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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

in thinking sainsburys did not explain properly re xmas beef?

179 replies

kitchensrus · 29/12/2021 22:03

I spent over £20 on a 30 days matured taste the difference beef joint for xmas day from sainsburys. My guests in their 80s had not eaten outside their home since pre covid so i wanted it to be nice and they preferred this to turkey.

There was no mention of any cooking instructions on the outer packaging. When i opened it on xmas day i found it had to be cooked in liquid and was not the roast I expected. Googling silverside i can see that all silverside is recommended to be cooked this way otherwise it is tough but i had no idea. All the silverside joints were mixed in the cabinet with rump joints as each was individually priced. I never even considered there would be a difference and as it was such an expensive joint I just presumed it was a a traditional roast. It was labelled "British beef silverside joint".

AIBU to think Sainsburys should have explained this on the packaging as surely I am not the only person who doesnt know this. I wouldnt normally have beef except for the visitors.

OP posts:
Immaculatemisconception · 29/12/2021 23:19

Sainsburys cooking instructions are pretty useless, I would never trust them. I bought swordfish from them and they said to grill it for 20 minutes each side. 😂😂😂

Silverside is lovely done as a long slow roast with stock, onions and garlic.

My advice is to refer to a cookery blog or book.

Mickarooni · 29/12/2021 23:20

YANBU to not know how to cook silverside but it’s not Sainsbury’s fault either! I appreciate you are disappointed about you meal, sounds like you wanted it to be special. For future reference, I google when cooking a new or important meal. I’ve made turkey many times but I still like to look online to make sure I’ve covered all my bases. :) Hopefully you enjoyed all the trimmings!

gofg · 29/12/2021 23:29

Sorry OP, but it was labelled silverside. It's not up to the suppliers to make sure everyone knows how to cook each type of meat. Maybe buy from a butcher next time and ask for advice.

I am one of the world's most hopeless cooks, but I've known how silverside is cooked since I was a child.

TicTacHoh · 29/12/2021 23:32

YABU - £20 is a cheap price for beef roast, the cheaper cuts need longer cooking and attention

Spectre8 · 29/12/2021 23:33

OP I actually understadn your point. I don't eat beef but happy to cook it for others, because of this I am not so knowledgeable on it and like you would have at least expected on the packaging on the front to have some clear cooking instructions instead of it being inside. Most do provide cooking instructions you can read on the outer packaging.

I would of been like you in sainsburys picking up the beef joint not knowing what silverside meant etc. Sometimes we don't have time to get to a butchers either and its easy to do a shop in one place.

I think you were so set on roasting the meat traditionally in an oven, thats why you ignored the instruction of cooking it in liquid. Ah well its happened now.

NowEvenBetter · 29/12/2021 23:37

So you eventually found the cooking instructions, read them, understood the words, completely disregarded them , covered the chunk of meat in fat, roasted it and are fuming at the retailer for it being tough and inedible???
And now made a thread about your blunder, still blaming the seller?

Leftleg · 29/12/2021 23:41

I've made this mistake too, luckily not for Christmas dinner though. I had previously bought the rump which I roasted and it was very nice. The package actually had the roasting time on the front. The following week the Silverside was on offer so I bought that and realised my error when I got home and peeled back the cooking instructions. If it had said for slow cooking or braising on the front I'd have not bought it. In the end I cooked it as per the instructions, it was OK but I wouldn't buy it again now I know. Some joints like brisket do often state for slow cooking on the packaging so YANBU.

iklboo · 29/12/2021 23:41

And now made a thread about your blunder, still blaming the seller?

I'd blame the cow for being too hard.

TonytheDog · 29/12/2021 23:42

Do you expect cooking instructions on carrots? Mushrooms? Potatoes? Swede?

Spectre8 · 29/12/2021 23:43

Its not unreasonable to expect cooking instructions to be on the front of the packaging or even on the back of it where you can read it easily. Shouldn't have to peel labels back or it be inside once you opened it up.

iklboo · 29/12/2021 23:44

Its not unreasonable to expect cooking instructions to be on the front of the packaging or even on the back of it where you can read it easily. Shouldn't have to peel labels back or it be inside once you opened it up.

