Soylent

[Luke]

I really believe it is worth it for a lot of people. And I also think most people should know to do at least some of the simpler things.

But trust me when it says for me it is not worth it. People just have different priorities. The time and effort of:
1. buying and maintaining a stock of ingredients
2. cooking (even if it is simple stuff or can be left unattended)
3. the dishes etc. (with Soylent you would have to clean a glass for each meal, I guess)

I'd rather spend that playing games or spending time outside and so on.
I get that for many, meals are spending time with friends and family as well.

I've said it before, and will say it again, but I've been cooking dinner at least five nights a week since I was fourteen. I've owned a catering company, and can probably cook meals that would take some an hour in less than fifteen minutes. So I obviously have an upper hand when it comes to cooking.

I'll also say I was a pretty crappy chef until I took it seriously, which was in my late teens early twenties (also around the same time I learned my culinary skills impressed women).

And Ivo is right that cooking can mean spending time with family, or even a game. Case in point, yesterday afternoon my wife complained that we weren't spending much time with each other on a Saturday. She was right as I was busy beating Contra and Mike Tyson's Punh-out!! most of the afternoon. So I put down the controller, but on a record, and we made a loaf of French bread (and danced a bit while doing so).

Like anything, you have to learn to cook. To me it's one of the best skills worth learning. But again, one of my first thoughts after waking up and getting into the shower is "Can't wait for dinner tonight". And once you know what you are doing and get our mise en place on, putting something spectacular can be done in minutes.

[Ivo]

I'll also say I was a pretty crappy chef until I took it seriously, which was in my late teens early twenties (also around the same time I learned my culinary skills impressed women).

Like anything, you have to learn to cook. To me it's one of the best skills worth learning.

It is clear that you have a privileged relation with food. I think people that really enjoy eating are much more motivated to learn and to invest time cooking (and actually enjoy it instead of seeing it as a chore).

On the other hand, typically fancier food will often not taste good to me, and even the generally simpler ones (or the fancy ones that taste good to me) that I really like, like fried eggs* are pretty low on the enjoyment scale compared to other things I rather do.

To be honest, even not counting cooking, I am a bit upset about the time I spend actually eating. So when I'm by myself I try to eat while doing something else, which is typically not so healthy as well.

* It's hard to get much simpler than this.

True that a lot of people (ladies or otherwise) will be impressed and thankful if you cook something nice for them. This is one of the few reasons I invest some time in learning to cook a bit, because for me alone, something like Soylent would really be ideal!

[Menegrothx]

Cooking is a huge time sink

You must be a terrible cook Cleaning dishes on the other hand isn't much fun.

I am. Fried chicken is one of the few recipes I know and every time I make it, it takes atleast an hour to prepare and cook and by the time I'm finished, my spine is aching. And it's such a simple recipe, cut the chicken to pieces, marinade them, put them in flour and deep fry 'em. That spine aching thing is the fault of my gamer posture though, not a general problem.

I do agree that learning to make healthy&tasty (and preferably cheap) food is one of the most important skills you can learn in life, having a good diet has such a large impact on your life.

[Luke]

I do agree that learning to make healthy&tasty (and preferably cheap) food is one of the most important skills you can learn in life, having a good diet has such a large impact on your life.

Here's my menu for the week:

S- Yellow squash (from my "garden") quiche
M- Soul food style chicken, rice & broccoli
T- Homemade sloppy joes with corn on the cob
W- Spicy Vegetarian burritos with sliced avocado salad
T- Homemade Ravioli with a tossed salad
F- Homemade smoked sausage with horseradish, corn on the cob, and cucumber salad

My total grocery bill for the meals mentioned? Under thirty dollars. Leftovers also provide a tasty lunch, and I'm cooking for two. That's Five Dollars for Dinner and lunch for six nights, for two people.

[flojocabron]

[flojocabron]

now made with dog!





PUCHUUUU!

[Ivo]

Has anyone on the boards actually tried this or one of the many spin-offs?

The creators (Rosa Labs) of Soylent sort of "open source" it (so people can even DIY it).

There now are several companies making some version of this and selling it in Europe (Rosa Labs doesn't ship to Europe, and I guess even if it did it may not be as economical as some of the local alternatives).

I'm really tempted to start trying this in 2015, and one of my real life friends tried it already. I probably wouldn't fully replace regular food with it but I can see myself going 50% or more on this kind of time-effective nutritional source.

Comments, thoughts? I figured that some of the people here would be really interested in this kind of stuff.

[pepharytheworm]

My partner supported the kickstarter so we got a months supply to try. I didn't do it all day though. I ate one regular meal a day. The taste is fine but a little gritty. The amount of savings on groceries will be nice.