when is it cheaper to make your own?

angeltreats

Rachel Allen did gnocci on her programme on BBC last Saturday which you can still catch on iPlayer here. I think it's also in her Home Cooking book. I think she used leftover mash! It looked nice and easy.

Bitsy_Beans

Well if we're going to take baking for example one bag of flour can make soooo many different items so if I buy Mr S value flour for 43p for 1kg (I think that's the weight) I can make a victoria sponge, some Twinks hobnobs, some fairy cakes, some cheese scones. If I buy 1kg tub of Stork that covers all my cooking needs. Likewise sugar tends to be something most people already have in stock - I don't bother buying caster sugar anymore just use granulated. Likewise I always buy eggs so these get used in cooking and baking. When you factor in what you can make with such cheap ingredients its a no brainer for me. Plus HM tastes better than the cheapest basic range cake (trust me I've tried them).
Oh and I'd love to have a go at making my own pasta, even if it is a bit of a faff
In my experience making it from scratch is cheaper in the long run (if not the short) but what I value most is knowing what's been put into the food and that means more to me than the overall monetary cost.

valk_scot

Oh, just for reference, I costed out the price of fairy cakes made from scratch v from cheap packet mix, on another thread here.....

SailorSam

I think it's often cheaper to buy ready made than do your own.
Food for example all the Supermarket special offers always seem to be on processed stuff never on decent raw ingredients, But then the reason that many cook at home, the pleasure you from putting it together and above all the taste,
I don't do it but something like making clothes, i'd imagine wool, cotton etc are expensive are they ? but some of the tee-shirts and jumpers coming in from China are a lot less and ready made,
If you started to factor in payment for your own time, even less things would be homemade.

charliee_3

angeltreats wrote: »

Rachel Allen did gnocci on her programme on BBC last Saturday which you can still catch on iPlayer here. I think it's also in her Home Cooking book. I think she used leftover mash! It looked nice and easy.

was it this one?

celyn90

I think it depends on what you like to eat more than cost

I make jam because I can get the fruit for free. If you factor in the sugar, then it will turn out cheaper than value jam - and tastes much better. I make chutney because I can't find a shop bought one I like and it allows me to preseve the annual pear glut!

I hunt for mushrooms because I can't buy a lot of the ones I like in the supermarkets - and I'm not willing to pay a fortune for something I can pick for free

I can't be bothered to make bread. I do sometimes, but now I don't have time. I like commerical white bread and my breadmaker exploits aren't the same

I will make pizza dough because IMO it tastes better than the shop bought bases.

I make cake because I hate shop bought cake. It just doesn't taste nice to me. Same with curry - most shop bought or ready made curry is pretty foul compared to what I can make myself.

I used to make pasta when I was a student - more because I enjoy the process of making it - it was cheaper to buy often (I'm actually not sure about now, the flour I have in my cupboard was fairly reasonable and it makes a lot of pasta!). I haven't done it for a while (again a time thing). I make gnocchi with leftover cooked potatoes too - I don't think I've ever bought this

Justamum

Caterina wrote: »

The one thing that is DEFINITELY cheaper to make at home and well worth making because it is so much better as well as cheaper, though, is Gnocchi! These are potato dumplings with flour, it is appalling what they cost in the packets and they are full of added stuff. All you need is floury potatoes and flour, that's all. I read somewhere on this thread that they can be also made with Smash-type instant mash but I haven't tried it this way.

Just been googling it (vegan ones) - it seems to be basically the same recipe as potato cakes which are boiled rather than fried? That sounds easy enough - and an idea for a cheap meal one night this week

Mrs_Thrify

Gosh! We make our own with lots of things. I would think home cooking has to come top of the list with dinners, soups, bread and cakes.
Chopping/sawing up free/given wood to heat the house.
Making curtains and lining them with fleese throws.
Using 50/50 vinegar and water for cleaning

brokeinwales

I don't do it but something like making clothes, i'd imagine wool, cotton etc are expensive are they ?

Depends what you buy. I tend to get offcuts of fabric from ebay - you can get enough to make a skirt for a fiver if you're very lucky(although it's a bit pot luck when you can't feel the quality). Although it can't compete with the prices of, say, Primark or George, I think it compares fairly favourably with something like M&S. Not that I've been making clothes for long, and I confess I've never actually done the maths properly.

Even as a single person providing for myself, I still think cooking meals from scratch is cheaper. (But I do live with two flatmates who live off expensive takeaways most of the time, so that makes me feel like I'm saving a lot by cooking!). I think my main doubt is about "ingredient" foods - would it be worth making my own tomato ketchup or baked beans or mayonaise for example? And what about growing your own veg/herbs?

In terms of moneysaving when it comes to bread, I actually find the cheapest thing to do is just not eat bread at all!

I would echo that there are definetly a lot of thrifty ideas that only really work out cheaper if you're a family. Plus there's the faff factor - I love homemade lasagne for example, but would only ever make it if I knew several other people were going to eat it too, it seems like a bit of a palava to go to just for me!

purpleivy

My MIL gave us a Battenburg cake, she makes them every Christmas. I know which I would prefer if given a choice of homemade rather than one from the supermarket!