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! -

Jacket potatoes can be done quicker if you pierce them and microwave for 10-12 minutes and then chuck in preheated oven for 20 minutes to crisp up if salt scattered on top

To a point ohlavache I agree with you but I wouldn't say I have skills LOL.

Most days I do cook fron scratch..but we do have maybe one or 2 cheat days.
I always have pizza or hotdogs..or something like that sat in the freezer for days when perhaps the routine is messed up and a quick easystem meal is needed.
I have a slow cooker so I use that a lot..for stews, soups very easy to make from scratch, casseroles, spaghetti bol even a joint of beef or meat can be cooked in a slow cooker.
Sheppards pie is very quick and simple..minimal time to prepare and cook.
Salads with sweet potatoes wedges or a jacket spud.
I have recently also bought a breadmaker maker and I now bake my own bread too..fills the house with a delicious smell and tastes fab with left over stew or soup.
I used to work full time and still managed 5 out of 7 days cooking meals. Now I have more time I make all our cakes, flapjacks and treats too. You would be surprised how much can be saved by doing so.
But tbh we are all hard working parents and we should all be allowed a day off from cooking now and then.
I do enjoy cooking and baking too so I think it depends on whether you enjoy it or not. I certainly don't judge people on whether they do or don't.

OP its really not that difficult, my homemade meals (can't bring myself to say 'from scratch' because it just cooking without opening a packet) take no more than 20 mins. Challenge yourself on your next shop to buy fresh foods and not packets and try using them without jars/packets. You'll find that it's not that difficult, cheaper, not that time consuming and a million times better for your family's health.

Google Quick and Easy recipes and don't worry if you don't have exactly the right ingredients, substitute and play around.

You say that it takes up part of your evening but its an enjoyable one, in my house I have the kids around kitchen table doing homework, or chatting, or have the TV/music/radio on while we cook (often together).

We need to install this into our kids too, encourage them to use fresh foods full of nutrients and not rely on packets and jars. In European countries such as Italy and France it's practically unheard of to use jars and packets and parents work there too.

We have an instant pot electric pressure cooker. Sunday night I browned sausages in it while preparing everything else. I chopped onions, carrots, courgettes and then added tinned tomatoes, baby potatoes in their skins, a couple of garlic cloves, some dried mushrooms, herbs, S&P, some left-over wine and tomato puree. Then I rinsed the cans out with some water and added that. Turned it on, walked away and it was ready and still warm when we wanted to eat.

Yesterday DH took the left overs, added stock, beans, another onion and some more tomatoes and turned it on again. It was ready when I brought DS back from his activity.

Easy peasy.

Me! Though I am more a knackered woman than a Wonder Woman. Single parent since DS was born, no money from ex, cooking from scratch is cheaper and I find cooking very therapeutic as its so different from the full time day job. DS now 15 eats anything. No regrets 👍👍🙂

I think it is easier if you are a SAHP to cook from scratch (unless your super organised!!). When I was working full time getting in at 6 most nights the last thing I wanted was to be slaving away, however now im on Mat leave I do find it no bother cooking from scratch as im not tired after a long work day. I return to work next month and have decided to do batch cooking / freezer dump bags to make my life a little easier as I don't think I will be cooking anything in the evening after a long day and 3 kids to get fed and to bed

I do because I'm a sahm no way could I be bothered if I Was working full time. I also tend to double up and freeze half so I'm only really cooking every other day.

I think you are all great cooking such good meals. I've never bought one of those packet microwave dinners. But we had sausages tonight which I bought, chips were chopped potatoes cooked in the aga,, eggs and baked beans for 3 of us and tinned spaghetti for the 2 who won't eat beans. So I suppose the tinned stuff could be classed as ready meals. Lots of recipes above I couldn't get my fussy lot to eat. OH won't eat onion, garlic or pasta. (He will tolerate well cooked onion) 2 children don't eat potato apart from the hollow fries. One child doesn't eat any meat, fish or vegetables (he'll eat sweet corn, cucumber and pepper) so cooking from scratch becomes a nightmare. I find it really hard to find meals everyone will eat. We have pizza once a month. A bought one. Which is quite unhealthy. I make a curry once a week, sometimes from scratch, sometimes with a jar of sauce if we are home late. My youngest has chicken nuggets and rice. Very unhealthy. But he won't eat curry or the chicken from the curry before adding the sauce. I make spaghetti bolognese mostly from scratch with tinned tomatoes. Youngest just has pasta and OH has a jacket potato as he hates pasta. I also make chilli but youngest won't eat it. I make a beef stew too, again youngest eats none of it, the other 2 children don't eat the veg coooked in gravy. So in general meals time are quite stressful to me. I find it so hard to cook varied, healthy meals.

It doesn't have to take ages! Of course it can do but I've done cod with rice and tomato/red pepper sauce, mushroom and kale buckwheat kasha, this week so far, easy and quick. Did cock-a-leekie chicken over the weekend - that took some time.

I cook from scratch at it happened by accident tbh. I didn't make a decision about it but my family don't like food from jars or the freezer except the occasional pizza. I do find it a chore some days but dishing up the meal is quite a reward. I struggle if they rush though the food and it has taken a long time to prepare. But otherwise it feels the same as washing and hoovering and it doesn't bother me.

I use the slow cooker (5 mins prep in the mornings) or sub 20 mins early evening cooking (stir fry, pasta, soup, meat and veg, steamed fish, risotto etc). I also use the freezer, so I batch cook sauces (tomato and veggie pasta sauce, curry sauce base etc) and I chop (in magimix) and freeze onions, carrots and celery so I can just chuck them in a pan or slow cooker from the freezer. I also make stock every time I have bones and freeze it. I roast extra veg whenever the oven is on - e.g butternut squash, sweet potatoes, aubergine, courgettes, onions or whatever I have etc. and keep them in the fridge.

