Two-faced foodie-ism : if you're a 'foodie', do you have loopholes?

[snigger]

This is in direct response to a thread title in chat about Dolmio/Chicken Tonight. (Before you say it, yes, judgey pants were hiked to 9.3)

I instinctively went 'Eurgh' ...... then looked at the now empty jar of pesto I'd recently smeared on some fish as a quick after-classes late meal, justifying myself with a grind of pepper, some freshly grated parmesan, and home-made pilaf.

Is that any different?

No.

Yet I brush it off and move on because it suits me hey-ho, it's only food.

I hate the thought of additives and processing and ten-steps-removed-from-actual-food, but at the same time, I have so much to do with limited resources.

What are your acceptable foodie cheats?

but how can you be a foodie and use curry paste and say you not faffing over a korma? a curry is no different to a bolagnase in difficulty,

And I think food-lovers can embrace vesta curries, tomato soup, and curry paste - I just wondered where the average boundary lies.

For instance, a good friend of mine appreciates good food when she eats it, but regularly serves up meals of the "Dine for a Fiver" microwaveable pasta and meatballs and garlic bread variety as a matter of choice - her rationale being that she'd rather spend the time on something else, which works for her.(sorry if I'm coming over hideously judgey here, but in all honesty I do sometimes think 'how could you eat that?' when it's not just a case of succumbing to a craving, or a lack of time, but an actual choice where the money and time resources could have been so much better spent...imo...)

I would say I definitely fall into the food lover rather than the foodie camp.

I make my own Thai curry paste in bulk and freeze it, have never got round to doing it with Indian curry paste, although I make curries using combinations of spices rather than a paste sometimes. I keep a jar of Pataks Korma in the fridge and use that for quick weekday meals. There is a difference between using a jar of sauce and using the paste plus coconut milk, dessicated coconut, ground almonds, fresh onions, ginger and coriander. Or just korma paste, onion and passata makes a nice easy curry.

back2two, the chargrilled vegetables are great, I use them in ratatouille or in couscous.

Generalising madly here, but the 'foodies', I know, would sneer at a tin of soup, yet never cook Vietnamese food, as they are too busy perfecting their French, or Italian food, as they've been there and tasted it, so can now cook it, they can't possibly cook a cuisine they haven't tasted, as it might not be authentic.
What I love about food is that it's mine, it has no rules, I can cook what I want, when I want, and I can change it to suit.
I really do live for food, it's at the heart of my life, it's what I do, but I'm still not a foodie!

Actually, my friend and I were chatting the other day about money, and how there's always something to pay for (Kid's birthdays, Easter, Christmas etc, etc), and I said I had to factor in the Good Food show in October.
I go every year and love it! and spend too much

Well I absolutely hate the word 'foodie' but the only things I buy 'ready made' are puff pastry and dried pasta.

Definitely don't buy pesto (sorry, but eurgh), hummus/tzatziki/etc, mayo, pasta/curry sauces, anything chopped and put in vinegar (I'm looking at you 'lazy food company') etc etc... Only because I make these things myself and they taste a heck of a lot better.

I couldn't care less if other people want to buy them though and I certainly don't think it's some sort of crime to food...

I can and have made those things (not the puff pastry or pasta), but use ready made too, depending on what it's for.
If DD wants a tuna mayo sarnie for lunch, I'm not going to start making the mayo, but if it's the important element in an evening meal, I will, same for pesto.
Haven't bought hummous or tzatziki for years, always make them, I did try to make taramasalata but it failed.
Here

Netto, I've never tried tarama, mainly because I don't really like it, but good on you for giving it a bash!

I'm quite keen to try puff pastry - along with cheese, it's been on my to make list for a long time, but a friend who is a very good cook said he gave it a bash and it was a nightmare and quite solid at the end...

The couple of attempts I've made at shortcrust pastry are bad enough for me not to try puff!
I'd do choux again though, when my kenwood is fixed/replaced.

Meant to say I've got tinned cod's roe to have another go at taramasalata, incase it was the fresh stuff I didn't like, I do love the bought stuff, and homemade is meant to be nicer.

If you make houmous do you buy Tahiti? Or can you make it without? I have no idea

Depends what you mean by "foodie".

Do you mean "food snob"?

Or do you mean "person who enjoys food and thinks it is important"?

The former would never entertain a fishfinger sandwich.

The latter would recognise that fish fingers are tasty.

Tahini
Stupid phone

I buy Tahini Stealth.

I am most definitely the latter Trills.

I love the idea of buying Tahiti - shame that I loathe Houmous or chickpeas in any form at all whatsoever.

Can I just buy an island paradise and not make it into a revolting dip?

Did you name change on another thread and say you'd won the lottery?

To me a food snob is someone that gets more pleasure criticising others' food choices than they do enjoying their own, whereas a foodie is a fashion victim always chasing down the latest 'thing' just because they saw it in a magazine.

Hoping that I'm in neither camp, I'll confess that one of my big motivations for being a Food Enthusiast is that I'm tight with the money! I think poor food is a terrible waste of cash and that most heavily processed things are overpriced.

I get my tahini at Sains - it's in the same aisle as the lentils etc. But if you can't find it, you can, at a pinch, use peanut butter or another nut butter. It's not exactly hummus but it's quite a tasty dip nonetheless!

Cogito - completely agree with you re foodie, though I think I am a bit of a food snob because I can't stand things like normal sliced bread but I'd never criticise someone else for eating it. So maybe a food snob by my definition but not by yours! I started learning to cook properly in order to save money, but now I can't switch back to processed stuff because of the taste, and having cheaper food bills (and knowing that we aren't filling our bodies with chemicals) is just a massive benefit.

I've used toasted sesame oil in hummus when I can't get tahini. But I do tend to buy ready made hummus because only DS and I eat it but we eat it every week so we only need very small portions, but regularly and it's not worth the palaver, we only need about 1/4 tin of chickpeas worth at a time.

Could you freeze hummus do you think? Has anyone tried?

I'm a foodie but like processed cheese, spam & processed peas (not all at once :)) every now and then.

I also eat "normal sliced bread" - but I don't eat enough bread to make it worthwhile buying/making something that goes off in a day. Also there is the problem that if I do get really nice bread I eat too much then feel shit...

This is a very nice dip that is vaguely hummous-like

I do one which is essentially a cannelini bean and garlic dip. Turns your farts into chemical warfare thoughbut

I guess the difference for me between using a jar of pesto & a ready made pasta sauce is that ready made pesto tastes pretty nice, whereas most ready made pasta sauces taste rubbish.

I don't think chefs even make puff pastry anymore.

I prefer dried pasta to fresh (too eggy tasting) and I like to tell myself it's more rustic Italian to go with the cheapest biggest bag of dried going. It's the quality of the sauce that turns it into something amazing.

I always make a Thai curry sauce myself. The bought ones, even from Asian supermarkets, never taste zingy and fresh enough for me.

But I do use ready made pesto most of the time. If a grown up came to tea I'd make the effort but for a 5 and 2 yo I just crack open a jar.

Can I also mention ready made mash? I am not sure there is much point in making mash anymore (given the amount of butter or cream I add) as the price of a decent supermarket one, such as M&S, is reasonable enough to mean it is more cost effective to buy it already done.

There's nothing in EZ Onions but onions and olive oil. Shudder not.