Amount | Ingredient | $ / day | Source | |
---|---|---|---|---|
180 | g | Fine Powdered Oats | $1.32 | Bulk Powders |
110 | g | Whey Protein Concentrate | $2.57 | Bulk Powders |
30 | g | Maltodextrin | $0.18 | Bulk Nutrients |
2 | g | Methyl Sulfonyl Methane | $0.05 | Bulk Powders |
5 | g | Potassium Chloride | $0.09 | iHerb |
3 | g | Calcium Carbonate | $0.05 | iHerb |
12 | g | Source Naturals, Psyllium Husk Powder | $0.27 | iHerb |
1 | pill | Nature's Way, Alive Men's Multivatamin | $0.34 | iHerb |
15 | g | LoGI Cane Sugar | $0.07 | Coles |
10 | g | Linseed Meal (Flaxseed) | $0.11 | Coles |
17 | g | Lecithin | $0.52 | Coles |
2 | g | Iodized Salt | $0.00 | Coles |
Amounts for: Total Daily Cost: | $5.57 | Add Ingredients to Amazon Cart |
Overview
45% carbs 30% protein 25% fat. Ideal for for weight loss/maintenance (especially if combined with exercise).
Nutritionally complete based on Australian Government's RDI.
If you need more than 1500 kcal, you can have 3.5/4 serves, or better yet, add a couple of pieces of fruit like a banana and an apple to the mix.
Super easy to purchase, mix and store. All ingredients can be purchased from three stores, two are online, and one trip to Coles will get you the rest. You can obviously buy the Coles stuff online as well, so there is really no excuse not to buy this!
Tools needed
You need two items to make this: A digital scale and a small food processor/blender.
The only thing that needs to go through the food processor is the Lecithin granules as they won't dissolve in water otherwise.
Instructions
Leave the Multivitamin to the side. I prefer not to mix them with the powder and it's easier. Just take one multivitamin every morning.
Take out the rest of the ingredients. I generally make my Soylent weekly so I take out one week's worth of everything.
Grind the Lecithin granules in a food processor/blender. Once ground they might stick to the blades a bit so you might need to shake it a couple of times to grind it all.
Put all ingredients in a large bowl as the bowl sits on the scale. The bowl needs to be large, able to hold at least 5 litres. If you don't have that large a bowl (or your scale can't cope with the weight) you can divide everything in two smaller bowls.
Mix everything well with a large spoon. Once they are all mixed, put each serve into a zipped plastic bag and seal it tightly. One week's worth of Soylent will yield 21 serves, and each serve is going to be ~130g (the plastic bags weigh about 2-3 grams each). It doesn't have to be gram perfect, if one serve is 5g less, another will be 5g more and it will all work out in the end. Make sure you don't leave any residue behind.
All in all, it takes me about 15 minutes to make. 15 minutes for one week's supply of food. Not bad!
Storage
Lecithin granules, once ground, are not stable and will oxidise and go rancid. That's why I store the Soylent in zipped bags. They will be fine for a week or two. It's probably a good idea to store them in the fridge to keep them out of direct sunlight, but they're totally fine to be out for a day, so you can easily put a couple in your bag and take to work/school.
It's a good idea to store the excess Lecithin and Flaxseed in the fridge as well until you need them next week. The rest of the ingredients can be left out (but obviously seal the bags tightly).
Consumption
Put one serve of Soylent in a shaker and mix well with water. I generally prefer cold water but obviously that's up to taste. The shaker needs to be large, at least 700ml. Shake well for 2-3 minutes, and shake once more as you are drinking (flaxseed is heavy and goes to the bottom if you let it sit for a few minutes). It dissolves easily without needing to go in a blender, and there should be no chunky bits left.
Taste
The taste is fine, and easy to get used to. After you've had it a few times, you might even grow to like it. It has a creamy feel to it and the predominant flavour is oat (which I like) and it has a hint of sweetness to it without being a sugar bomb. If you like to experiment, you can use flavoured Whey Protein to change the taste once in a while.
Thanks to all the other DIY recipes here which gave me the foundation to start. Comments/feedback are very welcome.