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! -

No wonder you don't have time to cook if a chili takes 2 hours

I cook from scratch, as does DH, but our chili would take about 30 mins to cook. Weekdays we make pasta, risotto, sausage and mash, stir frys etc. they are all quick to make.

We also always make enough for 2 meals so the second portion would either go in the fridge and be eaten later in the week, or go in the freezer and be taken out on a can't-be-arsed-to-cook night, so we rarely cook every night during the week. Things that take longer to cook like roasts, stews or curries are done on weekends.

Still, we really don't spend all evening cooking. Stuff goes in the pan and then we put on the timer and sit down in front of the telly or play games with DD etc. when the timer goes off we dish up and eat. I rarely do meals that need watching, how boring

Can the people who are saying they batch cook and never used sauces, advise if they work, and if it is long hours?

I am just trying to work out how I can utilize my time better, and if other people are coming home at 7pm each night, how they are managing to get everything in before going to bed two hours later

See if I make a curry, I use the curry paste. The everything else is fresh.
I'm sure it doesn't take me more time to prepare it than you. Certainly not 1h30.

A pie is a weekend stuff in my house because yes it does take time. The time to cook the meat and then 20~30 mins in the oven for the pastry to cook.

But a stir fry, a sweet and sour, a curry all take 20~30 mins max.

You issue is that you need to widen your recipe repertoire to include easy and quicker recipe for the week.
Plus learn to freeze a lot of things. We do our own onion gravy. It's something that takes a lot of time so it's done at the weekend as a big batch and then frozen. Warming it up takes 10 mins at most.

We cook from scratch every day, we have no choice as DH is allergic to just about everything. It really doesn't take long, it's just a habit now.

Our staples:

Slow cooker chicken with salad
Risotto made with rice or pearl barley
Bolognaise (can bung in slow cooker) with rice/potato/pasta
Stir fry
Vietnamese spring rolls

Most of the effort is just chopping, and being organised - making sure we have all the ingredients. It really doesn't take that long though.

I think it's quite easy and cook from scratch for probably 70% of the week. Things like spag bol really don't take that much time and enjoy chopping everything up. Once it's in the pan, I just leave it to simmer for half an hour and then put some spaghetti on for ten minutes. Easy peasy.

Ditto chillis, curries, etc. It's all pretty easy (chop it up, chuck it in) and once you've bought the spices, herbs, etc. they last ages so each meal works out cheaper than ready made, or at least that's what I tell myself. I always keep a stock of tins of chopped tomatoes, kidney beans, fresh peppers and garlic cloves, frozen chicken breast and beef mince. With those and a well stocked spice/ herb rack, you can do a lot of different meals.

MissDallas - could you give me a time line of your typical evening?

I am interested as , with coming in at 7pm, you have a similar routine to me

I've always cooked from scratch even when I was single and working 12 guess a day.

I don't cook anything that takes ages or is complicated. Batch cook and freeze stuff.

I can't afford not to cook tbh.

What's the issue OP?

Either you like cooking and want to cook from scratch or you find decent relatively healthy alternatives. Don't worry about what others eat.

There are 15 minute meals in Jamie Oliver's books.

We batch cook as in we never cook for a single portion but for two.
Same with the slow cooker (I put one to go this am, it took me 15mins to put it altogether).

Yes we both work. No one at home until 6.00pm. Food is on the table for everyone by 6.30pm.

Sauces... do you use so many different type of sauces??

If we have a bolognaise, chilli, curry or similar, I make double the quantity and freeze the rest. That way we have at least 2 nights a week eating 'magic dinners' from the freezer. Then one day we'll just have a simple pasta dish that takes 10 minutes, so it's not like you have to be chained to the stove.

Geordie I leave the house at latest 7:30am and arrive home at very earliest 6pm Ish (often later). I have a long commute and usually log back in in the evening to do more work.

I do about 55-60 hrs work a week.

MGFM, for fajitas, all you need to replace the packets are garlic (powdered or real, crushed), paprika, chilli powder, cumin, coriander and oregano. And Salt and pepper.

I work part time. If I was home at 7pm I would either have leftovers or something I previously batch cooked from the freezer or something especially quick to cook, that would take 30 mins from start to eating it! Nothing that would involve mince and 2 h cooking!

I find that interesting the train of thought that goes ''There are 15 minute meals in Jamie Oliver's books.'' as that time does not include shopping, prep or tidying away.

