Table for One

Dinner alone, as Laurie Colwin once wrote, is one of life’s pleasures. She also wrote that it reveals man at his weirdest, that people lie when you ask them what they eat when they’re alone. So that you may not make my same mistakes, I will sacrifice a modicum of my kitchen dignity for your benefit. Driven in equal parts by a sheer lack of creativity, a need for fuel, and the privacy of my own kitchen, I’ve defaulted on bowls of boiled cabbage doused in champagne vinegar. (Or, in the interest of full disclosure, whatever vaguely acidic condiment I could unearth from the depths of my cabinets). In a moment of real desperation, I’ve microwaved fingerling potatoes and eaten them with soy sauce. This hardly constitutes dinner. It flirts with the line of food sacrilege, even. If my misguided meals don’t provide you with ample motivation to cook beautifully for just for yourself, maybe The Kitchn can. Their tips will prove helpful the next time you find yourself scrounging through your crisper drawer, attempting to justify how a red bell pepper and some wilted dill would make a lovely tapas-style supper for one. Don’t do it. And, if you take nothing else away from this post, remember that steamed potatoes with soy sauce are never a good idea. Ever. Why Bother Cooking Just for Yourself? from The Kitchn