To wonder who these wonder women are who 'cook from scratch' every day

[MGFM]

Following on from all the threads about supermarket shopping and how to make it cheaper etc, I just can't get me head around all of the families 'cooking from scratch' everyday.

Is it just me that thinks that cooking from scratch everyday is an absolute nightmare? Are people confused about what cooking from scratch actually means? Are all these people who do this SAHM/SAHDs? Are they getting up at 5 am to put the meal together to heat up in the evening. I just dont get it.

I am currently on Mat Leave but when I was working full time and getting home around 1645/1700 every night, the last thing I wanted to start doing was cooking from scratch.

And what does cooking from scratch even mean? I enjoy sausage, mash, peas and gravy. The mash is from scratch...does that count?

I tend to cook from scratch at the weekend....a big pan of chilli which can cook for a few hours, or spag bol and then will freeze the left overs but I dont start cooking this on a thursday night for example.

Anyway, If I am being unreasonable and it is actually pretty easy to be super mum/dad and cook from scratch, can I please have your recipes?

Thanks! -

I cook from scratch (with 4dc + dh) almost every night. I work Saturdays so we have pizza that night, but every other night I cook, stir fry, roast chicken, chicken pie, chilli, lasagne, stew, anything of the usual suspects really. But if I wasn't getting home until 5:45 like I do on the days I work, I could never do it! I need to start cooking around 4pm, and it's a pain, but needs must!

DS has allergies so almost everything is home cooked. I meal plan meticulously - I often batch cook things that only need reheating (bolognaise, chilli etc), make use of the slow cooker (prepped the night before), tray bakes prepared the night before. Or I might prep ingredients for the next nights dinner the night before and make something quick and easy. Occasionally we will have something from the freezer with chips from the chippy.

We're all vegetarian and 3 out of the 4 coeliac so almost all of our food is from scratch by necessity

I plan the menu on Saturday shop Sunday

Like others I bulk cook so today I've done jacket potatoes in the slow cooker, quick easy prep this morning

Extra jackets today will be used with chilli on Wednesday for the adults which was bulk made 10 days ago in the slow cooker and portioned

I do use my slow cooker a lot, I regularly make rice pud which is comfort food in this house but so quick and easy to do in my slow cooker

Other food, home made wedges, roasties are done quick and easily in my halogen cooker

My husband used to commute daily and never cooked fresh food, he often marvels at our food and ponders why he never thought of some quick easy healthy meals that we eat every day

I've found Pinterest fantastic for ideas, particularly slow cooker ones, there is a blog where someone bags the ingredients for every meal up on a Sunday leaves them ready in the freezer and literally tips them in the pot switches it on and goes to work! Now that's organised

I do cook from scratch but like others have said I cook one day ahead so tonight I'm cooking Tuesday's dinner etc.

It is more the waiting around for stuff to fry off, cook separately etc which is time consuming. So I sort of potter on with the dinner on and off for an hour every night but there isn't the time pressure to get it on the table.

I obviously cook stuff like pasta and prepare steamed veg on the day but anything more than that is cooked the night before.

I get home at various times, but almost never before 7. I cook from scratch every day except in times of crisis, when DH buys pizza and proudly says "Look! I've cooked!"

Cooking from scratch can cover all kinds of quick easy meals. A boiled egg and soldiers qualifies. Posh cheese on toast served with tomato salad and gherkins qualifies. So does salad.

A good few of our from scratch dinners will be meat/fish/tofu/prawns cooked quickly and served on a salad. Curry doesn't need much prep time if you throw all the ingredients into the pan together then cook it slowly for an hour while you do something else. Or use a pressure cooker, which is the only kitchen gadget I use regularly.

I do a lot of recipes where the prep time is minimal because I can be doing anything from office work brought home to sorting out washing while it cooks: Meatloaf, meatballs, lentils, ratatouille and gratins. I can be, but usually don't. I drape myself on DH and whine about my day until he rebels.

I don't seem to get around to batch cooking much anymore, but I always make stock after we have a roast. DH takes it out to defrost during the day so that by the time I get home I can make a good soup or stew really quickly.

By no means wonder woman but, like a lot of others, tend to cook every night. Usually get in 6.30 to 7 and we eat at 9. I find cooking relaxing most of the time but we have the occasional take away. Ready meals are often a disappointment - specially when I started checking the ingredients. I get Good Food magazine and the Sainsbury's magazine every month and go through all the recipes and make a list of what I fancy trying in my diary. Only do quick things during the week. Very quick meals could be something like sausages, jacket potato and baked beans. Lots of stir frys, tray bakes and rice dishes. Had pot roast chicken with dumplings last night and tonight having thai veg thing (new recipe). Usually look in the cheap section in Tesco when I do the weekly shop and pick up any bargains there then decide what to do with it. chucking something like chicken thighs, onions, new potatoes peppers, olives and a tin of tomatoes into a roasting dish and putting in the even can never be classed as hard work.

Almost always cook from scratch with the exception of one night when perhaps we have a take away or a shop bought pizza. I also get home about 5 and DCs have activities 4 days a week. I generally buy similar basic ingredients every week that can be adapted to make different things depending on time and what else is available . So with mince it's Spag Bol, Chilli, Meatballs, Burgers or cottage pie. Chicken breasts for stir fry, curry, fajitas, tray bake, pasta, chicken pie. Fish grilled, baked or fish pie. Lots of veg plus store cupboard essentials like pasta, rice, noodles tinned tomatoes, beans etc. I also sometimes buy bacon or chiorzo which can be added to pasta or added to other things.

