Mr and Mrs K's New Journey to a Debt Free Life.

Mara_uk7

Yip ... Too many excuses not to change your thinking, A freezer is a busy persons best asset, So easy to batch cook for an hour or so at the weekend, knock up three or four different dinners .. double portions of them all, Shove them in the freezer, Take out to defrost in the morning, or use your other best appliance .. the microwave , to defrost as youre cooking the potatos or rice or chips .. easy peasy.
Get on with it Alex, Its good healthy home cooked food, wont give you an ulcer or make you feel sick cos youve overdone the monosodiumglutamate ...
AND its cheaper . Win /Win

littlegreenparrot

I think it is an important point to do the comparison, you might not think frozen food tastes quite as good as when it was fresh (I can never tell the difference) but a frozen portion of home made stew will still be a lot better for you than a takeaway.
Do you know what things make you ill? If not it would be worth keeping diary notes to try and work it out. My DH is much better when he doesn't have bread for example.

If you have an Aldi/Lidl near you they have a wonderful selection of Continental meats, all much nicer (in my opinion) and much more affordable than they would be in a deli. (Do please try them before you dismiss them, lots of people are prejudiced, but its all lovely stuff)

I wouldn't dream of spending more than an hour cooking on a weeknight, but I will potter about on a Sunday afternoon making a big pot of something and baking. I find it a soothing way to spend a rainy afternoon. Once its all in the pot you get to just read the papers anyway

bess1234_2

In someone diary on here I read that they figure an issue out by imagining it in an agony aunts column.

So yours would go like " I need to spend other peoples money because I hate washing up. Life's so unfair, why should I have to wash up,"

heartbreak_star

To be fair, everyone REALLY HATES washing up - you just gotta man up and do it

HBS x

gallygirl

"I'd sooner my son had an unhealthy diet than do some washing up"


There, that should do the trick .

Anyway - learn wok cooking - 1 non-stick pan :T.

oceanspirit

Microwaves definitely yuk. Slow cooker on the other hand is fabulous.

I use my slow cooker a lot for batch cooking as I can cook 4-6 portions at a time, eat 1 and freeze the rest. You can even put potatoes in with the meat. So, morning prep time 10-20 mins depending on what you're cooking and evening prep time 5 mins to boil up some fresh veg. Simples! I have cooked pot roasts in it, my favourite slow cooker meal is lamb hotpot which definitely tastes even better after freezing and I also make the basic minced beef recipes and chicken casseroles etc.

Tonight I'm cooking a red lentil curry on the hob and I've just timed how long it took to prep - 10 mins. It will simmer on the stove for 20 mins then be ready to serve. Washing up - 1 chopping board, 1 sharp knife, 2 saucepans (1 for rice), 1 plate, 1 fork (x3 for the K family). Cost is very minimal - must be just pence because I bought a 25kg sack of lentils and 7.5kg sack of rice from approved food. And I know it'll be yummy because I've done it before.

oceanspirit

Ooops, I forgot to say that it's lovely to follow all the massive changes you have made. I am very happy that you and Mrs K are looking at doing up a car - cars are what brought you together so it's important that you keep this hobby as it's who you both are.

Keep up the great work.

AlexLK

Thank you all, we were a bit "naughty" this evening and went to the local pub for dinner (son has dinner at nursery today). Mind apart from the cost, there's nothing wrong with their food - all home cooked and VERY tasty.

Lannie: Interesting, as we've not really gone down the route of freezing home cooked food, I don't suppose I can make excuses until I've tried.

HBS: Thank you for the tips. However, I fail to see how NOT buying a dishwasher / slow cooker is an excuse to spend money?

Mara: Mrs. K. and I ought to "get on with it". In many ways we both want to but either can't be bothered or feel far too tired to actually "get on with it".

littlegreenparrot: Thank you. I do see where you are coming from. As for what foods make me ill, I'm not 100% sure but I tend to be unwell (not just stomach problems but feeling very lethargic) after a few days of eating "stuff I shouldn't be".

Oh no, I have no problem with Aldi or Lidl and we do shop there sometimes. It's not just down the road (about 15 miles away) but we like buying things we've never heard of then trying them!

Neither Mrs. K. nor I find cooking "easy".

Bess: Thank you, that made me laugh and embarrassed me in equal quantities.

HBS: Probably true.

gallygirl: That only did the trick of making me feel really quite bad. I do know how to do wok cooking but that only works for doing Chinese and I don't want a Chinese everyday.

oceanspirit: Would you say food from a slow cooker tastes different to food from a microwave, then? Can't say I like the idea of lentils but we do sometimes do curries which aren't so bad to make.

Thank you, we are looking forward to going to see the potential car purchase on Saturday afternoon, if it's too much work we won't buy it but hopefully it'll be good. We ought to be careful, before we know it we'll be turning our son into a petrolhead too. :eek:

debtfreewannabe321

Have you used the de-motivator on here Alex? http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/demotivator/

Try it for the daily/weekly/monthly treat that you think doesn't cost very much it's quite eye opening

I've been 10x better since getting a dishwasher, a bread maker and my slow cooker. I cook probably 80% or more from scratch now I got rid of the microwave though after reading some research on them DH wasn't best pleased about that

VJsmum

Takeaway Chinese - and some indian, makes me feel like that. I call it a "Chinese hangover" - I think it is Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) so called "flavour enhancer" they put in.

You can cook good food very quickly or simply. An omelette and salad is the fastest and best fast food I know, jacket spuds with a variety of toppings, toasties and salad, soup and sandwich or soup and pud. Try some cook in sauces or bags of ready prepared veg as a halfway step, still better and cheaper than takeaway. Slow cookers are ace - our favourite is beef in beer (ready diced braising steak and a slosh of beer, 4, 6, 8 whatever hours later beautiful tender meat)