To ask what food thing have you given up on

[wetcardboard]

For me it's cooking East Asian food at home.

Food columnists are always suggesting stir-fries and noodle soups as easy midweek options but I can never get them to turn out right. That's even when using proper authentic ingredients like imported bonito flakes, mirin, shrimp paste, sesame oil etc. It always turns out too sweet or too salty, too insipid or too intense. Often a combination of dissatisfactions.

I suspect it's not so much about the ingredients but more about the cooking process. To get a really good stir-fry you need a heat higher than a household cooker provides, and for noodle soup you need to be boiling bones for a day or two to get an excellent broth.

After yet another noodle soup tonight which didn't quite hit the mark, I've decided to give up on East Asian cooking and save it for eating out. It feels liberating to throw in the towel. Though I have a bunch of East Asian ingredients and condiments in my cupboards which will probably languish at the back until we move from this flat.

Gravy :( I'm rubbish at making it.

Boiled or steamed vegetables in general. So much time and work for so little gain. Frozen (sorry) or roasted or stir fried or just omitted altogether is how we roll now. The only one I make an exception for is some of the summer veg - asparagus and purple sprouting brocolli, they are worth it because they cook quicker and they are delicious, and terrible tinned or frozen.

Agree about the Hairy Bikers' korma recipe - it's delicious. The curry recipes on the BBC food pages are mostly useless.

I am not very good at Thai cooking but can do some nice Vietnamese stews. All out of the one book though.

Caramel/toffee, it always burns or crystallises...
Fudge - impossible
Small Yorkshire puddings, I can do toad in the hole type ones, but the small ones are always a disaster!

Poached egg rules- freshest eggs possible, never more than 2 days old, dash of white vinegar in the water. Never more than 2 per pan, ideally one and fresh water for any subsequent eggs. Rolling boil and swirl water round to create a whirlpool before breaking egg in. Place on kitchen towel to drain before serving.

Poached eggs I can do. Pork chops on the other hand, always end up with rubbery fat and tough as old boots.

Meringue. Even when I had an Aga I couldn't make them.

Piping/decorating cakes, etc. Particularly galling as my mother is a genius at it - think wedding cakes with sugar craft flowers, frills, etc.

Proper Chinese food. It's just not very nice when I make it. Too greasy/fatty/bland.

Try This Muslim Girl Bakes blog before you give up on home-baked curries.

I swear by her butter chicken, lamb curry and pilau rice recipes. We don't order anything from the local Indian restaurant any more. I prefer to cook big batch and freeze portions.

Poached eggs, in cling film, in a pan of boiling water, 3 minutes.

Poached eggs - I've tried the swirling water method but the white just flies out at all angles and I end up with a solid yolk with a few strings of solidified white attached

Olives. I know they're supposed to be good for you but I just can't like them. In fact, I don't even like olive oil
Same with mushrooms. It would be helpful if I could eat them as I am mostly vegetarian, but just can't get to like them, even though I've followed the theory of trying something 3 times to reset my tastebuds.
Cooking yorkshire puddings. I buy the frozen ready cooked ones and they are much nicer than my homecooked ones.
Making bolognaise sauce for my son. Sainsburys do one in the cook chill department with the meat already in it. Son likes it more than my version, job done.

Pastry, it's too heavy.
Gravy, too thin or burnt tasting.
Shepherds pie, my mum used to make a fab one, mine is just tasteless.

Great at stews, tagines, slow cooked stuff, rice, pasta sauces, salads, soups and a not bad curry....

Pasta, the world's most pointless food x

Pasta is the one food I never order if I eat out. I can boil pasta and chuck a sauce on at home.

Squatbetty never wvwn think about trying it with an egg over 2 days old. And always add vinegar to the water. It will work, I promise you.

Cows milk.
Not by choice.
DS has a severe milk allergy, so it's safer for him as we approach weaning for the whole house to be dairy free. I'm really struggling with cutting cheese out of recipes!!

Cows milk.
Not by choice.
DS has a severe milk allergy, so it's safer for him as we approach weaning for the whole house to be dairy free. I'm really struggling with cutting cheese out of recipes!!

Can I have the MN flapjack recipe please? Condensed milk?
Mine are always too hard.

Eating out - too many food intolerances!
And Yorkshire puddings - bloody pancakes!

Doje don't bother frying the Aubergine, just slice, brush a little oil on either side, put the slices on a baking tray and stick them in the oven until they look cooked enough. I too spent ages frying them off until I learnt this little trick, it makes no difference to the taste, in fact they tend to be less greasy

Poached eggs were my Nemesis however my sister who is a chef taught me the other day:
Egg has to be fresh, boiling water, not to deep, crack egg into a cup, tip in, turn off hob, push down toast, when it pops your egg will be done! No need to spin water it just makes a mess!!

Wiltershins that's what I do to - much easier and leaves the hob clear for cooking tomato sauce of whatever.

GeillisTheWitch said:
Mashed potatoes.

Buy a potato ricer. It's like a big garlic press for potatoes.

My mash was rubbish, lumpy and cold. Now it's excellent - even the fussy DCs have said so.

Can't do stir frys, however. Roasts is just practice, you kind of get to know when to put everything on.

I do poached eggs in cling film too, it's foolproof.

White sauce I think the trick is to only add a tiny bit of milk at a time to the roux and once it's all absorbed add more, and stir constantly. Never had mine go lumpy or separate.

Rice has always been my nemesis, can't do it on the hob to save my life, even manage to have it stick to the bottom of my rice cooker sometimes.
Been microwaving it lately and had much better results.

Right thehousewife once I put my boy down for a snooze I'm going to put that to the test. Love a poached egg, mine always come out crappy

OK so my white sauce method is milk + cornflour. Clearly I am missing something.
I love roast dinners, but have to agree with many others that my Yorkshire puds are terrible. I've cracked getting the little sods to rise, but they don't get that dish in the middle and are often soggy underneath.
Bletch.
My gravy work well though. I pulp down a small potato and a small.yam in a food processor and put that with some hot water and a good quality stock cube under the meat.
When its nearer the time I fry up an onion till quite dark and add a tablespoon of flour which I mix well. Then I add the liquid under the meat when the joint is nearly ready and cook for a bit if the veg isn't ready, though usually it is.
Then I blend it.
Its a bit of a faff, but nicer than instant!
I'm also crap at meringues. My oven is always a bit too warm.

Toad in the hole and mashed potatoes. I buy ready made mash now. Instead of toad in the hole I cook the sausages and yorkshires separately.