Yes, frugality does have a huge impact in the way I prepare my meals.
Let me tell you a story…
Before minimalism took over my meal preparation I have always ignorantly eaten out a couple of times until this very day I ate salad from an eatery. By the time I got home I kept throwing up on the way and had a serious running stomach which became very serious and sent me to the hospital. A test was done and I was diagnosed with food poisoning, ever since then I learnt how to prepare whatever I want which actually is less expensive. The plate of salad and beef cost #1200(1.58 USD ) and I spent roughly #5000(6.58 USD ) for treatment which I actually count as a waste of money. It wouldn't cost up to #1200(1.58 USD ) to prepare a bowl of salad. But yet I spent #6500(8.55) and still felt pain and discomfort.
I have come to love cooking my meals that way I am in control of the amount of the ingredients that goes into my meals, the neatness of my environment and how clean my veggies and utensils are. Preparing my meals has made me want to know more about my ingredients. Most times I research the nutritional benefits of each ingredient in order to know what I am consuming more or less in terms of having a balanced diet.
I love veggies a lot and that's one of the things I have in common with my spouse. We could go 7 days straight on a bowl of salad although I do add some proteins to make it richer.
This bowl of salad is a combination of cabbage, carrots, tomatoes, and eggs. We had this as breakfast. Preparing this bowl of salad is time efficient, less stressful and fewer ingredients yet nutritious.
We had boiled Irish and steamed veggies for lunch today. I made this delicious dish with spinach, onion, salt, 3 small balls of fresh tomatoes, leftovers sardine and season cubes. This meal is a healthy meal, less stressful and it does not consume time and energy. Most of the ingredients were leftovers from previous meals. Preparing this meal doesn't really cost much, I made this with #500(0.66) because I had some of the ingredients in my kitchen. It was also time efficient and wasn't stressful.
We had this vegetable rice for dinner. This bowl contains some of the essential needs of the body I tried not to overcook the veggies. I made this delicacy with carrots, spring onion, green beans, green pepper, scotch bonnet pepper, light soya sauce, salt, season cubes and some pieces of leftover beef from last Sunday's meal. This doesn't require much energy, it is a direct meal, no frying , just cooking. The veggies are fresh and parked with nutritional benefits.
The quality of my meal
Ever since I started preparing my meal I have come to realise the quality of each meal I prepare because I know the nutritional benefits of the ingredients I am using to prepare my dish. I can now prepare a cheap or expensive bowl of healthy meals depending on what kind of meal I want.
The quantity of my meal
It took me a while to actually know the right quantity of meal to prepare for either a two course meal or a one course meal but ever since I realised the amount of food to be consumed in either two, three or one course meal, I have been so conscious about it in order to avoid wasting of both money, energy and food. If by any chance there is any leftover I would save it for later by preserving it in a plastic bowl and putting it in the fridge instead of rewarming it over and over again until it loses its nutritional value.
Impact
Minimalism has made me conscious of consumption.
It has made me know my ingredients and also made me find joy in simplicity in how I prepare my dish using minimal ingredients.
Minimalism has made it possible to achieve preparation of healthy meals within a short period.
Every woman loves her kitchen space. I love my kitchen space so much although it's small but it allows flexibility within. I don't really have many kitchen items but I could say all that is in my kitchen are very important but once in a while I do declutter or trash some items that I have no need for or have lost their ability to function in order to create more space. I recycle too in order to minimise the cost of getting the same kind of items.