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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Lebensstil
- Sprache: Englisch
Serve yourself something amazing--you're worth it Cooking For One For Dummies is full of recipes to inspire you to create delicious meals, without packing your fridge full of forgotten leftovers. Learn to make mug cakes in the microwave, teriyaki salmon, and everything in between, with easy-to-follow instructions. We also cover cooking basics, so you can build your skills and wow the person whose opinion matters most--you. Stock up on kitchen tools you need to home-chef successfully, figure out healthy grocery shopping for one, and follow dozens of fantastic recipes. It's fun, it's delicious, it's healthy, and it's efficient. Let's start cooking for one. * Cook over 100 delicious recipes designed for single servings * Level up your cooking technique with step-by-step explanations * Spice up leftovers for round two and plan your meals ahead of time * Build good kitchen habits and use the right tools for the job Singles who want to learn how to cook appropriate servings of delicious food will love this recipe book and solo cooking guide.
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Seitenzahl: 379
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023
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Cooking for One For Dummies®
Published by: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774, www.wiley.com
Copyright © 2023 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey
Published simultaneously in Canada
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Library of Congress Control Number: 2023930255
ISBN 978-1-119-88692-1 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-119-88695-2 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-119-88694-5 (ebk)
Cooking for One For Dummies®
To view this book's Cheat Sheet, simply go to www.dummies.com and search for “Cooking for One For Dummies Cheat Sheet” in the Search box.
Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Introduction
About This Book
Foolish Assumptions
Icons Used in This Book
Beyond the Book
Where to Go from Here
Part 1: Savoring Cooking When You're Single
Chapter 1: Digging Into Cooking for One
Eating What You Want When and Where You Want It
Transcending from Survival Mode to Creative Mode
Eating Fewer “Heat and Eat” or Food Kit Meals
Catering to Your Nutritional Needs
Having Less Waste When a Recipe Flops
Plating Like a Pro to Really Savor the Results
No-Wait Cooking (Almost)
Buying Smaller Amounts of Ingredients
Prepping and Cleaning Up in a Snap
Celebrating Your Self-Sufficiency
Chapter 2: Gearing Up to Cook
Selecting Pots, Pans, and Kitchen Gadgets for the Single Chef
Choosing Must-Have Countertop Appliances
Buying Nice-to-Have Countertop Appliances
Countertop Appliances You Could Live Without But Are Still Cool
Chapter 3: Hunting and Gathering Groceries for One
For the Love of a List
Not Too Much, Not Too Little, Just Right: Buying Groceries
Exploring alternative food sources
Sharing with family and friends
Chapter 4: Scaling Up and Food Storage
Cutting Down or Doubling Up Recipes
Exploring Meal Storage Solutions
Prepping Your Meals, Maybe
Part 2: Starting the Day Right with Breakfast
Chapter 5: Hearty Eggs and Breakfast Meats
Chapter 6: Filling Waffles, Pancakes, and Mug Muffins
Chapter 7: Oatmeals, Cereals, and Toasts with the Most
Chapter 8: Healthy Smoothies, Parfaits, and Breakfast Puddings
Part 3: Fueling Up for Lunch
Chapter 9: Salads for Every Season
Chapter 10: Soups for Singles
Chapter 11: Sandwiches, Personal Pizzas, and More
Part 4: Delicious Dinners
Chapter 12: Chicken Dishes to Cluck About
Chapter 13: Beef Dishes That Can’t Be Beat
Chapter 14: Fish and Seafood Dishes That Make Waves
Chapter 15: Meatless Meals for Everyone
Part 5: Sides to Swear By
Chapter 16: Grains, Beans, and Beyond
Chapter 17: Fruits and Veggies to Brighten Your Plate
Part 6: Snacks, Desserts, and Nibbles
Chapter 18: Savory and Sweet Snacks That Satisfy
Chapter 19: Single-Serve Desserts with Automatic Portion Control
Chapter 20: Smaller-Batch Desserts: Sure, Have Another
Part 7: The Part of Tens
Chapter 21: Ten Ways to Make the Most of Your Freezer
Maximizing Freezer Real Estate
Choosing Suitable Storage Containers for the Freezer
Naming and Dating to Prevent Mystery Containers
Using “FIFO” Accounting for Your Frozen Food
Plunging into Blanched Produce
Freezing Beans and Grains Like a Boss
Freezing and Thawing Meats and Fish Safely
Keeping Dairy and Eggs Beyond Their Expiration Date
Saving Herbs in Your Freezer
Knowing That If in Doubt, Throw It Out
Chapter 22: Ten Ways to Take Advantage of Leftovers
Storing Leftovers Safely
Making Extra on Purpose
Giving Scraps and Crumbs a Second Chance as Future Ingredients
Disguising Leftovers in “Kitchen Sink” Casseroles and Stir-Frys
Making Soup When You’re Stumped
Redefining Traditional Meals
Turning Last Night’s Doggie Bag into a Brand-New Meal
Sharing the Excess Bounty with Family and Friends
Composting to Clear the Fridge
Appendix: Metric Conversion Guide
Index
About the Author
Supplemental Images
Advertisement Page
Connect with Dummies
End User License Agreement
List of Tables
Chapter 4
TABLE 4-1: Conversions for Liquid and Dry Ingredients
List of Illustrations
Chapter 18
FIGURE 18-1: Twisting the pretzel.