But OP did read the instructions & chose to ignore them.

Pensieve · 29/12/2021 23:46

Sorry don’t think it’s Sainsbo’s fault you don’t know ‘beef’ is a generic term for anything from mince to fillet steak. Appreciate you don’t cook it a lot so don’t know all the cuts but Sainsbo’s aren’t responsible for people who don’t know how to cook an aubergine or butternut squash for example. Sorry but YABU.

Spectre8 · 29/12/2021 23:52

@iklboo

Its not unreasonable to expect cooking instructions to be on the front of the packaging or even on the back of it where you can read it easily. Shouldn't have to peel labels back or it be inside once you opened it up.

But OP did read the instructions & chose to ignore them.

When you buy it!!! whats so hard to get OP is referring to how when she normally buys food the majoirty have instructions or cooking info clearly labelled on the outside of the packaging whether its right there on the front or on the back.

She isnt complaining about when you get it home and then not following the instructions inside.

Her thread is about having an expectation to make that information clearer on the outside of the packaging because most of what she buys from there does.

At least I read her post properly. Not just ignored the whole point and just focus on the fact she didn't follow the instructions after she opened it and read them, she isn't complaining about that bit!

Shesh.

waterrat · 29/12/2021 23:56

20 pounds is not a lot to pay for feeding meat to several people

HazelBite · 29/12/2021 23:59

I think that the fact you were only paying around £20 should have told you that it wasn't the best cut of beef, especially if it was mixed in with other cuts,( It is quite easy to pay nearly £70 for a really good piece of beef fillet (around 2kg))
If you don't normally cook a particular meat it is best to go to a butcher for advice.

CMZ2018 · 30/12/2021 00:02

It doesn’t have cooking instructions on carrots either

VodselForDinner · 30/12/2021 00:02

OP: AIBU to be upset that Sainsbury’s didn’t give me explicit cooking instructions for the meat I bought?

Vast majority of posters: Yes! YABU.

OP: Well I am not being unreasonable! Elderly people!! Cabinets!!!! Nuts!!!!!!
Also, I read the instructions and ignored them so I’m definitely not being unreasonable.

TedMullins · 30/12/2021 00:10

awwwI’m on your side OP I had no idea about this until I read this thread. I would’ve assumed all joints of meat could be roasted the same way. But, I am a vegetarian and I’ve never cooked a roast in my life

WiddlinDiddlin · 30/12/2021 04:56

Honestly your further info makes this worse not better..

Surely you can grasp that 900ml of stock in the bottom of a roasting pan with some root veg/garlic, meat sat on top is hardly boiling the bloody thing, its still a roast, just with added liquid to keep it moist!

MrsFizziwig · 30/12/2021 05:48

I just wanted xmas dinner to be perfect for an elderly couple in their 80s

In my experience, people of this age prefer a pot roast as it basically falls apart when cooked so is easy to chew.
And yes, as pp said a pot roast is still a "roast"!

sashh · 30/12/2021 06:16

So you bought a piece of meat to roast and then when you got home you realised it wasn't what you thought and had different cooking instructions.

So you had a choice of:

a) return the meat and buy another joint

b) follow the instructions on how to cook this particular unfamiliar cut

c) ignore the instructions and cook it the way you would the meat you thought you'd bought

You went for c and that's Sainsbury's fault?

RingBinderInjury · 30/12/2021 06:42

@OhLittleBoreOfWhabylon

I don't think it's unreasonable that they print something like "For slow-cooking/braising" on the outside of the pack. Not everyone knows these things.
Agree with this.

Bunch of meat-cut wankers on this thread.

StrangerThanSpring · 30/12/2021 06:52

I get it. The OP just would have liked the words "Braising joint" on the front for clarity.

Oh, well, it's a shame but hopefully you can cook something lively for them next time.

StrangerThanSpring · 30/12/2021 06:53

Lively? Or perhaps lovely.

BarkminsterBlue · 30/12/2021 07:50

@StrangerThanSpring

I get it. The OP just would have liked the words "Braising joint" on the front for clarity.

Oh, well, it's a shame but hopefully you can cook something lively for them next time.

But that would be wrong. You can roast silverside. It isn’t a braising cut like shin or blade.
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