Anyone else living on ready meals?

MrsLannister
MrsLannister Posts: 347 Member
edited December 3 in Food and Nutrition
I'm a terrible cook and have little interest in learning. I eat mainly Lean Cuisines for dinner and cereal or yogurt for breakfast and lunch. The lean cuisines taste better than anything I can make myself. I tried cooking for a while, but my skills are so limited that I was only making steamed fish and rice most of the time. Plus, I live alone and stuff goes bad. I don't have to worry about that with ready meals.
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Replies

  • FrothyGibblets
    FrothyGibblets Posts: 49 Member
    I'm in a similar position. I can cook and quite enjoy cooking, but living alone means things either go to waste or I end up cooking too much. I also overnight away from home a lot, so "meals for one" seem to be a decent solution

    I'm sure it's not as good as preparing your meals for the week in advance, and they are terrible for sodium, but for the time being it works and its easy enough to scan in the calories.
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    I used to do and think like that before, not because I am/was a bad cook, but because I didn't take taste and enjoyment into consideration. I aimed to make "healthy" meals, and they were boring and tasteless, so no wonder cooking didn't interest me, and no wonder I thought I was a bad cook. I believed readymeals were nutritionally equal to home made, and I believed that as a single person, I didn't "have to" or "deserve" to eat well, that cooking from scratch was time consuming, expensive and difficult, and that meal planning was for families. Boy, how things have changed.
  • Shadowmf023
    Shadowmf023 Posts: 812 Member
    Mm. I wouldn't live on them, although I eat frozen pizzas here and there. I guess I'm a bit too paranoid. :lol:
  • ouryve
    ouryve Posts: 572 Member
    It's a good time to learn to cook!

    It doesn't have to be a whole meal if you find that overwhelming and you certainly don't need to do the domestic goddess act every day.

    If you're on your own, it's worth looking for some simple and tasty 1 pot recipes eg chilli or frittata that you can portion up and chill or freeze. Or find an interesting recipe for a salad or veg side dish that you can have alongside a ready meal or even with fish or chicken, then have some for your lunch with cheese or cooked meat, the next day.
  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member
    edited August 2016
    I tend to eat pretty dull meals but do have the occasional ready meal (once or twice a week). I can't be arsed to learn to cook a proper meal or spend the time chopping and planning. I do not find it interesting or fun just like others might find my hobbies uninteresting. *shrug*

    As for my garden, I'm purposely going for the meadow look. ;)
  • Dayle1984
    Dayle1984 Posts: 70 Member
    I lived on my own for many years and I didn't find cooking simple/healthy meals all that challenging. If you cook 2-3 chicken breasts, which you may cook for a dinner for two anyway, then you have dinner, lunch and dinner the next day. Or even dinner for the next two days. I literally put fresh chicken breasts on a baking sheet, put some spices on them, and put in the oven at 400F for 45 minutes or so. Super easy. Rice is easy to make a keeps well. And it is also easy to make multiple servings of salad at a time which will last for several meals, and it's easy to steam single servings of fresh veggies or just heat up frozen ones. This is just for an example...
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,757 Member
    I don't eat them as much as I used to but I definitely lived off frozen dinners and fast food while losing weight.
  • fr33sia12
    fr33sia12 Posts: 1,258 Member
    I used to have a ready meal every day for dinner, mainly when my cooker broke. I was glad when I could finally afford a new one. Apart from the expense and boredom of having the same few meals, I realised how much sodium was in them and other ingredients and was glad to start making my own meals. I'm still not a great cook, but you learn by trying and trying again.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    The solution for cooking for one is to freeze leftovers. They even sell heat & eat disposable containers at Wal-Mart (Reynolds).

    There are frozen meals that I like better (alfredo comes to mind). But there are many others that I can do better. Even if you're not a good cook now, you can learn to be one. This gives you a life long tool for maintenance.
  • MrsLannister
    MrsLannister Posts: 347 Member
    The Lean Cuisines don't really have that much sodium. The chicken club panini I just had was only 600 mg of sodium, which isn't bad for a full meal.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    It's o.k. A few days a week, have some fresh or frozen veggies so that you can get variety.
    Do you like salads? Roasted veggies?
    http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/roasted_broccoli/
  • MrsLannister
    MrsLannister Posts: 347 Member
    The meals do come with vegetables. I also use a green superfood supplement and eat fruit. I'm not big on salads. There is a place down the street that has a decent cobb salad, but if I tried to make that myself it would go bad before I could eat it all.

