Your favourite meals for one

[OMGitsnotgood]

DH is going to help out one of his relatives with something and will be away for up to a week. We always have home cooked meals but when DH is out for the night I take the opportunity to eat crap, just a rare naughty treat. However I am determined. not to do that for a week.
i am trying to clear the freezer to start prepping for a big family Christmas so don’t want to make the sorts of things I could eat a portion of and freeze the remainder. I also don’t want to spend ages cooking just for me.

I’ll take the opportunity to make some salad style dishes that I know DH wouldn’t enjoy. But I’d like some ideas for fairly healthy, enjoyable meals that don’t take too long to prep and cook - Spaghetti carbonara or Singapore noodles spring to mind. I’ll probably have baked potato and prawn cocktail, and salmon with potatoes & and veg So I can easily rustle up a meal plan but I know by asking MN I’ll get far more interesting ideas from people who regularly cook only for themselves.
No dietary requirements or dislikes.
thank you

A whole baked Camembert with crusty bread for dipping!

I am in a similar position - a few days just me at home. My go to meal is chop and fry up a few veg (peppers courgettes onions) maybe add bacon if we have it and just add to pasta - could be with a bit of cream for sauce but just cheese is acceptable! Or same mix with potatoes and make a Spanish omelette. Or put in a quiche (more of a summer option)

Kung Pao stir fry https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/kung-pao-cauliflower-prawn-stir-fry

Shakshuka https://realfood.tesco.com/recipes/microwave-shakshuka.html

aubergine parmigiana, my favourite and the rest of my family hate it, so I make up a few and then freeze them.
Or roasted butternut squash with sesame
oil, finely sliced red chilli and garlic and honey and then once the butternut squash is nearly cooked pop some sliced halloumi in to roast as well and then serve over couscous and a large glass of white wine!

I like seafood risotto with chillies. Ds doesn't so I cook it when he's not around.

My go to quick food when DH isn't arrived is always mushroom based he doesn't like them, he'll eat then chopped up in something else, chilli, curry etc where you can't taste them much but he won't eat something mushroom flavoured. So it's always mushroom risotto, garlic mushroom, white wine linguine or on a jacket with green veg, for a really quick dinner I like the filipo berio truffle pesto with some kind of pasta and mushrooms.

Himself is vegetarian and doesn’t like eggs so my contraband meals would feature eggs, meat and fish!

I wouldn’t have all these in one week, obviously, but I’d be considering something from the following

Spaghetti alle vongole
Spaghetti and crab
A steak
A duck breast
A dover sole or other flat fish
A mackerel
Salt and pepper squid
Carbonara
Frittata

Yum!

You can go two directions - one is to make something portioned for 2 or 4, and eat that all week. The other is to make a different one-portion meal each night.

(I would get bored of the same thing after 2 nights but I have "food is fuel" friends who wouldn't care and do the same meal prep for the whole week and don't mind at all.)

If you want one portion meals these are amazing: https://www.eleanorgwilkinson.com/recipes

If you scroll down she does a meal plan as well so you don't waste food.

I particularly love the one-portion harissa chicken with couscous: https://www.eleanorgwilkinson.com/recipes/harissa-chicken-traybake-with-roasted-vegetable-couscous

I make a big beany salad in a big Tupperware box and just have a portion of that every day with some salad leaves until it’s gone.

Eg:
Cooked chicken
Butter beans
Cooked tender stem
Sun-dried tomatoes

Eg:
Tins of tuna
Cannellini beans
Cooked fine green beans
Chopped up green pepper

.. with vinaigrette and salad leaves

Or I make omelettes:
Cheese and onion
Feta and red pepper
Smoked salmon, cream cheese, lemon, capers
.. all with salad and dressing

Linguini with smoked salmon strips or flaked poached salmon or prawns or some dressed crab, add Boursin or cream and a splash of white wine for the sauce.

Salad Niçoise with hard boiled egg, tinned tuna and new potatoes is a substantial meal when made with the full list of ingredients, but you can pick and choose what you fancy.

Mushroom stroganoff is quick and easy, and some interesting mushrooms available this time of year. Serve with tagliatelle or rice (microwave for convenience).

Scallops, quickly fried and served on wilted bitter leaves, vacuum packed mussels in wine sauce (I add a splash more wine and crushed garlic) served with a baguette for dipping, or fillet of plaice or lemon sole with spinach & peas, are all quick and easy meals for one.

