My neighbor said my meal prep was sad and I actually learned something

I was hauling my lunch containers out to the car last Tuesday and my neighbor Bob stopped me. He asked if I ever got tired of eating the same chicken and rice every single day. I said it was cheap and he pointed out that I spend $4 a meal on ingredients but could make a big pot of lentil soup for under a dollar a serving. He even showed me his batch he made with carrots and onions from the discount produce bin at Aldi. Now I'm trying his approach and mixing up cheap veggie soups with different spices each week. Has anyone else had a cooking routine get called out by someone older and wiser?

3 comments

3 Comments

thomas_price18h ago

Bob's right about the fiber content, but what nobody mentions is that swapping chicken for lentils a few times a week can actually lower your grocery bill by enough to buy a nice steak on the weekend.

val_shah1d ago

Yo have you seen that one study that came out about batch cooking and how it actually saves money long term? That Bob sounds like he knows his stuff. I read somewhere that a cup of homemade lentil soup has like 18 grams of protein and fiber, way more than chicken and rice. Plus you can freeze it in ice cube trays for single servings. Your neighbor basically hooked you up with a whole new meal plan for pennies.

murray.robert1d ago

Did anyone else notice that the ice cube tray trick is actually a game changer for portion control too? I tried that with my black bean chili and it stops me from grabbing a whole bowl when I'm just a little snackish. Plus you gotta watch those sodium levels in homemade stuff though - I used way too much salt my first batch and it was basically a brine cube. Learned to scale back and add spices like cumin and smoked paprika for flavor instead, way cheaper than buying low sodium canned stuff.