We Have Food At Home

December 14, 2022

How many times did my dad tell me this as a kid when I really wanted McDonald’s? How many times do I tell myself this in a week when I don’t want to cook? A lot.

The weeks leading up to Christmas are crazy busy. I’m talking “17-hour days/I can’t remember how to put pants on/have I worn this shirt all week” busy. One of the biggest changes I’ve been able to make through Project Money is adjusting how much I get takeout. It used to be that I thought I’d get it once or twice a week when I was really busy. Pick up something quick on the way to work in the morning, grab dinner when I’m feeling tired, or go out with friends for a quick drink and bite on the weekend. By the time I had looked at my budget again, I’d have gotten takeout five or six times in a week.

Now, my mantra is “we have food at home.” Given that I’ve also been too busy to go grocery shopping or put much thought into cooking anything, I usually rotate through fast and easy meals that require little thought on my part and that I know I like. One of my favorites is ramen. Don’t hate, there’s a lot of ways to change it up and I like that I can have it done in ten minutes or less. Check out one of my favorite recipes below!

1 pack Mama Shrimp Tom Yum Ramen
Soy sauce
Sriracha
Cream cheese
Optional: mixed veggies, eggs, green onion, seaweed, mushrooms, etc.

Boil the noodles as directed and set aside in a bowl. In the same pot, mix in the two seasoning packets from the ramen, a dash of soy sauce, sriracha and cream cheese. Add a little water to reach a saucy like consistency. I like to add in some mixed veggies I keep on hand, a soft-boiled egg, some green onions, and seaweed. I’ll add in anything else that sounds good as well if I have them, sometimes I add dumplings or mushrooms. Whatever works! This way I have a quick meal that has something relatively healthy (protein, fat, carb, etc) but is still cheap and made at home. And I measure everything with my heart :)