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You expect someone who can't make an egg to make lasagna?
Anyone can learn to cook if they take the time and make the effort and are willing to try and take the time. It's a learned skill like anything else in life. People think that being able to cook is some magical talent that you either have or don't have and it's not.
The OP wants to be able to prepare more meals at home to save money. Step 1. Learn to cook.
Oh, and my husband who claims he can't cook to save his life when we first met learned very quickly that if he followed a recipe and clear directions he could in fact cook (and bake) and it wasn't a disaster.
He's made some very tasty meals for me over the years and can easily handle the basics day to day.
I often take a few hours on a weekend day and bake several dozen muffins (usually fat-free or low-fat) ... they freeze REALLY well, and 10-20 seconds in the microwave defrosts them. In the past I typically would eat 2-3 of those with my first mug of coffee, then a banana with my second mug (which might not be 'til an hour later). I have to have a good-sized breakfast (otherwise my stomach is growling LONG before lunch time), but even 3 muffins (the kind I make) and a banana total less than 500 calories -- for me, that is fine for breakfast (I would rather have more calories early than late).
These days I try to eat more protein for breakfast, so I might have egg whites scrambled with a bit of cheese and bacon bits, plus maybe 1 piece of homemade bread with "light" margarine, plus a banana if I'm still hungry. (I love fruit but bananas are the only fruit I've ever eaten at breakfast because they taste great with coffee.)
For dinner, I usually make extras and again freeze them. OP, you might try learning how to use a slow cooker -- I love starting mine in the morning and then coming home to a wonderful meal (and again, it will have lots of leftovers!).
For breakfast you can buy a can of corned beef or roast beef hash. Heat it up with a little dab of butter. It is high in salt though so don't add any. Cut up onion and green pepper into small pieces and fry up a minute or two then add an egg to scramble with a slice of cheese on top. I microwave a few potatoes till almost soft so I can cut them into pieces then or later take them out of the fridge and fry them up with onions. Left over chunks of ham, or sausage patties or links are good with breakfast and filling.
Buy a frozen bag of meatballs, a bag of frozen boneless chicken breasts, and one of those long thin pork roasts to keep in the refrigerator at all times. They're easy to put in the crockpot on low with a spice packet, BBq sauce, a marinade, or can of soup or spaghetti sauce to flavor them. Keep bags of frozen vegetables so you can take out just what you need for cooking. Don't forget the extras that make meals more pleasant such as garlic toast slices to put under the broiler or a fresh loaf of italian bread. Buy potato salad, coleslaw, and bean salad at the deli. Pudding is easy for dessert. My dad did all the cooking in our house but I do know that cooking for one can be a challenge. When I travel I usually buy a pre-cooked chicken from walmart and salad from the deli.
I planned out this weeks meal so here goes. Going to take a bit to get the food actually good I think, but it should be edible.
Mon - bacon and egg muffin w/grits for breakfast - hamburger mixed with onion soup mix w/fries for dinner
Tue - 2 eggs over easy (at least try to, if not just scrambled), bacon, grits for breakfast - blt w/fries for dinner
Wed - bacon and egg muffin w/grits for breakfast - leftover hamburgers from Monday for dinner
Thur - 2 eggs over easy (again to try and cook em), bacon, grits for breakfast - blt leftovers w/fries or mashed potatoes for dinner
Fri - I go straight to my 2nd job so I won't have time to eat dinner so will probably have an extra big lunch to hold me somewhere.
Should be enough for this first week and simple enough to make. Then next week I can start making different things every night or something.
There are many aspects to this large project you are undertaking - learning to cook, planning your meals, cooking food that is healthy and keeps you feeling satiated....
so my advice would be to recognize that its a big undertaking.... and to pace yourself and have patience, so that in a few weeks, you don't just give up due to frustration.
As you gradually learn to cook meals that taste good, you will build a repertoire of dishes that you can use in your meal planning. Its not going to happen overnight, or even in a few weeks.
The more that you cook, the better you will get at it. Some things won't turn out. You will learn how to read recipes and evaluate if they are going to be something you like. Its a lot of trial and error.
But the results are worth it, so don't give up.
I am going to recommend a blog that I love - it has a wide variety of recipes, most of them have simple ingredients, and each one has step-by-step photos of the entire process. If nothing else, it will provide you with inspiration for foods that you would like to cook for yourself - Budget Bytes
I planned out this weeks meal so here goes. Going to take a bit to get the food actually good I think, but it should be edible.
Mon - bacon and egg muffin w/grits for breakfast - hamburger mixed with onion soup mix w/fries for dinner
Tue - 2 eggs over easy (at least try to, if not just scrambled), bacon, grits for breakfast - blt w/fries for dinner
Wed - bacon and egg muffin w/grits for breakfast - leftover hamburgers from Monday for dinner
Thur - 2 eggs over easy (again to try and cook em), bacon, grits for breakfast - blt leftovers w/fries or mashed potatoes for dinner
Fri - I go straight to my 2nd job so I won't have time to eat dinner so will probably have an extra big lunch to hold me somewhere.
Should be enough for this first week and simple enough to make. Then next week I can start making different things every night or something.
Looks like a good start. Get thee some vegetables into your diet though! Not only will they bulk up your meals to help you feel full, well they're just darn good for you!
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