Guide
Cover
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Begin Reading
Appendix: Metric Conversion Guide
Index
About the Author
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Introduction
Congratulations, if you’ve opened the book and come to this point, it means you’re at least tossing around the idea of cooking a meal for yourself real soon! Perhaps you’ve recently flown the nest and been binging on reality cooking shows while eating take-out meals straight from the Styrofoam boxes, and now you’ve had that light bulb moment. Maybe you can take ownership of your own meals, too! Or maybe you’re a little further down the path of life, divorced, widowed, or as Mom might say, “still single,” and want to improve your skills in the kitchen and clean up your diet a bit. It doesn’t matter if you’re young, old, a first-timer, moderately experienced, or a little more “seasoned.” If you can read and follow along with basic instructions, you should be good — no license or special credentials needs. Cooking is a practical endeavor that can turn into an enjoyable pastime, even a passion, regardless of your age or stage of life.
Don’t be intimidated by cooking or fret if you’re a late bloomer in the kitchen. Julia Child, the famous chef who brought French cooking techniques to American homes in the 1960s and 1970s, didn’t take up cooking until her 30s and didn’t land her first TV show until after turning 50. She was a big believer that fear should not keep you from cooking. She wasn’t afraid of her own failures and freely admits to many mishaps in the kitchen. You’ve likely heard that saying, “The master has failed a thousand times more than the student.” Honestly, if you haven’t messed up something significantly yet when cooking, then you probably haven’t tried hard enough!
Some people are intimidated by cooking because they think it must be fancy to be phenomenal — and this is absolutely not the case. Some of the best, most incredible meals are those that are the simplest, even humble. Recipes with very few steps that do not require much time but focus on delicious, fresh ingredients will likely become some of your favorites. And, sitting back for a second to pat yourself on the back and treat your senses to the smells and sights before taking that first amazing bite of a meal that you made — ahhhhh!
You’ll find useful information in this book to help you set up your kitchen with the appropriate gear and gadgets, plan for and secure ingredients like a pro, and whip out recipes day after day to savor and smile about — all from the perspective of the single home chef.
About This Book
Cooking for One For Dummies is the perfect cookbook for anyone interested in feeding themselves! We all need to eat to live, and if you’re a “party of one” it can often seem like chore … but eating the same old take-out can be a bore while it also drains your wallet. In this book, you’ll learn the steps to plan, shop, prep, and execute a delicious and responsibly priced meal for one. With over 145 single-serve and small-scale recipes at your fingertips for any meal of the day, plus snacks and dessert, you can’t go wrong!
Here are guidelines to keep in mind about the recipes in this book:
It is standard operating procedure to read a recipe from top to bottom before starting. This is to account for any necessary marinating time, chilling time, and so on, as well as to round up any special equipment, gadgets, or cookware sizes that the recipe may require.
All temperatures are Fahrenheit (see the appendix to convert Fahrenheit temperatures to Celsius).
Ingredient weight measurements are in pounds and ounces (see the appendix for metric conversions).
