Comment by maerF0x0 | Hacker News Reader

Comment by maerF0x0 | Hacker News Reader

When It's really bad I just buy multiple costco rotisserie chickens, some frozen veggies, put food on plate, microwave, cover in sauce, eat. Add in premier proteins, fit crunch, and clif builders and you can shop for like 2 weeks in a single run and not die.

My "I cant be bothered" template is the following. is essentially pick one from each category

    * 1/2 LB (225g) veggies
    * 1/2 LB or 1 fruit
    * 1 protein
    * Caloric load if I'm not trying to lose weight
    * Condiments / spices to taste

Veggies: Frozen mixed (peas, carrots, corn, green beans, soy beans), pre-roasted costco bags, "california mix" etc. Frozen veggies often are nutritionally superior to fresh due to halting nutritional decay.

Fruit: Apple, orange, banana, Water/other melons, Straw/other berries

Protein: look for 35-70g protein -- 1 skin on chicken breast, 2 boneless skinless chicken thighs, ~150g tilapia, 1 tin of tuna, 1 pork chop/steak, 1 egg + 300g whites, 1 hand size of salmon, 1/2lb shrimp

Calories: 1 slice of bread, 1/2c cooked rice, 1 cup cooked pasta, 1/2 avocado, 1/4c mixed nuts

Sauces / Condiments: Bachan's Japanese BBQ, Kinder Honey Hot BBQ, Kinder Lemon pepper (esp. for tilapia)

Edit: Would love recommendations for other sauces that allow me to squeeze a nationality of cuisine over my template to make it taste like that country's food (kinda).

>Would love recommendations for other sauces that allow me to squeeze a nationality of cuisine over my template to make it taste like that country's food (kinda).

Yeah I got you:

We're going to use two different basic techniques. The first is extremely simple: throw everything into a blender and then blend until your desired consistency (normally smooth).

Mexican: Combine tomatoes, jalapeños, cilantro, lime juice, and salt for a fresh salsa.

Mediterranean: Blend olives, capers, lemon juice, and olive oil for a tapenade.

South American: Mix parsley, garlic, vinegar, oil, and chili flakes for chimichurri.

Greek: Yogurt, cucumber, garlic, lemon juice, and dill for tzatziki.

Middle Eastern: Blend tahini, garlic, lemon juice, and water for a basic tahini sauce.

Technique 2 is a little more complicated but once you get the hang of it trust me it's worth it. Call it stovetop simmering.

In a saucepan, combine the base ingredients and bring to a simmer. Add primary flavor agents/spices and continue to simmer for the desired time until flavors meld. Adjust consistency if needed (e.g., with a slurry or additional liquid).

Italian: Start with crushed tomatoes, add garlic, basil, and oregano for a marinara sauce.

Chinese: Combine soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, garlic, and ginger; thicken with a cornstarch slurry for a basic stir-fry sauce.

Indian: Start with tomatoes and onions, add garam masala, turmeric, and cumin for a basic curry sauce.

French: Start with a roux (butter + flour), then add broth and reduce; season with herbs for a basic velouté.

Thai: Coconut milk with red curry paste, simmer and season with fish sauce and sugar for a basic Thai curry.

> Call it stovetop simmering.

Here's another simmer sauce that I came up with (I'm not sure this one could really have a nationality):

(American customary measurements)

* 1.5 oz. honey [44 ml]

* 1.5 oz. lemon juice

* 5 oz. white wine (pinot grigio is a good choice) [148 ml]

* 2 tsp. powdered ginger [10 ml]

Mix until the honey dissolves, and use it in the simmering.

Haha. I've made things like these.

There's a lot of things that ginger goes really well with when you step out of the usual suspects for dishes

Don't forget salsa verde. Trader Joe's salsa verde if you don't want to make it yourself. It has only 10 calories per serving.

> chimichurri

It took me entirely too much of my life wasted before I experienced chimichurri for the first time. If I could only have one sauce...

