Lazy meals

horsesdontjudge

I'm 21 and going into Pre-Vet. Like many other busy college students I reach for whatever is easiest/quickest and am not gonna have the ability to spend extra money on food (ex: I can't go and spend $100-150 a week on all organic, super fresh food). I do, however, try to eat healthier. I run into a few main issues though.
1) I'm limited in what I can eat because of kitchen renovations. I only have access to a microwave and have yet to find good, healthier options that don't end up tasting horrible when you reheat or thaw them in the microwave.
2) I'm a vegetarian who doesn't like tofu, beans, many fruits and vegetables, and most soups. I'm aware people might say 'well, just push yourself...' It's not that easy for me. I have sensory issues (that I'm working on) so it's hard for me to even pick up tofu packages (for example) because of how it looks and feels before it's even anywhere near touching my lips.
3) As I mentioned above, I'm a Pre-Vet college student who often is trying to find a quick meal I can have ready in under 10-15 minutes. I also get full quickly so if I have a slice of toast with peanutbutter and half an apple that's my meal.

I'm willing to try to push some of the sensory issues (I've been trying to with varying degrees of success) and am open to newer things. Any suggestions welcome! I don't have any food allergies (just the sensory and vegetarian parts)

cmriverside

You can buy a one-burner stove element for a few dollars at Target, and/or a small toaster oven or crockpot for a similarly low price...I'm with you, I don't even have a microwave. When I was in college I lived in an apartment for a year with no kitchen, and all I had was a crockpot and an electric skillet. I ate a lot of fresh fruit and vegetables, soups and sandwiches. You'll figure it out!

annacole94

Do you eat eggs? Microwave poached eggs are delicious and easy. Pair with salad or english muffin.
Eat the fruit and veg you do like.

Are you trying to lose, gain, maintain? PB toast and an apple is fine for a meal.

RelCanonical

What kind of vegetables do you like? My quick meal is to take some vegetables (mine are spinach, tomato, banana peppers, onion, and cucumber), throw them together into a wrap, maybe add a sauce or something, and enjoy.

Allgaun

I'm not a vegetarian but I have 3 sons who are. It is really hard to eat healthy if you don't eat beans, tofu or most vegetables. My nephews tried it with a similarly limited "like" list and failed because there is only so much pasta and sauce you can eat without being sick of it. Will you eat beans in another form, like humus?

lporter229

I know you said you don't like beans, but what about lentils? Tasty Bites makes pouches of Madras Lentils that are really good. You can get them at Costco. I heat them in the microwave and eat with salsa and Greek yogurt. Your diet seems pretty restrictive. What are some foods that you like?

laur357

My college roommate's favorite quick meal was pasta with crumbled veggie burger, sauce, and cheese. If you can find some way to cook pasta in a microwave, you're all set!

Eggs can be prepared in a number of ways in a microwave, if they work in your diet. You can get creative with breakfast sandwiches, and maybe hide some veggies in a scramble.

Verity1111

lporter229 wrote: »

I know you said you don't like beans, but what about lentils? Tasty Bites makes pouches of Madras Lentils that are really good. You can get them at Costco. I heat them in the microwave and eat with salsa and Greek yogurt. Your diet seems pretty restrictive. What are some foods that you like?

Omg I accidentally bought a whole box of those and man they're good! They taste almost like some sort of chili. lol.

womanisadevil

Microwavable minute rice with all the hot sauce! Saves me when I'm having lazy days.

shaumom

So, just to make sure - you need low budget, vegetarian, microwavable, but avoiding tofu, beans, a large number of fruits and veggies, and most soups.


I am so sorry, but I honestly don't know if that's possible to get this and still have a diet that is healthy and safe for you. Vitamins may become a big problem - can you at least take some vitamins along with your food?

