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Late-night food observations.
Several times at work last week I got praised for my planning skills in regards to cooking when I told people I make large meals and eat them over several days. I had to explain it isn't planning so much as it's making the investment: two to three hours of work for one batch of minestrone leaves me with ten to twelve lunches ready and waiting. A little bit more energy leads to a lot more laziness. And they'd still compliment me on being so forward-thinking.
It's made me realize I invest more into food than just about everyone else where I work. Time, money, personal interest - there's a couple of people that keep kosher and follow it very strictly, to the point where they don't eat food I bring in because they don't know what happens in my kitchen, and I respect and honor that, but I don't think they cook as much as I do. I understand that my being able to cook as much as I do, with the ingredients I buy, is due to luxury and situational advantage. My budget is for one person, a meal intended for four individuals can feed me for multiple nights, I opt to shop at farmer's markets and spend a bit more for eggs and milk and apples than I would at a grocery store. I'm not in a position where I worry about rent from month to month, I don't have to consider myself, a spouse, and one or more children into meal planning, I take serious advantage of leftovers.
I think most of it comes down to point of view. That is, I don't necessarily see all the delivery options because it doesn't occur to me to look for them - I look at the ingredients instead, and consider what I can make with them.
I honestly don't know how I'd eat if I didn't cook, and get kind of gobsmacked when I have to consider the question. When my parents remodeled their kitchen they couldn't use it for months, and the thought of not relying on my own cooking for that long made me shudder. It's something I've grown so accustomed to. Some people at work say they don't cook because they don't know how, and I find that strange because I know cooking is a set of skills just about anyone can acquire with time and effort. If they cite time, that I understand, as there are some people at work who barely have enough time for sleeping - there are still crockpots and pressure cookers, but it's something I can fit into my head.
Still. I'm happy that most every meal I eat, I'm the one who's made it.
It's made me realize I invest more into food than just about everyone else where I work. Time, money, personal interest - there's a couple of people that keep kosher and follow it very strictly, to the point where they don't eat food I bring in because they don't know what happens in my kitchen, and I respect and honor that, but I don't think they cook as much as I do. I understand that my being able to cook as much as I do, with the ingredients I buy, is due to luxury and situational advantage. My budget is for one person, a meal intended for four individuals can feed me for multiple nights, I opt to shop at farmer's markets and spend a bit more for eggs and milk and apples than I would at a grocery store. I'm not in a position where I worry about rent from month to month, I don't have to consider myself, a spouse, and one or more children into meal planning, I take serious advantage of leftovers.
I think most of it comes down to point of view. That is, I don't necessarily see all the delivery options because it doesn't occur to me to look for them - I look at the ingredients instead, and consider what I can make with them.
I honestly don't know how I'd eat if I didn't cook, and get kind of gobsmacked when I have to consider the question. When my parents remodeled their kitchen they couldn't use it for months, and the thought of not relying on my own cooking for that long made me shudder. It's something I've grown so accustomed to. Some people at work say they don't cook because they don't know how, and I find that strange because I know cooking is a set of skills just about anyone can acquire with time and effort. If they cite time, that I understand, as there are some people at work who barely have enough time for sleeping - there are still crockpots and pressure cookers, but it's something I can fit into my head.
Still. I'm happy that most every meal I eat, I'm the one who's made it.
no subject
I follow recipes pretty tightly, but I can plan meals and am willing to try things, so I think I eat better than a lot of the people I work with. At the very least, I always have two or three serving of fruit in my lunch, instead of french fries and whatever else the local deli has on special that day.
no subject
I live by leftovers. I almost never make anything if it gets me less than three meals. Food's important, and people should remember that.