The Great 'Cheap cooking substitutes' Hunt

newlands23

Haven't you been in a supermarket recently? There are shelves and shelves of cook-in sauces so somebody must be buying them! Indian, Chinese, Chicken Tonight, etc etc. In the same way as ready meals are expanding through the chiller cabinets, ready-made sauces are cutting a wedge through the shelves of basic ingredients.
I partly blame the fact that schools don't teach cooking any more. They teach something else called Food Technology. (Same with sewing/ Fabric Technology, but that's another story. How many people under the age of 25 know how to sew any more?)

parkgirl

I know - I would love to be a cookery teacher but it seems to me (dd is 15 and doing GCSE Food Tech) that they learn all about texture and colour and what not and very little about feeding yourself or your family on a budget or actual real cooking!

Waffle_On

My breadmaker is happily producing loaves from 'value' flour, and I can't say I've noticed any difference from using the 'strong' stuff at 4 times the price!

THIRZAH

Judging by the jars in their recycling box my neighbours get through several lots of cook-in sauces a week. The rest of the time they seem to live on pizza.

Any

newlands23 wrote: »

Haven't you been in a supermarket recently? There are shelves and shelves of cook-in sauces so somebody must be buying them! Indian, Chinese, Chicken Tonight, etc etc. In the same way as ready meals are expanding through the chiller cabinets, ready-made sauces are cutting a wedge through the shelves of basic ingredients.
I partly blame the fact that schools don't teach cooking any more. They teach something else called Food Technology. (Same with sewing/ Fabric Technology, but that's another story. How many people under the age of 25 know how to sew any more?)

I get the foreign stuff, unless you can cook well and you have cupboard full of spices of all different types that you cannot pronounce the names of then it is easier to just buy the packet.
What surprised me is the casserole sauce! If that is not the very basic in cooking then I don't know what is..
Not judging, don't take me wrong... just that that is not a cheap 'substitute', that is just basic cooking?
Maybe I am just too old and out of touch ha ha!

newlands23

Any wrote: »

I get the foreign stuff, unless you can cook well and you have cupboard full of spices of all different types that you cannot pronounce the names of then it is easier to just buy the packet.
What surprised me is the casserole sauce! If that is not the very basic in cooking then I don't know what is..
Not judging, don't take me wrong... just that that is not a cheap 'substitute', that is just basic cooking?
Maybe I am just too old and out of touch ha ha!

OK, it's basic stuff but my point is, an awful lot of people (including my own sons I'm afraid) don't actually know the basic stuff. And they will probably never learn it when there are expensive short cuts on sale. Easier to chuck a couple of jars in the supermarket trolley than look up a recipe.
And talking of recipes - I don't think I will ever buy another recipe book because the internet is such a fantastic source of recipes. Have a few ingredients you need to use up? Just google them and instantly you'll have dozens of relevant recipes, often pre-tested by other people.

VfM4meplse

I am going to turn this thread on its head with a question.

I bought a load of finely ground Matzo meal for 10p a pack a while ago, intending to use it instead of breadcrumbs. It is a very "floury" breadcrumb, I've used it twice now and the results were not good. This evening I decided to make bubble & squeak patties, shaped the mixture, dipped in melted butter and then the Matzo (I would normally use panko) before baking. The result was weird! The outside took some time to get a golden, but the crust was actually burnt and bitter (seemed to be burning from the butter layer inwards!). So okay it was crispy but not a good result.

I should have just quit whilst I was ahead and served it straight from the frying pan

What can I do with this other than feed it to the birds in the park?

Any

newlands23 wrote: »

OK, it's basic stuff but my point is, an awful lot of people (including my own sons I'm afraid) don't actually know the basic stuff. And they will probably never learn it when there are expensive short cuts on sale. Easier to chuck a couple of jars in the supermarket trolley than look up a recipe.
And talking of recipes - I don't think I will ever buy another recipe book because the internet is such a fantastic source of recipes. Have a few ingredients you need to use up? Just google them and instantly you'll have dozens of relevant recipes, often pre-tested by other people.

My step son had to go through lessons given by me and MIL on cooking before he went to uni.
Stew, chilli, spag bog, goulash, basic curry etc were on the list. Also been shown mysupermarket website and told where his closest Aldi is.
Now he actually cooks in his house share and gets his food free in return-none of the others can cook and it is a lot cheaper for them then take outs!
Since he is getting compliments and found out how chicks are easily impressed by his skills he is really into it. He made my red thai curry (with paste from scratch) here over Xmas while I was sitting on the chair telling him what to do with a glass of wine in hand. Apparently he 'needs a new repertoir' for a party...:rotfl:
But beginnings were tough... The only reason he agreed to the classes was to please my MIL and explanation of his student income and calculation of convenient food cost = no money lefy for beer!!!:rotfl::rotfl:

newlands23

Oh, well done, you have managed to do what I never did - my sons simply weren't interested. Oldest son went to uni and survived on stir fries and £1 pizzas. Middle son claims to "make lasagne" using bottled pasta sauce and bottled white sauce. Youngest one is actually showing a bit of interest in learning to cook, I must seize the moment and try to teach him something before it's too late!
I am not surprised your stepson is unique among his friends in knowing how to cook. There's a lost generation out there...

Any

newlands23 wrote: »

Oh, well done, you have managed to do what I never did - my sons simply weren't interested. Oldest son went to uni and survived on stir fries and £1 pizzas. Middle son claims to "make lasagne" using bottled pasta sauce and bottled white sauce. Youngest one is actually showing a bit of interest in learning to cook, I must seize the moment and try to teach him something before it's too late!
I am not surprised your stepson is unique among his friends in knowing how to cook. There's a lost generation out there...

Seize the moment! The thing is, at the beginning it does seem hard.. after you know how to make few things you suddenly realise you can connect the dots and how you can make other stuff with that basic knowledge.
Some recipes feel overpowering just looking at them.. like the red thai curry paste. Just the ingredients is a list half A4 page long. Once you get 'stuck in' you find you just bung it all in a food processor and the paste last 3 months in the fridge.. and makes about 5-6 meals (for 2-3). having that, any veg, 1 can of coconut milk and any cheap frozen white fish in the freezer actually means that you have quick, special and impressive emergency meal that can be done in 20mins. But the list was frightening!
And now it is so fashionable to be able to cook with all the celebrity chefs and programmes that surely it must be the best time to make young people interested.
Good luck!