To think it's impossible to eat a UPF free diet as an ordinary person?

I don't think it's that hard or time-consuming to eat mostly upf-free.

You are choosing to do things like making sour dough which are time-consuming, but even though you deem it healthier it would still be upf free to use a bread maker, buy Jason's from the supermarket, or eat other things instead of bread.

It took me a while to find swaps that worked for me in the beginning, but now I have them it's quite easy.

I have lots of quick and easy upf free meals. Eg pasta arrabiata. I only make soup after having roast chicken so I can use the chicken bones as stock. I don't make jam because it's easy to find non-upf versions in the shop. I prioritise making things at home which can't easily be found in a shop.

If you badly wanted to you could (for very little money) get veg on the turn at the market and butcher’s bones and make stock, just let it simmer on the hob for hours. Gas costs of course. I have to say, this is very far into “Can’t be bothered” / diminishing returns territory for me.

I don't eat a lot of UPF but not really on purpose. I buy nice sourdough bread, crosta & mollica wraps, make veg soup.

A lot of my meals are made using fresh meat and veg (e.g chicken wraps with salad, fish and veg etc). I tend to snack on fruit or greek yogurt. If was trying to be UPF free I don't think it would take up much more time.

You can buy a lot of stuff that’s not UPF, you just have to pay for it. Bread, jam, even stock and ready meals. There’s no need to make it yourself if you’re are time poor but have a decent amount to spend on money. The issue is if you’re time poor and money poor.

I have found an option I like, I don't need to change it.
I'm well aware of other different options too - tbh I like eggs for breakfast sometimes, or HM savoury muffins or cold crustless quiches.

Maybe not UPF free - almost definitely not - but you can make substantial improvements if you're used to a lot. Probably sticking to quite simple food helps. We have got used to using a lot of sauces and more involved meals, I think, and simple meals like soup, salad, casseroles, etc can easily be homemade from natural ingredients. Using a stock cube in a homemade dish is not something I would worry about. And definitely a breadmaker is much quicker than making your own sourdough, though I will admit I don't know if sourdough is better for you - I don't really like it so wouldn't make the effort. It's also things like snacks - so many highly processed snacks available but if you can stick to fruit, nuts, some homemade treats, this is better.

You are probably doing a lot better than you think!

Yes I wont get it out again but usually on these threads I have to bring out the basic Tesco lasagne ready meal.

Not a UPF, most are not.

Well you dont have to use milk you can use yoghurt to mix with any cooked grain and essentially have the similar thing. Cook up some grains (if you so fancy) and keep them in the freezer in portions and then just mix up in the morning after getting out the night before

I said on another thread we're too rigid about what makes a breakfast food, lentils and beans are good for breakfasts, gentle on the stomach, rice dishes or other grains for breakfast if people like that is completely fine, soup is completely fine

I wish I liked milk and I wish I liked porridge, because I love the idea of it, quick and easy and filling! I make it often for DS and he has it with dried fruit and some honey or occasionally syrup.
I have yoghurt with (harder) grains/seeds/nuts/fruit, which is nice too.

Eh?
Did I suggest I didn't have any privileges?
PP understood my point, and responded.

As usual the quite reasonable advice to eat less sliced white bread, pot noodles, pringles and chocolate cereal has begun a purity spiral with everyone competing to eliminate every last trace of commercially processed products and completely losing perspective. Along with lack of cooking skills and knowledge of how normal /old-fashioned food is meant to be made.

If you can eat 80-90% UPF free you are doing fine and will get the benefit.

Also just because something is in a packet doesn't make it a UPF, if it's a traditional preserved food like jam made with sugar, bacon, tinned tomatoes etc.

Wholewheat yeasted bread made in a bread maker is easy, cheap and quick. I make sourdough sometimes but it's still just a wholemeal bread.

My golden wonder crisps are potatoes and veg oil (rapeseed, sunflower) and salt that isn’t upf

If you enjoy it, then great, keep enjoying it. 👍

For those that dont like porridge there are other cereals and grains, its not the only thing that exists, rice, bulgar, quinoa, farik, barley. Also I have pinhead oatmeal in any case, not porridge oats, so its got more texture if people dont like mush.

All just as nice with some milk and whatever toppings or flavours you want, either sweet or savoury.

I've been making it for well over 13 years, so before it became a popular fad.
I only started making it because I wasn't great at having yeast in date or available when I needed it, and it sounded pretty easy to keep once it was established. Plus, I enjoyed making bread.
I find the taste fine, but then I don't make it sour. You can vary the sourness quite easily.

Again, as someone said, though, sourdough isn't really the point of the thread, even though it's something I love, lol, hence my name.

Some people don't have a computer or access to the internet.

Check your OWN privilege before you cast your 'look at meee' stones.

Ok, porridge then. Thanks for clarifying. I do eat porridge sometimes and use whole oats.

Even if Sourdough took 5 seconds to make, I still wouldn't make it because I really don't like it. Sourdough isn't an essential food group, and definitely not the only way to reduce UPF in the diet. I feel like it's almost ritualistic for some folk....and that's fair enough, I suppose. We're not all the same. 😁

But again I make use of my fridge so that it fits in around our lifestyle. This means some loaves are 'made' over 2 or 3 days, some are made within a day.

I have an airfryer but I'm just not that keen on roast meat tbh. I did make some for DS on his 18th, and it was nice enough, but likely won't make it again until near Christmas. DH and DS know I really just make it for them. Give me roasted veggies instead of roasted meat every single time! 👍

Well I suppose its better to be accurate, I dont know where this narrative has come from that its expensive to eat away from junk food. It isnt. Its cheaper. But people want to replicate junk food style eating and snacking with non junk food and of course if you want to replicate that, you need a lot of cooking, purchasing, storage, time, skill etc etc

If you eat wholefoods, breakfast, lunch, dinner, a couple of snacks throughout the day like cheese, eggs, a few nuts, dried fruit, veg etc. It is not expensive to eat like that

Th eproblem is people will say its boring, their kids wont eat it, they dont want to eat tinned fish, or omelette for tea or things on toast for tea, they think its beneath them, a poster telling people on here they're giving their kids pasta with tomatoes or some cheese on for tea and all hell breaks loose as if its child neglect or something. How many times do you see 'wheres the protein' when someone quotes ONE meal! In any case in the everyday Western diet we have more than enough protein.

Not to mention that most people dont even understand what UPFs are (and there isnt really one consensus) and the various references on this very thread to crisps, ready meals, chocolate, cereals etc etc.

I roast most meat nowadays in my airfryer, so again it's no real effort and much cheaper and quicker than using my oven

Your DD is fortunate that she can make such choices and be supported in those choices.

I’ve tried it. I can taste the difference because I use them in recipes where I can, and want to taste the stock cube. I wouldn’t throw one into a bolognese, say, as there’s a lot of other things going on, although if other people think that it improves their bolognese they’re not wrong.

This whole thing is descending into an argument about stock cubes. As usual we’re ignoring the bigger picture.