Moving out: Cooking For Yourself

When it comes to moving out everyone gets a little scared, whether your off to university, moving in with a long term partner or braving it alone. One of the most important things for yourself is the basics of cooking.

One of the best piece of advise that was given to my forgetful ass, "never leave it unattended".

This will get you through the basics.

Once your doing slow roast pork with honey glaze then leave the room to pursue other things.

Hell, bring the stuff your doing (homework, work while at home, laptop work, note taking ect) into the kitchen this way when you look around from your task you'll instantly be reminded that your in the kitchen for a reason.

This stops you from burning the fucking house down

Make Sure Its Cooked

Chicken and turkey needs to reach (internally) 170 F/85 C

Pork needs to reach (internally) 150 F/ 65C

Lamb needs to reach (internally) 120F/50C Rare- Well Done 165F/73C

Beef needs to reach (internally) 120F/50C Rare- Well Done 160F/71C

I've put these on here so you won't poison yourself if you take any of my recipes.

My mum uses this temperature probe for her catering business and it is fantastic. shows you to one decimal place and has made sure I haven't poisoned myself when she has gone away and left me.

Balance your Diet

This 2000 calories recommendation is (excuse my French) bollocks. Not everyone needs two thousand calories a day, maybe if you have a job that requires you to be on your feet all day such as a waitress or a nurse, or you are recovering from an illness, but most people can happily live on 1800 or 1500 and it is scientifically proven that a calorie restricted diet is better for longevity of life.

Cited-Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology 6, 298-305(April 2005) | doi:10.1038/nrm1616

A more active life such as a body builder, a carpenter, a dancer, and manual labour jobs require more than 2000 calories. You need to look at how active you are and what substance you need.

Such as if you anaemic and look a little blue and grey when your make-up isn't on then you need to eat more red meat. Red meat can be constricting and binding to your insides so you will need healthy greens to accompany it to get your daily fibre and make your body flowing and happy.

Too much of a certain type of substance can give you ailments, like iron will make you constipated too much fibre will give you diarrhoea.

Get Your Ingredients

If you get yourself into the habit of buying expensive organic food every time you go shopping you will never really develop the art of cooking from scratch.

Organic food that is sold in supermarkets is extremely expensive and are packed full of ingredients, therefore they are already doing some of the cooking for you.

Herbs and Spices
This is how always thought of it: Herbs are homely the flavours that make you feel like your Cinderella and eating a feast, Spices are exotic the flavours that make you feel like jasmine from Aladdin.

Herbs and spices are a great way to add a diferent twist to food even if you having the same ingredients. Such as you could have spicy chicken overlay with spice courgettes and spicy chips one night, the other night, herb chicken stuffed with courgettes and roasted herb potatoes. Same ingredients, different meal.

Basic Meat

Butchers the baker the candlestick maker, nope just the butchers thanks.

Supermarkets have packs of already cut pieces of meat, like chicken breast, thighs and wings.

Beef mince, diced beef, steaks and portions: Pork chops, steaks and portions.

Get a little different and add some fish.

Basic Vegetables

Cast me down for being uprightly British but what is a meal without potatoes? My grandad calls them tatty's (not titties you filthy buggar).

Chips glorious chips, especially when they are home made in pre-used fat. Yummy.
All the other veg can be bought frozen and markets are great from buying fresh produce at cheaper than the supermarket.

Cheap recipe time

Chicken Casserole

Chicken Breast

Potatoes

Onions

Mushrooms

Carrots

Gravy granules

Cut your chicken into dices or slices depending on how fine you want you meat
Boil your chicken for 5 minute, take it out and place it in a casserole dish
Boil you potatoes onions and carrots together for 5 mins
Take them out of the water and place in casserole dish.
Add gravy granules to left over water make sure its a good consistency but not thick
Add gravy to casserole dish
bake for 30 mins with foil placed over top so it doesn't dry out
when cooked temp your chicken and make sure its 175 F/80C

Lamb Kleftiko

Diced Lamb

Potatoes

tomatoes

tinned chopped tomatoes

onions

goats cheese (any cheese will do)

First fry off your lamb, very lightly, so its just sealed
cut your potatoes into thin slices and boil for 2 mins
cut onions into rings (just straight down the middle, no dicing just big rings)
cook tinned chopped tommatoes for 2 mins
chop tomatoes into large circular pieces too
placed the partly cooked (boiled) potatoes on the bottom of a casserole dish
layer onions on top
layer tomatoes on top
add warm slightly cooked tinned tomatoes
place your lightly sealed pieces of lamb
then place tomatoes on top
then place onions on top
then place potatoes on top
sprinkle cheese all over it
cook in over for 45 min at 180 C
probe make sure lamb is at least 48C, preferably 80C

This one looks hard because of all the instructions but its just about layering, i essence it is a potato, onion, tomato and lamb cooked sandwich.

Here Are Some I Prepared Earlier

Asparagus,Wallnuts, Gravy, Cheese, Bacon

Leftovers

Its easier than it looks, trust me...

If you having recipe problems and you need some advise do not hesitate to comment and I will try to help you out, I'm not Heston Bloomington (dont know his proper name) but I'll try none the less.

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