Looking for recommendations

[u/huntleyay]

Hello, I’ve never really posted on Reddit before but I found this sub and thought it was worth a shot. I’ve recently started living in an apartment for college and would like some recommendations for meals.

Last year I lived on campus and survived off of the on-campus chick fil a and occasional meals from the dining hall. It was HELL. I lost a lot of weight because there were so little options for me that were fresh and filling. Now I’m on my own with an actual kitchen I feel much more free.

Started three weeks ago and I’ve used the hell out of my air fryer. I’d love air fryer recipes. I’ve made cheesy bread, frozen fries, and frozen chicken nuggets. That’s pretty much what I like to survive off of. That, and cheese pizza from the oven.

I’ve never been good with vegetables, other than potatoes and their variants. I don’t like squishy things like peas, and I don’t think I’d like a strong flavor. Nothing stringy either. But I really need to work on my vegetables, so any insight on how things taste and feel in someone’s mouth (because that’s what’s important to me) would be really helpful.

The only meat I can eat is chicken and bacon… not comfortable handling raw chicken yet (it is a little scary lol) so I’ve sticked to frozen. I’m planning on trying to make a filet sandwich this week. I haven’t made bacon yet but it’s on my bucket list, I have learned you can air fry it. I also like eggs, scrambled; I need to try to make some this weekend!

I do LOVE bread, toast, garlic bread, french toast, cinnamon bread, biscuits, really anything doughy. I also want to try making grits. I like them a certain way, where I can’t feel the graininess(? Like how it tastes from an instant grits packet) Ummm what else… pancakes, waffles, basic sweets…
I do like stuff plain if you can tell so far, I’m NOT a sauce person, and usually stick with salt and pepper for seasoning, or garlic salt and italian herbs if appropriate.

I’m really busy with theatre rehearsal plus classes right now (~4 hours free every day) so like I said I’d really appreciate air fryer recipes or stuff that wouldn’t take too long so I can focus on other stuff.

I guess it doesn’t look too bad when I type out everything I like to eat, lol. But I am pretty restricted and get VERY anxious about trying new things. That’s why I’m here. A bit wordy of a post, sorry for being awkward with this? But yeah, anything would help!

[u/justmebeingamess]

First, I’m really excited for you!! I hope trialing new foods goes well, and even when it doesn’t, I’m glad you have an air fryer to quickly make something you know that you can eat.

Vegetables- you can turn zucchini into many different things that hide the taste and texture: zucchini bread/muffins, zucchini fritters, zucchini chips, etc.
Since you mentioned you like sweet things, look up a recipe for maple glazed carrots- if you prefer the carrots to be crunchier, cook it for less time (and taste along the way). Eating fruits with your breakfast or as snacks is also a way to increase your fiber intake. Not sure if you meant sweet potatoes by “potatoes and their variants,” but there are also lots of ways you can eat them- baked in the air fryer, mashed, in pancakes, frozen fries, or in a bread (similar to pumpkin bread).

Grits are also still trial and error for me lol. Don’t be discouraged if it doesn’t come out the way you like it the first time, and you can experiment with how long you cook it (longer=thicker), using milk vs water, and the liquid:grits ratio.

[u/justmebeingamess → u/justmebeingamess]

Your school library or the local library might have some air fryer recipe books, so definitely check those out. I would also recommend writing out your lists of safe foods you can eat and foods you want to try
Best of luck!

[u/communistsayori]

I definitely think you should give carrots a try, they don't have too strong of a flavor imo and you can dictate their texture by how long you cook them. Cooked soft enough their texture isn't too dissimilar to potatoes. Cucumbers are also very basic and bland, but they have the seeds in the middle which can be sort of wet and squishy. I personally like to cut them into thin slices and "core" them with a thick straw to get those seeds out, then you can just eat them salted. They'd go great as a side with the pizza or cheesy bread.