Anyone watching Tonight (ITV)?

tracyg

I thought the show made for interesting viewing. The facts they were giving about food shortages, price rising and the general mess we've made of the planet was really scary. Although I'm already 'OS' in my cooking and cleaning its really made me think more about things - like driving a 4x4 and the land needed to grow the amount of bio fuel it'll take to fill it could feed a family for a month in crops.

The only thing I'd comment on was they didn't break down what the £150 - £200 per week was buying - lunch items, cleaning products? Then the shopping they did was only for the evening meal so bound to be cheaper if she wasn't buying everything she 'needed'.

I thought naming and shaming of the food waste was a brilliant idea! The ladies face when he was making the stock from the chicken bones was funny though, can't see her ever making that.

miserly_mum

Could some one please tell me the actual title of the programme?

Mariel

I'm sure I read that cookery will be compulsory in schools from this September (I think). Or maybe I've been having one of my weird dreams again!

margaretclare

I agree with all that JackieO says above, EXCEPT for her comment about working mums. I was a working mum from 1964 onwards and I never used this cop-out. I wasn't the only cook in the family though, and I learned most of my cooking from my late husband, who in turn had learned it at the Sea School, Gravesend. That's not to say that we didn't learn a lot at home, I certainly learned a lot from watching my aunt, who had learned her trade as a cook under the old 'upstairs downstairs' system, that's before she had polio in 1926 and never worked again outside the home.

Children need to learn cooking skills at home as well as at school, both sexes I mean. But if you have a family whose idea of an evening meal is just heating up a ready-meal, or sending for a takeaway, the children think that's the norm and won't learn anything.

I have a very vivid memory of my late husband going ballistic while watching TV, must have been the early 1990s, not long before he died. This was a similar type of 'Tonight' programme (I think) saying how difficult it was for people on benefits to afford food. A single dad with his 2 sons were followed around a supermarket to see what they bought and what it cost. The very first thing the man put into his trolley was a bag of frozen chips. My husband went ape-sh*t. 'If you want chips why not buy potatoes and make your own - you're just buying frozen water - potatoes are far cheaper than frozen chips'. He used to make brilliant chips himself and knew what he was talking about.

My present DH was talking about this at breakfast today because I remarked how we never waste any food in this house. He said a jacket potato and baked beans is one of the cheapest and most nutritious meals, far cheaper and better for you than any takeaway or ready-meal.

Throwing away bread was always a heinous crime in my childhood, but then, it never happened. Stale bread could be used for bread-and-butter pudding, very nutritious for growing children.

honey

miserly_mum wrote: »

Could some one please tell me the actual title of the programme?

The programme is called Tonight and the episode is called End of Cheap Food.

I've just watched it online following the link kindly provided by nicky s (post no 4)

Curv

HelenYorkshire wrote: »

Looks like OS could be "old" no longer...

Take the 'old' out of 'old style' and what are we left with...?

I've always wanted to be stylish - who would've thought it would be Martin Lewis who got me there, not Trinny and Susannah :rotfl:

elona

I saw the programme last night and loved her kitchen.

Her face when the chef said he used veg peelings,onion skins and bones to make stock was a picture!!!!!

If she ended up spending about £70 for evening meals only was that really cheap?

The only veg I saw were the onions and one cabbage - surely there must have been more fruit and veg than that!

DH was riveted when they bought belly pork as I can never cook it the way he likes - but they did not give any recipes.

carol_a_3

I taped it last night (watching Eastenders!) and have just watched it. I already do most of what he was recommending but thought the facts and figures were all very interesting. I didn't notice though, did he buy any milk or bread, or flour to make bread, fruit etc or just the ingredients to make the dinners from scratch? I also spend a fortune on toilet rolls and I didn't see those going in his trolley!

Bargain_Rzl

How long will it be available to watch online? I missed it last night and won't be home in time to watch the repeat...

elona

I have just looked at the link and if you click on the description of the programme you get a menu list for the week.

It also tells me how to cook belly pork - if it works then DH will be really impressed!

The only veg on the list were carrots, onions and savoy cabbage.

No mention of fruit or milk or bread, butter,eggs, cheese, cereal etc.

If the shop came to about £70 for the week I reckon she would need another trip to the shops and spend about £30 to top up for breakfasts and sandwiches for lunch.

That would make the grand total about £100 for four of them for the week about half what she normally spent.

Does anyone else have the cynical thought that she only went on the programme to show off her new kitchen and to convince her DH that what she was already spending was reasonable and just "the price of things!"

Bet that a month from now they will all be back on the cardboard packets and cardboard food!