because I can easily freeze single portions. I'll roast a chicken and eat it for lunch and dinner for a few days in a few different ways (Roast w/ starch and salad one night, in a sandwich the next day, in a nice salad that night...) and then make stock of the bones.
A pot of lentils in stock with carrots and onions is hard to beat, too.
i didn't like your "wouldn't want to do it every night." kind of insulting to those of us who live alone.
I'm an undergrad living on my own for the first time, and I have to say, my favourite part about it is the cooking! I can make my favourite foods (often with enough garlic to produce a brand of dragon's breath that would keep friends away anyways) without worrying about roommates in the kitchen or being too noisy for them. And the freedom to make whatever you want, whenever you want it (like 2 AM)... wonderful.
One thing I can suggest if you're living on your own and busy is one of those one or 2 person sized slow cookers. They're far more handy for my situation than a big crockpot, and it's always lovely to come home (or wake up) to a warm meal ready and waiting for you =)
There's a Williams-Sonoma book called "Cooking for Yourself." Just the psychology of that name is wonderful. And, being a W-S book, the pictures are gorgeous. It's out of print, but you can get copies from Amazon marketplace.
I tend to use the slow cooker and then freeze portions. Especially chicken cacciatore. I make brown rice and put that into the freezer dishes as well (instead of pasta...I'm a bad Italian and don't like it).
I usually do something vegetarian when I eat separately from my husband. Chana masala is great, and it's easy to make small portions or just enough to have for dinner in the evening and lunch the next day.
I am an army wife without any children. Half the time I live all alone, and the other half, it's just me and the husband.
The worst part of this is the dishes. Usually I cook as much as I can all at once, and refrigerate/freeze whatever is left. This way, you have as much food as possible without worrying about dishes.
One of my favorite easy meals is bertolli pasta in a bag. It costs about six dollars a bag, and is 2 servings. And it's delicious.
Another thing I do is buy groceries a little bit at a time. Twice a month I buy the "main" groceries (cereal, frozen or canned foods, grains, etc) and then every couple of days I buy things like meat, dairy, or fresh veggies. I buy these things in small amounts so that they get used faster, and it's more cost effective and less wasteful.
What about cookbook ideas? My FIL is single and we would like to get him some cookbooks for 1-2 person meals so that he eats healthier. He enjoys cooking, but has a default setting to "dozens of servings" from his days as an Army cook. I'm on a quest to find some cookbooks to help him out this year for Christmas.
The toaster oven is the solo diner's best friend. No need to heat up the whole oven when you just need to toast or bake one portion of something (like that ramekin dessert...).
Pasta is a good idea. Make a regular-size batch of sauce, but only cook one portion of pasta. Refrigerate (or freeze in individual portions) the rest of the sauce and put the remainder of the dry pasta in an airtight container. It only takes a few minutes to cook a fresh portion of pasta for the next meal, and you won't have to eat soggy leftovers.
I just got a cute cookbook called "Little Meals," by Rozanne Gold has a lot of smaller portion recipes and just ideas for small meals. Some of the recipes are pretty fancy, but for someone who likes to cook and try new things, I like it. The portions are for like 4-6 "little meals," but would work wonderful for two or one person, with leftovers the next day.
My favorite meals to cook are Indian dishes. Lots of lentils and veggies, keeps beautifully (many dishes get better as the spices mingle), and I feel like I'm getting a "complete" meal. Meat and veggies can be cooked in the same pot as lentils, and basmati rice just simmers on the back burner. Interesting food, and satisfying for the stomach!
When I am home alone I do a lot of soups or grain/pasta salads. I definitely try to pick up only one of two veggies at a time and then search out 2-3 recipes for them. I also eat a lot of beans or else frozen chicken breasts or sausages because they are easy to freeze into individual servings. I agree about the dishes though, I like to do one-pot type of meals to minimize the dishes when it is just me.
The freezer is your friend! I cook full-recipies and freeze the leftovers in individual servings. Same with pasta sauce. Then when I want pasta, I can just cook the pasta and pop some frozen sauce in the microwave.
The best thing about eating alone is that I can eat whatever I want! And I don't have to make conversation while I'm trying to eat. I actually prefer it.
kls987 - Go to Amazon and search for "Solo Suppers: Simple Meals to Cook for Yourself," "Cooking for Yourself," and "Going Solo in the Kitchen."
Then look through the sections on "Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought" and "What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?" for more ideas.
I advise checking them out at the library before purchasing. I found that way that I was unimpressed with Going Solo in the Kitchen (I don't need a recipe that makes a whole loaf of banana bread, that's why I'm looking at books for single person cooking!)
BTW, check out Darlene's post about the cookbook, "Small-Batch Baking" here.
