Thinking about trying this...

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-03-2003
Thinking about trying this...
10
Thu, 01-15-2004 - 9:19pm
I am considering trying this version of low-carb diet. However, I have a colleague at work who seems to spend every night cooking for HOURS to stay on this plan. Has anyone had a moderate level of success doing SB without having to cook a new recipie for every meal?
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Thu, 01-15-2004 - 9:30pm

I don't cook all day....

Susan :)

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-01-2003
Thu, 01-15-2004 - 9:41pm

Tonight I threw some chicken breast in a crock pot - salt, pepper & rosemary.

       

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-21-2003
Thu, 01-15-2004 - 10:14pm

This is a wonderful WOE and we are happy to have you here with us.

MelMel
iVillage Member
Registered: 12-19-2002
Thu, 01-15-2004 - 10:32pm

Hi!

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Thu, 01-15-2004 - 10:50pm

seafood and fish

Susan :)

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Fri, 01-16-2004 - 12:32am
I have to admit--I've tossed most of the recipes from the book! I use them as very loose seasoning ideas instead. I cook for myself, and sometimes my boyfriend on the weekends, so all those "serves 8" kinds of things were just not going to happen. What I have done however is spend a couple of hours on Sunday or Monday getting a stash of basics prepped to use all week--cut up vegetables, snacks portioned out, a couple of meat things thawed. I almost always cook more meat in the evening than I need and then have the leftovers on a salad. (I'm in Phase I) I HATE eating the same meal twice in a row, so I use a little extra planning to have my leftovers the another day after the original dinner (yes, I know I'm weird). All in all, from breakfast to lunch packing to dinner prep and clean up I probably spend an hour a day dealing with food, you just have to know what you can eat, keep stuff around and ready to go, and then you're good!

Personally I think that the only people who spend HOURS prepping food either really enjoy that (and are welcome to come hang out at my house!) or follow the book very closely...

Good luck, hope we see more of you!

gypsy

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Fri, 01-16-2004 - 8:41am

What I have done however is spend a couple of hours on Sunday or Monday getting a stash of basics prepped to use all week--cut up vegetables, snacks portioned out, a couple of meat things thawed. I almost always cook more meat in the evening than I need and then have the leftovers on a salad.


This is what I do too!

Susan :)

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Fri, 01-16-2004 - 10:14am
Then there is me, the oddball. I love to cook. I even love grocery store shopping and even do it during my lunchtime as entertainment.

Don't forget there are great grill pans that you can use all year round. They have those ridges on them. A lean steak, salad and a green veggies steamed makes a great dinner. I only use those salads that come in a bag. But I love to chop up some red peppers, cucumbers, etc. to make my salads more nutritous.

Don't forget to check out grocery stores that have salad bars. You can get great cut up veggies that can be cooked in a steamer basket, like broccoli and cauliflower. They are already cut up and ready to cook or even eat raw.

I found it easier to go by the lists of food that you can eat rather than look at the complicated recipes. Remember you can make a great meal from a protein source and two or three simply cooked veggies.

As a cook, I've learned to stock up on spices so I can take a plain cauliflower or other food item and make it taste really exotic. Adding spices is not something that takes a lot of time as they come ready to use in a shaker bottle. I love curry, cumin and corriander. I love shredding a ginger root on my ginger grater.

One thing I could not live without is my slicer/dicer thing. Mandoline is the fancy name. Makes cooking so much faster and clean up is a breeze. My food processor has been gathering dust for many, many years.

Good luck and try to make meal preparation FUN. Try some music. Or even make a game out of it, try timing yourself and see if you can make "30 Minute Meals".

Irene




iVillage Member
Registered: 03-27-2003
Fri, 01-16-2004 - 10:28am
Initially I spent a lot of time in the kitchen because I was trying to follow the menu plans in the book to a T. After a few days of that I found that if I made a large batch of whatever I was going to have for dinner, I could have leftovers for lunch the next day. Like gypsyrover mentioned, I spend an hour or so in the kitchen on Sunday getting ready for the week...cutting up veggies, meal planning, and doing as much pre-prep as possible.

I enjoy cooking also, but I'm going to cooking school so I spend anywhere from 12-20 hours a week during the day in the kitchen at school. Consequently I don't want to spend my weeknights in the kitchen at home. The crockpot is queen at my house. I also work every day after school so I'm packing breakfast and lunch to take with me every day. When I get home at night, I'll spend about 1/2 hour getting dinner ready, making my omelet for breakfast the next day, and getting lunches ready for me and DH. If I do everything at the same time it doesn't take as long.

After a very little while you'll get in the groove and find a routine that works for you. Try some of the recipes in the book and figure out which ones you like and are easy to do and go for it. This really is a great WOE. Good luck!

CC

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Fri, 01-16-2004 - 10:58am
Irene has a great point--it's all about the additions! I have a bunch of favorites too!

I like to chop up fresh herbs to add to bagged salads. Cilantro is one of my favorites, along with basil, parsley or anything else that needs to get used up. I also like spicy food, this past week one of my primary add in veggies was jalapeno-- I think that the fresh version of any seasoning is better if you can, and in the age of microplanes and garlic presses--it's not even that much more time consuming!

gypsy