Cooking for One: Small Batches, Less Waste

Cooking for one comes with a particular challenge: most recipes serve four, and scaling them down is not always as simple as dividing everything by four. Eggs, yeast, and cooking times do not always scale neatly, so a different approach works better.

One useful habit is to cook a full batch of something that keeps well, such as soup, stew, or roasted vegetables, and portion the rest into single servings for the fridge or freezer. You cook once and eat well several times, without eating the same meal four nights in a row.

For dishes that do not keep well, cook a genuinely small batch instead. A single-egg skillet, a small pan of pasta, or one chicken thigh with vegetables takes less time, uses less washing up, and leaves nothing to go to waste.

Eggs are a reliable friend when cooking for one. They cook quickly, they pair with almost any leftover vegetable or bread, and they turn a small amount of food into a proper meal without a long recipe.

Finally, buy smaller where you can. A small loaf, a few loose vegetables, and a modest amount of cheese stay fresh longer than bulk buys that go stale before you finish them. Cooking for one is not about eating less well; it is about matching the cooking to the household.