All microwave cooking is on
high
unless otherwise noted. Please note that microwave cooking times can vary a good deal based on the appliance’s wattage, brand, and age.
All dry ingredients should be measured in measuring cups that are for dry ingredients, which are leveled at the top with a knife, not heaping full.
For accuracy, all liquid ingredients should be measured in a measuring cup designed for fluids. The headroom, handle, and spigot also ensure that nothing sloshes out before adding to the recipes.
All flour in recipes is all-purpose white flour unless otherwise noted. You may substitute a cup-for-cup, gluten-free blend of flours specifically labeled for baking, but be aware that the results may vary a bit.
Foolish Assumptions
We make a few assumptions in this book about you as the reader:
You’re cooking for yourself, either on a daily basis or just occasionally, and are looking for single-serve and smaller-batch solutions to big family-sized recipes.
Your kitchen is set up with the basics including refrigerator, oven, stovetop, microwave, and a few entry-level pots, pans, knives, and other prep implements. If your kitchen is already set up with entry-level essentials, this book will help you decide which extras would be helpful to purchase for small recipes.
You’re looking for easy, quick, tasty recipe ideas to make at home to help minimize drive-in, take-out, and delivery food consumption.
You’re concerned with minimizing food waste and avoiding excessive packaging disposables when possible, to leave a “greener” footprint in your path.
You’re looking to optimize your meal budget or at least make smarter choices to help save money.
You want to make better decisions for your health and take conscious control over what you put into your body.
You’re eager to try new dishes, develop your cooking skills, and celebrate the rewards of self-sufficiency.
Icons Used in This Book
The icons in this book are like sticky notes, pointing out more details that may be important to you. Here are the icons you will encounter and the kind of information they point out:
When you refer to the Tip icon, it’s like a backstage pass for someone who’s been there and done that. Here, you’ll discover additional practical information and functional strategies that help save time, energy, money, and your mood.
When you’ve become busy, gotten side-tracked, and forgotten the bigger picture of a chapter, look for the remember icon and skim the content for a quick refresh to get back on task.
The information marked with this icon is a much deeper dig into the topic. It may be interesting to know, but it goes beyond what’s essential for your basic understanding.
Watch out for this icon! Think of it as a little alarm that warns you about potential problems and common pitfalls of shopping for, prepping, and cooking smaller-scale recipes.
Finally, a little tomato icon () is used to highlight vegetarian recipes in the “Recipes in This Chapter” lists, as well as in the “Recipes at a Glance” at the front of this book. If you are a lacto-ovo vegetarian, the recipes are compliant as written. However, if you do not eat dairy or eggs, please be aware that you will need to find suitable plant-based alternatives.
Beyond the Book
In addition to the abundance of information and guidance related to cooking for one that is provided in this book, you can access even more help and information online at Dummies.com. Check out this book’s online Cheat Sheet. Just go to www.dummies.com and search for “Cooking for One For Dummies Cheat Sheet.”
With the Cheat Sheet, you’ll be privy to important information for your cooking-for-one journey that has been distilled down into a quickly digestible read. You’ll discover how to stock your kitchen space with the right equipment, gear, and gadgets. You’ll develop efficient food hunting and gathering strategies that are suited for a single lifestyle. And, you’ll be able to tap in to the successful habits of single-portion chefs, including stocking a pantry for one, scaling recipes up or down, embracing leftovers, and making the most of your freezer space (it’s prime real estate)!
Where to Go from Here
Where to go from here depends on your immediate needs — or cravings! Is the next meal of the day breakfast, lunch, or dinner? Simply head over to the book section that matches your mood and dig in to the chapters and individual recipes. When in doubt, the dessert and snack chapters are sure to get you running to the kitchen and inspired to cook. The super functional thing about picking up a cookbook is that you can jump straight into any section and chapter and understand what’s going on without needing cumulative information from past chapters. However, there is great information on the front end about how to shop and prep and store from the vantage point of riding solo on the experience. And, near the end of the book, you’ll find the “Part of Tens” that provide actionable steps to help you make the most of your freezer space and learn how to take advantage of leftovers. Grab some colorful sticky notes to mark the recipes you want to try first, throw on an apron, and let’s get cooking!
