10 ingredients, a week's worth of meals

[prasantrin]

In the NYTimes, Mark Bittman went shopping for 10 ingredients, and created a week's worth of meals out of them (and some staples already in his kitchen). Really, he only created 5 meals of 4 servings each, so if you're single and don't mind leftovers, it's a week's worth of meals, but if you've got a family of 4, it's just a week's worth of dinners (or lunches).

Anyway, I thought it was an interesting idea, and a great way to meal plan for the week. The blog entry includes his recipes.

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/24/t...-shopping-trip/

[David A. Goldfarb]

This looks like pretty much the way I normally shop and cook at home, but I always buy whole chickens and break them down myself rather than purchasing boneless chicken breasts.

[prasantrin]

This looks like pretty much the way I normally shop and cook at home, but I always buy whole chickens and break them down myself rather than purchasing boneless chicken breasts.

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I can't do the chicken thing, because in Japan whole chickens are more expensive than boneless chicken breasts (and chicken breasts are the cheapest kind of chicken you can buy, much to my disappointment).

I can get by with buying even fewer ingredients, but I have the tendency to cook just one or two things, and eat them for lunches and dinners all week long. I'm lazy that way.

[David A. Goldfarb]

I can't do the chicken thing, because in Japan whole chickens are more expensive than boneless chicken breasts (and chicken breasts are the cheapest kind of chicken you can buy, much to my disappointment).

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Amazing. In New York I can get a natural supermarket chicken like Bell and Evans (better than Perdue/Tyson, but not as good as a free range small farm raised chicken) for $1.80-2.80/lb, while boneless breasts go for around $3.50-7/lb. I make stock regularly, so I always use the whole chicken.

[Doodad]

I cook this way out of some necessity and some frugalness and some caring.

I buy whole items as much as possible and portion/vac seal the same day.

Then I plan and plot the menu to use all that I can until it gets down to the scrap meal that we named Last Call which is usually a lo mein, fried rice, jambalaya or soup or something.

I smoked a chicken over the weekend and it was a BBQ dinner with all the trimmings on Saturday, sliced breasts with garden vege on Monday and Tex-Mex on Wed night. I have the last bit for Last Call night.

[SobaAddict70]

The comments are interesting.

Too many people lack imagination -- especially those who were clamoring for a vegetarian version.

I don't know about you, but assembling a list of 10 ingredients for a week of meatless meals is easy. I can do it with my eyes closed. This assumes you have pantry staples like flour, olive oil, garlic, onions, lemons, rice, pasta and herbs.

eggs

chard

escarole

potatoes

ricotta cheese

ricotta salata

baguette

tomatoes

zucchini or summer squash

radishes

sugar snap peas

ideas --

1: ricotta gnocchi with tomatoes and zucchini

2: tomato confit, served over pasta

3: tomato tart (tomato confit and baked tomatoes, over pâte brisée) -- this will easily make enough for 2 to 3 meals unless you're a family in which case it's enough for 1

4: chard sautéed with garlic, poached egg and baguette

5: New Orleans-style pain perdu with butter and crème anglaise. use the leftover baguette for the French toast.

6: sugar snap peas and sliced French breakfast radishes with ricotta salata and mint

7: caldo verde without the chorizo

8: herb omelette, pan-fried potatoes

9: rustic greens and potato hash (greens sautéed with garlic and olive oil, combined with steamed crushed new potatoes)

10: ratatouille

11: pasta with greens, garlic and herbed breadcrumbs. get the breadcrumbs from the baguette.

12: potato and summer squash gratin (potatoes, summer squash, herb pesto, breadcrumbs sautéed in brown butter)

12 meal ideas and I didn't even have to try hard.

[slkinsey]

It can be difficult to do this sort of thing without relying extensively upon simple starches.

[SobaAddict70]

It can be difficult to do this sort of thing without relying extensively upon simple starches.

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True, but I think the problem is that people don't know how to cook (or don't care enough to find out for themselves). That's something Bittman can't solve. Articles like these are helpful to a point.