i buy staples (tuna, PB&J, wheat bread, rice milk, eggs) and then whatever i feel like but i keep it underwraps for the most part.
it is impossible for me to buy bulk. and i dont cook much other than breakfast food.
any cookbooks that cater to a guy like me?
“i’m single, and i believe i spend too much money on food. the problem is, i live in new york city. food is simply more expensive here.”
Look for sales on those few things that you buy and check expiration dates, if you find a great price on your canned tuna, buy a two year supply for instance, oatmeal and spaghetti last for a couple of years.
When a dish comes to mind then google for a recipe, as a single guy you need to cook in batches. When I make chili or spaghetti sauce for instance, I make enough for a couple of days and enough to put into separate containers for a half dozen meals.
Watch some of the cooking shows (like kitchen nightmares) to feed the impulse to occasionally do some cooking and then when you don’t want to cook and your impulse is to order out, then grab one of those containers out of the freezer for a better, cheaper meal.
Cooking becomes quicker, easier and more of a habit, the more that you do it.
One of the most innocent, disarming ways to get a girl into your apartment is to get her over for a new, casual recipe that you need her opinion (and just a little assistance) on, that first get together and a bottle of wine is a great ice breaker.
As a single guy you may get tired of buying vegetables because they spoil on you.
If that is the case, two vegetable staples that you can keep longterm for those times when you want a salad but you don’t have your favorites, are carrots and cabbage, they last for many weeks and in a pinch they can be shredded together for a salad with dressing, or a lazy man’s quick coleslaw.
Remember that milk freezes fine so you can save a little money by buying larger, and in the newest refrigerators that keep food at a dependable 36 degrees all fresh foods last for a very, very long time.
The colder your refrigerator the better, my fresh milk lasts for days past expiration and my lettuce lasts for a couple of weeks.
If you'd like something at the other end of the spectrum, I like Basic Elements ..., A. Escoffier; Modern French Culinary Art, H.-P. Pelliprat; and Larouse Gastronomique, P. Montagne.