chinese take out: There are a few reasons I don't like to cook. a. Bugs. I have lived in 2 different apartment and both have bug/ants problems as soon as I bring food in. And I don't like to keep fresh fruit around because of gnats. b. I like to eat what I am in the mood for. When you cook, you cook what is in your cabinets. If you want sweet tea to drink, but you only have kool-aid then your out-of-luck. c. When I do cook, I have left-overs. Then the left-overs don't get eaten and they go bad. d. It just never seems to taste as good as something from a restaurant or take-out place. I love Chinese food, and nothing from the grocery store ever tastes the same as from the Chinese take-out place. f. I can't plan a menu and stick to it. Some of these goes back to b. If I planned to make pasta, chances are that's not what I will end up wanting. g. Too many things go bad. I live alone and I can't even buy a half-gallon of milk because it goes bad too quickly, same with a loaf of bread.|||Ok, there's like 5 questions here and I will try to address them all because I have lived your life in more ways than you could ever know. A: Bug Problems, well, obviously, everything must go in the frig and the pantry items have to be in a sealed container, line your pantry shelves with Bay leaves and hope that your Pest Control Service comes once a month! B: Buy in bulk, then seperate it out in single servings. C: Left overs are easy, just make sure you don't combine your proteins, starches and vegetables and with little research via website for leftovers or ingredients lists of what you have, you can utilize them. D: Of course, without the culinary expertise of the Chef's, your home food will NOT taste the same, but with some basic recipes for fried rice and simple wok fried chicken and shrimp, your home cooked Chinese take out will taste closest to the delivery person without the expense and the MSG....... E: I don't see an E here! F: We all deal with this, no matter what the size of our pantry or refrigerator, so this is where the creativity begins. Try and combine the things you love together and see how they taste. Don't be afraid to experiment, especially with leftovers, because they are going to be garbage the next day anyways. G: yes, they don't sell enough smaller portioned items for us single people, but with a little knowledge, we can overcome. Milk can be frozen, juices can be bought in the can, mixed with our own water then seperated out for our own usage. Meats can be bought in bulk and portioned out when we get home, sauces can be made in large batches, then frozen in smaller sizes......................yes, I know these aren't all the EASY answers you are looking for but maybe, this could be a start. Saving money isn't easy...............but it's a style that can be learned. I hope this helps you today and have a great weekend!|||Eating out doesn't have to be expensive. Eat off the .99 cent value menu. they have a great .99 cent value menu at Wendy's, Taco Bell .. and McDonald's :) .. just because it's on the 'value menu' doesn't mean it has to be unhealthy, either! :) .. they have .99 cent baked potatoes and .99 cent chili at Wendy's. .. they have .99 cent side-salads at McDonald's AND Wendy's :):):) If you want to eat *cheap* at home; buy some Top Ramen Noodles. They come in an assortment of flavors and are about .18 cents per package .. they're HIGH in carbohydrates so they're very filling!|||eat more fruit and vegetables, use salad dressing and real vegatbles it tastes nice. use real meat like egg, and bake and shake with the meat, its baked without the frying. etc|||eat healthy things when you are out and stick to that.cant you use tea bags then sweeten your tea then .use single packet sugars that way the ants wont get into them.if you lack focus and will power then nothing will help you have to be willing to commit to some kind of plan .|||Well if you wanna eat good you dont have to neccersarily go to those stores .... ..... .. you can save money by going to this place called DENNY'S they serve great food and each plate is only 5 , 6 7 , 8 , or 9 dollars ...... beakfast lunch and dinner ,, they cook great ..... they serve u with a smile ... they have EVERYTHING you want or u need ...|||Well, it sounds to me like you have to become more responsible about your kitchen for one. If you live in a buggy environment keep foods sealed well and in the fridge. Freeze leftovers for later. Buy milk by the quart, buy a loaf of bread and freeze half. Gnats prob. mean you're letting the fruit sit until over-ripe. It's not rocket science. Try finding a recipe you like and freezing dinner sized portions for later. www.allrecipes.com|||ok. so you dont like to cook and you dont like the expense of constantly eating out. my suggestions: a. take a few cooking classes. you can get some good ideas for easy meals that taste great. you will also learn to season your food so that you want to eat your own cooking...fast food really all tastes the same, "fancy" restaurants taste better because they season the foods according to the meats. if you are a big seafood fan, try using caravelle's orange chili sauce ( just marinate and grill....that stuff rocks!) b. there are a few essential foods that you should always have in the kitchen....that are inexpensive and easy to be creative with. canned stewed tomatoes ( you can get these in so many ways; jalapeno n garlic tom's,basil tom's, etc). also plenty of canned or frozen veggies...tortilla's....pasta...whatever you find that you eat most when you dine out. c. try getting the 'better homes and garden's cooking for two' of the 'betty crocker, cooking for two'....you wont have too many leftovers in the fridge and the recipes are healthy and light. d. the most important thing to look at is what do you most often eat when you eat out....those may be some of the basic foods to keep in stock and learn to cook. in the long run you may find that cooking at home can be WAY MORE REWARDING than constantly dinning out. and if you get bugs.....get whatever it takes to get rid of them!|||FROZEN FOOD Now a days there's frozen restaurant food like marie calenders claim jumper and many don't have meats maybe cheese pizza Brocoli with potatoes and cheese and there's many many good selection buy different stuff so when u are running late or when ur tired of eating out ull have something that fits what u want also granola bars (eating out everyday is boring)