Part 1
Savoring Cooking When You're Single
IN THIS PART …
Discover the joys and benefits of cooking for yourself that go beyond just simply “making food.”
Embrace a dedicated space within the kitchen for gear and gadgets that help support your “cheffing” success.
Hone your food hunting and gathering skills to optimize time, save money, and reduce waste.
Develop strategies to scale recipes up or down on demand and to deal with unexpected (or on purpose) leftovers.
Chapter 1
Digging Into Cooking for One
IN THIS CHAPTER
Claiming control of exactly what and when you want to eat
Taking care of your body and soul by creating wholesome, fresh, and creative meals
Saving time and money by learning to shop, prep, and cook with single-serve tips and tricks
Reframing the process of cooking as a pleasurable experience rather than a chore
If you’ve picked up this book, you have joined countless others in the quest to learn or hone “cooking for one” skills and to discover a treasure-trove of delicious, single-serve recipes in the process. Literally, you’re not alone! Over the last seven decades, America has gone through a historic transformation in household living arrangements. Today, one in seven adults lives alone, which represents more than one-quarter of all households in the United States.
Whether you’re a college student and have just set up your first apartment, a young working professional, or a newly single individual (widowed or divorced), who is learning the cooking for one ropes in the kitchen you’ve called home for years, this book can help! Heck, I’m married with kids, but individual portion recipes have become my best friend with a husband who travels frequently and three older boys who often grabbed a burger or pizza with friends after sports practice when they were still living at home.
No matter your age or stage of life, this book will serve as a practical resource to help you set up and organize your kitchen, shop smartly, and improve your cooking skills and repertoire with over 145 tasty dishes that are sure to please your mood of the moment. You’ll find a meal to meet almost every need, whether your goal is to save money, eat more nourishing meals, reduce food and packaging waste, tap into your creativity in the kitchen, feel self-sufficient and empowered — or all of the above.
Eating What You Want When and Where You Want It
Do you dream of kicking off the weekend with burgers and brats grilled right in your own backyard? Do you crave a warm, homemade cookie or salty, sweet bowl of kettle corn to power you through a couch-bound movie marathon? Perhaps you’d like to level up your lunch hour at work by packing something wonderfully fresh and exciting that will make dining at your desk feel like a delight? Whatever you do — you do you! No need to be at the whim of someone else deciding where, when, what, and how you eat!
Learning how to shop, prep, and cook your own food will give you the freedom to decide where, when, what, and how you’ll eat without being at the mercy of restaurant hours, limited menus, and travelling around town more than necessary to score a meal that’s decent. Plus, when you cook for yourself, there’s no special dress code. You can indulge in a five-star restaurant quality dinner of steak and seafood while wearing fuzzy slippers and a robe and not a single head will spin. Or, flip your hair back and get glammed up in cocktail attire for yourself — again, you do you!
Sustaining yourself after shift work
Perhaps you work the graveyard shift and are hungry for dinner at an uncustomary hour. Or you may awake pre-dawn to run or work-out and need a high-performing breakfast to get you out the door quickly and keep you going for the long haul. Growing a skill set of methods and having access to a resource of proven recipes for one means you can be well-fed 24/7 without having to rely on “open all night” establishments, convenience stores, or another person to make and serve your breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks.
Brown bagging like a boss
Before you get post-traumatic stress from a childhood lunchbox flashback of a smooshed peanut butter sandwich paired with a mealy apple and tiny box of extra dry raisins, know that brown bagging as an adult can be vastly more tasty and varied. Depending on your access to a microwave at work, you can prepare a hot meal (even leftovers) or a gourmet salad or sandwich to eat at your desk — or better yet, a nearby park! Getting outside for lunch on a nice day is a proven mood boost.
Do-it-yourself meals and snacks you take to school or work save a substantial amount of money over the course of a week, compared to picking something up in the work cafeteria or nearby take-out every single day. With just a little bit of effort in advance on the planning and packing, you can save time in the long run (who wants to wait for delivery or stand in a big ordering line) and also hit your exact nutritional goals for the meal. Of course, you don’t actually need to put the meal in a brown bag. In fact, there are far better insulated containers on the market in a variety of sizes and fun (or distinguished) designs to suit your personal needs and style.