I understand that sensory issues are a big deal, truly - I've got them, as does my daughter, and I know it's not as simple as 'just eat it.' Kind of hard to 'just eat it' when you start dry heaving as soon as it hits your mouth, or makes you choke and cough, or any number of things, yeah?

But the main difficulty is that food typically comes in two types: convenient, quick, and microwavable, or cheap, and never the twain shall meet, so to speak. And if they do meet...it's often with beans involved, you know?

However, for some ideas...

One thing that has helped us was to make mixtures that added in our 'sensory hell foods' that, overall, are the texture we can tolerate. Like burgers (I think there are microwave recipes for how to cook burgers in the microwave, actually). We'd take a veggie like, say, bell pepper, and grate it super-fine into the burger. Or do that with squash, whatever. I'd honestly just get whatever the cheapest meat was, when the budget was tight.

Or mix something into your peanut butter - like, maybe find a really watery peanut butter, so if you add something in, it'll thicken it to 'regular' peanut butter texture. Or add something that's more watery, and something thickening, to even each other out. Like banana and some kinda powder, like a flour of some kind, maybe?

if you can tolerate corn, or tamales, you can go to a mexican grocery and get corn masa and corn husks for super cheap - literally all you have to do is add water and salt to the masa, (although oil and other ingredients can be used, too), pat the dough between your hands, and you can make corn tortillas. And then possibly tamales, where you might be able to add in veggies to the inside but rather than a filling, maybe just mi them throughout in very tiny pieces, so it alters the texture enough to work, potentially? But it's pretty calorie dense, anyway, and might be helpful. And I know I have seen recipes to make these in the microwave, and they keep well for days, so you could make them all at once in a day.

Or maybe make a different texture out of the food with texture you hate. Like, if you hated the softness of beans, maybe making a bean veggie burger might be an acceptable texture? Or for the veggies and fruits - if the soft bothers you, maybe dehydrate them? Sometimes you can find a super cheap dehydrator online, craigslist and the like, or thrift stores, or freecycle, even.

I'd also highly recommend trying that 'food prepping' kind of meal planning. Where you literally just go and make a good chunk of the food for the week on one day (usually a weekend), and just reheat it the rest of the week. It's a life saver when you have no time to make food when meal time comes. But obviously not so useful if you have no time, period, not even to do this.

And another one - Grow herbs. seriously. Some plant stores throw out their little pots and you can get them for free, or people will give away their crappy pots after they get plants. They can grow in windowsills, it costs $1-4 for a packet of seeds and then you've got fresh herbs for as long as you keep 'em growing (and all it takes is watering periodically, really). This adds both flavor AND nutrients, so you can have the same dish many days in a row, but at the same time make it a little different. Put it on bread, sprinkle over fruit or veggies, mix into nut butters, whatever. I would suggest sauces for doing this, but wasn't sure if that would be a sensory issue, as well.

lynn_glenmont

shaumom wrote: »

Or mix something into your peanut butter - like, maybe find a really watery peanut butter, so if you add something in, it'll thicken it to 'regular' peanut butter texture. Or add something that's more watery, and something thickening, to even each other out. Like banana and some kinda powder, like a flour of some kind, maybe?

You offered a lot of helpful suggestions, and I hate to nit-pick, but eating raw flour is considered unsafe.

https://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm508450.htm

if you can tolerate corn, or tamales, you can go to a mexican grocery and get corn masa and corn husks for super cheap - literally all you have to do is add water and salt to the masa, (although oil and other ingredients can be used, too), pat the dough between your hands, and you can make corn tortillas. And then possibly tamales, where you might be able to add in veggies to the inside but rather than a filling, maybe just mi them throughout in very tiny pieces, so it alters the texture enough to work, potentially? But it's pretty calorie dense, anyway, and might be helpful. And I know I have seen recipes to make these in the microwave, and they keep well for days, so you could make them all at once in a day.

