To ask the most useless "convenience" food you've ever purchased

[EveryDayIsADuvetDay]

I recently added oven chips to an online shop, not realising they weren't pre-coated with oil.
Given that I prefer skin-on fries why do they always cost more? I'd effectively bought a bag of expensive sliced up potato.
On the plus side, it has made me realise that buying oven chips is a total waste of time, particularly as I have very limited freezer space.
What's the daftest "convenience" food have you purchased before realising it's a total waste of money?

I do make my own soup but I love the own brand tomato soup. Less than 30p a can good for a cupboard treat.

Campbell's condensed mushroom soup is great, but I use it (cheat)in pies and pasta dishes.
Peanut butter with jam in a jar!

"It's so easy just chuck everything in a pan except meat boil, blitz with wand blender done."

Oh no, it's not so easy. You have to shop for all the stuff, chop and possibly peel them, cook it for ages, either use a stick blender that gets really messy or a separate blender that's difficult to clean and then not that much cheaper after all that.
If you look at the ingredients of some tinned soups, they're very healthy.

Plus tinned keep in my cupboard for ages

Soup takes 20min.
Peel an onion chop and fry in tiny bit of oil. In big pan add peeled potatoes, carrots, celery all chopped small. Add stock cube and enough water to cover. Once onion brown add bit of stock water swish round and add to pan of veg. Basic soup mix! Now add what you want, mushrooms for mushroom soup, leek for leek and potato. Add chilli for heat.
Spicy Pumpkin soup is nice. Fry curry powder with onion. Yes takes time but worth the effort and good if you want to loose weight

Blent soup with stick blender, easy to clean just blend hot water after use.

@Ddot

Soup takes 20min. Peel an onion chop and fry in tiny bit of oil. In big pan add peeled potatoes, carrots, celery all chopped small. Add stock cube and enough water to cover. Once onion brown add bit of stock water swish round and add to pan of veg. Basic soup mix! Now add what you want, mushrooms for mushroom soup, leek for leek and potato. Add chilli for heat. Spicy Pumpkin soup is nice. Fry curry powder with onion. Yes takes time but worth the effort and good if you want to loose weight

Yes, or open tin/packet, pour into bowl and put in the microwave for 3 minutes. What you've described would take me more than 20 minutes, plus you haven't counted the shopping time, washing the dishes, cleaning the kitchen area, etc. A packet or can is clearly more convenient.

@FedNlanders

Plus tinned keep in my cupboard for ages

Yes, if I make my own I have to have it every day until it's gone. Boring.

@BarbaraofSeville

How would a soup maker make soup that's massively nicer than the same ingredients and process with a pan and a blender? Genuine question.

I understand how it's easier because you don't have to prepare the veg, stir, watch it so it doesn't burn or do the blending yourself, but I don't understand how it can be different that the machine does the saute, simmer, blend process instead of a person?

That's what I thought until I tasted soup made in a soup maker. There's something about the way it blends that makes it really smooth.

Really don't see the point of oven chips either - I just chop a potato up, so much nicer (i don't peel, hardly peel any veg, don't see the point and skin on chips way more delicious!)

Miracle whip.
A friend brought a dessert over , and a tub of miracle whip. I expected it to taste a bit like whipped cream, but no. My mouth was having trouble registering the stuff as food. It sort of dissolved as well. It was disgusting and can never replace real whipped cream!

Elmlea....what’s the point?

@MaryIsA

Elmlea....what’s the point?

Exactly. I've never knowingly had it, but I'd be astonished if it tasted anything like real cream, looking at the ingredients. And, looking at the ingredients, just why would you?

The worst thing is that some people think that it's the branded version of cream, so they're actually buying a better product than if they bought supermarket own brand proper cream, like Heinz instead of Asda for example. .

People say it lasts longer than real cream, but in my experience, fresh cream is good for at least a week or two after the use by date, even if it is opened, so that's not much of an incentive anyway.

Chopped garlic in vinegar. Doesn't have any garlicky taste left but adds a strong vinegar aroma. Mine had bren lingering in the fridge for months, and I usually get through a metric ton of garlic a month, and am somewhat lazy.

You want frozen garlic instead. If your supermarket stocks the Asian brands, you can get about 400 g for £1, so much cheaper than fresh garlic and all prepared and crushed into ice cube sized amounts. Just defrost at room temperature for an hour or two, or carefully in microwave.

@BarbaraofSeville

You want frozen garlic instead. If your supermarket stocks the Asian brands, you can get about 400 g for £1, so much cheaper than fresh garlic and all prepared and crushed into ice cube sized amounts. Just defrost at room temperature for an hour or two, or carefully in microwave.

I do buy (and like) frozen garlic actually, but DH thought it would be an interesting substitute. He's now been instructed not to get any more.

The vinegar cooks off but I find it doesn't cook off quick enough before the garlic burns if you're adding it to eg stir fried veg. It's great for roasting though eg Parmentier potatoes - just stir it through the spuds with the oil. Agree that frozen garlic is more versatile though. You can also get frozen ginger, lime leaves and lemongrass, plus co op does frozen fresh herbs that ok are no good for salads but are great for soups and stews.

Good suggestion - i fancy something roasted now :-)

@longwayoff

Single portion spaghetti? Isn't that a pot noodle?

It was sort of mini-fusilli shaped what is the difference between noodles and pasta? I don't really eat much of either, hadn't really thought about it.

Aerosol fresh cream,
Love it, coffee, puds or just straight in my gob. Normal cream goes off too quick so I eat too much.
Tinned custard is grim

@EmmaGrundyForPM

Because if I do it in a pan the rice all sticks to the bottom and sides of the pan and then is a pain to clean off as well as a waste of rice. In my microwave rice cooker it's perfectly done, and we can eat every grain because nothing is stuck to the pan. We barely need to wash it afterwards, just rinse.

I buy the microwave rice pouches - loads of choice and a couple of minutes from packet to plate.

With the ready made jacket potatoes they gave been part cooked so u get more of a crispy skin (its not totally crispy but more like a regular jacket potato done in the oven ). These were good on Slimming World you see.

Have*

Sticky rice that's hard to clean off the pan? Utube some correct techniques, that's ridiculous.