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Ask HN: got any food hacks?

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Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#41

Post by jws »

endtime wrote: post #35
gte910h wrote: post #6

Eat lots of blueberries. Buy from vegan delivery chefs in your area. I's pretty easy, and a counterbalance to any eating out you might want to do

As it stands, this is a bit of a surreal answer. Why do you advise eating lots of blueberries? And are vegan delivery chefs actually a widespread thing? Is there a central place to find local ones?

I think he's trying to turn the OP blue. I checked the nutrition data at wikipedia and compared to carrots. Except for vitamin B5 and a slight advantage in vitamin C, carrots kick blueberries butt by a wide margin. (plus cost a lot less)

Of course, maybe I'm trying to turn people orange.

Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#42

Post by mprovost »

The ultimate food hack is the pressure cooker. You can cook things much quicker than usual by changing the rules (ie raising the boiling point of water). They're really good for making basics like rice and quinoa very quickly and you can turn something like boiling potatoes from a 20 minute exercise into about 7 minutes.

Another good one is using an electric kettle/jug to boil water. It's the fastest way (obviously immersing the heating element directly in the water is going to be more efficient than going through a pan). Lots of people use them for tea etc but I use mine to boil water for pasta.

Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#43

Post by cynicalkane »

Problem: Vegetables are gross, and hard to prepare such that they taste good.

Solution: vegetable smoothie. Ice, a banana, yogurt, milk, and a whole bunch of spinach, in proportions according to taste. This sounds disgusting, but it actually tastes really good. Make sure you have a banana though. Otherwise it will tastes like spinach, and that's not the goal here.

After trying to report my discovery to the world, it seems I'm the only person who thinks spinach smoothies are a good idea. For some reason, everyone thinks it's disgusting to fill a blender with spinach and other things and then drink it. I can't imagine why.

Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#45

Post by limist »

Cheap, fast, and potentially very healthy: smoothies. One basic recipe:

2 cups fruit juice, e.g. orange juice or apple juice

2-3 tablespoons ground flax seed (omega-3, trace minerals, fiber)

2-3 tablespoons protein powder (soy, hemp, whatever)

2 bananas

2-3 cups of greens: kale, frozen spinach (organic, conventional has too much pesticides), collard greens; frozen means no washing, so it's faster

1 cup frozen mango, blueberries, etc.

1 kiwi

spices (cinnamon, etc.)

Obviously, you can mix and experiment and find what you like. You can also include a lot more greens than you'd ever eat in one salad, and thanks to the blender, not spend time chewing, nor get sated with the (sometimes bitter) taste of greens. Enjoy!

Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#46

Post by phugoid »

mattmaroon wrote: post #22

What you just asked for is a full-sized SUV that costs $10,000, rides like a Lexus, gets 45mpg city, and never loses the new car smell. If you don't want to cook or clean, that means someone has to cook/package for you. If you don't want processed food (and I don't blame you) where this is done by machine, then you have to pay for something done by real people. This will by-definition be not cheap, since labor is rel…

Amen.

Cooking is an investment. The more you cook, the better you get at it; the faster and tastier the results. And the more you cook, the healthier you will eat overall (at least if you're living in North America).

As for hacks, here's one. Take semi-prepared food, like macaroni & cheese in-the-box-with-the-faux-cheese-powder-in-the-paper-pouch, and augment it. The basic recipe is written on the box and fool-proof. Add something else to it like chopped-up left-over chicken that you warm up in the oven until sizzling.

Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#47

Post by phugoid »

Frazzydee wrote: post #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…

You'll eventually poison yourself, Frazzydee. There are simple steps you can take to limit bacterial growth.

If you have a fridge, you probably have a freezer. Invest 20$ in dollar-store tupperware, and freeze your food in single-servings.

Try to keep your food either frozen or at least as hot as boiling.

Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#48

Post by dood »

The best trick is to batch it. Fill your freezer with tasty, quality foods which can be made in nice big batches: stew, casserole, bolognaise (which can be quickly converted to chilli), curry, dal, etc.

All of the above foods can be reheated quickly, can be eaten in a variety of ways (various carb-staples & veg), and you can tweak the recipe each time if you like.

If you don't have much money, or don't want to eat much meat, you can add as much beans/potatoes to the basic dish as you like, and/or eat small portions combined with whatever staples you prefer.

Every week cook a big batch of something. Soon you'll have a freezer full of a variety of tasty, nurtitious goodness.

Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#49

Post by davidedicillo »

My mom would cry if she could read english...

Cheap and fast: PASTA

Base for the pasta: - boil the water and salt it - add pasta (but please, don't overcook it, just stick to the box instruction. Barilla is an excellent brand and decently priced)

Sauces for the pasta

Tuna Pasta - In a small pot add a spoon of olive oil and diced onion, crushed red pepper, and stir-fry it. - When the onion looks "gold" add a can of tuna (drain the water from the can first) and a can of tomato sauce. - let cook for 15 minutes medium heat

Pasta Carbonara - on a small pan stir-fry some cured bacon - in a bowl beat 1 egg, a spoon of heavy cream and 1/4 cup of parmigiano cheese. - when the pasta is ready add first the bacon with its oil and then the mix from the bowl

Re: Ask HN: got any food hacks?

#50

Post by jseliger »

Batsu wrote: post #32
thunk wrote: post #27

Rice cooker. Rice-to-water ratio 1:1.5 for white and 1:2 for brown. 15-20 minutes for white and 30-40 minutes for brown. Throw in vegetables and/or fish for the last 7-10 minutes to steam. Season to taste. I like teriyaki sauce (with tons of garlic and ginger) on it. Corn starch is the key to a thick, shiny sauce.

There are rice cookers you can purchase which will finish the rice according to a schedule. They're more expensive than the the average, but if you're going to use it frequently and you want rice ready when you get home, it's top notch. Essentially, you measure you rice, clean it (as always) then add the water, leave it in the cooker, the the timer you want it to finished, and the cooker does the rest. Edit: A though…

What exactly does cleaning rice consist of? I thought that just meant "run some water over it."
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