Every meal I eat is at a restaurant or delivery, you?

Ok not every meal, but 90% of my lunch and dinners, even some breakfasts. I HATE cooking, love eating out + who has the time to cook.

As i mentioned in my last post i'm a rising 26 year old, i've been doing this since I started in finance (4 years ago) and don't see it ending it anytime soon.

I try to eat the "healthier" option when possible, but restaurant food still has more grease / calories etc obviously.

I know i'm not the only one out there like this...

Only solution I see is finding a girlfriend who loves to cook, or when I get my next big pay bump hiring a personal chef.

I know there are those pre-prepared meal services that save a lot of time, any recommendations here? (I'm in NYC).

Despite consistent exercise my cholesterol has been sliding up each year... + my risk of diabetes i'm sure. FML

What would you do?

 

I would just look for healthier take out options (There's lots). Eat less wheat, do some more walking around the office or while travelling in city. If you live near your work, bike or walk. Go for runs on weekend, and drink water only.

Just an Undergrad trying to get a job. Something you disagree or dislike about my posts? Let me know by PM'ing me or commenting constructive criticism.
 

I find I go on stretches where I eat out pretty often, not so much breakfast, but lunch then bar food w. some drinks in the evening. I'll do that for a couple weeks. But I'll get tired of it and then finally head out to get some groceries, etc to make some meals.

As stated above, I think the key is to balance the eating out w. some physical activity throughout​ the week if possible.

 

It's pretty simple, I eat granola/fruit/yogurt bowls for most meals because it's simple and requires no talent. Then again, I can cook pretty well (I'm a girl), so it sounds like your best solution is just find a girl who can cook well.

 

You'll save thousands if you learn to cook.

Example: steak in broiler vs restaurant steak $15 vs 50$(incl tip and gratuity). Broiled steak takes 5 minutes tops and in that same 5 minutes you can steam some frozen vegetables. Get some lettuce and add dressing...boom! You have yourself a meal.

Honestly if you are young and thin and make enough you probably won't change your mind. I needed to be health conscious so I started cooking and preparing my meals. My breakfast is bacon and eggs every week day. Trader Joes preservative free bacon is the best and actually cheap. Step 1 take out of bag put on baking tray put in over for 12-15 minutes take out and consume. What you do in this 12-15 minutes is up to you, it is essentially free time. About 10 min in to the process I come back and turn on stove and out 3 eggs on skillet. By the time it is done I have bacon and eggs, total time "cooking" 5 minutes.

Oven Baked Chicken. Cover whole chicken in olive oil, salt and pepper the skin. Stuff the cavity with 3 lemons in quarters and thyme and 3 garlic cloves cut in half. Then put in oven, takes about an hour and half at 400 degrees. For good measure take out every 20 minutes after the first 40 and baste.

You'll find a way if it motivates you. I have a bunch of recipes like this and I have a bunch that take much longer. Note-it sounds like you want the easy way and not the effective way. Although the effective way is the way you stick to...but it has to be working.

 

My exact thoughts. He should be 25.5 right? But I guess he hasn't grown up from his college years haha.

GoldenCinderblock: "I keep spending all my money on exotic fish so my armor sucks. Is it possible to romance multiple females? I got with the blue chick so far but I am also interested in the electronic chick and the face mask chick."
 

I'd try to look for healthier take out options. There's plenty of stuff out there that is both yummy and good for you. Give it a try. I also believe that everyone, regardless of their gender, should know how to cook to a basic degree. Cooking isn't terribly hard and I'm sure that if you start now you could get the hang of it in no time!

 

What should you do?

Well, if you have time - buy chicken/fish add a little seasoning and throw that stuff in the oven for 20-30. It's relatively inexpensive, low maint., and way healthier.

Relying on someone else to make sure that you eat what you should (healthy, home cooked meals) is ineffective, a cop-out, and kind of lazy.

Also, I feel like i'm stating the obvious here, but go to the gym in the mornings?

 

Dude, just buy groceries on the weekend, cook a few meals that are good as leftovers on Sunday (spaghetti sauce, curry, soup, whatever), and then just microwave as needed. You'll save money and eat way more healthily.

