I Haven't Really Shopped for Food in 3 Months
That's right, my fridge has been bare for sooooo long. Unemployment, partial employment, and digging out after finally becoming employed again have sent me into a spiral a occasionally cooking at a party or other shindig, but mostly draining my very well-stocked pantry and eating out at the restaurants at which I've tended bar.
That's going to change tonight. I'm going shopping for my fridge, and I'm going to use the food I buy on my stove in my apartment.
Now I need your help.
What should it be. A food blogger returning to the kitchen after that long a time away. Do I make something fresh and simple like a pasta primavera? Do I grab some lemongrass and red curry paste and get Thai on my groceries? Do I go retro-steak house and pan-roast a T-Bone with some fresh asparagus and a classic baked potato with butter, sour cream, and chives?
Help a brother out.
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19 Comments:
Plan out a menu for at least a few days' worth of meals. Flip through your cookbooks/blogs you like and pick out a few things that sound good. If cheap is the angle, I'd say check your weekly fliers and see who has say, whole chickens for cheap, then roast it (or half, depending on how much you eat) and pull the meat through a few different meals, like roasted chicken to tacos or chicken salad or soup.
Go with what you feel. If restaurant and pantry-centered meals was the norm for a few months, my first thought is that that's going to be carb/grain intensive (pantry), and possibly just heavy, less healthy food (restaurants). Maybe some tabbouleh with falafel, or seared tuna and grilled veggies would be refreshing.
I'm going through something similar, albeit much more mild. Having no dishwasher means my kitchen has been an absolute wreck since the bf (who is between projects, ie not working, just playing video games and climbing with his friends all day!) has been avoiding his "dish bitch" duties. I don't blame him, it takes quite a bit of work to keep after our kitchen with no dishwasher and his job is pretty stressful, so he should be out enjoying himself when he can.
But after eating without really cooking for over a week, I made this last night as it only required one saucepan (& I knew it would be good because it came out of an SE'ers kitchen!), and it inspired him to get back in line with the I cook/he cleans mode. I also picked up stuff for easy one-dish/little cooking involved food, like cottage cheese and good fruit for lunches, good french bread for toast with poached eggs, and some good salad fixins.
joyyy at 11:42AM on 05/18/09
err that makes more sense if I mention that our dishwasher is recently broken and the new one isn't coming until Wednesday.
joyyy at 11:48AM on 05/18/09
@joyyy The planning part should probably happen. The pantry was starch heavy (see my first, third, and fifth posts in April). The restaurant food was actually 2/3 awesome-healthy and 1/3 awesome greasy homemade bar food.
That soup looks incredible, and I might even splurge for the Gruyere! Any excuse to use a ramekin, really.
The multi-meal angle is really appealing too. And I make a mean roast chicken (and tacos to boot).
Thanks for the input! And good luck with yur dish-bitch AND yur new machine!
kitchengeeking at 11:55AM on 05/18/09
That's a celebration--you should totally go with the T-bone!
You might wanna browse some cookbooks while you eat tonight & figure out the meal plan for the rest of the week.
(I always find that after a lapse of food in my fridge that going to the store without a list can be dangerous-kinda like shopping when I'm hungry)
Enjoy that T-bone! :)
gastronomeg at 12:10PM on 05/18/09
what are you craving? whatever it is, indulge it to the fullest!
_greenbean at 12:16PM on 05/18/09
I feel your pain. I went back to school last fall, while still working full time. My fridge was looking like a wasteland. I have eaten too many frozen pizzas in the past few months.
I would suggest cooking an old favorite first - something you make that is just unbelievable. I always find that a really good meal inspires me to find new ideas, and spend time in the kitchen in general.
eeels at 2:42PM on 05/18/09
Not to be a... whatever, but why are you asking other people what you should be cooking/eating for yourself?
PommeDG at 4:11PM on 05/18/09
@gastronomeg i hear you on the celebrating. and steaks are celebratory for sure.
