I eat a lot and I've had to become pretty damn efficient at feeding myself because I also play in four bands and lift weights on top of a full-time job. That leaves me little sympathy for people who eat takeout or fast food regularly because they think they don't have the time. This really hit me after playing Monday's gig - the band was supposed to get some free food from the bar but there wasn't time to eat before the first set or during the break. Afterwards I asked how long it would take to get some meat and potatoes, and when told that it was 20 minutes decided it'd be faster if I just packed up, went home, ate something there and went to bed.

Cooking your own food has many benefits, but efficiency is an underrated one. Don't get me wrong, it's great to cook something stupidly inefficient regularly - this evening I'm planning to spend three hours stirring a wok full of chili made with proper Texan chili powder. But sometimes you do need to eat something without much work, and you can make those meals much quicker than getting a kebab or a burger. Though I am an extreme case, people with more normal caloric needs and saner schedules can apply many of the same principles as well, just without reaching the same extremes.

Some of this stuff is ridiculously simple. I always make sure I have a few cans of fish (mostly tuna in water and herring in various sauces) for when I'm in a real rush even though I only end up eating one or two a week. I also always keep some pickled vegetables, a piece of cheese, and a few liters of milk around as well. With those things I can eat a very quick meal with no cooking involved at all, or just down a half liter of milk in a few seconds on my way out the door. I also always keep some mixed frozen vegetables, shellfish and/or ground beef in the freezer - they can be cooked very quickly though of course you have to thaw them first, so hopefully you'll know you need to cook them quickly a day in advance.

On weekends I also roast large amounts of meat - for example a two-kilo piece of boneless beef and one and a half kilos of chicken breasts. That lets me basically leave something in the oven for a few hours, take it out, and then have enough for several meals. I can either reheat pieces of it with various sauces and vegetables or just eat them cold. I always make sure it's something I can serve in different ways - if you make a huge pot of oxtail stew which can really be only eaten one way (at best with different garnishes) you'll be really tired of it long before you've managed to finish even the first tail. I know few people eat that much meat, but having a big chunk of roasted cow in the fridge is extremely convenient. The key is planning roughly what you're going to eat a few days in advance.

It would take me a few minutes to bike to the nearest McDonald's, then a few more to wait for the burger. I suppose I could make the time for that and those burgers are tasty, but they're not quite tasty enough to make up for how time-consuming and inconvenient fast food is.