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Monday through Friday I try and cook all my meals. I like to only put quality stuff into my body (organic/natural/etc) during the week, that way on weekends I don't feel shitty when I go out and get hammered and eat an entire plate of nachos or something.

Cooking is the way to go though, save tons of money and its much healthier. I am very physically active/fit and eating crap food sucks.

 

i was exactly like you a few years ago - hated cooking, ate out 95% of the time, etc etc. but like you, I've gotten pretty tired of going out to eat so I started watching a few episodes of cooking shows on netflix and sparked my interest. now i am especially proud of my rack of lamb recipe.

as a motivator, hosting a kick-ass home-prepped dinner party will earn you a lot of social brownie points. i did this for my gf's bday recently and worked out really well.

i also think cooking can be relaxing, especially after a stressful week

 

I love cooking. I mean, there is something so relaxing about being in the kitchen, listening to music, and making something, either off the cuff or from a recipe. It's one of the few places that I have all to myself. I notoriously throw friends and family out of the kitchen proper when I'm cooking because I can't stand having people in my work space. It's also a great skill to have, as making a home cooked meal from scratch will win you lots of friends and definitely impress people.

My advice to you is as follows: 1) Get a crock pot. Slow cooking is a fantastic way to make large batches of good food. Batch Cooking is just what it sounds like - make enough servings at one time that you have enough meals to last a few days. The beauty of a slow cooker is that you can put everything that you need in it and then, to borrow from Ron Popeil, just set it and forget it. Batch cook something in the slow cooker on Sunday and have it fresh for dinner that night, and then as a meal during the week. This way you will have healthier meals that you prepared to eat as opposed to ordering out every day. In a given week, I'll batch cook something on Saturday and Sunday so I have meals during the week, plus I cook on the weekends just to eat regularly. If I'm making a batch cooked meal, I don't see any reason not to cook like I would normally while I'm doing that. You can batch cook anything really.

2) Look at using FreshDirect or Peapod if you live in the city or something like "Shoprite At Home", which allows you to order your groceries online and pick them up in the store, if you live in the suburbs. If you're that busy, this is your best opportunity to get your shopping done. It helps a lot and lets you pick up everything you'd need without the hassle.

3) Invest the time and take a cooking class or two. Watch some cooking shows on Netflix or Youtube. Gordon Ramsey has a master class online that might be worth it. Figure out if you want to do more than just use a slow cooker. This is a great way to do it.

4) At the end of the day, it will save you money. Enough said here .

5) I'm a firm believer in learning skills that have actual use outside your work life. There are tons of skills which people today just don't have (including something as simple as basic plumbing or electrical work), which still surprise me because they should be part of a Man's repertoire. Cooking is one of those skills because it shows that you're actually handy and can do something. Part of it is purely that you should know how to cook. Part of it is that you can use it to impress people. Most importantly, it shows that you are willing to invest the time to learn something useful that will help you throughout life.

There is nothing more satisfying than seeing the fruit of your hard work. I've never made it a secret that I build furniture. You damn well better believe that building a piece of furniture is rewarding. Even when there are imperfections (and you will know there are imperfections when you build. Even something a minor as being a 64th of an inch off that no one else can see will be spotted by the builder.), you are still able to reflect on the fact that you actually have something tangible to show for your work. Cooking is the same way. Even if it is a batch cooked meal, I'm still proud of what I made and enjoy it. It gives me a chance to try something and if I like it, keep tweaking it until I am happy with the dish. If not, it was an experience in cooking something that I might be able to leverage in making other dishes. Plus, with cooking, there is always something nice about knowing that you've made others happy with good food. Food is one of those things that brings people together and provides a bit of happiness to those around you. There's something rewarding knowing that you made others happy with your work.

 

I've been building furniture for a long time. It's one of those hobbies that is a great talking point. I've had interviews get completely off track because of that line on my resume. I keep pictures of stuff I've either built (desks, tables, credenzas, etc.) or helped build (Wine Cellars, an Aron Kodesh (the Ark that holds the Torah scrolls in a Synagogue), desks, tables, etc.) just to show off my work. My next projects are something as a gift for a friend of mine expecting his first child and a bar cart.

