We are huge fans of eating fresh, natural, wholesome foods on a low carb diet, although many find that buying fresh foods can be a challenge, especially when cooking for just one. We want to assure you that there are lots of tricks you can use to make cooking fresh, healthy, low carb meals for one simple, hassle-free and cost-effective.
Here are 10 of our top tips on solo low carb food prep.
1. Planning
Organising and planning your meals in advance is a great tool when cooking for one. It helps you remain committed to your goals, saves you time and money, and prevents food waste. It is a good idea to try planning meals which incorporate similar ingredients as this will help you to avoid food waste and save you some extra pennies.
2. Make a shopping list
When cooking and food shopping for one, it is useful to make a shopping list and plan what to buy in advance. This will prevent you from veering off track and throwing lots of random foods in your shopping trolley, which can be expensive, lead to food waste and potentially cause you to buy foods that are not optimal when following a low carb lifestyle.
3. Cook in bulk
Cooking in bulk is a great way to save time, money and keep you on track. Try setting aside some a couple of hours at the weekend, when most of us have a little more time on our hands. By spending just an hour or two in the kitchen over the weekend, you can prepare several meals, that can be used for breakfasts, lunches and dinners throughout the week, when time is perhaps not on your side. It is also a good idea to freeze some of these meals for a later date. We recommend making lots of low carb soups, stews, lasagnes and curries.
4. Use up leftovers
Using up leftovers is one of the most cost and time efficient ways of cooking for one, especially using up leftovers for grab-and-go lunches. We recommend using up leftover Sunday roasts to make low carb stews, soups, bone broths, pies and salads for the week ahead. These can then also be frozen for a later date.
5. Use your freezer
Your freezer can become one of your best tools on a low carb diet, as you can shop and cook in bulk and freeze foods or meals for a later date. This is especially helpful on those days where you might be in a rush, or perhaps you haven’t had a chance to go food shopping for the week. Some of our favourite meals to freeze include low carb pies, lasagne, chilli, spaghetti bolognaise or curry. You can also buy your meat and fish in bulk when it is on offer and freeze individual portions for future use.
6. Buy frozen fruit & veg
It is not only meat that can be bought in bulk and frozen, but also low carb vegetables and fruits such as cauliflower, broccoli, beans, berries and melon. While this not only saves time preparing vegetables, it also prevents fresh foods from spoiling too quickly and going to waste.
7. Have 10-15 go-to quick and easy recipes for one
Having a small selection of go to recipes that you enjoy and that are simple to make, will help to keep you on track. You will find after a short time you get to know these recipes off by heart. Why not sign up to our Low Carb Program where we have some super speedy, go-to recipes such as our ’90 second low carb bread’ which we have included at the end of the article.
8. Cut recipes in half to suit one person
When using recipes that serve multiple people, don’t be afraid to cut the ingredients list in half, or even thirds, if this suits your needs. You could try cutting the ingredients in half and have one portion for dinner and save the remaining serving for lunch the next day.
9. Avoid recipes with unfamiliar ingredients
It can be nice to experiments in the kitchen and try cooking something a little different, however these recipes tend to contain ingredients that you have never heard of and can make food shopping a little expensive. They can also lead to food waste, especially if they include ingredients that you will likely never use again. We are by no means suggesting to never experiment in the kitchen, as this can be fun and help you to try out new exciting foods. Our advice would be to try and save these recipes for special occasions or perhaps if you are entertaining some friends for dinner.
10. Eat eggs
Eggs are ideal on a low carb, high fat diet. What is even better is that they are affordable, easy to store and don’t go off too quickly. They are also incredibly quick and easy to cook with.
90-Second low carb bread
Prep time 2 minutes
Cook time 1.5 minutes
Serves 1
Ingredients
30g Ground Almonds
½ tsp. Baking Powder
1 Egg
1 tbsp. Olive Oil
Pinch of Salt
Preparation Method
- Mix the dry ingredients in a microwave friendly container.
- Add the egg and oil and mix thoroughly.
- Microwave on high for 1.5 minutes.
- Leave to cool before slicing, then toast if desired.
- Serve with your favourite low carb toppings, such as soft cheese & smoked salmon, nut butter, smashed avocado & tomatoes, scrambled egg & bacon or why not make it a little sweeter and top it with some clotted cream and sliced strawberries or homemade chia jam?
Nutritional values per serving
Calories 194kcal| Carbohydrate 1.5g| Total Fat 18g| Protein 7g|
