to think cookware for single people just doesn't exist?

[MindYourUsage]

Please don't tell me to shut up and batch cook. Single people want to eat fresh, too. And not everything is suitable for freezing, defrosting and reheating.

I've been looking for a small (700ml) induction friendly lidded casserole dish that could also go in the oven and - nothing.

I even asked chatGPT - it served me a load that were 3.5L or 2.5L.......

you either get those teeeeny tiny little le creuset pots that are 250ml (I do eat a normal portion size so no and anyway they're ceramic not iron) or 2.5L litre things that I would have to over cook more than I need/want.

It's just weird when there is such a rise in single person homes that some celebrity chef hasn't cottoned on or something and come up with a cookware line that is for single-servings but isn't teeny tiny little dolls-house versions.

Rant over. Any other single people feel the same?

I'm veggie whilst DH eats meat so we have those small Le Creuset casseroles and I find they're ideal for single servings. Normally they're around 1/3 full. I like starting things on the stove then putting into the oven to finish so these are perfect. My older pot is nearly 30 years old.... safe to say it looks well loved and well used

How small are you talking about?

Things like sauces and even butter last for ages and for sauces, if you're talking about mustard, ketchup etc, the use by date can be safely ignored. I'm currently working my way through a pot of Thai curry paste that is 4 years out of date, it's fine. I've got some fish sauce that has been opened years. It stinks, but it did on the day it was opened.

Butter and bread can be frozen. Loads of things can be frozen. A lot of the time I'm just catering for me because DP works away a lot and I throw away hardly anything.

Sounds like you and the OP are determined to make things difficult for yourselves by ignoring perfectly normal accommodations if something isn't available in the exact quantity for one meal. Even if I only wanted one or two of something I probably wouldn't buy it like that because the cost per item is vastly more than packs of 4, 6 etc and it's easy enough to freeze it (in my perfectly normal fridge freezer, which seems to be unattainably aspirational on MN, while at the same time I don't know anyone who doesn't have one, despite my family/friends etc being far less affluent than the typical MN demographic).

Never had an issue with this. Got a tiny saucepan that does one portion of veg and a small frying pan.

They are probably less common than the big ones, but you can still find them.

Butter lasts for ages, how little are you using?

14cm is pretty much the smallest you can get which is tiny to balance on a hob, that’s 1.2 litre. Just don’t fill it. I mostly use the same huge multiple purpose stockpot I used for a family plus guests just for the two of us, it’s just quite empty

Im single and live alone.
I have never had a problem with cooking.
I try not to cook because i hate cooking.

You're looking for problems.

I make risotto for myself in my smallest saucepan, a 16cm Le Creuset. I make risotto for 6 people in the largest one. Both work perfectly.

@ITMA2000

only 2 of us and normal packets are fine, butter lasts months and bread freezes, things like fresh herbs can be chopped and frozen. Otherwise I plan a bit so ingredients are used up, eg half a pack chicken one day, other half the following and so on. Some supermarkets have small portions but they are more expensive

Had a quick glance at Amazon and there are lots of 800ml and 1 litre casserole dishes.

@ITMA2000 - portion your butter and freeze it. Same with bread - my dad pulls out 3 slices a time.

Unless you're a competitive under eater, it's all fine.

Procook have a 14cm pan that’s hob and oven safe, has a handle

Hawkins 0.75 Litre Mini Casserole with Lid, Square Series Die-Cast pan for Cooking, Reheating, Serving and Storing, (Yellow) https://amzn.eu/d/03LRDBLr

Habitat 2 Piece Stoneware Mini Casserole Dish - Black
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/2063650

I cannot believe this needs to be explained.

Honestly what is going on with the competitive victim hood? Its everywhere.

but it isn't a non-issue for the OP,

Not everything people post about on here has to be world shakingly important.

You can buy butter in 200g blocks or 250g tubs, if it’s salted butter it keeps for ages in the fridge. You can also buy smaller 400g loaves or separate bread rolls which are literally single servings. Small jars of stir in pasta sauce are for two people. Ketchup lasts for ever.
My MIL is about 6 stone and lives by herself - she manages fine! Freezes half loaves, I don’t think she’s ever had butter go off.

i don't like batch cooking because i can never remember to take stuff out the freezer to defrost, and i'm also incredibly weird about reheating pre-cooked food due to a couple of very nasty bouts of food poisoning that i have no wish to repeat, so i won't recook last nights dinner today either.

what works for you doesn't work for everyone.

I’ve got 2 2 portion dishes (rectangular with separator in middle) that I use either put it in freezer or fridge. Also small saucepans, frying pans.

I don’t do this that much but my elderly aunt who house sat for a big house batch cooked a lot of dishes and put them in a freezer. It meant she always had something to eat for herself or guests.

Microwave defrosts frozen food.

Again with the competitive victim hood.

I cant batch cook because I cant be bothered to reheat somwthing properly and it makes me sick.

I mean you could just reheat it properly, and not make yourself sick.

Butter keeps for ages in the fridge? It usually has use by date of at least a couple of months. I cut off about a third of a pack at a time to keep soft outside the fridge, in a small dish.

doesn't fix my issues about re-cooking previously cooked food though.

Reheating it properly would definitely fix the issues about reheating food.

i didn't say it my reheating food that made me sick, it wasn't, and i'm not being competitive either.. what a weird thing to claim.

I know how to cook food and defrost/reheat food properly thanks.

You said you didn't understand why people don't like to batch cook... that's my reason for not doing it, other may have different reasons. It doesn't make people wrong or difficult for having a different preference on how to prepare food than you.

Although "I can't reheat food because I will poison myself" is a new low, don't you think?

My butter does have short dates as it's a beautiful fresh butter from the local dairy farm. I've been freezing half the pack for years without bleating on Mumsnet that they don't make portion sizes for my personal and exacting needs.

This whole thread is an eye opener to be honest.