Bulk Cooking

[cyana]

I used to do some bulk cooking on the week-end and got out of the habit when life got a bit crazy. For months I've been thinking I'd like to get back into the bulk cooking habit and recently came across the downshiftology channel on You Tube. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYi...3WTDKpT8pwfJzw She also has a web site: https://downshiftology.com and has done videos on bulk cooking for each season. She takes her bulk cooking up a notch from mine, as she's also using what she bulk cooked in multiple recipes over the following week, which makes major sense. This week, she posted a video and recipe for egg muffins with three variations. That was reminiscent of a recipe I used to do many years ago and it was so easy to thaw a couple of those out for breakfast.

Does anyone bulk cook (this can also include food prep suggestions - such as cutting up veggies to use with your homemade hummus, etc.) and if so, please share your tips and suggestions.

The chicken recipe Pat recently posted is a great "base" recipe that could be used for bulking cooking, too - thanks, Pat!! Loved all the ideas and suggestions in that thread.

[Lannette]

We’ve bulk cooked for years. I find it to be really freeing even though we don’t all eat the same way these days. When I was working as a nurse we bulked cooked over the weekend. These days we are a bit more fluid with bulk cooking. It not only saves time but money. It’s exceedingly rare for us to throw away spoiled food. You can find a picture of what our fully filled fridge looks like along with a link to Kristen Hong’s website HERE. (I don’t get any kick-back.) She follows Dr. Fuhrman’s plan and is vegan. I used her book to learn food prep. I’ve been able to adjust it to my own needs. There’s a lot of free info on her website, possibly enough to put together your own plan.

[sherry7899]

Before the holidays, I used to batch cook. Some things I made:

steel cut oatmeal made in the Instant Pot
apples cooked in the crock pot to top the oatmeal
various roasted vegetables
vegetables cut up for salads/snacks
soups (many different types)
Detoxinista's Vegan Quinoa Burrito Bowl
grill seasoned chicken and cut it up for salads, quesadilas, etc
hard boiled eggs to use for egg salad or cut up in salads (made in Instant Pot)
healthy muffins for snacks

My husband works from home and we have a home business, so the soup/burrito bowls were often for lunches. It does make eating healthy easier.

[Pat58]

Following with interest. I dabble sometimes. It's nice to have something at the ready. There just never seems to be enough time on the weekend to do it, and save myself time later in the week.

[yogapam]

I don’t do large batch cooking but I do subscribe to the “cook once, eat twice philisophy”. I rarely throw out food and my family has always loved leftovers. I make a lot of “clean out the fridge” soups. I freeze leftover soups for my DIL, gives me MIL brownie points. I do make occasionally large batches of various stocks and spaghetti sauce to freeze as spaghetti is a fave of my DH’s.

[cyana]

Originally Posted by Lannette

We’ve bulk cooked for years. I find it to be really freeing even though we don’t all eat the same way these days. When I was working as a nurse we bulked cooked over the weekend. These days we are a bit more fluid with bulk cooking. It not only saves time but money. It’s exceedingly rare for us to throw away spoiled food. You can find a picture of what our fully filled fridge looks like along with a link to Kristen Hong’s website HERE. (I don’t get any kick-back.) She follows Dr. Fuhrman’s plan and is vegan. I used her book to learn food prep. I’ve been able to adjust it to my own needs. There’s a lot of free info on her website, possibly enough to put together your own plan.

Lannette - I bow and curtsy to acknowledge the beauty of your refrigerator!!! Not throwing away food is yet another great reason to bulk cook. Thanks for the link - I'll definitely check that out.

This afternoon I'm going to roast a local chicken and will freeze the carcass to make bone broth/stock. I save onion skins and veggie trimmings in a zip lock bag in the freezer to throw in with my stocks. I work from home and have a salad for lunch most days. Leftovers (especially roasted veggies) are frequently thrown into my salad. I've been buying some wonderful romaine from a local farmer, and use the outer leaves to make veggie roll-ups.

I like the "cook once, eat twice" philosophy, Pam.

Sherry - I know people do it all the time, but I have visions of eggs exploding inside the Instant Pot. Bowls are such a creative way to structure a meal. DH has thrown together some yummy Tex-Mex inspired breakfast bowls.

[sherry7899]

Cyana, actually I have had great luck making hard boiled eggs in the Instant Pot. They are so easy to peel. I always had trouble peeling them when I made them on the stove.

I wish I had freezer space for sauce and other things.

[yogapam]

Originally Posted by sherry7899

Cyana, actually I have had great luck making hard boiled eggs in the Instant Pot. They are so easy to peel. I always had trouble peeling them when I made them on the stove.

I must try that Sherry. Peeling eggs drives me nuts, lol.

[sherry7899]

Originally Posted by yogapam

I must try that Sherry. Peeling eggs drives me nuts, lol.

I use this method:

https://thisoldgal.com/instant-pot-hard-boiled-eggs/

[wendug]

Originally Posted by sherry7899

I use this method:

https://thisoldgal.com/instant-pot-hard-boiled-eggs/

I was skeptical of cooking hard boiled eggs in the instant pot, but eggs are so easy to peel when steamed in the pot!