Cooking for 1

i to cook for one & it is hard . i don't mind leftovers but i don't want to eat them for days. when i make one of my favorite casseroles i usually make 2 or3 out of one recipe & freeze the extra. same thing w/chili, i always freeze some of it to have later. i put things in the freezer in the summer & i put alot of it in small containers for me. i share alot w/a couple of friends who still work & have husbands to feed.

I know how challenging it can be to cook for one person. My job often requires that I make meals for my clients. One lady had a very strict diet. She was diabetic and also couldn't eat wheat products. I would buy beef strips and make 2 different meals. Using half of the cooked beef I would make one into a chili and the other would be a stroganoff like meal. For the chili I would slice the beef into small chunks and cook with red and green peppers, onion, and garlic. When the beef is browned I would add some crushed tomatoes and chili spices. Cook over low heat for about a half hour adding water when the sauce gets a little too thick. You can also add kidney or black beans to this when you add the tomatoes. Serve over cooked rice. For the stroganoff I slice the beef into chunks and cook them in a skillet with a bit of olive oil and sliced onion and about a half pound of sliced mushrooms. When beef is fully cooked and onions are tender add about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of water and simmer scraping the bottom of the pan to get the drippings from the pan. Add salt and pepper (beef boullion can be added if desired for more beefy taste). To make the sauce thicker you mix a couple of tablespoons of corn starch with water and slowly add to the pan and stir until thickened. Only add enough of the corn starch mixture to thicken. add more if necessary. This is served over cooked egg noodles. Chicken is so economical too and you can do so much with it! I use frozen vegetables because you can take out as much as you need from the bag.

I would cook a big pot of dish like curry chicken or curry meat or stew. Would portion it up some I would freeze it up in the freezer using tupperware microwave rock n serve range. When I want to eat it, i would take one tupperware out, defrost it and then re heat it and eat. i can eat one dish for a week or more - never get tired of home cook food as they are healthy and more economical.

Indeed it is difficult to cook for one. Although most of the time I cook for two persons (me and my husband -- and it is quite difficult too) but whenever he travels which is quite often in a year, I find myself cooking for one. I have eventually learned to cook only a small amount of food which I can eat for two meals. All I need to do is reheat. Most of the time, I prepare sandwich spread (egg sandwich or tuna or ham), buy some vegetables, and have a sandwich and soup meal, or sandwich and salad meal. Soups can be reheat and sandwich spreads can be refrigerated. Although for my salad, the veggies are good only for 2-3 days to keep fresh.

I often have the same problems. I live alone and I love cooking, especially trying out my different Pampered Chef recipes. Since I have plenty of left overs I bring some to work to share with my coworkers. Sometimes if I know I'm going to cook a lot of food I invite some friends over to share....but the rule is they have to bring something from home and the recipe. It gives me the chance to get insight on my cooking and acquire some more recipes to add to my collection. I have tried halving many recipes to accommodate just me. But they never seem to turn out right. For Christmas I received a food saver to try and be more savvy with my cooking and money. But I haven't set it up yet to use. Let me know if you come across any information for cooking for 1. That would even be an interesting blog to follow......hum.....now don't steal my idea. LOL.