I cook things at weekends and freeze them. But also cook from scratch in the evenings. Cooking from scratch in the evenings means eating simpler food. Bit of fish, potatoes and veg. Chicken breast and veg, or simple mushroom and tomato sauce home made with pasta. No you can't cook complicated meals from scratch if you get home from work. But cooking simpler things from scratch takes as long as putting a ready made meal in the oven.

I cook from scratch most days, sometimes twice (lunch as well as dinner happens in our household - there were six mouths to feed at lunch today). It is time consuming - not just the cooking, but the planning, shopping and the constraints that being at home at meal times confer. However, I do very much enjoy the conversation - there are lots of different configurations of people at meals in our home - and I really prefer home made food.

How do you cope AmeliaJack are u cooking each evening? sorry to be nosey

I cook from scratch daily, obviously we occasionally have takeaways/eat out/ dine in m&s. but the majority if time we cook from scratch, either me or oh. We like healthy, nutritious food that we know what's in it, buy locally where possible, and just try to be organised. Often we cook double if something so it does 2 nights a week, or do simple food like pasta/risotto/roast veg/salads that don't take too long.

I think maybe it is down to the fact that my upbringing was like this (although my mum was a sahm) so it is just normal to me, and I helped with cooking and learned how to cook from a young age. It also really helps that I love cooking, enjoy it, and find it a good way to unwind after a hard day. It also helps that oh cooks too, so if one of us is tired the other will cook, or we'll often make something together.

Geordie...

Pasta sauce - that's just Passata, herbs, garlic.

Stir Fry packet- garlic, ginger, soy.

Dhal packet - turmeric, cumin seeds, chilli, garlic, onion.

If it is a time issue buy pre chopped veg and make your own sauce, but it really is a matter of 1-2 mins to replace a sauce with your own stuff.

I mostly cook from scratch (breaded fish fillets/fish balls/hot wings/the pre-cooked ribs you just need to heat up are meals for days I can't be arsed to cook/too busy/too ill), doesn't usually take too long.

For instance yesterday I roasted a chicken - 5 mins to prep it and stick in oven, then a couple of minutes to bung some veggies in the steamer.

Today I'm going to make pasta salad with the leftover chicken - just boil pasta and then I'll mix it with mayo, creme fraiche, bbq sauce and chopped tomatoes and red onion.

Chicken and rice is a common dish - fry chicken strips, add some herbs/garlic and cream and serve with rice. Similar with pork strips although they take longer.

OH has his specialities too, like macaroni casserole or meatballs/meat patties and mashed potato (he makes the meatballs/patties himself, doesn't take long)

I save time on a lot of days by just cooking extra veggies instead of veggies and a carb to go with the protein, can always have a piece of toast afterwards if still hungry.

It's all in the context. Tonight I'm cooking " from scratch" sausage, mash and veg. I'm not making my own sausages (Mr nice butcher down the road did it). I'm not even using frozen mash but homemade (for a change). The whole meal takes 30 minutes to cook and serve. I will cheat though and use gravy granules. In fact, I think I'll head off tp peel the spuds and carrots in a minute.

I don't cook from scratch as my mum would, for her it was out of habit since she grew up in a country where supermarkets weren't really around and you'd have to buy everything from little shops, ready made food just didn't exist - when we were kids chips were a treat because of the amount of time it took washing, peeling chopping and frying.

I don't buy ready meals so I cook the food and that's enough scratching for me, I need time to relax in the evenings too! I buy frozen prepped veg - chopped onions is a must in this house, I use tinned/chopped tomatoes for most sauces and just season them, most of my meals take 30 mins or make - they can then cook for as long it needs as long I don't have to be in the kitchen.

If you see my earlier post Geordie I have a slow cooker and make double batches of everything so that we eat one batch and freeze a batch.

I also have a number of quick meals up my sleeve for other nights.

I love my slow cooker.

We do a meal plan on Saturdays, write down what we need for each meal and shop accordingly. We spend £30-40 a week in Aldi to feed 2 adults - that includes meat and wine. It takes 15-20 minutes to prep meal every evening and maybe some time in the oven. Average week might include;

Cottage pie
Lasagne
Spag Bol
Fajitas
Salmon and veg
Stew
Jacket spuds with pulled pork
Steak and salad

Geordie. Well you always have to clean up and shop.

I believe the prep is part of the fifteen minutes.

why would anyone think it take longer to buy fresh vegetables than a few packs of ready meals?

I have never felt virtuous about cooking, I have to eat, so it's a chore like any other. Not worth fretting about really.