@eeels Old favorites are grand. And I can get gorgeous eggplants and local sausages and make a Tyler Florence eggplant, sausage, ziti that's a blast.
@PommeDG Because there are thousands of foodies out there who might have good ideas. And because it seemed like a good conversation to have about food.
kitchengeeking at 4:54PM on 05/18/09
What's your budget and what do you feel like eating?
If indulging- shrimp or seafood, fresh pasta primavera, salad and really great baguette. If indulging- add a decadent cheese.
Not too heavy but really satisfying.
CJ McD at 7:02PM on 05/18/09
A second thought- do something totally seasonal. Asparagus or mushroom risotto, or buttered and chived new potatoes, meat or seafood of choice- grilled, steamed baby peas or oh heck--
tell us what you LOVE and we'll make sugestions.
CJ McD at 7:05PM on 05/18/09
How about a little tri-tip, fresh salsa cruda, corn tortillas, guacamole and all the toppings. Oh yeah...
CJ McD at 7:07PM on 05/18/09
Thanks y'all. I went Ginger/Garlic/Cilantro/Baby Bella stuffed pork loin roast with a burst cherry tomato, zuchinni, red onion pasta salad with cavatapi. The consensus of the Chez and the KristaK530 was boffo!
It was relatively inexpensive with amazing bright flavors for a non-bank-busting and still special-feeling impromptu dinner with friends.
Now down to the bar to feed the boys working tonight!
kitchengeeking at 9:14PM on 05/18/09
hey, good luck and don't forget to save for a rainy day! (cheese ends, ends of proscuitto's, old bread for breadcrumbs.... a bottle of something special...)
pooch at 10:54PM on 05/18/09
glad to know im not the only one who has a binge and purge attitude towards cooking/stocking the fridge. it really goes in cycles for me. lately ive been on a bad one, probably not to be improved soon as i just picked up a second job! unfortunately that usually means a lot of drive-thru pick ups as im running across town to get to the other job. can anyone relate?
redzerostar at 12:33AM on 05/19/09
@kitchengeeking - Any chance you'd be willing to share the recipe for the stuffed pork loin roast? I have a request for pork loin this weekend, and your recipes sounds amazing!
Junie at 9:33AM on 05/19/09
@Junie - Sure. It wasn't a real recipe per se, as much as a bunch of things thrown together in what looked to be the right proportion.
I stuffed it with 2/3 bunch of cilantro finely chopped (1/2 cup packed), a 2-inch piece of ginger minced (about 3 T), 6-7 cloves of garlic minced (about 3 T), and probably 2 cups of sliced baby bella mushrooms. I seem to recall it being about a 3-4 lb roast or so.
I didn't tie the roast, but would have if I'd had twine. Getting a really tight roll kept mine together, but tying it off would have made the serving easier in the end.
Only thing on the outside was a drizzle of oil and salt and black pepper.
I might have reserved some of the aromatics and added lemon zest and oil to make a chimichuri of sorts to serve on top of it too.
kitchengeeking at 11:56AM on 05/19/09
Oh, yeah. 400 degrees until it reaches an internal temp of 150. Rest for 10.
kitchengeeking at 12:42PM on 05/19/09
If you can lay your hands on a copy, Michelle Urvater's Monday-to-Friday cookbook is perfect for situtations like this. She provides recipes that allow you to do a major cooking project once and then eat off of the remains for several days.
For example, you can do a ham one day when you have time and then make several days' meals from it. She also advises on how to stock your pantry for situations like you describe and then has a recipe section called "Pure Pantry" where everything is made from what is on hand.
I cooked from this book all the time when I was single because I could buy a big piece of meat when it was on sale (or when I was flush) and then maximize it by using the different recipes.
Mizbee at 3:55PM on 05/19/09
@kitchengeeking - Thanks! Can't wait to try it out.
Junie at 9:02AM on 05/20/09