Transcending from Survival Mode to Creative Mode
For most, it’s a simple matter of survival to learn basic food sourcing strategies, food preparation skills, and cooking methods. Starving is not a sustainable option (wink-wink), and getting “hangry” is a regrettable state of mind and body. That’s why obtaining the know-how to execute a simple recipe from prep to plate is a life changer.
But man (and woman) can’t really live happily ever after on never-ending meals of hard-boiled eggs and toast, or whatever you classify as the emergency “I don’t really cook” form of basic sustenance. At some point, you just want more. More variety, more colors, more texture, more flavors, and more “Wow, I made that!”
Cooking is an art
Just like playing the guitar or painting a canvas, cooking requires you to open your mind to the endless possibilities, relationships, and harmonies between foods and the ways they are married together. Transforming raw materials (the ingredients) into a nourishing meal is itself the work of an artist, even if it’s not something that would ever be displayed in a museum. And, honestly, could your taste buds give up that eating opportunity?
Your creativity can compound daily
If you are the type of person who follows the recipes here and elsewhere to a “T,” you may find yourself beginning to experiment with the spices, seasonings, sauces, garnishes, and plating to suit your mood. That’s fabulous; go for it — that’s creativity! One day you may find yourself hooked enough on the creative process of cooking to write your own recipes — or cookbook!
Eating Fewer “Heat and Eat” or Food Kit Meals
Even if you’re not officially dining out in the physical “I’m sitting in a restaurant booth” sense, raise your hand if you’ve subscribed to a meal kit service or pick up “heat and eat” prepared foods from the grocery store frequently! Sometimes this type of option is a lifesaver, but on a regular basis, you’re still letting someone else do most of the heavy lifting of food preparation!
The popularity of meal kit services and prepared foods, many of which are marketed to the solo diner, is sky rocketing. They are marketed as a quick and easy meal solution for people pressed on time, cooking skills, or both. Learning how to cook dishes for one can help you dial back this expensive habit while providing you an amazing feeling of self-sufficiency. You have to admit that taking off a lid and hitting the microwave’s 1-minute button can start to feel a little sad and boring day after day.
In addition to acquiring new skills and saving money, waste and over-packaging are additional considerations that may make you want to reduce a habit of “heat and eat” and food kit consumption. At first glance, you might say these options minimize waste. You receive the precise amount of “this and that” to make the given recipes, or the dish is already made and packaged up in its entirety to be heated, as needed, and consumed. No bits and pieces of waste to toss away or rot in the produce drawer; it’s food for you to eat. So, yes, high marks on reducing food waste, but what about those insulated shipping containers and ice packs that come with each delivery, pick up, or take-out? These types of packaged convenience meals create a mountain of unnecessary trash with environmental ramifications.
Catering to Your Nutritional Needs
Chances are you consciously try to avoid some type of food or beverage; most of us do. Maybe you require a dairy-free latte and a gluten-free sandwich for breakfast or a plant-based pasta (nix the mushrooms, please) tossed with a low-sodium sauce and a nut-free brownie for dessert. Learning to cook for yourself provides full control over what’s on (and off) your plate. Scoring exactly what you want in a restaurant or delivery situation and trusting the waiter to accurately relay that message to the line cook is much more difficult and limiting.
Allergies and intolerances
More than 10 percent of U.S. adults have at least one food allergy or intolerance, with the spectrum of severity ranging from disrupting daily health and well-being to being life threatening. Top food allergens include milk, soy, eggs, wheat, peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, fish, and shellfish. If you have an avocado or chocolate allergy, I am grieving for you. But, all jokes aside as this is a serious topic.
Other medical and health concerns
In addition to food allergies, people have many medical, philosophical, lifestyle, religious, and other reasons for varied nutritional requirements. Diabetes, pregnancy, weight loss, sports nutrition, vegetarian, keto, Paleo, sugar-free, low-fat — this list could go on and on!
