memes

My SO has ADHD and used to do this. I just cook for the both of us now so it's less food waste. The only issue is sometimes he doesn't like what I make :/

Clean-up is what stops many people. Get a good titanium no-stick pan - I like "Our Place" pans. Get individual portion meats or frozen meats or buy bulk and freeze in portions. Do the same with vegetables. Heat your seasoned pan up then put some oil in just before you put meat in. Cook meat until almost done, then add vegetables to same pan - heat them up. Serve. Let pan cool while you eat. Refrigerate left-overs. Rinse and wipe pan down. Wash dish. DONE.

i didn't start cooking until I got a big enough kitchen to store plates, forks, knives, spoons, glasses, cooking pans/pots&utensils, cutting boards, leftover food storage, dish towels, and food cupboards and pantry.

rentals rarely have enough for that.

but once i got enough space to have that stuff, and then saved up to buy that stuff little at a time then cooking became a lot more sensible. (middle aged bachelor)

i have recipes that i don't have to think about that create leftovers.

And that is the goal: LEFTOVERS

Leftovers are your bread and butter of saving money and not having to cook.

In my household we tend to buy just enough that we know we can eat it over the course of two to three days if it is perishable foods.

If the store sells smaller packs of meat and vegetables and other perishable foods, we buy those and use them in our cooking the next few days.

We don't have a lot of freezer space and we don't have a garden, so we try and avoid bulk buying unless we know we will be able to eat it all before it goes bad. It works pretty well.

Solution: freezer. I basically never have food go off because basically all of it is either frozen or non perishable.

Meal prep brah, freeze that shit up

I only wish I could buy half loaves of the breads I like.

I can't get through a whole loaf alone to save my life unless I eat the same thing for 3 meals a day and I'd prefer not to.

Buy food that you can cook in advance and reheat. Make a list of meals for the week, cook it all, then freeze it. Too tired to cook later in the week? Take it out of the freezer and reheat it.

Also, try to do recipes you can do in sequences that don't require too much dishwashing, then clean everything up at the end.

Sell your wardrobe fridge and replace it with a small one.
If the stuff does not fit in your fridge, don't buy it.

And what @technocrit@lemmy.dbzer0.com said. Over here, milk comes in 1L packets with a 2 day expiry. I only buy for 2-3 days at a time and every time I go out to buy milk, I also refill groceries.

Stuff over here is not more than 10km away, so I can use a bicycle.

I solved this by getting into a relationship with someone who genuinely loves to cook for others. I felt super guilty about it for a while but eventually got over it.

Don't buy any perishables unless you're going to use them immediately, i.e. the same day that you buy them. If you buy them, take them home and eat them. Keep lots of non-perishables on hand so you'll be able to cook something without going to the store when you want to do that.

Don't mourn, organise!

Buy more fruit in summer and cereals in winter.

For me, I try to focus on buying stuff that will keep well, things that I can use a lot of ways, or things I have an immediate plan to use all of.

Or multiple of those things at once. Like if I get a crown of broccoli, it will only stay good in the fridge for a week or two, but I don’t need to eat it all at once, I can just take a bit at a time and add it to other things, like a soup or a pan fry, to get some green in. Frozen veggies solve the only lasting a week or two thing also.

On the other hand there’s things like canned tuna, there is only really one way I’m gonna use that, but it keeps forever in the cabinet, so no wasting fridge space, and the cans are usually small enough I can use it all at once.

Like, if it doesn’t keep well, you you wouldn't use it all at once, and you’d probably only use it for one thing, just don’t bother.

Also, like, look in to how certain things should be best stored, some things can last a lot longer if you figure that out.

I only buy packages, containers, or cartons that will sit within my nutritional budget to eat all of in a single sitting. One, maybe two of those = one meal. Especially those wonderful single-course entrees I can buy at ALDI for like six bucks a pop. That's actually a day's worth of food. Especially because I tend to eat one meal a day (when i am behaving).

Costco rotisserie chickens rock my fucking world too. Those things can be more than one meal!

I will also buy packages of "salad mix"--mixed greens with a few other veggies in it,
and then I'll add a nice dash of salt, and either a splash of apple cider vinegar or a liberal dusting of Parmesan cheese and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes, then shake it all up and just GO TO TOWN on the whole container.

The only perishables I buy are things of this sort that I will most certainly eat RIGHT AWAY.

Everything else is either
a: canned goods where i'll use the whole can at once adding to one of the above items
or,
b: non-perishable usually dry goods with which i can augment other things with pinches and dashes at a time (there are some things like vinegar or certain hot sauces that age and develop more flavor over time).

Stop buying so much food then.

Do y'all need some recipes for simple and quick homemade meals? These are for one person or 2 meals.

• Potato - get the gold/yellow kind. Nuke for 5 minutes and top with whatever. If you want to spend 5 more minutes, put butter in a pan, smash it and cook on upper low for 4 or 5 more minutes with scallions, cheese, or whatever. If it's too dry, add milk.
• Frozen hamburger-put it in a large skillet with cut veggies over butter. Add herbs and/or onion flakes to taste. Let cook on medium heat with the lid on for 20 minutes. Add water and break up the meat, let cook for 10 more minutes with the lid off.
• Fresh or frozen chicken in the air fryer. Take a cup of flour and add some salt, garlic and/or any other herbs that sound good. Sometimes I add oregano or basil. Shake the 4 pieces in the flour. Air fry for 30 minutes (fresh) and 40 minutes (frozen). Take out and brush on butter. If there is flour left over, sprinkle on if necessary. Cook another 20 minutes (fresh) or 30 minutes frozen. This one is more easy than quick.

There are tons more, but I'm hungry and need to eat now.

Why are you buying perishable food items in bulk? Are you an inarticulate fopdoodle?