Is your family is snobby when it comes to homemade dishes

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My in laws are very snobby when it comes to homemade food.

When I say snobby they wouldn’t judge a single mum relying on something pre made for example but when it comes to the stuff they eat they massively favour homemade stuff. I just find it amusing tbh! They all get VERY excited when someone brings over homemade bread and desserts. Wanting to know what recipe/method you chose. All birthday cakes are homemade. I swear a cake from Tesco would sit completely unopened in the fridge.

There is one vegetarian family member and my sister in law is going to make an entire veggie wellington just for him. I suggested just getting something from M&S and she completely baulked at the very idea. Tbf everyone is a good cook.

It definitely stems from MIL. Who grows her own food, makes chutneys etc. They would never dream of shoving in an Indian selection from Waitrose as starters like my family doesx

I just find it fascinating tbh.

Anyone else have family like this? Even croissants are homemade!

I wouldn’t say i was snobby about it but I do prefer homemade and I’m really grateful when others do to the trouble of making homemade food.

it taste better and it’s healthier

Make their own croissants?! 🥐 Unless M/FIL are a boulanger/e from Normandy, their homemade efforts simply will not match a decent bakery bought pastry! NEVER had a homemade croissant which is anywhere near Gail’s, for example. Life’s too short imo 🤷‍♀️ (I cook a lot from scratch and known to be a very decent home cook btw!)

It surely depends on how they approach it.
"We love cooking and prefer homemade stuff" is fine.

"Oh look at those poor children who are in a café having unhealthy food and shop bought cakes. Aren't you so thankful you have parents who care about you and have bought a packed lunch" is not.
Actually all it made me do is long to be like the children in the café, and hate pack meals. However I don't think my parents did it from snobbery; I think it was simply financial and they were trying to convince themselves as well as us, that a pack lunch was what we really wanted.

My family including aunts on either side always cooked from scratch as they were all short of money. The first time I went to my future ILs we had baked beans with a shop sausage roll. I had never tasted either. Even today (over 50 years later) I still prefer home cooked. I have made over 60 mince pies (in freezer to be cooked). I'm not a fan of shop ones as they have too much sugar.

I assume you make your own spaghetti?

Now that does sound weird. Armchair psychologists seem pretentious to me. That’s sort of snobbish

Home made cakes from stalls? Wasn’t there recently a thread where Mumsnetters were clutching their princess pearls at the very notion of buying or accepting food that had been hand-made ( outside the immediate family) in case it didn’t meet the strictest food and hygiene standards?

I agree with you by the way

Definitely not snobby! I would say in our house 90% of what we eat is home made but I'm not averse to an M&S dine in when I'm not organised or just CBA and I definitely wouldn't judge anyone who prefers shop bought meals! I LOVE cooking and baking, and often have full days meal prepping so I've got stuff in the freezer for the family if I'm not around. Sauces etc are made from scratch as are soups, casseroles,, cakes and bakes, sourdough etc. Can't remember the last time I ate shop bought bread for instance (but I do buy it for my husband) People need to stop being judgy and get on with their own lives.

I’m a bad cook who has become even worse since losing my sense of taste and smell (thank you long covid). My family all say no thank you if I offer to cook anything now! Sometimes there are very good reasons for preferring ready meals to homemade 😊

Yes. A lot of fastidious mumsnetters get their knickers in a twist about home baking.

I can’t afford a microwave… it’s pot noodles and cold baked beans for us!

I assume the veggie wellington comment relates to Christmas. I definitely wouldn't give a guest something from M&S on Christmas Day and would happily cook from scratch something that they could eat, so I guess I'm snobby too (although I wouldn't judge people who do buy ready items).

There is one vegetarian family member and my sister in law is going to make an entire veggie wellington just for him. I suggested just getting something from M&S and she completely baulked at the very idea.

I am totally with her on this, btw, I think it's awful to invite people round for a lovely luxury home-made meal and then do a ready meal for one person because of their dietary preferences.

Everyone who comes to my house, whatever their dietary preferences or allergies, gets the same quality of food. That's just good hospitality

Snobby about food is when they say 'red caviar' is not real caviar, but salmon roe and only call black caviar caviar, that sort of thing. Or when they are wanky about 'only eating seasonable produce' and showing off with their shit like Clarissa Dickson Wright used to do. These people clearly have too much time on their hands (or they are very well organised) and they can afford it. They are not snobby.

I’m guessing this thread didn’t go the way the op hoped.

and what a mad thought they like home cooked food as they are insecure. I can’t beleive you and your sil sit and bitch about this. It appears to me the two of you are who is insecure.

and why on earth would a good cook not want to make something for a loved family member on Xmas day, and just buy them something from Markies. If someone brings something home made to my home I’d immediatly say how lovely it was ask about the recipe etc and be enthusiastic, whay do you want them to do, bung it in a cupboard with a grudging thanks.

what a really odd thing to judge people on. I can only assume insecurity on your part or a deep dislike for them all and you’re struggling to find a reason to be horrible.

Funny how times change. Many of my parent's generation from working class roots who became more middle class turned their backs on homemade food and it was aspirational to be able to buy ready-made food from M&S. It cost more and involved less labour so was seen as better. The opposite kind of snobby to what the OP is describing.

OTOH, my yule log, ready-made from Sainsburys, lasts 2 weeks before the manufacturer thinks it might start tasting less good. God knows when it was made, but that's a hell of lot of UPFs in there to keep all those ingredients from going mouldy/going off! A home-made version would definitely be superior (if I CBA).

So not wanting a chronic disease makes me insecure then? Sounds like they are not judging you half as much as you’re judging them

Some people like good food while others are willing to eat any old crap.

You are very correct! i have relatives who are this way. They couldn't understand why i made homemade pureed food for DDs when they were weaning, as i could get the proper stuff from the supermarket!!! i gave up explaining. Shopping at the supermarket was aspirational, of course many couldn't afford the prices and had to 'make do', with home-made stuff, a bit like making your own clothes too as opposed to waltzing into the stores to buy a ready made gown. It all goes round in circles. Bet the people who had to make do with 'roaring fires' back then, would've given anything to have gas heating, but we now covet their old fires.

Ooh can you please point me to the recipe?

Not snobby, but my husband enjoys cooking and making things from scratch. Our kids too.

We never gave them processed stuff as a rule, it’s just the way we eat.

Yes, they're always better well soused and left for a year to mature. I prefer mine with some sharper fruits in so always add sour cherries and cranberries etc. Not too much of a faff especially if you're making more than 1.

It’s a question of what they prefer. I cook most things from scratch. I wouldn’t buy a lasagne from a supermarket nor would I eat McDonalds. This isn’t snobbery it’s just being prepared to cook because that’s what you prefer.

It’s not at all snobbish to generally prefer homemade food, that isn’t full of additives.

Your in laws are normal not snobby. They're normal. Processed shelf food is not normal. It's not how humans have eaten until recently. It sounds like you are not familiar with enjoying and preparing food. That's not wrong but it's not healthy and not fun.