Ready made sauces?

[Deleted User]

wee_plumb wrote: »

Thanks for all the great responses!

Think I need to get to grips with doing more OS and batch cooking.

The comment made by ubamother was really relevant and i think thats what initially prompts the more expensive mindset.

I'll be searching the cooking threads for a while. I'm on a mission now to clear all the shop bought convenience foods from the cupboards and freezer so I can free up some space and get cracking!

Thanks All x

Hi wee_plumb I have just sent you a pm to your inbox
JackieO xx

puddy

JackieO wrote: »

With cooking as with a lot of things its trial and error.When I married way back in 1962 I decided that because of lack of cash (we really were stoney broke) that I would have to make every penny work and streeetch to breaking point almost.With free library books available it costs nothing to learn.Also ask anyone if your not sure .I was lucky that I had been blessed with a Mum (although sadly she had died by the time I married )who could do amazing things with food owing to rationing during WW2.So I knew the basics of cooking (although I did explode boiled eggs once )Get a good book and spend the weekend reading through it .I use herbs almost daily in my cooking but then I do like flavoured food,a sprinkle of herbs will brighten up any meal and make it feel special.The french use them all the time and they make amazing grub.I even sprinkle cinnamon (my favourite flavour) on museli in the morning.I too make my own pasta sauce as its so much nicer and if you go to the supermarket late in the evening you will often get a big box of tomato's at almost half the price which with a chopped onion or two and some garlic will make a big batch of sauce which freezes beautifully in portions for use when you need it .Why pay a quid or two for something that will only do one meal.I can see why the cheap standby sauce from Sainsbobs or Tescos are o.k. as an emergency but only if you need them suddenly, and I would add to them as well from my store of herbs and spices.I am lucky that I can take a trip to a big farm shop now and again in Faversham and stock up for very little outlay on lots of herbs ect.Macknade is without a doubt my favourite shop in Kent and well worth a trip.I don't have any oriental supermarkets near to me but I suppose you could google the nearest ones as I believe they are a lot cheaper to buy in bulk.Even the cheapest cut of meat can taste great if cooked in a slow cooker with a few herbs.A bottle of red plonk for cooking will cost around £2-3 and will last quite a while if only used for a good splash at a time in a casserole and will make the cheapest stewing steak taste very nice when cooked slowly

can you tell me more about that farm shop, ive found its website but the pictures make it look quite a fancy pricey place!

we live in thanet and there are no oriental or indian shops here and im looking for some cheap cardomoms and stuff like that. i used to live in south london and in catford is the best turkish supermarket ever, their stuff was really cheap, jars and tins of olives and tomatos, breads, cheeses etc etc.lovely. i really miss that shop

Reverbe

mardatha wrote: »

I'd love a thread or advice on making sauces. I am not used to using herbs in cooking and have bought loads of wee jars and now dono wot to do with them!

I use more spices than herbs tbh but fire away...I have a lot of different ones I use mostly in soups but will sling things in willy nilly at whim. I tend to jazz up value noodles with them. I also fry cheap sausages/sausagemeat with chili flakes and fennel seeds..Chili flakes also go in scrambled eggs etc. What ones have you got and maybe some of us can give you ideas? TBH aside from coriander leaf and the oddd dried mixed herb I dont tend to use herbs much.Only in like HM pasta sauce etc or when the recipe/soup requires them.

I do tend to get a lot of use from tumeric (cos its good for you)onion salt, garlic salt and celery salt (which I think is what they put in those flavour sachets with noodles)

Not to everyones taste for I have a fondness for capers - am making pasta with them ,cheap black olives, anchovies and crumbled toast (nearest I cna make to breadcrumbs lol) for my dinner tonight.

Gillyx

Probably not the right thread but I'm sure someone will be able to answer me.

If I make a few mini lasagne for myself, if I want to freeze them, do I freeze after oven cooking, freeze before oven cooking without cheese on, or freeze before oven cooking without cheese?

