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Ask HN: got any food hacks?

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Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#1
I'm having trouble finding a way of consuming food that has an optimal balance of being healthy, cheap, quick, and tasty. I don't want to eat ramen (or most processed foods), but I don't want to spend an hour every day preparing, cooking, and cleaning. I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions to share (tips, recipes, whatever). I'm a single grad student, but advice for others is also appreciated.

For example, I remember an HN submission where the writer talked about paying someone who lived nearby and cooked well to drop off leftovers most evenings. Someone else talked about preparing a whole bunch of meals the first weekend of the month then freezing them (this probably requires a second fridge). From the body building community I picked up the idea to drink a lot of milk, because it's a great source of cheap good calories. I'm not necessarily looking for actions so drastic and perhaps "gimmicky", simpler ideas would work just as well ("making such-and-such is really quick and makes a bunch of leftovers that taste just as good as the first time", etc.)

Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#3
In my bachelor days during my bulking phases, I'd do the following to pack in the nutrients I needed:

1. Buy several bags of chicken drumsticks (de-skin if you want to lower fat intake), poke holes with a fork, marinate with wine / vinegar / soy sauce / herbs and spices for a few hours, put into broiler. I'd cook 30 or so at a time, and it'd last me days.

2. Ham or turkey or peanut butter sandwiches.

3. bags of frozen veggies. Stir-fry if you have time, boil or microwave if you don't.

4. Peanut butter & banana & milk & protein powder drinks. I'd make a big glass every night for my snack.

5. Mixed nuts to snack on.

Lots of good fats, low glycemic index carbs, and protein; inexpensive and quick.

Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#4
This is going to sound really simple, but it's what I do. Take at your own risk, because I have a strong stomach.

I cook food in bulk, and just re-cook it on the stove, make a bowl of rice, and eat it over the next week. Even meat, and it tastes about as good as the first time. I usually keep it in the fridge, but I'm fine even if it's left outside and covered.

Might take a bit of time to cook the first time, but you can make some healthy and nutritious food, and it'll be ready in minutes every time after the first.

Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#7
Technology could certainly help with the time aspect. Rig an electric timer to your toaster or toaster oven so that it's cooking you breakfast before/as you wake up. Hack together a device to do the stirring for you for foods that need to just be stirred over heat for a long time. Just be wary of fire hazards.

Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#8
I've found fish tacos to be a fantastic food, I try to eat them for breakfast as often as I can.

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Ingredients:

* Frozen tilapia fillets (probably the healthiest fish you can buy, not as high in Omega-3 as larger ocean fish, but it's super low in mercury).

* Yellow corn tortillas (much lower in fat and sodium than the wheat or white corn ones).

* Salsa (I buy Herdez brand, it's basically Pico De Gallo with no additives. I can't stand tomatoes in any other form. Red vegetables are good for you, and it's the one way I can get some)

* Queso Fresco or some other cheese (not too much)

Procedure:

The tilapia you can just stick in a toaster oven (or a full on oven) under broil for 15-20mins, with some salt and pepper, and whatever other spices you feel like that day.

Put tortillas on ungreased skillet (or hot plate) for 10-15 secs each side. Take off, add your cheese, put in fish (slice the fillet as you see fit), and add salsa and whatever other vegetables (some chopped lettuce, and sometimes even cabbage works).

EAT!

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1 tilapia fillet is very filling and makes 2-3 tacos.

In conclusion: fast, easy, delicious, and very healthy. The frozen tilapia fillets keep in the freezer for quite a while. Trader Joe's sells panko-crusted ones that you can substitute once in a for some extra fun.

Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#10
Beans. They have protein and fiber, no sugar. Canned pre-cooked red or brown beans. (In the U.S., buy chili beans - they don't have sugar added, the others do.)

Add a little meat for flavor. I'm partial to a small chunk of sausage/chorizo/pepperoni, diced in small bits. Plus tomato paste (not ketchup - sugar again) and paprika. Spice up at will, but I find Tabasco too vinegary.

Add water to make it soupy, boil for 10 minutes, eat with bread. Microwave in a bowl if you're lazy (er, efficient) like me, or are re-heating a leftover portion.

Tossing a portion of chicken breast, in a dry non-stick frying pan, into the oven for 20 or 30 minutes (?), while doing something else, was also a favorite in my grad student days.

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