Marcus Radford / Tom Kerridge

[Ihatesandwiches]

I like both these guys. Today I followed the links for their inspiring recipes for FSM families. As a confident cook (and with money to spend on food) I was appalled at the recipes. So disappointed.
Yes - the recipes are too complicated
No - the recipes are accessible for most people

I disagree Crackers. I said nothing of the sort about his upbringing.

As I said I really like Tom K and am aware of his life, background, his weight, weight loss, his interest in food generally is varied. And solid.

But. Many of his old recipes I've seen were quite complicated.

I don't know enough about these new ones to comment yet.

www.theguardian.com/food/2021/may/29/easy-tortilla-pizza-creamy-chicken-pie-kettle-omelette-shakshuka-traybake-marcus-rashford-and-tom-kerridge-easy-family-recipes

‘Pizza’ using a tortilla wrap as a base with tomato purée and toppings added.

Chicken pie using cooked chicken, frozen veg, mushrooms and cream of chicken soup with mash on top.

You’ve picked a recipe that’s more complex.

"He’s done some simpler ones specifically for this project"

Ok. Fair enough. These ones are simpler. Good.

Then I retract what I said about TK's old recipes being too complicated. Good. If they've made it simpler for this project.

As you’re a confident cook (and with money to spend on food) can we maybe assume they’re not aimed at you?

Also, from what I’ve seen, they look quick, simple and nutritious. Not complicated or needful of any specialist equipment. And it’s a bit condescending to assume recipients of FSM will be baffled by a kettle omelette.

Have I missed something in the OP’s point?

It's the Instagram that confuses me - I just want a list of the recipes, I don't want teaser videos of cheese toasties... I'm probably a bit old for their target audience though.

The Instagram is mainly for engagement- the recipes are all on their website endchildfoodpoverty.org/full-time-meals where they are laid out in an easy to follow fashion

The Instagram is used to do a "cook along" video every week when a new recipe is released, so that people can see how it is supposed to look at all stages of the process; show pictures to up engagement for current/future recipes; show the ingredients of the upcoming recipes; show viewers making the recipes (as well as Marcus) to encourage people to try them out when they see how easy they are to make etc

@VeganVeal

The recipes are nice but think they are a pair of do-gooders

And doing good is negative why exactly??

The recipes are on the Sainsburys website. They are simple enough for the kids to help with cooking and are supposed to be reasonably cheap and nutritious.

FSM does not equate to lacking comprehension skills.

Wow...

Yes. Campaigning for children to be fed over lockdown. Giving their time to create easy, adaptable recipes that older children can make for themselves. Those utter bastards.

The recipies on IG because they are aimed at young people as in many less well off families parents are young or older siblings are responsible for cooking. MN isn’t the target audience at all. Marcus Rashford kindly arranged sending us posters we could print out to publicise these at our nursery & we have already been told how lifechanging some of these recipes are. We even give or lend our old kitchen equipment (I say old but it’s usually 12-24 months old) to let people practice.

Several of our young mums have made the kettle omelette (it’s the most popular) and are now saving up to buy their own non-stick pans to try the other ones.

ozanj brilliant it’s great to hear how initiatives like this are helping people

Not heard of this but looked at the recipes. I like the look of them.

Mumsnet is the only place where I am sure one day I will see someone call Mother Teresa/Martin Luther King/Nelson Mandela/Emmeline Pankhurst a "do gooder". And whilst Rashford might not yet be on the same level as these people, he is an amazing role model for young people...rather than moaners on mumsnet who like to cry about how their £100k salary isn't enough to live on.

The ones in the guardian look good to me, a lot of frozen, tinned and store cupboard ingredients. I think it's good they're quite interesting rather than super basic which will help get new cooks engaged

The OP must be looking at the wrong recipes. I am a shocking cook, but I could probably handle them. Certainly nothing to be "appalled" by.

I can't/don't cook but these look really good and easy!

Also not sure what people expected
"Lick an apple?"
"Mix rainwater with leaves?"

At least they didn't pick Jamie who used to be the go-to person for this kind of project

As for the comment about them being "do gooders"- a campaign that might make children's lives better is shocking Or do families on low incomes not deserve meals like Chicken Satay and even have fun making it with their kids?

I think part of the reason for the simple recipes is that a lot of people on low income work incredibly hard for that money - maybe physically difficult work, maybe fitting two parents jobs around each other because they can't afford childcare, maybe working two jobs to make ends meet. You don't then want to have to find the mental and physical energy to cook something complicated.

I'm sure a lot of people on low incomes would love the time to cook as a hobby, but that just isn't practical for some families. And if you do cook as a hobby, you wouldn't need these recipes - there are thousands of recipes that you can choose from

@123zyx your post is so patronising. Like you think people on FSM live in a dickensian era.

It would be great if recipes like these where used in schools to help young people have a collection of easy, affordable recipes they can cook.

Agreed that cooking involves a mental load so the companies like M&S who came up with meal plans for the £15 FSM vouchers were being helpful.

The meals look simple enough for a secondary school kid to manage tbh and the instructions don't assume that the person cooking has access to multiple cooking burners (kettle and hot water to make egg noodles)

I'll be giving the chicken satay a go. Looks simple and tasty

[quote bonfireheart]@123zyx your post is so patronising. Like you think people on FSM live in a dickensian era.[/quote]
Are you suggesting there are no minimum wage earning carers, who children are on FSM? I wouldn't have the energy to produce a complex meal after a day of providing care to the elderly.

Are you suggesting there's no families we're both parents work in low paid jobs, so childcare isn't affordable. Where parents pass the children over as one finishes work and the other starts? I wouldn't want to be cooking complex meals in that situation

I'm not suggesting all families with children are in FSM are in that situation, but I bet there's plenty that are

@VeganVeal

The recipes are nice but think they are a pair of do-gooders

And here we have the truth as MN sees it!

Can't have decent, compassionate people trying to help, can we?

And here we have the truth as MN sees it!

No. It’s one poster. Loads have already disagreed.