The premade tortillas are pretty cheap, especially in a mexican grocery, just in case making them yourself seems like more work (also, not sure the result of cooking them from scratch in a microwave would be that great).

chrislee1628

Boiled rice, baked beans and a egg

NoLimitFemme

Invest in a crockpot. You can typically get one under $20. You can then prepare your food in bulk. You can do soups, stews, meats, veggies, and even desserts. Plus, it's nearly effortless. Load it up in the morning and by dinner time you have a bubbling hot delicious meal.

Favorite of mine: Fiesta Chicken ... you put raw chicken breast in it, a can of tomaotes, a can of corn, a can of (rinsed) black beans, and taco seasoning. Shred chicken once it's done (4-6 hours) and serve over rice. Yummy!!!

horsesdontjudge

annacole94 wrote: »

Do you eat eggs? Microwave poached eggs are delicious and easy. Pair with salad or english muffin.
Eat the fruit and veg you do like.

Are you trying to lose, gain, maintain? PB toast and an apple is fine for a meal.

I'd like to lose some, but I've been maintaining and am trying to focus more on being balanced then any weight right now. I do eat eggs, I'll try the microwaved poached egg with english muffin. That's great! Thank you

horsesdontjudge

shaumom wrote: »

So, just to make sure - you need low budget, vegetarian, microwavable, but avoiding tofu, beans, a large number of fruits and veggies, and most soups.


I am so sorry, but I honestly don't know if that's possible to get this and still have a diet that is healthy and safe for you. Vitamins may become a big problem - can you at least take some vitamins along with your food?

I understand that sensory issues are a big deal, truly - I've got them, as does my daughter, and I know it's not as simple as 'just eat it.' Kind of hard to 'just eat it' when you start dry heaving as soon as it hits your mouth, or makes you choke and cough, or any number of things, yeah?

But the main difficulty is that food typically comes in two types: convenient, quick, and microwavable, or cheap, and never the twain shall meet, so to speak. And if they do meet...it's often with beans involved, you know?

However, for some ideas...

One thing that has helped us was to make mixtures that added in our 'sensory hell foods' that, overall, are the texture we can tolerate. Like burgers (I think there are microwave recipes for how to cook burgers in the microwave, actually). We'd take a veggie like, say, bell pepper, and grate it super-fine into the burger. Or do that with squash, whatever. I'd honestly just get whatever the cheapest meat was, when the budget was tight.

Or mix something into your peanut butter - like, maybe find a really watery peanut butter, so if you add something in, it'll thicken it to 'regular' peanut butter texture. Or add something that's more watery, and something thickening, to even each other out. Like banana and some kinda powder, like a flour of some kind, maybe?

if you can tolerate corn, or tamales, you can go to a mexican grocery and get corn masa and corn husks for super cheap - literally all you have to do is add water and salt to the masa, (although oil and other ingredients can be used, too), pat the dough between your hands, and you can make corn tortillas. And then possibly tamales, where you might be able to add in veggies to the inside but rather than a filling, maybe just mi them throughout in very tiny pieces, so it alters the texture enough to work, potentially? But it's pretty calorie dense, anyway, and might be helpful. And I know I have seen recipes to make these in the microwave, and they keep well for days, so you could make them all at once in a day.

Or maybe make a different texture out of the food with texture you hate. Like, if you hated the softness of beans, maybe making a bean veggie burger might be an acceptable texture? Or for the veggies and fruits - if the soft bothers you, maybe dehydrate them? Sometimes you can find a super cheap dehydrator online, craigslist and the like, or thrift stores, or freecycle, even.

I'd also highly recommend trying that 'food prepping' kind of meal planning. Where you literally just go and make a good chunk of the food for the week on one day (usually a weekend), and just reheat it the rest of the week. It's a life saver when you have no time to make food when meal time comes. But obviously not so useful if you have no time, period, not even to do this.

