Food shopping for one can be complicated. Heck, shopping for certain numbers of diners can be complicated. A family of five can have two hotdogs apiece, but does a single person want to have one hotdog a day? Or two hotdogs a day and one spare? And what about those rolls?
Occasionally I purchase single serve heat and eat meals for myself, prepared by the store, and they work a treat. The advantages include portion control and a balanced serving of everything you need nutritionally. The downside is the cost, which can often be more than either frozen dinners or what you would pay buying larger quantities of all the fresh ingredients and breaking them down into daily meals.
For example, a multi-pack of chicken breasts can cost a few dollars a day when you sort them into one per freezer bag and break them out when you need them. Even if you have an entire can or more than the serving size of frozen vegetables, you’re still ahead money-wise and are eating healthier by having seconds on the veggies rather than the protein.
So for around $11-$13 each, I can have a nutritious dinner instead of drive-thru fat and sodium.
This past weekend I found a new selection of salads at my local grocer for $9.99 each. They were presented right next to those prepared dinners I usually purchase, and so I bought one of each and tried them over three days, just to see what effect eating more Mediterranean would do for me.
The results were promising.
I discovered some new taste sensations, including kimchi, which I mentioned last week in my Korean lunch post. One of the salads included the zingy cabbage, harissa, farro and couscous. Another had thin-sliced beef, and the third included salmon. The dressings were tasty, the proteins flavorful, and the greens fresh and crunchy. What remained was to see the aftereffects, if any, and whether I would still feel hungry after going so light on my meals.
The first positive thing I noticed was sleep. I went through more stages of sleep and even had dreams, which have eluded me lately. I was able to go back to sleep more easily, too. There were no digestive issues, and I wasn’t craving a bag of chips, nor did I supplement the dinner with dessert.
This is something worth investing some time in, and I think I will spend a few weeks exploring this idea to see where it leads me. I may lose weight or gain energy. Maybe not, but trying something new opens doors and allows the spirit to get out of the mundane state of apathy. That’s something we could all use.
This week I plan to get a few more salads and mix them in with my regular and prepared dishes. The cost per meal may go up slightly, but the advantages to my overall wellbeing may be worth it.
Don’t tell my friends at the drive-thru.
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