Personal taste
Let’s take into consideration personal preferences, too. Do you abhor the taste of cilantro (it’s a genetic thing) or get a gag reflex when thinking about blue cheese? Maybe you can’t get enough quinoa or clams or key limes and want to see more in your meals. I personally pick out every bit of bell pepper in dishes, and it was a light bulb moment, years ago, when I realized that if I cooked for myself I would never have to see, smell, touch, or taste another bell pepper again.
Religion and belief systems
Making your own meals can make it easier to keep specific dietary protocols in check for religious reasons, including kosher, halal, and others. Also, in a world with many ethical, moral, and philosophical belief systems, taking charge of your personal meal making allows you to eat according to your mindset and be part of the larger collective action within that community.
Having Less Waste When a Recipe Flops
When a recipe doesn’t turn out as expected, it can be a big disappointment and a wallop on your wallet — especially if it’s a huge recipe that serves a crowd. One benefit of single-serve and small-batch recipes is that if there is a lackluster result, the emotional and financial loss is lessened. Most scaled-down recipes just call for a tablespoon of this and a couple ounces of that. Your meal might have gone up in smoke, but at least your food budget won’t get burned to a crisp!
Why a recipe might flop
A recipe can flop for many reasons. It’s too spicy, too salty, or too sweet for your preferences. You went “off-recipe” and made a substitution that didn’t work, accidentally missed an ingredient or step, the oven temperature was improperly calibrated, or the pan size was too big or too small. Sometimes even when a recipe is executed perfectly, you honestly just may not care for the texture, taste, or even the appearance. Remember, if a recipe turns out looking a little less perfect than the cookbook photo or your preconceived mental image, it probably still tastes fantastic. Always do a taste test; looks can be deceiving!
Salvaging a lackluster result
It’s easier to say “yes” to the small risk of trying a new dish or experimenting with recipes when an “oopsie” just means tossing out one serving of food, not a massive, family-sized feast. Instead of just throwing flopped recipes in the trash, add to a personal compost pile or compost bin if your trash pickup offers the service. If the recipe in question is still edible, consider repurposing it, if possible. For example, you could pick out the shrimp in a too spicy sauce, rinse them off, pat them dry, keep them chilled, and use them later on a salad. Or, if the recipe just misses the mark with your taste buds but is still perfectly fine otherwise, there is always a neighbor hungrier and less inspired to cook than you.
Plating Like a Pro to Really Savor the Results
Nothing wrong with throwing a chicken breast and a pile of rice on a paper plate and calling it dinner. But, since all of our sensory systems are closely interconnected, “eating with your eyes” becomes an undeniable part of the process. That’s why plating your recipe with at least a moment of thought and consideration can really transform your dining experience from “just grub” to “just absolutely gorgeous.”
Even if setting a table for one, you should still celebrate your finished recipes with a proper plating. Hey, make your plating social media worthy; snap a photo and show off your new skills — you never know where all that creativity and exposure could lead! The following are things to consider when plating:
Choose your plate. It seems so obvious, but the plate (or bowl or mug for that matter) is often given no regard. A white plate is like a blank canvas; it can really make the colors of food pop and is the choice of most food stylists. Dark plates also can work, adding moody drama for the right food situation. Typically, patterns are to be avoided, unless you are trying to capture some sort of particular niche look — blue-speckled country plates or even cutesy mugs with clever sayings can be just the thing at the right moment.
The convenient thing about single-serving recipes is that you don’t need an eight-piece serving set of the same dish; you only need one! Visit thrift shops or garage sales to inexpensively stockpile your cabinets with plates and serving pieces that speak to you.
Drizzle or garnish.
A drizzle of sauce, sweet or savory depending on the dish, lends a welcomed visual vibe. It can be as sophisticated or carefree as you like, depending on how you drizzle. Use a spoon for organic results or a squeeze bottle to be more precise. Garnishes add bits or a pop of color that can also whet the appetite — a lemon slice cut and twisted atop a fish filet, fresh herbs sprinkled on eggs, or chocolate shavings and powdered sugar speckling the top of a dessert. Functional garnishes that add to the recipe’s flavor work the best. But really there are no rules, just your personal tastes — edible and visual!
Prepare an odd number.
