You want to pull together a tasty meal using the foods you already have at home.
Takeout or running to the grocery store isn’t an option. With this basic formula, you’ll have the knowledge you need to cook with whatever you have on hand. There are many reasons you might need to creatively come up with a meal idea using whatever’s on hand.
- You don’t feel like running out to the grocery store for a single ingredient.
- You’re busy or not feeling up to it or don’t feel like waiting in line.
- Payday is coming up and you need to stretch your food supply until then.
- Rising gas prices dictate that you must wait so you can consolidate trips at a later time.
- Takeout is too costly or unhealthy.
- With possible food shortages, you want the skill of knowing how to cook with whatever you have on hand.
The basic formula
Salad or raw vegetables + cooked vegetables + protein food + healthy fat = meal.
Where’s the bread and pasta and rice??
Well, this is my preferred diet, and you might consider it too, for a few reasons.
- There seems to be a grain shortage globally, and it looks like it’s heading to the U.S. This includes wheat and all the products that come from it — bread, baked goods, cereal, crackers and tortillas, for example. These foods are expected to skyrocket in price.
- A diet of vegetables and proteins describes the foods you can grow at home — garden vegetables and small livestock for meat, eggs and fat. If food shortages and rising prices keep getting worse, this is the diet that will be easiest to provide.
- A lower carb eating plan helps the growing number of us who carry too much weight or struggle with blood sugar issues. For many, the health benefits are worth giving up grains.
The first step in learning how to cook with whatever you have on hand
Take a quick inventory of what you have available. Look in the freezer, fridge and pantry. What leftovers, vegetables and protein foods are available, including all the little bits you have here and there? Jot down a list if it will help you.
Assuming you have oil and fat, as well as salt and seasonings already in your kitchen, you’re on your way to putting together a delicious meal that saves you money because you’re using up what you have.
If you do eat grain foods, include these in your inventory. In the absence of grains, white potatoes and sweet potatoes are filling and nutritious, and can be grown in a home garden. Of course, in a genuine hunger situation, dietary rules go out the window in favor of survival. But for now, while we have access to a variety of foods, let’s look at how you can cook with whatever you have on hand.
Leftovers
Pull all your leftovers out of the fridge and separate them into vegetables or protein foods. Check each carefully for any signs of spoilage. Use common sense and discard any foods that are spoiled or seem off.
Otherwise, the rest is simple. Heat and eat! Or, eat it cold. Many of us enjoy cold leftovers!
If you have little bits of leftovers from multiple meals, think about how they would taste combined into a soup or casserole ~~
- For example, leftover oven-roasted vegetables and leftover grilled chicken can be combined to make a stew. Simply cut the chicken into chunks, put it in a pot with the veggies and add chicken broth. Taste for salt and add some herbs — an Italian herb blend or poultry blend can add delicious flavor. I would also add a sprinkle of garlic powder. Bring it to a simmer and it’s ready to serve! A side salad is the perfect accompaniment.
- Or, let’s say you have a couple hamburger patties left from last night’s dinner and you don’t want burgers again. No worries. Break them into pieces and place in a skillet. Stir in a drizzle of avocado oil, a can of pinto beans (drained and rinsed) and some chopped kale, spinach or other greens. Sprinkle with garlic powder and chili powder to taste. Heat it up over medium heat and stir occasionally to prevent sticking. While it’s cooking, throw together a salad and you’re all set! Sliced tomatoes would be delicious with this meal, too.
If you have a bunch of leftovers that might not work together in a soup or casserole, just heat them up separately and serve them individually on small plates (reminds me of tapas or antipasto, fancy!).
When your leftovers don’t already have enough vegetables, add a salad or steamed veggies. If it’s short on protein, you could always scramble some eggs or open a can of sardines to serve with the meal.
Vegetables
Ideally, vegetables should cover at least half your plate. More is better.
Wherever you are today for your veggie consumption, just add a little more…it’s that simple 🙂 If you don’t eat any at all, start by adding a small salad or a few carrot sticks to a meal. Work your way up until you’re covering half your plate or more. You’ll be astonished at how fast it adds up and how your energy and weight improve.
Going back to your freezer / fridge / pantry inventory, pull out the salad greens and any other fresh vegetables and herbs you have. From this, you can make a salad to serve with your meal.
Add whatever fresh veggies you have — cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots and cabbage. You could also add a few small broccoli and cauliflower florets, or some sliced red bell pepper and small chunks of zucchini. Hopefully you’re already growing some of these.
Any fresh herbs can be sprinkled on top. Parsley and cilantro are especially good, and so are basil and sage. Herbs are powerhouses of flavor and nutrition, bursting with antioxidants, minerals and other nutrients. They make a salad extra-fancy. They’re super easy to grow in small pots on the windowsill.
Drizzle some extra virgin olive oil on your salad, as well as a few drops of apple cider vinegar, balsamic vinegar or fresh lemon juice to taste. If you like, finish it off with a light sprinkle of pink Himalayan salt.
If you have them, celery sticks can be dipped in peanut butter or carrot sticks in ranch dressing. Veggie sticks are a great option for any meal.
Cooked vegetables
If your veggies and herbs are looking a little spent, you can chop them and stir-fry in a little avocado oil with salt, or steam them in a little water and then top with a pat of butter and a sprinkle of salt. Veggies can also be smothered in cheese and baked until the cheese is melted and golden.