As far as building furniture goes, it really does hammer in the point of having actual skills and being able to do things with your hands. I realize it's a bit more of an extreme skill, but it's a skill nonetheless that has served as the basis for my ability to fix things at home. It's also taught me how to do electrical work. I built a shop from the ground up, had to lay everything out, ran all the wiring, wired the outlets, lights and switches, and did everything except connect the wires to the circuit breaker because there are still things I have to learn. It's the same thing with plumbing. I learned how to do basic plumbing, pipe fitting, and welding because it made sense to understand that; if I'm building a bathroom vanity, as a builder, I need to know how all of the the pieces are going to fit together when the project is finished. If I don't account for how something needs to be plumbed or if I'm doing an in drawer socket and don't account for where the line needs to go, I'm not doing my job.

It's just a shame that being able to do these things is a lost art among the youth today. I have friends who call me up to fix things because they can't do it, don't want to pay a contractor, and don't understand how it's possible for people who aren't in construction or contractors to actually do this. In general, being handy is just a great skill to have.

 

a man after my own heart. expanding upon Frieds' well written response, let me offer a couple more pieces of advice if you're novice/on a budget/short on time:

short on time: food delivery service. could be complete meals, could just be for produce and then you buy your proteins and starches at the store. this avoids the hassle of going to your local mart and them being out of carrots or something asinine

budgeting: ethnic markets, I promise. they are cheaper than the chains and the food is amazing. I live in a tier 2 city, and there are a dozen of them here, so I'm sure wherever you are, they have them.

novice: reiterate blue apron, agree with cooking class and online stuff, but I'd also get someone to come over to your apt and have them teach you something.

finally, make sure you have the basic supplies, I'd recommend homegoods for this: spoon for stirring (bamboo or some synthetic is good), spatula, 8" chef's knife, paring knife, sharpener, cutting board, 2 pans (one big one small), 2 pots (one big one small), and a baking dish. you don't need 15 pots and pans to cook good food and even though I have a knife set, the chef's knife will do 99% of the heavy lifting.

 

To your point on delivery services, one thing I recommend if you are adventurous is finding out whether or not there is a CSA Farm Share near you. A CSA Farm Share, as socialist as it sounds, is actually a great thing and goes to support local business. The CSA, or Community Supported Agriculture, is a way to buy shares of what a farm is producing in exchange for capital up front. This way, farmers are mitigating some of the risks associated with agriculture in exchange for producing fantastic fresh fruits and veggies for shareholders. For WSOers in in NYC, check out Prince George Norwich Meadows, while Jersey City has Downtown Harvest. Personally, I've bought from Alstede Farms and Natirar and can't stress how awesome the experience is having fresh produce throughout the summer. Having great produce and ingredients definitely helps with wanting to cook.

On Ethnic Markets, it depends on the marketplace. At the same time, there are certain supermarkets which are far superior. I'll take a Wegman's any day of the week, but the local Asian and Hispanic markets work in a pinch and the quality is pretty damned good. In general, Ethnic Spice Markets (Kalustyan's comes to mind here) are great for buying bulk spices in cheap as well. Spices are fantastic and open up the world to you.

I will say this though about budgeting, if you are a meat eater, find yourself a quality butcher. This really applies more to eating any meat but chicken. I mean, find yourself a real butcher that knows every single one of their suppliers of meat, where it's sourced, and will have a full 6 pound Tenderloin in the back, clean the fat off and then slice it down to size for you all while discussing the finer points of Peidmontese, Angus, and even Wagyu Beef and how something as simple as feeding can directly affect the flavor, marbling and texture. Personally, I don't understand the hype over Wagyu when a piece of Grass-Fed Grass-Finished beef is just as wonderful at a fraction of the cost. Likewise, having a good butcher means that if you are looking for something unusual, hard to find or adventurous, they can point you in the right direction. You will definitely pay a premium for a quality butcher, but as with ingredients, quality trumps all here. For example, I was in WFM a few days ago looking at meat and I asked the clerk about what they were selling because the steaks looked good but walked away when the clerk and the clerk's manager couldn't answer my questions about the meat, but I know that if I asked the same questions of the butchers I go to, they could have answered everything without hesitating. The same philosophy can be said for finding a fishmonger, but I don't think that it's worth it to find one and I think that buying Kosher chicken is good enough.