    I'm really not interested in cooking at all. I just make a mess and end up with stuff that goes bad. There is no room in my apartment freezer for doing the weekly cooking thing, either.
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    This is where meal planning comes in. You buy just the amount you need to cook what you are going to eat, and as often as is practical for you. (I have two main shopping and cooking days per week. The cooking is as simple as possible - soup or casserole. Other days are "lazy cooking" - like thawing meat and vegs and boiling rice.) You combine and match recipes with ingredients so you can use up everything. If you have a functioning fridge and some freezer space, you are all set. I don't freeze complete meals either. I have a normal sized (European normal) fridge/freezer. Food takes up so much less freezer space when you only use it for the components that need to be frozen - meat and vegetables.

    You don't have to eat salads! Why do people think salads are necessary for weight loss and good nutrition?

    Green superfood supplement - that sounds a lot like a scam and money better spent on good food.
  • cgvet37
    cgvet37 Posts: 1,189 Member
    I live alone as well. If I cook a pot of chili for example, I'll eat some and freeze the rest. Thaw it out, and it's just as good. I make simple meals, nothing fancy or over complicated.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    I can imagine that it makes counting easier. I'd eat them from time to time, but the sodium would get to me.

    FWIW, I get it, I don't love cooking, and prior to starting my healthy journey didn't cook at all.
  • FitPhillygirl
    FitPhillygirl Posts: 7,124 Member
    Moving out of the house and on my own is when I got into learning how to cook. Started out making quick and easy foods. Now that I have a family of my own I can make anything my Hubby and 2 children want. My hubby is a good cook as well which is nice thing for the days when I'm sick and don't feel like cooking.
  • witchy_wife
    witchy_wife Posts: 792 Member
    I don't live on them but have them now and again. Sodium is pretty high in most but some are pretty tasty! I really love some of them. I would normally have one on it's own for lunch, or if having for my main meal would add some extra veggies or salad to bulk it out a bit.
  • 99clmsntgr
    99clmsntgr Posts: 777 Member
    I utilized the Lean Cuisines a lot as I lost the bulk of my weight. And still I keep a few on hand for when I need something quick and I didn't get to meal prep. They're relatively easy, you can get good variety and generally taste OK. People will bash them because of fillers and I don't really like the sodium content, but, as a supplement and tool for weight loss, I think their OK.

    Nowadays I tend to cook more myself. We always cook dinner at home, but I've started meal prepping for the week of lunches. Normally we grocery shop on Sunday and I make a batch of *something* that I can divide into 5 or 6 portions and I use that throughout the week. My wife will still eat the ready-made meals most days for lunch, I don't. It's just the way it is now.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    I love cooking and find it easy, and generally prefer what I make to ready-made (and it tastes a lot better to me and allows me to include a lot more veg than usually come with those things), but honestly it sounds like you know yourself and your life and that it's working for you now. I agree that you can find ready-made with a decent nutrition profile, so if you are feeling satisfied, no problem! If you do start feeling bored or unsatisfied, just be aware that cooking is always an option, can be eased into, and really isn't hard (and is a way to save money if that's ever an issue).
  • Emily3907
    Emily3907 Posts: 1,461 Member
    I actually enjoy cooking, but sometimes I just need something quick. So, I will take a basic ready meal and add in things. My current favorite is the Lean Cuisine Vermont Mac and Cheese, then I throw in some rotisserie chicken (the kind from the grocery store) and a vegetable like sauteed peas or asparagus roasted in the oven (super easy to do). There are ways to "jazz up" a ready meal that involves little to no cooking, but can also boost the nutrition of the meal.