Normally I would make it fresh but when it's just for me it makes sense to make a few and freeze.

Turtle

Reverbe wrote: »

I used to make my pasta sauce HM with chopped tomatoes, dried herbs and garlic back when tinned toms were 27-30p a tin instead of the likes of Dolmio at one pound plus a jar.. Now the price of tinned ones has gone up so much its now cheaper to buy a jar of value ready made sauce..

Still only 33p for a tin of chopped toms in Sainsbury's or Morrison's.

adelight

Reverbe wrote: »

I used to make my pasta sauce HM with chopped tomatoes, dried herbs and garlic back when tinned toms were 27-30p a tin instead of the likes of Dolmio at one pound plus a jar.. Now the price of tinned ones has gone up so much its now cheaper to buy a jar of value ready made sauce..

I disagree, mostly because I haven't found a cheap ready made pasta sauce that didn't taste revolting. Lidl's <30p sauce was so bad I couldn't eat it, but they do really good tinned toms with herbs/garlic for 41p which are excellent pasta sauces just as they are!


The outlay for herbs makes it seem more expensive but it really is cheaper, unless you genuinely love the taste of 9p "curry sauce"(aka curry powder, water and flour). Herbs are much cheaper bought in large quantities in bags, not those $$$ glass jars!
If you use a lot of a herb, get a plant! I love basil, so bought a 99p basil plant and have a constant supply.



Gillyx, batch cooking is perfect in your situation. It's up to you, I'd freeze after completely cooking it. If you have glass/tinfoil dishes you can freeze it in then putting them in the oven to heat up makes them taste better than the microwave imo. I'd suggest using slightly more sauce than usual so they don't get dry after reheating too.

SoniaJM

Gillyx wrote: »

Probably not the right thread but I'm sure someone will be able to answer me.

If I make a few mini lasagne for myself, if I want to freeze them, do I freeze after oven cooking, freeze before oven cooking without cheese on, or freeze before oven cooking without cheese?

Normally I would make it fresh but when it's just for me it makes sense to make a few and freeze.

I do this fairly often - it depends what you want to do when you defrost / eat it. Either cook it first then freeze it and you've got a microwave ready meal. Or freeze it uncooked with cheese, you can then cook from frozen in the oven but make sure you cook it long and slow so it defrosts in the middle before the cheese burns on top.

(I tend to go for the cooked one - if I make a lasagne for dinner I cook two big ones, then portion them up into pots so they are individual size and can reheat when needed for those days when you really can't be bothered cooking!)

Gillyx

Thanks adelight and sonia I'm planning on using the little tinfoil containers, and defrosting them before cooking in the oven.

VfM4meplse

mmmsnow wrote: »

I would add that Tesco and Asda are doing a special on curry paste at the moment (it's as cheap as £1 a jar).

Cheaper actually! - Mr Ts is doing Pataks curry pastes for £1.79, BoGoF. I was kicking myself that I'd bought so much from Sainsburys @ £1 /jar a few weeks ago. For me the beauty is the time-saving of these jars, and a smidgen goes a long way!

spike7451

lessonlearned wrote: »

Rather than having to buy wine to put in a casserole etc I buy a cheap port or vermouth or even sherry, you can just slosh a bit of that in and it will give your food that nice rich winey kick. A couple of tablespoons is enough. A bottle will last for ages - unless of course you are tempted to drink it.

Last week I ran out - had a rummage and found a miniature bottle of Pernod lurking in the cupboard. Just added a splash - it made a really fab "Beouf Burginueon;) (I'm sorry I know that's not how you spell it).

Sainsbury's sell a red wine in a 'milk carton' which can be used for cooking,cheap as chips as well compared to the box wine.It's in the Booze aisle.

http://wine.mysupermarket.co.uk/sainsburys-price-comparison/Red_Wine/Sainsburys_Vin_de_Pays_dOc_Merlot_Val_dOrbieu_15L.html