I disagree with inviting someone over to teach you. I don't know about you, but I can't cook in someone else's kitchen unless I know the kitchen well. I'm a bit neurotic about where things are, where they go, how I do my prep, etc. If I can't do it to my liking, I'm not very happy. Much of this is also due to the fact that when I cook, I love to really cook and throw people out of the work space so they don't get in my way. If you want to learn from someone, offer to pay for the ingredients and bring it over and learn in their kitchen where they are most comfortable.

I also disagree with the choice of utensils and where to get them. First, one quality set of pans will last a life time. I cannot stress that enough because it's the truth. I have a set of All-Clad and it's worth every penny because I will never need another pot or pan (for the most part, as I can always use high quality cookware to fill in holes in my collection. For example, I still need a 12 Quart Multi-Use pot and another Sautee Pan or large Skillet). I would recommend a Cast Iron Skillet if you don't want to go the route of a quality set of pots and pans. A great Cast Iron Skillet, like a quality set of cookware, can last forever. IF you just want to go real simple, 2 fry pans (an 8 inch and a 12 inch), and 2 sauce pans (a 3-4 quart and a 6-8 quart) will work in a pinch. The Fry Pans are great for sauteeing, cooking eggs, etc., while the sauce pans give you some flexibility to make rice, pasta, heat sauces, or make dishes that you can just throw together and let stew for hours.

For ovenware, I would recommend 2 flat pans (think cookie sheets), a deep pan (just so you can easily roast items and take more of a braising approach instead of needing a roasting pan), and that's really it. The loaf pans, muffin trays, roasting pans, etc., will all come in time. If I'm making anything that's not being roasted or I need a high wall, it goes on the cookie sheet. For the hand goods, I recommend OXO products because they are quality. I'd invest in a 12" pair of tongs (either Nylon or Stainless), a set of wooden spoons (slotted and non-slotted), a set of spatulas (slotted and non-slotted), and a peeler. The only other tools I'd recommend are a good mixing bowl or two, multiple cutting boards (not only is it worth having multiple, this way you are not washing the same board between uses or engaging in possible cross-contamination), and a food processor. The food processor is great just to do some of the heavy lifting as you go.

For the Knives, that's a discussion in its own right. I have a Chef's Knife, a Santoku, a Bread Knife, a Carving Knife, a Paring Knife, a Fillet Knife, a Serrated Utility Knife, a Mezaluna, and a Cheese Knife. I also have a Honing Steel, but that's in lieu of having a sharpener. Looking at my list, I swear by 3 of them - the Chef's Knife, the Paring Knife, and the Utility Knife. I'd recommend a 6-8 inch Chef's Knife, based on what feels right in your hands, a 3" Paring Knife and a 4-5 inch Utility Knife. I do almost everything with the Chef's Knife because it's so versatile and works for everything. I use the Paring Knife for smaller and more intricate knife work. The Utility Knife, I use for everything else - from slicing tomatoes and larger produce to being the occasional bread knife. Don't get me wrong, I use my other knives because I prefer to do certain tasks with certain knives, but you really only need three knives. And really, to drive point home, you only need a Chef's Knife and you can do everything.

 

tagging things as millennial problems is so over done, as is previous generations didnt have similar problems. i asked my dad what he cooked in his 20's and yeah i'm not missing out on anything

 

I believe in living a life of contrasts. So rather than doing what he does (eating mediocre every meal), I have no problem eating 7-11 hot dogs one day, and doing a four course dinner at Le Bernardin the next.

 
<span itemprop=name>MonacoMonkey</span>:

I have no problem eating 7-11 hot dogs one day, and doing a four course dinner at Le Bernardin the next.

Sounds like the one constant in your life is runny shits

"Son, life is hard. But it's harder if you're stupid." - my dad
 

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