So if I want to make a curry on a tuesday, I chuck some pre cut frozen onions in one pan, a block of frozen curry base in another to defrost. Them I'll add pre cut chicken (I know it costs more that cutting but saves time and washing up) and when it's browned the sauce has defrosted, so that goes in the pan followed by some pre roasted butternut squash and a handful of spinach. Less than 20 mins.

Or onions, pre cooked veg and frozen stock, chicken in pan and blended - soup in 15 mins

I spend 4-5 hours in total cooking each week and apart from baked beans, fish fingers, sausages, cheese, breakfast cereal, bread and crackers we don't regularly eat any processed food. Obviously do on crazy weeks / special occasions / when I eat a whole packet of chocolate hobnobs

I used to use a lot of jars of sauces but got concerned about sugar and salt content and price and taste, and I think I've got a good balance now

I'm shocked that very few people have said their DH/DP cooks for the family. I'm a SAHM and my DH cooks mainly from scratch most evenings its usually 50:50 but I'm usually busy bf our newborn. Meals from scratch don't take long usually 15-20 mins prep and 15-30 mins cooking. Is that a long time nowadays? I've gone off ready meals and jars they taste too salty/sugary or give you a nasty after taste. I used to use them more often, before I had children.

I cook from scratch most days although some meals have leftovers which I freeze for another day. The kids have hot meal at school so they have tea at home (I mean cold; sarnies and the like). Generally use ready made pastes for curry but other than that I get through a lot of tinned tomatoes (pasta, risotto, chilli, tagine, Thai, paella...all fairly simple stuff)!!!

we cook from scratch every day, BUT (biiiiiig but!) the kdis have hot dinners at school, so only need a snacky tea, which they have a 5.30ish (or at chidminder/afterschool club when I'm working day shifts. So it's only H and I that need a cooked evening meal, and he does almost all the cooking, while I'm clearing up the detritus of the kids evening.

Tonight it's fish in a tomato/herb/sauce
Yesterday I made chicken pie (bastardised the jamie o turkey/leek recipe)
Tomorrow stir fry

I batch cook bolognese/chilli/chicken casserole, so there's al;ways some of that in the freezer for busy nights.

I'm no wonder woman but I (and dh) do 'cook form scratch' about 98% of the time. I suspect if you're used to it and therefore have the skills it's less of a chore and much quicker. Because I've done it 1000's of times I have a whole range of things that I know how to prepare/cooking methods I know and I'm fairly quick at chopping/assembling. We also meal plan- not exactly to the day, but we know what meals are in for the week and make sure there are one or two dead quick and easy ones every week. We eat a fair amount of Asian inspired food (super quick) as well as more trad stuff and are interested in food, recipes etc... I'm fairly sure it's cheaper and healthier but it's just been habit really....

What do people eat who don't cook from scratch? My mum, who is 80 and lives on her own, tends to shop in M&S for ready meals so she can have something different every day. She still shops every day, but can't see the point of messing up the kitchen and then having to clear up for just herself which I can totally understand. I can't understand anyone with a family operating like that though - it would be so expensive for a start! I always cook from scratch and am teaching my kids to do the same - I hadn't even thought about it to be honest until I saw this thread. The closest I come to a ready meal is taking something out the freezer that I've frozen myself - I really don't think it's a big deal. I'm very lucky in that we have a fab greengrocer literally on the doorstep so as long as I keep stocked up with rice and pasta and pick up some meat (though that can be optional) I can always rustle something up.

I can't imagine doing anything else - and I've always worked full time. I cook double at the weekend and freeze some, use the oven timer during the week for baked potatoes, roast chicken etc. Pasta or rice and stir fry take about 30 minutes from scratch. Its the same amount of time as messing about with prepared meals - all that microwaving and turning and timing - ugh.
But I like cooking when I get home - it's how I relax. If it's not for you - so what.

Tonight I've made a cauliflower and broccoli gratin, some wedges and we are having steak with it. Can't flipping wait! (Plus a nice cold glass of Sauvignon Blanc)

Carlsberg don't do Tuesdays, but if they did...

Have been up to my elbows sorting out the nursery so don't even feel guilty

Invest in a new slow cooker. Throw it in in the morning or evening, et voila!

Knowing a few women who do this all the time, I think the enjoyment of cooking helps. Not always, or not at all in my case as I would much rather bake cakes

I get in from work at 5.45 and aim to have tea on the table by 6.15ish, so its a combination of slow cooker, batch cooking (no extra work just cooking with double the ingredients), so a couple of days a week its just a case of reheating something from the freezer and getting a handful of recipes together that I can cook in 20-30 mins, eg. fried rice, stir fry with noodles, sausage, mash and veg, pesto pasta. I got tips from Jamie Oliver's 'meals in 30 minutes' book like boiling the kettle as opposed to waiting ages for a pan of cold water to come to the boil.
Once you've done it for a few weeks it becomes easier and definitely plan each week ahead so you know you have the ingredients in and no faffing deciding what to have when you get in from work.

I'm a stay at home mum of 3 and try to cook as much as possible from scratch. And I'll be honest, there are days when it gets to the evening meal time and I'm like...sod it! Who wants beans on toast? Even before I went on mat leave for a second time (I had a 2 year old and was expecting my twins), I cooked from scratch after working a 8-10 hour day every day (my husband was a stay at home dad). And I'll be honest it's made me hate cooking. Cooking used to be a passion of mine. Now it just feels like work and I don't enjoy my meals anymore. :(

DH and I work full time, and have on call commitments/weekends but I enjoy cooking and like to eat well so prioritise it. Have lots of repeat meals/batches in freezer/some quick things so don't spend hours at it.