I tend to cook loads when I'm not working, so I batch cook, portion into boxes then freeze.
That way, it's easier on my work days. So long as I remember to get said boxes out of the freezer before I go to work.😀
Things like chilli, lasagne, spaghetti, shepherds pie, roast chicken - I have a roast on day off, then boil the bones for stock. I freeze the extra chicken and stock in separate boxes for curry , salads, wraps, chicken and bacon pie. Roast beef joint cooked on a day off, cooled, sliced, bagged in meal size servings for the three of us. Heat it up with gravy, easy.
I chop onions in bulk on a day off then bag and freeze. Garlic bulbs get shaken in a glass jar with lid on until they are all separated. Then I freeze them in small jars.
Some days it's great to have eggs, beans and chips in the fryer! 👍🏻😀
When I first left home, I ate a lot of ready meals for a quid each and tinned veg. It was fine, but now I'm older with a family I want to cook how I cook. I would probably think differently if I worked full time though. Especially after a long commute and having to put more than one child to bed......

I do because I am really fast and effective in the kitchen, have run a cafe, I grew up cooking from scratch so didn't know different until I moved out, it is much cheaper (at least here in Canada) ,I find it more filling, I enjoy it, and I get rave reviews, so there's that

I wouldn't say I was wonder woman, if I don't cook from scratch I could potentially kill my son. You get used to it.

Sympathise with everyone battling to cook from fresh. Especially with food problems/picky children.
Just one recipe to offer - serves four - six red peppers, large tomatoes, anchovies, olive oil, garlic. And a good bread or baguette.

Can be pre prepared and for those with oven timers cooked before you get back.

Prep oven tray (I do use silver foil to save time washing up) and oil.
Slice and deseed peppers, lay on tray. Halve tomatoes, tuck into peppers.
Push sliced garlic into tomatoes, ditto anchovies if liked. Cover with olive oil. Cook at 5/6 for 40 minutes. Precooked it just needs to be warmed through.

Ah, possibly not so quick. But delicious.

My meals might take 15 mins on the job but I don't stand there. I put the stuff in the pan and go back into the home office to work. I pop out once or twice to check on it. Then I take and eat it. Very very quick.

Not cover, just put in a couple of good dollops

We cook 'from scratch' (I really don't like that phrase) most days, just simple meals like roast dinners, curries, risottos, soups and stews. They don't take long to prepare and we often make two meals at once, like a bolognaise and a lasagne for the next night. I don't work and we share the cooking so it's not too much of a chore. It'd be a different story if I worked full time.

We do convenience too though, I'll use gravy granules in cottage pie and sometimes use curry paste or a jar of pasta sauce, we freeze soups and sauces for lazy days and we have frozen peas, fish/fishfingers and oven chips in the freezer too.

Do pepole general reheat rice then?

We both work from home and take turns to cook. Almost always from scratch. At the moment we are doing the recipes from Lean in 15 - they are really quick and delicious.
We do end up eating late - around 9 - but that's really because we prioritise other stuff when we get in (supervising homework and supper/bath/ bed for our youngest and I'll usually fit in a workout which I can't do on a full stomach). I don't mind the time I spend cooking. I have the telly on while I do it. I have a sedentary job so I don't have the urge to "put my feet up" in the evening. And the meals are much nicer than processed crap.

Work full time not work from home (well occasionally work from home!)

Do pepole general reheat rice then?

Yes, I never even knew before being on MN that it could be a health issue apparently. I have never suffered from reheated rice, so I am still not bothered.

I cook from scratch almost every night. We do sometimes eat out at the weekend. My DP will mix it up a bit when he cooks. I make use of the slow cooker and we eat at 8.30/9 as we don't have children. At the weekend I spend a lot of time baking or making sauces to use during the week.

We both enjoy cooking and trying new things. We have a glass of wine, put some music on and just chat while we make dinner. We are night owls so don't go to bed till pretty late anyway.

But I appreciate not everyone enjoys cooking or can eat as late as we do. My mum hates cooking and always made whatever was quick and my brother is the same. My MIL has her repertoire of several recipes and just cycles those.

It is whatever works for you and as long as it is fairly healthy most of the time, just do what works.

We do lots from scratch. Meal planning helps as does being aware of busy days vs quieter days. (And I'm currently on Mat leave) So today is a quieter day and I am making a roast dinner. I am making extra mash and veg so tomorrow on our busier day tea can be bubble and squeak and beans with a poached egg on top. Will take 5 minuites to throw together which makes the stressful evening much more manageable!

We do reheat rice. Things like egg fried rice need older rice anyway. I wouldn't reheat rice from a takeaway though.

As a child growing up in the 70s I grew up eating a load of processed food. Finus Crispy Pancakes,

My God, I would love a Minced Beef Findus Crispy Pancake right now...

I never reheat rice. I'd reheat a curry, but make fresh rice with it every time.

I have never suffered from reheated rice, so I am still not bothered.

We reheat rice the whole time - risottos, paellas, stuff like that where we freeze or chill the leftovers for another day.

I do actually get up at 5 to cook for the evening! I'm always knackered after work so it's nice to have something already prepared to look forward to.