What planet is Jamie Oliver on? £1

[BananaCocktails]

I just want to say I absolutely love Jamie, Oliver, and his cooking . watching
£1 wonders right now
he is using up some very expensive ingredients, 3/4 of a bar of butter isn’t budget friendly at all, if I had butter, I certainly wouldn’t be using almost all of it in one recipe it’s so expensive nowadays
he is also using olive oil, another very expensive ingredient
I feel like I’m moaning, but I went to Sainsbury’s today and spent almost £20 and bloody packed lunch alone for the kids. I absolutely hate margarine so bit the bullet and bought butter which was £2.60!

Some ingredients he uses aren't easy to get a hold of. Shallots? No thanks I will just buy onions as they are more readily available 🤷

I hear you OP

he does live in a different world

He is also somewhat stingy with portions, I watched an episode last week where a pizza made in a frying pan was a £1 a portion, but each person got 1/8 of a pizza. My teenagers would have been eating their own arms off if I’d served them 1/8 of a pizza!

He assumes everyone has a never ending supply of every herb and spice and olive oil, butter, garlic etc His programme annoys me so much.

Have you tried to cook one of his 20 minute meals (very old series). If you can do it in 20 mins and not professionally trained I applaud anyone. He's a big liar as oven chips (why say 16-18 mins when we all know it takes you double to cook you sneaky **s)!

We bought his Ministry of Food book years ago. It went with his TV show, which was aimed at super cheap food, but healthy. He features families on the breadline and how to show them that fresh healthy food was cheaper than checked nuggets and chips. Etc.

The book had a cupboard essentials section and an equipment section. The things in there were not what ordinary people have in their cupboards! We didn’t have half of it and had no intention of spending a small fortune getting it all. On the TV show, when one of the women pointed out to him that she couldn’t get certain ingredients because she had no car to drive to a particular shop to get it, or didn’t own a food processor or griddle pan, his face was an absolute picture bloke or suddenly dawned on him that he had zero idea about what it was really like for some people.

It's a gimmick isn't it really? A catch title. Not realistic for most.

Aaaaggghh tons of typos! Sorry!

Go to M&S for £2 butter.

The planet he is on is one made of pound notes I would say!

We watched this..that pie tonight came to 8 quid and apparently served 8...

@HelenaJustina . I've never loved his recipes and books.

Tesco butter is £1.99. It does and is better than Bertolli - not quite up there with the best French choices.

I think cooking and stretching a budget are lost arts. Gammon joint slow roasted with roasties, Carrots, broad beans in parsley sauce. Chopped gammon on suet pastry, rolled and steamed. Served with some of the gammon liquor made into a parsley sauce and Carrots and/or cabbage. More leftovers for a cheesy pasta bake with brocoli. The bone can form the base of a minestrone for pennies.

Sliced potato, sliced onion, pepper, chopped bacon on layers deeper but like lasagne with a cheese sauce poured through and baked. Excellent with cabbage or brocoli and Carrots.

Tomato sauce with softened onion, a few black olives, chilli flakes, half glass of red, stirred through pasta.

Chicken thighs with lemon, pepper, garlic and paprika with cous cous and a leafy salad.

Liver and bacon.

All.good, cheap family meals.

I like his recipes. The £1 per head is roughly correct if you shop in lidl

I do think he is a good chef and and a nice guy. Enjoy watching the programme but some of the portion sizes are obviously tiny to make them seem like he can call it £1 per portion

@RosesAndHellebores Bertolli isn’t butter?? Is it?!

@VeggieSalsa. Of course it isn't but there's real butter and real butter but even supermarket butter is better imo.

Is liver as nutritious as it’s claimed to be? I had some with bacon mash and gravy recently and it was I assume an acquired taste but so apparently good for price/micronutrients/environmentalism ie trying to eat every bit of the animal possible.

But still bleurgh. Lambs liver. I soaked it in milk first. What am I doing wrong?

Aye if you eat like a sparrow...

I like the recipes and could reduce the cost by using e.g. bottled lemon juice and frozen herbs but the portions are tiny and some of them lack any carbs. The aubergine parmigiana looked delicious but I'd need a jacket potato or some rice. The spaghetti and tinned mackerel looked nice also the vegetable bhajis and flatbread, I think I'll make them.

@Lightninginabox.. soften the onions, add a litttle garlic, add a rasher.of.pacon pp, dip the liver, cut into fine slices, into seasoned flour, turn up the heat, add the liver, it won't take more than shy of two minutes each side, stir in a rich, red wine gravy, serve with mashed potatoes and a green leafy veg.

TBH Walking around Tesco earlier... some people, the majority, could do with eating like a sparrow.

Anyone who thinks he is a great "chef" has never cooked or been served a decent meal in their lives!

🙄

I doubt JO eats like a sparrow.

Can i come round to yours for dinner?

I love liver n bacon fried as you suggest or in a casserole.... even easier.