Bachelor Tricks

Carthonn

New member
As a bachelor I have picked up strategies to limiting my budget. Some might see it as cheap but I see it as I've become more of a minimalist and striving to curb waste. I hate throwing out food.

One thing I have noticed is that bread was designed not for 1 man but for a family. I am ashamed at how much moldy bread I've thrown out in my day. Anyway, I've tried freezing but it comes out terrible.

Trick: Instead of bread -> Frozen Waffles.

I've made egg salad sandwiches and fried egg sandwiches with them and they tasted surprising excellent. Next I want to try turkey and the true test will be tuna.

Anyone have others?
 
Well, as an alternative to the waffles, have you tried refrigerating the bridge and then toasting it for the sandwiches?

(I actually make my own waffle batter and fresh waffles - I make protein power waffles! ;) )

I've also found that CostCo now carries things that are high in volume, but portioned out into smaller packages. So I can get a dozen chicken breasts, but each pack is only 2. So you can just take out a few at a time.

Also, those 'green bags' do seem to really help at keeping produce longer. You can wash and reuse them once you buy them if you don't want to keep paying for them. It's meant quite a bit less thrown out veggies for me.

There's always the ice cube tray method for liquids too - want to save lemon juice, broth or whatever, and in small portions? Pour into ice cube tray, freeze, and then transfer to a freezer bag. Only pull out as many cubes as you need.
 
if you look around a bit, maybe at the bakery section of your local grocery store, I have been seeing instances of 'half loaves' increasingly more. You'd have to do a cost analysis to see if it works better for you.

Mostly, I wait for sales and stock up on things then, usually frozen goods.
 
Tips on saving money when you're a bachelor?

- Don't pay for porn; you can get plenty of good whack material for free.
- Buy cheap beer; it might not taste as good, but it will save you money and still get you drunk.
- Ramen noodles; eat them.
- Steal money from little kids; seriously, do it.
- Wash your clothes in the bathtub for the most part; yes, it's annoying, but it'll save you like $20 a month.
- Don't subscribe to cable TV; as a bachelor, you're probably just watching stupid shit anyway, so why pay for it?
 
all of the above + dumpster diving (get angry left wing extremist anarchist friends like me, they'll teach you how)
 
As a bachelor I have picked up strategies to limiting my budget. Some might see it as cheap but I see it as I've become more of a minimalist and striving to curb waste. I hate throwing out food.

One thing I have noticed is that bread was designed not for 1 man but for a family. I am ashamed at how much moldy bread I've thrown out in my day. Anyway, I've tried freezing but it comes out terrible.

Trick: Instead of bread -> Frozen Waffles.

I've made egg salad sandwiches and fried egg sandwiches with them and they tasted surprising excellent. Next I want to try turkey and the true test will be tuna.

Anyone have others?


I, being a bachelorette, living alone and what not, tend to throw out alot of bread as well. Thats why I started buying Arnolds Sandwich Thins. They come in a pack of 8 I believe, and are only 100 cal. I also shop a couple times a week for things that will go bad...such as fruit and veggies. My problem is if I buy a large amount of something, I'll probably not eat all of it and it spoils. i.e. If I buy a gallon of milk I'll never drink it, but if I buy a pint or half gallon I'll more than likely get around to it by the time it expires.
 
Best advice? freeze everything! Take out what you want day to day- but if your freezing bread remember to separate the slices/prepackage first!
 
Haha freezing everything is a good point! I should post a shot of my freezer. I have like 4 packages of english muffins in there right now. I also freeze my cold cuts that I get when they are on sale.

Also I do my fair share of dumpster diving. But it's mostly curb diving more or less. If I see a cool lamp with a nice table attached I'll swipe it.

Also I almost forgot one of the most pivitol aspects of bachelor life: Building your own furniture. I build a book/DVD case for around 3 doors. Thank you Home Depot and your damaged .52 cent wood section.

And re: Milk - I also used to buy a half gallon of milk and have to throw out the majority of it. Now I'm on pints. I've never lived on my own before, always with a roomate or friends, and we always shared a fridge.
 
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People would be surprised at what goodies you can get from dumpster diving. During my time studying I lived like a king :) I even got to read the magazines I wanted and had friends over for dinner all the time, this all from what other people call trash... tis such a waste.

Luckily the dumpster diving movement is gaining momentum here and with the help of google maps it is becoming quite organized :)
 
Who's Rich and what does he look like?

heh I'm Rich, you like bears? Well, I don't so lose some weight and shave. lol


yeah freezing is a good one. when I can buy in bulk, etc, I usually get the cheap parchment paper for baking and use that as a separator, then i can separate the portion I want and defrost it for the next day. Heck, I've been known to make entire meals, or just a pile of sandwiches and freeze them for later.

heh also.. freecycle.. great mailing list.

toaster oven, your best friend. good for warming up frozen sandwiches and getting the bread crisp.

mass cooking... if I'm firing up the grill with a bag of charcoal, you can bet I'm cooking on it for as long as I can. Why cook one piece of chicken when you can cook them all, then freeze the rest. Leftovers are much easier to cook than everything fresh.
 
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