The Dollar Stretcher has an article on cooking for one. 

I usually cook for a family but in the times I only have myself to feed, I do find it difficult to be motivated to prepare something good. How do those of you who are single handle this everyday?

 

There are times when I make small meals ie eggs and bacon and toast, or beans on toast and then when I feel like a stew or a casserole I go ahead and make it and depending upon what it is either eat it for several days (Lamb Hot Pot yum) or portion it into single servings for the freezer.  I also think of getting different meals from one source as from a chicken.  If I get a ready cooked chicken I will eat the wings and a drumstick  with salad one night, the leg and other drumstick another time with fries or mashed potatoes and then the breasts and carcuss is stripped for chicken noodle soup which gives me another 10 meals all by itself.

it is hard when you have been used to cooking for a family for so long and then they grow up and you move out and are all by yourself.  But it also means that I can have small meals for dinner, I don't have to cook the obilgatory meat and veg and spuds every day that I had to do when married.  My ex did not like ethnic foods of any sort, did not eat rice or noodles, did not like fish much.  I love having fish fingers and coleslaw for a dinner or a bowl of soup and crusty buttered bread for dinner.  I can also go all week long without having potatoes in any shape, size or form.  I eat lots of veggies  and fruit  as well.  Being by myself is no barrier to enjoying good food anytime I want.

Sally.

I look for coupons for restaurants so that I can eat out without ruining my budget. I look at the specials and purchase things I like. For example......Harris Teeter has Perdue wings on special this week. If I buy several bags and put them in the freezer I'll have some easy meals that will be less expensive than eating out.

I'll be trying to find sales on things like a roast and then make meals out of it all week.

Some weeks I'll be eating soup and sandwiches (grilled cheese) instead of having a burger.

There are weeks when it is not fun to cook for just one person.

There are nights when I have popcorn for dinner... but I really enjoy foods that slow cook, so I'll make chili, spaghetti sauce, stew, or pot roast, and then split the leftovers into small ziploc containers, stick them in the freezer, and then have quick meals for busy nights and lunches, and I don't have to eat the same thing every night for a week.

  When I was married,  I had a reason to cook - for two of us. Now, alone, most of the time I can't be bothered. It also is hard to make one meal's worth of anything, so I end up eating the same thing for several days or freezing, but even with freezing, I am up for a lot of repeat meals.  Buying ingredients is another problem.

I have to remind myself to eat. Usually, I end up with a salad, something like oatmeal, cottage cheese, peanut butter and bread, things I can make in a few minutes or just open a carton or jar, vegetables.I usethe cheap paper plates a lot, too.

I do have to admit that just once in a while, it would be nice to have someone else make me something tasty and more complicated than oatmeal. But what I have is fine, just very simple.

I didn't get the wings due to Mom's health this week. I cannot drive very well if I'm crying and I cannot drive safely in heavy traffic if I can't see the road conditions through tears.

I rely on several cookbooks for cooking for one or two people.

karenteacher:

but I really enjoy foods that slow cook, so I'll make chili, spaghetti sauce, stew, or pot roast, and then split the leftovers into small ziploc containers, stick them in the freezer, and then have quick meals for busy nights and lunches,

 

Do you have any particular schedule for cooking?

 

Brandy:

karenteacher:

but I really enjoy foods that slow cook, so I'll make chili, spaghetti sauce, stew, or pot roast, and then split the leftovers into small ziploc containers, stick them in the freezer, and then have quick meals for busy nights and lunches,

 

Do you have any particular schedule for cooking?

 

I do most of my bulk cooking on the weekend, as I'm not home several evenings a week. What I cook depends on what ingredients I have on hand, and what I'm in the mood to eat.

Because DH eats only one meal a day and I can't get by on that, I often am prepping for one. Salads, bowls of soup, and sandwiches get me by rather than trying to prep full meals. I cook greens for the two of us, then eat the leftovers as one of my meals.  AM

many years ago when I was newly married  I cooked for DH and I it was totally different . the minute we got the boys I started cooking alot simpler .my kids love simple food .

when DS was living off post in Kanas he must have called me 3 times asking how to cook something for just one ...