I too am in the class of people who start thinking about food only after hitting the first few levels of food dep (sometimes not even then).
I've found it useful to develop a set of quick, easy recipes with ingredients that keep, and then trying to always have those ingredients on hand. Complement that with basic, inexpensive stuff that keeps and you can pretty much handle the starvation thing indefinately, if not well.
my personal list - juice, in large bottles - cereal and milk - ramen - bread and cheese (works as a decent sandwich uncooked or microwaved. Can be fried in butter if you're feeling fancy and you learn the trick of it.) - canned fruit - Good Old Raisins and Peanuts (no California Golds here. Grrr...) - mac and cheese from the box (well, hey - we have milk and butter already. - spaghetti and barbecue sauce (cook spaghetti. Add a pat or few of butter and barbecue sause to taste. Should color but not cover. It's a little wierd, but it works. Also works well with egg noodles.) - hard salami (lunchmeat version) and canned pineapple. Plus bread makes a sandwich. Again, a little wierd, but I like it. - tuna fish (you can do fancy things with tuna. i usually eat it straight out of the can with a fork.) - One-a-day vitamin pills (not that you neccessarily eat one every day. Just sniff them every day or so and take one if you crave it.)
The idea here is to provide the basics, quickly and easily. Nothing takes longer to prepare than "cook pasta, mix stuff in." Personally, I use the thinnest spaghetti I can find, which means that the most prep time on the list goes to the box of mac and cheese. It's got a small amount of meat/fish/peanuts; plenty of pasta/bread/cereal, a fair amount of dairy, and some fruit. On top of that, you have the one a day pills to make sure that you don't short yourself on anything too badly. You have the fruit juice there in case your body gives you the five minute warning. Everything on there is cheap and decently healthy. You can use it as desperation food, depression food, or the blood sugar boost you need to do actual cooking. It's also boring enough that you'll still have a motive to find other ways of sustaining yourself every once in a while. Finally, except for the bread (and, potentially, the milk) everything on the list keeps like the dickens, so you can buy in bulk and stash it away until you need it.
cooking backstops
I've found it useful to develop a set of quick, easy recipes with ingredients that keep, and then trying to always have those ingredients on hand. Complement that with basic, inexpensive stuff that keeps and you can pretty much handle the starvation thing indefinately, if not well.
my personal list
- juice, in large bottles
- cereal and milk
- ramen
- bread and cheese (works as a decent sandwich uncooked or microwaved. Can be fried in butter if you're feeling fancy and you learn the trick of it.)
- canned fruit
- Good Old Raisins and Peanuts (no California Golds here. Grrr...)
- mac and cheese from the box (well, hey - we have milk and butter already.
- spaghetti and barbecue sauce (cook spaghetti. Add a pat or few of butter and barbecue sause to taste. Should color but not cover. It's a little wierd, but it works. Also works well with egg noodles.)
- hard salami (lunchmeat version) and canned pineapple. Plus bread makes a sandwich. Again, a little wierd, but I like it.
- tuna fish (you can do fancy things with tuna. i usually eat it straight out of the can with a fork.)
- One-a-day vitamin pills (not that you neccessarily eat one every day. Just sniff them every day or so and take one if you crave it.)
The idea here is to provide the basics, quickly and easily. Nothing takes longer to prepare than "cook pasta, mix stuff in." Personally, I use the thinnest spaghetti I can find, which means that the most prep time on the list goes to the box of mac and cheese. It's got a small amount of meat/fish/peanuts; plenty of pasta/bread/cereal, a fair amount of dairy, and some fruit. On top of that, you have the one a day pills to make sure that you don't short yourself on anything too badly. You have the fruit juice there in case your body gives you the five minute warning. Everything on there is cheap and decently healthy. You can use it as desperation food, depression food, or the blood sugar boost you need to do actual cooking. It's also boring enough that you'll still have a motive to find other ways of sustaining yourself every once in a while. Finally, except for the bread (and, potentially, the milk) everything on the list keeps like the dickens, so you can buy in bulk and stash it away until you need it.
Just some thoughts
thew Sanity Faerie