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- Thread starter SoapyCy
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Both our moms stayed home so hot food was ready when we came home. Unfortunately that meant neither of us ever learned to cook and food was always available when we wanted it. That's a recipe for never cooking aspray an adult.
And yes, we'll teach our kid to cook.
And yes, we'll teach our kid to cook.
For those that struggle with a crock pot - buy a pressure cooker. Just throw everything in and start cooking - usually 20-30 minutes and you have a meal. I cook a couple of chicken breasts from frozen in a little bit of stock in 20 minutes. Make a vegetable and ready to eat in 1/2 hour.
Best thing my family did was to quit going out to eat - wasted way too much money on garbage. There are so many simple meals you can do that don't require a lot of thinking, are quick and not overly expensive, and you actually know what is in your food.
Best thing my family did was to quit going out to eat - wasted way too much money on garbage. There are so many simple meals you can do that don't require a lot of thinking, are quick and not overly expensive, and you actually know what is in your food.
I started staying home when we got outnumbered by kids and overwhelmed by daycare expense. But I force them to help. And they like to camp so they grill a lot and learned some in scouts. Also in Family and Consumer Science aka home ec in 8th grade, they had to plan, shop, and prepare five family meals with reviews, photos, etc. I tried to be gentle in the reviews, don't want them reviewing me.
Knowing what is in the food is a big deal to me. I avoid processed as much as I can. The sodium in restaurant food and take out is disturbing.
I do all the cooking and we spend about $130/wk. That gets us lunch and dinner plus snacky crap. Everything I make is at least 2 meals, probably more.
I'm a big fan of crock meals. I will take a big ol pork butt and cook it in the crock pot with just chicken broth and then shred it and make BBQ pork with some and mix some with my homemade mexican seasoning, aka in my house carnitas.
I do find it easier to cook in bulk in the winter with chili and soups, just saying.
Eating Arbys is great but I would like to live past 50 and yes it's expensive to eat healthy but weigh pros and cons.
Edit: cooking is a major hobby of mine.
If you need some recipes, let me know. I can cook just about whatever flavor you need.
I'm a big fan of crock meals. I will take a big ol pork butt and cook it in the crock pot with just chicken broth and then shred it and make BBQ pork with some and mix some with my homemade mexican seasoning, aka in my house carnitas.
I do find it easier to cook in bulk in the winter with chili and soups, just saying.
Eating Arbys is great but I would like to live past 50 and yes it's expensive to eat healthy but weigh pros and cons.
Edit: cooking is a major hobby of mine.
If you need some recipes, let me know. I can cook just about whatever flavor you need.
a roast is something I've yet to attempt - mostly because I'm afraid of the amount of leftovers, which is silly. Neither of us are big raw onion fans (though I don't mind red on salads) so anything they're in we usually sautee first.
this is something I do a lot. Alter the recipe or substitute. Like I said, haven't gotten great at it yet for the crockpot but on the stove? Meh, I'm skipping that fancy spice I'll never use again and subbing something I like. Doctoring recipes I grew up with has resulted in many delicious meals.
$30 Hamilton Beach crockpot was the Test Kitchen's best cheap buy. Pretty sure it's the one we have too and it's never burnt stuff and I leave it on low or 8 hrs then it goes to warm til I get home.
Cooking at home is way cheaper than eating out in just about every situation.
This week we (just the wife and I) made a pasta dish that we have used for supper Sunday, Monday, and last night. We would mix up the veggie/side/salad up to change things up a bit from night to night. The pasta dish cost about $7 and the side probably added $1 per meal, so we ate those meals for $3-$4 per night, $1.50-$2.00 per person per meal.
This week we (just the wife and I) made a pasta dish that we have used for supper Sunday, Monday, and last night. We would mix up the veggie/side/salad up to change things up a bit from night to night. The pasta dish cost about $7 and the side probably added $1 per meal, so we ate those meals for $3-$4 per night, $1.50-$2.00 per person per meal.
My wife and I cook almost every night, being in Chicago sometimes ordering in is too tempting as we have about 800 choices.
I do because I like to be healthy, and control carbs and processed foods. As you work through recipes you will learn how to cook, and it does take some patience. I took some food science courses at ISU, and worked in restaurants so I probably know more than the average person, but am not a chef by any means.
The only real problem with cooking for yourself is dishes. No one likes dishes, but if you get a couple of cookbooks to work through you can learn quite a bit.
I do because I like to be healthy, and control carbs and processed foods. As you work through recipes you will learn how to cook, and it does take some patience. I took some food science courses at ISU, and worked in restaurants so I probably know more than the average person, but am not a chef by any means.
The only real problem with cooking for yourself is dishes. No one likes dishes, but if you get a couple of cookbooks to work through you can learn quite a bit.
You can get a smaller roast. Run with like a 1 1/2 pound arm roast would work for you. your arm roasts seem to have the most fat and throw away so it would leave the least leftovers. Also would be cheapest due to that. You don't need onion in a roast, I don't do it much. The wife will drop an onion soup packet in if she she wants an onion flavor.
Im more adventurous with cooking. I made fajitas one time (I don't use recipes) and the wife turned her nose up before eating, but has made them herself now after eating. I was the youngest so I had to learn everything at home. Don't think my wife was ever taught any cooking skills.
I have this same experience, as you cook a recipe more you learn what you need, don't need, what you can leave out or substitute. At first, it seems you need to follow the recipe perfectly, but you don't. Experimenting is a lot of the fun.
For you onesies and couples, might I suggest the ham slice?
Very cheap and very easy to prepare.
Just drop it in the skillet and warm it or brown it to your liking. I like it with some good sizzle on it.
Drop a potato in the micro and maybe a chunk of brocolli and you have a meal in 15 minutes.
The leftovers can be a sandwich. Or I like to chop it up and put in scrambled egg or an omelette for a breakfast. And since it's a cured meat it will keep either cooked or raw for quite a while in the fridge without fear of spoilage.
Very cheap and very easy to prepare.
Just drop it in the skillet and warm it or brown it to your liking. I like it with some good sizzle on it.
Drop a potato in the micro and maybe a chunk of brocolli and you have a meal in 15 minutes.
The leftovers can be a sandwich. Or I like to chop it up and put in scrambled egg or an omelette for a breakfast. And since it's a cured meat it will keep either cooked or raw for quite a while in the fridge without fear of spoilage.
I usually cook stuff in bulk that will reheat well. I cook simple enough meals that it ends up a good amount cheaper than going out. Got a crock pot for graduation and finally used it for the first time on Monday. I rarely go out during the week, and maybe once or twice on the weekends.
For those of you who are afraid to make a crock pot roast, just do this with a can of chicken or beef stock. Can't really go wrong.
We used a similar service (Home Chef) and it definitely broadened our horizons. It got pretty expensive though spending $60/wk for 3 dinners. So what I do now is go on there and print off the recipes of what I would like. Then go buy the ingredients, a lot cheaper, still get the new satisfaction of new food and you cook it yourself.