Leftovers are sad unless they are the kind of thing that gets better over a few days (stews and braised meats...)
so I make them in nice big batches, some can be frozen, or just be handy when suddenly you are feeding two or three... if you cook it they will come
pasta I measure so there will be no leftovers (or overeating... ) 3 oz if it's a starter before a meat and salad, 4 oz if it's the main... that way no feeling of deprivation when it's gone... because it's not there
salad salad salad... so I change it up a little... very fond now of finely shredded cabbage.... appreciating walnut oil with some combos that include the cabbage... always a fresh dressing that I make
and yes to soups
and once every two weeks I poach a chicken and eat off it for days (great method: chicken in pot of cold water, 2 or 3 tbsp of coarse salt, 1 tbsp of black peppercorns, put lid on, bring to rapid boil, do NOT remove lid, turn stove off when you can hear it bubble and see steam escaping, DO NOT REMOVE LID, and leave it on stovetop to steep for 3 hours. I swear this works perfectly. And I use the light broth for soup bases and risottos which is why i favor the 2tbsp of salt instead of three... saves fuel, very chinese and the whole chicken is perfect and moist and cooked)
I think I'll shut up now
kls987!
cookbook suggestion
Mark Bittman's "how to cook everything" new tenth anniversary edition
everything in it works and there's great thinking in it, huge frame of reference in it... all his books are great
and a delight to read
the best rule for cooking for yourself is to learn how to cook what you really feel like eating... you only need a few favorites and the more you do them the better they get
and you never get tired of them
one more on cookbooks for guys
2 dudes 1 pan
killer
"We wouldn't want to do it every night" -- ouch!
I live alone and am a vegetarian (is there a correlation there? Ex-boyfriend might say so!). My cooking habits vary depending on my mood, but I usually try to cook something on Sunday evening that'll work for at least a few weekday lunches, stored in separate plastic containers for easy transport to work. Risottos, bean-based chillies & curries work well, as does quiche.
Eggs are a great quick meal, and having a window box of the herbs and salad greens I use most often makes an enormous difference -- I appreciate this much more now that I live alone. If I have eggs in the fridge, I can cook a one-egg herb omelette and a green salad without having to stop by the store. I also wouldn't want to eat this meal every night... but having the makings of a super-quick, semi-civilized meal on hand means that it's easy to eat well, even when you couldn't be bothered cooking something elaborate.
edamame!
Thanks for all the awesome suggestions!
Melba123, you have a window box of herbs ans salad greens. Do you get enough light for them in winter? I was wondering cause I would like to have herbs and salad greens on hand but don't want them to die. I was thinking of just buying some artificial light for them.
My hubby and I like this cook book. For every recipie they have options of cooking for 2 or 4:
http://www.amazon.com/Healthy-Cooking-Two-Just-You/dp/0875964486/ref=si3_rdr_bb_product
I like nori (flat, green seaweed you can find in the "Asian" section of the market) with rice, and soy sauce and a poached egg on the side. Its good for you, and keeps longer than most veggies.
I also like buying a loaf of french bread. I use half to make a sandwich, and have soup on the side (usually from a carton). Then the other quarter or half can be used to make simple french bread pizza or petite bread pudding.
For cook books, I recommend Nigel Slater, especially his Real Food Fast. His philosophy is that most of us eat alone, or with one other person, most of the time so we should feel good about eating 'real food'. He's a great writer, too/
Sometimes I get annoyed that even when cooking for one or two, it seems like I have to clean up the same number of pots and pans and cutting boards etc. so...on the weekend I like to make a big pot of soup or chili and freeze most of it for future meals.
one of the joy and bliss of single-hood lays in freedom of cooking whatever and whenever or not cooking at all. nobody judges if you are eating straight out of refrigerator everything what did not grow mold on it or making a souffle for dinner! it practically not an issue. for me , at least. i experiment and play with my food, thankfully two dogs are in charge of leftovers, which reduce the guilt of waisting. my nutritional agenda is so diverse and not bound by any limitations, it never is a burden or inconvenience.
Djohnson, this is a veeeeerrry belated reply to your question, and maybe you'll never see it. But just in case you do...
I do indeed have window boxes of herbs and salad greens, and they seem to grow quite happily through the winter. It'll depend where you live. I live in Melbourne, Australia, where winters get coldish but not hard-core cold. On a cold winter's day here, the temperature *might* drop to around zero degrees celcius. This is chilly for us, and colder than it's likely to get during winter in southern California, but nothing by, say, New England or Chicago standards.
My herbs and lettuces have lived happily through these temperatures. But I'm also on the 3rd floor, with big glass windows, so my plants get a good dose of sun, and my flat tends to get considerably warmer than the outside temperature.
Those are all things to keep in mind. I really don't know how easy it would be to grow herbs/greens in a cooler climate. But if you have a sunny window and if you're somewhere where it gets cold but doesn't snow in winter, I think it's worth trying.
cheers,
Melba
I love the tips "avoid recipes that have rare ingredients you won't use often" and "use greens in more than one way". Cooking for one person is difficult when product amounts sold in grocery stores are made for families. This is true for veggie bunches and herbs, but also for packages ingredients. For example, most canned tomatoes are sold in 28 oz cans. You buy a can of crushed tomatoes make a marinara pasta sauce but you only need 1/2 can. What do you do with the rest? It's challenging to cook a week's meals without having leftover ingredients what go bad.
If you do end up with random leftover ingredients in your fridge, a simple tip is to make something like a frittata or stir fry. You can basically put any kind of veggies, herbs, or meats into either of those!
After realizing how difficult it is for busy professionals who live on their on their own to cook and eat healthy without spending a lot of money and time, I started a meal planning service specifically designed with the solo cook in mind. If you're interested in getting simple meal plans with mobile-friendly shopping lists and daily 30-minute recipes, check out www.mealime.com
Great tips!
I agree "Ouch" for sure. I am 78 and love to cook and bake. Yes, just for me! I make full recipes from scratch and eat two or three servings and freeze the rest for times when even I don't want to cook. I love to share baked goods with others. When life throws you lemons, make a beautiful lemon cream pie! Anyone can make lemonade.