Cooking for one steak salad

Cooking For One: How I Make It Work For Me

Zevi has been working away from home for close to a year now, which means that I’ve spent about half of the last year living as a part time single wife. This was one of the things that I was dreading about him being away so much, and I had some trouble with it at the beginning, but I’ve found some ways to make it more bearable, and even enjoyable at times. Here are five things I do to make cooking for one work for me.

Cooking for one kale taco salad

  1. Make a Plan: This is something that can apply to anyone, whether you’re cooking for one or a big family, but I find that when I’m by myself I’m more prone to getting lazy and taking things day by day rather than looking ahead. Sometimes this is fine, because it allows me to be creative and spontaneous, but most of the time it leaves me stumped at dinner time, and I resort to cereal, ramen, or pasta. Having at least a few meals planned for the week takes the guesswork out of dinner time and keeps me on track to eating relatively healthily.  Cooking for one ramen
  2. Embrace Leftovers: I should be used to this by now, but I’m still sometimes surprised by how much more of a meal is left over when I’m making it for only myself. Luckily, I love leftovers. Whether I’m eating the same meal again as-is, or repurposing something I’ve made into something completely different, leftovers are a great way to save time. I love having cooked protein and roasted vegetables that I can combine with greens or noodles and turn into lunch or dinner in no time. You can even use elements of last night dinner to make breakfast time a little more interesting.
  3. Scale Down: As much as I love those leftovers, I really don’t want to be eating the same thing for five days straight. Unless you’re planning on freezing some of the portions you don’t eat, making a recipe that serves eight will probably leave you never wanting to make that dish again after you’ve eaten it for five days straight. As a general rule, I scale down anything that serves more than four if I’m going to be the only one eating it.Cooking for one farmers market
  4. Hold Back at the Grocery Store: This goes hand in hand with number three, but if you’re used to shopping for more than just yourself it’s easy to go way overboard at the grocery store. It can be hard to resist the temptation to buy all of the things you normally love, but holding back a little will mean you won’t find yourself wasting food at the end of the week. I can’t usually go through a loaf of bread by myself before it goes bad, so I don’t buy it when Zevi’s away and eat other things for breakfast instead. The freezer is your friend if your eyes end up being bigger than your stomach.Cooking for one lettuce wraps
  5. Make Their Least Favourites: If you’re like me and you have a partner who’s often away from home, take advantage of their absence to make the things they don’t like. Zevi doesn’t like chickpeas and isn’t a big fan of lettuce wraps, so while he’s at work I often take the opportunity to eat both. We usually make breakfast together when he’s here, so when he’s not I eat my eggs with all sorts of things that he probably wouldn’t be in to. I’d rather be sharing a meal with him, but if I can’t do that I might as well make meals that I generally wouldn’t choose when he’s around.

I don’t always follow my own advice, and I’ll admit to eating popcorn for dinner on more than one occasion, but by keeping these things in mind I’ve managed to make cooking for one a little more fun. Do you often make solo meals? I’d love to hear any tips that you have to add!

2 Comments

    1. My husband works away a lot too. At first it means I ate a lot of cereal for supper. Then I realized I needed to be better prepared. Meal planning and keeping it simple has worked best for me. Plus I kind of love eating the things he doesn’t like when he’s away.

      1. It sounds like we’re in pretty similar situations! I also love eating things my husband doesn’t like when he’s away 😉

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