If you can find a tamarind sauce, that’s “instant interesting” for chicken IMO. Also great with shrimp.

And if you like Indian-ish flavors, a few different jars of chutney/pickle go a long way towards un-blanding that kind of food.

Not vouching for these per se but for example:

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/tamarind-sauce-...

https://www.pataks.co.uk/products/chutneys-and-pickles/mango...

Speaking of pickles, I came across a new one (for me) recently, made mainly of raw turmeric, with oil and some common Indian spices used in pickles and curries.

It had an unusual taste but was quite good.

This is the exact formula i see all hello fresh meals fit. Protein (chicken, or beef/lamb/pork mince) + starch (pasta, noodles, or rice) + sauce (usually soy sauce) + baby spinach. I swear they just spin a bunch of wheels to create the meals.

Recommendation: Gado gado sauce from Indonesian (and some Malaysian) supermarket. Comes as a small square/rectangular brown block. Might be called gado gado salad dressing, bumbu kacang, sometimes sambel pecel. It's a block of pre-cooked peanut/satay style sauce that you add to some hot water, stir, and serve. Fragrant, hints of lime, good for unexpected vegan guests.

Delicious! Well worth having in the cupboard, keeps for a ~year. "Pedas" is spicy (ie. hot chilli), "tidak pedas" is not spicy, and "sedang" is medium (in that context anyway). Common export brands are Karangsari and Enak eco.

> Frozen veggies often are nutritionally superior to fresh due to halting nutritional decay.

Also because freeze/thaw is a form of predigestion, I think I have read -- it's partly breaking down the food (cellulose?) and increasing nutritional availability.

Frozen broccoli is still psychologically unacceptable, mind you. I have some in the freezer that was bought during a broccoli shortage (thank you so much, Brexit); I've used it twice and I cannot imagine I will ever finish it.

some heroic sauces / spices

  - nam pla
  - bagoong
  - sawsawan
  - kecap manis
  - zaatar
  - sumac
  - pomegranate molasses
  - chipotles in adobo
  - tajin
  - sazon
  - slap ya mama

>frozen veggies

The giant bags of 'Normandy vegetables' and 'Stir-fry vegetables' from Costco are an absolute dietary staple for me. Grab a couple of handfuls from each bag, toss 'em with olive oil and sprinkle generously with salt, MSG and some sort of spice mix (or just garlic powder sometimes), then roast at 450 for ~15 minutes.

Fast, minimal prep time, and at least I'm eating vegetables with my probably-unhealthy main dish.

that must be 15 minutes from thawed, not frozen? I do fresh broccoli at ~500f for 13 mins with a preheated sheet.

It takes me 1hr 20 mins to debone 6 Costco chickens, portion the meat into 1.5lb bags, throw in the freezer, start the pressure cooker for bones, and clean up (except for the pressure cooker/bone stuff I might do tomorrow)

That’s 66 servings of .25lbs of meat.

Tips: wear gloves, do it while they’re warm, shred by hand. Add salt and lemon juice to taste (and preserve) before freezing.

You mention needing to use the Left Bumper to pick veggies, but what are the xbox controls for the other choices?

Way too much effort, unfortunately. That is, for me when I am in the mood the book is alluding to. ;)

Perhaps you and I get into very different kinds of "sad" but was even this part too much?

> I just buy multiple costco rotisserie chickens, some frozen veggies, put food on plate, microwave, cover in sauce, eat.

Some days going outside for shopping groceries is just not "on the menu".

But anyway, if you are eating alone there is generally a real imbalance between the time required for preparing a meal and cleaning up afterwards versus the time required for eating. On low energy days this can be already too much.

That's where instacart comes in.

I'm not sure it's even available where I live (or at least from a limited selection of stores) and probably isn't very economical for a small order.

Ah, that's a bummer. I found it invaluable in conjunction ordering from a warehouse type store like Costco, followed by batch cooking and refrigerating or freezing things so I have low effort meals throughout the week.

Also, sheet pan meals are an incredibly low effort way to eat pretty healthy.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com