Saute greens of any kind — arugula is my favorite, but spinach, kale and chard are great too. Cooked in a little avocado oil and sprinkled with sea salt, I could eat a whole plate all by myself. They’re delicious and jam-packed with nutrients.
Did you know you can eat carrot tops? Those feathery greens can be sauteed like spinach and served alongside your meals. Same for beet greens.
If you’re into foraging (I hope you try it!), baby dandelion leaves, lambs quarters and tender purple dead nettle tops make a tasty stand-in for the more common greens.
If you can, get greens into your daily diet for their delicious flavor and significant nutrients. There’s a wide variety so you won’t get tired of them!
Fermented veggies are also important to eat often, daily if possible. Sauerkraut, kimchi, pickles, almost any vegetable can be fermented. Ferments contain gut-healthy probiotics that we don’t usually get enough of. They’re cheaper than those popular probiotic supplements, and have the added benefit of eating your veggies at the same time.
Every vegetable has its own list of delicious flavors and nutritional benefits, and the more variety you can get every day, the better.
Make sure you’re growing some, too. Whether you have room for a sprawling garden or a tiny windowsill apartment garden, try your hand at providing your own food.
Protein foods
A good rule of thumb is to aim for 3-6 ounces of protein per meal. If you’re not too physically active, and no longer growing, you can get by on the lower end. Physically active people and growing children should aim for the higher end.
A 3-ounce piece of meat is about the size of a deck of cards. Most of us get plenty of protein these days, maybe too much. But in a rationing situation, you may have to cut back. It may become important to pay closer attention, to make sure you get enough protein to maintain good health.
Foods that contain protein include meat of all kinds — any of the meat, poultry and fish that you can get at the grocery store, including canned versions like tuna. You can also get less common items like liver and gizzards. If you’ve never tried them, or believe you don’t like them, please keep an open mind to the many delicious recipes using unusual meats like these.
You can also raise meat at home. Many jurisdictions allow you to raise a few hens in the backyard. Chickens provide eggs, meat and fat. Rabbits and quail are also options for small spaces or where the typical livestock animals are not allowed.
Hunting and fishing are options for getting meat. Research your local hunting and fishing laws to learn what you can hunt year-round and others that require a permit or tag.
Dairy products are great sources of protein. Cheese and full-fat dairy products are satisfying and tasty additions to a meal. Hard boiled, scrambled and fried eggs are a perfect stand-in for meatless meals.
Other meatless protein sources include beans, lentils, and green peas (garden peas). Nuts and seeds also contain protein, as well as nut butters.
Fats
Most of us keep fats and oils on hand for preparing food. Healthy fats include coconut oil and avocado oil for cooking, extra virgin olive oil for dressing, and butter for flavoring and light cooking.
Unless you have a cow for milk, and thus cream to churn into butter, you’re probably purchasing all these fats. It would be wise to stock up on these while you can, paying attention to expiration dates. Expiration dates matter when it comes to fat because the longer fat sits, it eventually turns rancid. Rancid fat is extremely damaging in the body at the cellular level, so buy the amount you’ll use by the expiration date. Smell it — if it smells bad, it’s probably rancid. Spoiled fat can be used for other purposes though, so don’t throw it out!
In a pinch or if fat becomes hard to come by, you can render fat from chicken skin, beef or pork trimmings, bacon fat, and the like.
Simply save chicken skin, leftover bacon grease, fat that you’ve trimmed from beef or pork, and put in labeled zipper freezer bags. Press it flat so the fat is in one layer that will later be easy to break apart when frozen. When you’re ready to use it, just break off the amount you need and put the rest back in the freezer. The fat will melt when heated, and pieces of fat will release their oils when warmed.
Meat fat has been used throughout the ages to cook with. It adds a pleasant flavor to meals that we don’t find in bland flavorless oils. It also provides valuable nutrients and fuel for the body.
How to assemble a meal using what you have on hand
When you cook with whatever you have on hand, the ideal combination is to cover at least half (preferably more) of your plate with vegetables. The more variety, the better.
Include a salad with raw veggies, dressed with extra virgin olive oil and whatever other seasonings you like. Fresh salad greens, sliced raw veggies, celery sticks, baby carrots, fresh herbs — add anything you like and have on hand.
Also include cooked vegetables, if you want to. Oven roasted, sauteed, steamed, stir-fried, or mashed, always well-seasoned. Top with cheese if you like!
These two vegetable selections should cover well over half your plate. These veggies will add up fast!
Now add a protein food, or any combination of protein foods, to equal roughly 3 to 6 ounces per person. A couple eggs, some leftover cooked meat, a can of tuna drained and dressed with mayo and celery, mashed white beans or seasoned pinto beans. What about a combination of chicken and bacon, sausage and chicken, ground beef and refried beans — these are only a few of many ideas for rounding out a meal.
Last, make sure your food is glistening with the amount of healthy fat that will satiate your appetite and give you the nutrients that can only come from this food group.
The bottom line is that when you know how to cook with whatever you have on hand, you’ll save money because you’re using up what you have. And if times get hard, you’ll know how to prepare delicious, healthy meals with ingredients that are available.
Here’s more information on how to thrive during food shortages and rising food prices.
Let us know which tips you try and how your meals turned out!
What tips do you have for how to cook with whatever you have on hand? This is a skill that many people don’t have yet. So, if you’re one of the lucky ones who already does, please help out the rest of our community 🙂
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