    I don't think it is bad to live on ready meals, as long as your goals and nutritional needs are being met. You have to do what works best for yourself.
  • blk0110k
    blk0110k Posts: 39 Member
    You can always cook something big on your day off... I do it sometimes on a Sunday. Soup's good... chicken noodle soup is easy to make. Then freeze it for the week. If you can get two big things done (like maybe chili too) then you would have a variety. I also make a big salad in a metal mixing bowl for the week; it's usually gone by Wednesday because I eat salad for lunch at work all week.
  • blk0110k
    blk0110k Posts: 39 Member
    Oops...sorry 99clmsntgr... didn't see your post until now. Great minds think alike I guess...
  • ashcky
    ashcky Posts: 393 Member
    I do not live alone but I am really the only one who enjoys the meals. My brother will not try them, my mom is hit and miss, my son is super picky and my daughter is just in the stage where sometimes she eats and sometimes she doesnt. There are times where I make too much and I just try to eat it for lunch or have a leftover night.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    MrsLannister wrote: »
    The meals do come with vegetables. I also use a green superfood supplement and eat fruit. I'm not big on salads. There is a place down the street that has a decent cobb salad, but if I tried to make that myself it would go bad before I could eat it all.

    I'm really not interested in cooking at all. I just make a mess and end up with stuff that goes bad. There is no room in my apartment freezer for doing the weekly cooking thing, either.

    The quantity of veggies in most frozen dinners is sad. Frozen veggies are great add ins, they really "bulk up" the meal. I like Lean Cuisine Chicken Alfredo with 1/2 bag of Steam Fresh Broccoli. I can add 1.75 cups more food for 53 calories, I get lots of fiber too. Much more filling.

    I re-heat the remaining broccoli at lunch time the next day.
  • geneticsteacher
    geneticsteacher Posts: 623 Member
    When I lived alone, I cooked a huge pot of brown rice every Sunday and refrigerated it. I always had a variety of frozen vegetables and single portions of protein in the freezer (bought large packaged of chicken/pork/seafood and re-wrapped them in individual portions). Various bottles of sauces in the fridge. A stir-fry after work in the evening took about ten minutes to prepare.

    Lean Cuisines were a nice treat occasionally.
  • HazyEyes93
    HazyEyes93 Posts: 89 Member
    Something cheap and simple that I like to eat is half a block of ramen noodles in the microwave (no seasoning pack),heat up some frozen veggies in the microwave (I like to do a mixture of broccoli, peppers and onions, and corn), cut up some boneless chicken (or other protein) with some kitchen scissors, season the chicken with a premade seasoning (I really like McCormick Chipotle and Roasted Garlic), cook the chicken and veggies in a nonstick pan with a nonstick spray. If it's chopped up pretty thin, it'll be really easy to tell when it's done. Add the cooked veggies and chicken to the noddles, drizzle with some teriyaki sauce, and you've got a good tasting, cheap, and easy meal (and really low cal). Even with a food scale, it MIGHT take me 20 mins if I can't put my phone down. lol
  • Treece68
    Treece68 Posts: 780 Member
    When I lived alone I ate apples and cheese, grapes and cheese and frozen pizza.
  • MzManiak
    MzManiak Posts: 1,361 Member
    You could always work in some pre-made healthy meals also. Some stores have ready to eat servings of sushi, deli wraps, salads, etc. They sell packaged fish with only 2 servings already seasoned so all you have to do is throw them in a bit of oil. You can make vegetables that way also. Chicken breasts come in packages of 4. Throw some cajun seasoning on them and put them in the oven to bake. Boom, meals for the week.
  • cee134
    cee134 Posts: 33,711 Member
    My uncle signed up for something that sent him meals ready to eat, which is how he lost over 50 lbs. I don't know how the meals where made or anything, but it's an extremely easy way to keep tabs on your calories. I would eat like that in my 20's. I would get a frozen protein (like Tyson chicken) and get frozen vegetables and microwave them and eat. It was slightly healthier...

    Now I make vegetables for a couple days and any grains or legumes I need. I cook most of my meals now but I don't spend everyday cooking nor all my time cooking for the week.
  • raylo1313
    raylo1313 Posts: 20 Member
    Leftovers are a wonderful thing. When you cook, make too much and then freeze the rest. Then you will have frozen meals. I like to make meatloaf muffins, chicken breasts, ham and bean soup, stews - they are all freezable. Good luck!
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