For whatever reason, an odd number of items, say three objects clustered together are more appealing that an even number displayed symmetrically. The “magic of three” is also a design trick that interior decorators use to create visual interest and draw the eye where they want. Lay three huge shrimp (or another odd number like five) on a pile of grits. Or arrange three distinct food groups on your plate, like steak slices, sweet potato, and broccoli — with a drizzle or garnish, of course!
Skip it.
If fancy plating seems like a burdensome step, then just skip it. It only adds extra pleasure to the meal if you enjoy doing it. Plating for one can vary wildly through breakfast, lunch, and dinner, day to day. And, don’t forget that plating can be extra special and fun for various seasonal holidays, Sunday dinners, and other celebratory events.
No-Wait Cooking (Almost)
In most cases, you can sit down to a satisfying, homemade meal faster than picking up take-out, waiting for delivery, or getting acknowledged by the hostess at that trendy restaurant that opened down the street. Of course, there is wait time involved with cooking for yourself — baked goods have to puff up and become set, meats and seafood need to be cooked to their required internal temperature for safety, and other recipes might need to be chilled, frozen, or allowed time to cool down or rest. Also, many recipes for one are suitable for the microwave or air fryer, which will make cooking time fly by.
However, please note that it’s always a smart idea to read through recipes, top to bottom, before jumping into the making action. This is not just to ensure that you have all the ingredients, understand the instruction steps, and use the right cooking appliance, but also to confirm that you have enough time to commit to making the recipe. Trust me, you can’t pull a cake out of the oven half done, leave to run an errand, and then return to finish cooking it. That just doesn’t work!
Buying Smaller Amounts of Ingredients
Sometimes you just need a pinch of this and a couple tablespoons of that when cooking for one. Based on your previous shopping trips (and stuff later thrown in the trash), this might seem like an inconvenience, considering that many items in the store are packaged for families or at least multiple servings. But in upcoming chapters, you’ll be introduced to the wise ways of shopping for, one including hitting the bulk section for mini-portions, separating items in the produce department (yeah, you don’t need to buy all the asparagus rubber-banded together if it’s sold by the pound), unleashing the hero powers of your freezer, and using other advantageous tips and tricks to make your cooking for one journey smooth sailing.
Prepping and Cleaning Up in a Snap
Slicing, dicing, chopping, and other recipe prep steps can be tedious and time consuming in full-size recipes. The great news is that with smaller-scale recipes, the workload is minimized. Think about it; there’s really nothing to cry about when you only have to dice a tablespoon of onion instead of the entire big bulb! Additionally, many recipes incorporate a convenient swap like using preminced garlic from a jar or ground onion powder to lessen the chore and also efficiently address the tiny amount required.
Also, many recipes in this cookbook minimize the use of multiple pots, pans, and cooking utensils just to create a single dish. You’ll even find recipes that are mixed right up in a mug that you can eat straight from — how’s that for prep and clean-up efficiency! Even when a recipe requires a pot, pan, or baking dish, the very nature of the smaller surface area means less to clean up. For example, a family-sized 9 x 13-inch casserole dish offers 117 inches of bottom surface to scrub (and more if gunk sticks on the sides), while a mug or one jumbo muffin pan will become your new best friend with hardly any area to clean up in comparison. Bigger means more to clean up; smaller means less — the same goes with houses and that’s why some days I’d trade my big suburban house for a tiny downtown apartment in a snap!
Celebrating Your Self-Sufficiency
If you think it seems silly to make a big deal out of making a meal for yourself, think again! Human brains are wired to respond to rewards and then strive for more rewards and larger rewards, that’s how we tick. So, celebrating the successful completion of a small accomplishment like learning how to crack an egg without getting shells in the bowl can lead to mastering a mug muffin, which can lead to making a layer cake, which can lead to becoming the best baker on the block! You don’t know until you try something out and toot your own horn for a job well done.
Of course, eating the finished recipe is the ultimate reward! Nothing quite like smelling something sizzling on the stovetop or baking in the oven and knowing that in just a short time you will be digging into an amazing creation that you made.
Here are a few ways to celebrate your recipe successes:
Fun plating: Make the meal a special experience and not just an eat-on-a-TV-tray kind of day.
Style your food and snap photos to share in a scrapbook on social media or text to family to show how your skills are progressing.