Stir fry with lots of veggies, usually broccoli , onions, thin sliced carrot , celery ( or beanspouts) peppers, ginger and garlic either with king prawns, marinated pork or chicken . Sesame oil Soy and chilli stirred in at the end .. Sometimes I just have the veg along with rice noodles and make a satay sauce..
I absolutely love Chinese/ Thai style food much more than DH. So when he's away, I lll have it most days .

Lamb chops, couscous and pan-fried tomato.
Salad with roasted sweet potato, goat's cheese and honey.
Pan-fried mixed wild mushrooms with garlic and parsley.
Spaghetti aglio e olio.
Linguini with lemon and courgette.

Or
Cheese on toast ! (Gotta have tomato and Worcestershire sauce on it though ),
Or
Baked potato with cheese onion and pickle

I also love homemade soup- a big bowl with toast , perhaps minestrone, or one with lentils ,carrot cumin and lemon , or chicken leek and lots of herbs ...
Yum!

My dp hates cous cous, so one day would be a big bowl of it with feta and salad leaves.

Another day would be a jar of Greek gigantes beans with homemade tzatziki and pitta bread.

Another would be a simple curry - maybe mushroom or a quick mattar paneer with bought chapatti

Probably bread and cheese for another, with a pear, some grapes and a Garners pickled onion or three.

This might not be to everyone's taste, but on the rare occasion I am just cooking for one I have liver. DH doesn't like it and DD (now adult and left home) won't touch it either so I rarely get to eat it, unless we are eating out somewhere that serves it.

On the off chance you are not averse to liver then my favourite way to cook it is with lemon and herbs. Slice lambs liver into small pieces and toss in flour and dried herbs, then add lemon juice. This fries very quickly, less than 5 minutes. I like to serve it with cheesy rice - trust me on this - cook and drain white rice then stir in some grated cheese and chopped fresh tomatoes. Perfect then with a few peanuts sprinkled on top.

Discovered this combo about 45 years ago when I was a student and still like it as a rare treat

Mussels
mushroom bacon tomato and pasta
pizza toast
grilled chicken and salad
baked potato and cottage
noodle soup

This is a quick and easy meal with lambs liver....
Cut lambs liver into evenly sized strips, coat well in plain flour that you've stirred ground paprika into. A couple of spoons of flour and a teaspoon of paprika, use a small bag to toss the liver in the flour.
Dice an onion very finely and sauté gently till soft but not browned. Push the onion to the back of the pan, turn the heat up slightly and quickly fry the liver strips, turning once. Move the liver onto a plate and keep warm.
Add a knob of butter to the frying pan, and stir in any remaining paprika flour, don't let it burn. Pour in some single cream and stir the onions in, let it bubble very gently.
Serve on a bed of tagliatelle or mashed potatoes topped with the lambs liver and the cream sauce poured over.
It only takes a few minutes for the liver and the sauce to cook, so have the potatoes or pasta more or less ready before you start cooking the liver.

Chicken livers! Poor DP loves them but I only cook them when he’s away because they’re such spitty bastards I can’t bear doing more than enough for one. Have them on salad or toast. Or fillet steak - he doesn’t like it enough to justify the £££ so I cook one for just me.

Grilled goat cheese salad with honey. A standard in every French bistro.

Pasta puttanesca.

Tagliata Di manzo (strips of steak with rocket, tomatoes and shaved Parmesan, tossed in olive oil)

Fillet steak with mushrooms.

I would go for quick-cook options, especially if it's the kind of food you wouldn't have often because a bit pricey.

A nice steak with salad and chips (I love the gastro frozen chunky ones, very moreish).

Pan fried sea bass fillets, with the skin that turns into a crispy layer (2 minutes per side on high heat), with a side of your choice (I like long thin slices of courgette brushed with olive oil and made under the oven grill. Delicious in 12-15 minutes)

Bresaola with rocket salad, olive oil and parmesan shavings, enjoyed with some nice bread or focaccia.

I also like "bread and stuff" when I'm on my own. I always have a sourdough loaf at hand, and you can make a meal out of a couple of slices quite easily. It can be a nice sandwich or toastie, or more of an "open sandwich" type of thing. Ingredients that come in handy for this are cured meats, mozzarella/burrata, other continental cheese types, cherry tomatoes/salad leaves, spreads and dips. Avocado, eggs, smoked salmon as well.

I knew it was worth asking on here! Thank you so much everyone