And another one - Grow herbs. seriously. Some plant stores throw out their little pots and you can get them for free, or people will give away their crappy pots after they get plants. They can grow in windowsills, it costs $1-4 for a packet of seeds and then you've got fresh herbs for as long as you keep 'em growing (and all it takes is watering periodically, really). This adds both flavor AND nutrients, so you can have the same dish many days in a row, but at the same time make it a little different. Put it on bread, sprinkle over fruit or veggies, mix into nut butters, whatever. I would suggest sauces for doing this, but wasn't sure if that would be a sensory issue, as well.

Thank you so much! I'll look into a dehydrater because often softness or wetness is a problem (why I can't stand tofu). I'll also try that mixing technique you described. I think others in my family don't have the sensory issue so I'm often hit with the 'just eat it' response. It's so nice to hear from someone who understands that saying that isn't the way to go (and will only frustrate me as I try to explain why).

horsesdontjudge

sawyeram wrote: »

Invest in a crockpot. You can typically get one under $20. You can then prepare your food in bulk. You can do soups, stews, meats, veggies, and even desserts. Plus, it's nearly effortless. Load it up in the morning and by dinner time you have a bubbling hot delicious meal.

Favorite of mine: Fiesta Chicken ... you put raw chicken breast in it, a can of tomaotes, a can of corn, a can of (rinsed) black beans, and taco seasoning. Shred chicken once it's done (4-6 hours) and serve over rice. Yummy!!!

Thanks it sounds like a crockpot would be a good investment and I didn't realize they came as cheaply as they do. Maybe I'll try a recipe similar to that, but with vegetarian protein (someone else suggested trying to add in small portions of foods I have sensory issues with so maybe that'd be a good place to mask it?)

horsesdontjudge

lporter229 wrote: »

I know you said you don't like beans, but what about lentils? Tasty Bites makes pouches of Madras Lentils that are really good. You can get them at Costco. I heat them in the microwave and eat with salsa and Greek yogurt. Your diet seems pretty restrictive. What are some foods that you like?

My diet currently is pretty restrictive (and parts of it have always been that way). I eat a lot of bread and crackers with peanutbutter, pasta (when I can make it, I haven't quite mastered making it in the microwave unless it's a frozen meal or one of those 'just add water' ones), junky food (ex: fruit snacks, chips, french fries, etc), pizza... I'll look for that brand of lentils and try some (I'll start off not at Costco in case I don't like them). If I do (and it's not too spicy) that sounds like a good combo of lentils salsa and Greek yogurt. Thanks for the suggestion

horsesdontjudge

Allgaun wrote: »

I'm not a vegetarian but I have 3 sons who are. It is really hard to eat healthy if you don't eat beans, tofu or most vegetables. My nephews tried it with a similarly limited "like" list and failed because there is only so much pasta and sauce you can eat without being sick of it. Will you eat beans in another form, like humus?

I do eat humus. Any suggestions for quick meals with hummus would be great! I currently have hummus with pita (bread or chips) and don't quite know what else to do with it

horsesdontjudge

RelCanonical wrote: »

What kind of vegetables do you like? My quick meal is to take some vegetables (mine are spinach, tomato, banana peppers, onion, and cucumber), throw them together into a wrap, maybe add a sauce or something, and enjoy.

Great! I'll try that for sure

horsesdontjudge

cmriverside wrote: »

You can buy a one-burner stove element for a few dollars at Target, and/or a small toaster oven or crockpot for a similarly low price...I'm with you, I don't even have a microwave. When I was in college I lived in an apartment for a year with no kitchen, and all I had was a crockpot and an electric skillet. I ate a lot of fresh fruit and vegetables, soups and sandwiches. You'll figure it out!

Thanks! I didn't realize how inexpensive crockpots and/or toaster ovens could be. I'll have to look into (and hopefully get) one or both. That'd open a lot of options to me

RodaRose

My favorite way to eat hummus is to eat it with rice.

Here are other ways to eat hummus:
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/article/10-things-to-do-with-hummus