Start a journal, personal cookbook, or vlog documenting your recipes, steps, swaps, and experiences.
Make an extra serving of your recipe to share with a friend, family member, co-worker, or neighbor.
Buy some fun dish towels, kitchen gadgets, or special fancy ingredients to level up your home kitchen.
Branch out to new cooking methods and recipes; treat yourself to a new cookbook or cooking class, online or in person.
Reflect on your cooking journey to date and how it has impacted your life for the better. At a minimum, you likely are benefiting from improved nutritional choices, eating a more varied and balanced diet with ingredients you have a say-so about choosing (or not choosing). Chances are you have saved money by dining out less frequently. And come on — it feels good to feed yourself, and it can even be fun!
Chapter 2
Gearing Up to Cook
IN THIS CHAPTER
Investing in tools of the trade to support your hash slinging
Choosing personal-sized bakeware and right-sized pots and pans
Exploring countertop appliances that you can’t live without
Resisting the urge to buy equipment you don’t need
Setting up a kitchen may sound like an overwhelming task, especially if you’re a cooking newbie. But, honestly, it’s not a difficult undertaking at all and most likely will be a very satisfying experience because the final product is (fingers crossed) a nice, home-cooked meal.
Of course, if you’ve watched any home decorating or cooking shows, you’re bound to have seen showstopping kitchens that leave even an experienced chef’s mouth wide open in awe. Remember, though, excess and superfluities in the kitchen do not equate to skill. No need for top-of-the-line equipment and the most expensive tools to get the job done. However, you do need decent-quality basics — a fridge, an oven, a microwave, better-grade cutlery, appropriately sized pots and pans, and other cookware necessities.
Focus on a few good pieces over sheer quantity of kitchen “things” because you will be using these items for years to come and want them to last. Do research before making purchases because high quality doesn’t have to mean the top-of-the-line, most expensive items! Sometimes inexpensive is fine, like a nonstick skillet. Why spend big bucks on something that needs to be replaced every couple of years?
However, on the flip side, you might find a kitchen item that is well worth the price, paying off dividends in the amount of time it lasts, its inherent functionality, or sheer convenience. You can look at it as a price per use, not splurging. If you are going to be using the item a lot, you can justify spending more. A lot of this kitchen gear will be tied to your particular interests as a cook, chef, and maker of food. Grilling enthusiasts may want to splurge on a meat smoker or grill with all the bells and whistles, while a baking aficionado would get mighty good use out of a high-quality stand mixer.
In this chapter, you will learn how to select the kitchen gear you need to make your kitchen-for-one start humming like a finely orchestrated back-of-the-house operation in a fancy restaurant. This includes picking out pots, pans, and kitchen gadgets that are essential or nice-to-have for churning out cooking-for-one recipes. You’ll also learn more about which countertop appliances are worth the money and space expense.
Selecting Pots, Pans, and Kitchen Gadgets for the Single Chef
A huge hoard of kitchen stuff isn’t needed to create the recipes in this cookbook and most other culinary delights. As tempting as it is for those of you who like to load up on new shiny things, hoarding pots, pans, and gadgets just creates a chaotic cooking space. Cluttered cabinets, countertops, and drawers ultimately become a distraction to finding and sustaining the joy in cooking.
However, having a small collection of multitasking tools and the “right-sized for one” bakeware, pots, and pans will make your time spent in the kitchen productive, yielding positive results and personal satisfaction. For example, a single portion of rice cooked in a standard 4-quart sauce pan is going to create a burned-to-the-bottom disaster, while cooking that same portion in a smaller 1-quart saucepan makes your rice nice!
Tools for basic recipe prepping
Ingredients for recipes don’t typically come premeasured and prepped, unless “kit” cooking — and by reading this book, it’s my hunch that you’re trying to level up from that! To get slicing, dicing, mixing, and all that tasty jazz, you’ll need a collection of basic recipe tools. The good news is that kitchen tools aren’t typically very costly and can be found in most home goods stores, grocery stores, or online. To save space in a small kitchen, nesting or accordion-fold tools store nicely. Also look for tools that are multifunction, such as a can/bottle/corkscrew combo or simple box grater with a micro-shredder on the side. Quality basics are
