50 Tips and Ideas for Meals for One

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During my husband’s past deployment and TDY’s it has been hard to come up with meals for one that weren’t from the frozen food section! With my husband’s upcoming TDY next month, I have been taking down ideas for meals for one since my son has feeding issues and will not eat regular meals with me. I realized there are a whole lot of options out there, you just gotta utilize them!

Meals for One

1. Sandwiches – Sandwiches are simple and very easy to make. There are many different kinds you can make too!

• Egg Salad Sandwich – Boil two eggs, add some miracle whip, shredded cheese, chopped celery or pickles, and viola!
• Chicken Salad Sandwich – Use leftover chicken or buy rotisserie chicken from the store. Add miracle whip or mayo, shredded cheese, and lettuce.
• Tuna Fish Sandwich – Make your basic tuna fish sandwich with celery or onion, and add melted cheese on top for a tuna melt!
• Basic ham sandwich – I LOVE ham sandwiches, but you don’t have to use just ham, add turkey or roast beef and add your favorite cheese!
• Wraps – Wraps are great because you can buy different flavor wraps, and use miracle whip, hummus, or ranch dressing to spread inside. See below for some easy wrap recipes!

BLT Wraps | Chicken Caesar Wraps | Easy Snack Wraps

2. Salads – Salads are a great healthy dish for when your love is gone. They are also great as side dishes to a regular meal. I go all out when I make my salads. There are no rules as to what vegetables or other things you can add to your salad, so don’t be afraid to go all out! Here some ingredients I like to put into some of my salads:

• Lettuce, Tomatoes, Cucumber, Celery, Broccoli, Onion, Carrots, Pepperoni, Chicken, Shredded Cheese, Boiled Eggs, Shredded Ham, Black Olives, Chopped Dill Pickles, Seasoning Salt.

Salad recipes:

Salad for One in 5 Minutes | Greek Salad for One | Taco Salad for One | Avocado Salad for One | Easy Egg & Bacon Salad

3. Soups – Soups are a good choice because they are filling AND the leftovers can be frozen! Use any of your favorite soup recipes and freeze the leftovers for another day or try one of these soups for one:

Peasant Soup for One | Vegetable Soup for One | 10 Minute Vegetable Soup for One | Zesty Tomato Soup for One | Onion Soup for One | Egg Drop Soup for One

4. Pastas – Pastas are a great option because you can manage the portions really well when cooking them. Plus there are tons of different pastas to choose from – from spaghetti and elbow macaroni to ziti and bow tie pasta – the choices really are endless! Not only do you have pasta choices, but you also have sauce choices: tomato sauce, Alfredo sauce, or just plain pasta with a little butter and salt and pepper! See below for some delicious pasta recipes for one.

Delicious Basil & Tomato Pasta for One | Quick & Easy Pesto Pasta | Split Pea Pasta | Lemon Butter Pasta | Quick Pasta for One

5. Microwave Baked Potato – The baked potato is one of my all-time favorites! When I was visiting with family one time I found out that you can actually make them in the microwave instead of the oven (yes, I had no clue)! Since then, this has been my top go-to meal and comfort food during a deployment or TDY.

Directions: Wash and scrub your potato really well. Use a fork to poke a few holes in it. Put it in the microwave for about 5 minutes turning it over halfway through. Cut in half lengthwise and mash with your fork. Add butter, salt, pepper, and onion powder. Top with shredded cheese, bacon bits, and sour cream! See more recipes below.

Microwave Baked Potatoes | Loaded Microwave Baked Potato | Easy Lunch Microwave Baked Potato | The Best Microwave Baked Potato

6. Casseroles – Casseroles are delicious, healthy, and usually easy to freeze for another day. Casseroles can make great dinners for one because they are filling and you can throw almost any leftover ingredient into one. See below for some different casserole recipes.

Zucchini, Potato, Bacon, Casserole for One | Single Serve Twice Baked Potato Casserole

7. Other Meals for One – Looking for something not in the list above? Try one of these websites!

Meals for One Healthy Food Guide | Cheap Meals for One Person | Healthy Meals for One | More Healthy Meals for One | Low Sodium Meals for One | Easy Meals for One Person | Meal Plans for One Person

Tips From Military Wives:

What is your go-to meal when your husband is deployed or TDY?

• “Cereal, sandwich or soup.. Keep it simple!” – Rachel

• “I make a lot of different kinds of vegetable soups because I like how you can save it for a long time. In case you lose interest, you can add things like noodles or chicken depending on your mood. I’ve started to add different beans, cumin, and extra garlic and it’s so good!” – Gina

• “Chicken nuggets on a salad. Mmmm!” – Vivian

• “Whole wheat pita pizzas! I just pre cook a ton of white chicken breast (with whatever seasonings I’m feeling at the time) chop up the meat into smaller bite sized pieces and put half in the freezer, half the amount in the fridge. I put BBQ sauce on the pita, add cheese, tomatos, spinach, already cooked chicken pieces, red onion, etc etc then bake it for 10 mins at 400 degrees. It’s really good!” – Danicia

• “French onion soup. Especially in the winter. it cures loneliness I think.” – Aprille

• “I always have prepared taco meat (seasoned ground beef; recipe on my blog) ready in the freezer for easy meals: quesadilla, tacos, burritos, nachos, taco salad, etc! See recipe HERE.” – Jessica