If you mainly cook from scratch, what ready-made stuff do you use?

[masterstef]

I cook about 90% of my meals from scratch (no, I don't make my own sausages, bake my own bread, make my own pasta or smoke my own salmon but you know what I mean).
Generally I think it tastes loads better but since having kids I have resorted to microwave rice, pre-made mashed potato, pre-prepared meat and potatoes on the odd occasion.

I've even made my own hummous in the past (not particularly worth it except if weaning) and guacamole (totally worth it)

However, I've always used some stuff from jars, like:
Dolmio bolognese sauce (always thought it was full of crap but it's not, only quite sugary)
Sacla pesto (the chargrilled aubergine one is amazing)
Ambrosia custard/rice pudding (I did make my own custard when I lived abroad and it was lush, but no time for that now)
Stuffing from a packet
Bisto gravy (would love to make my own gravy one day)
Spice Tailor curry kits
The odd stir-fry sauce although my own one is awesome, just a bit time-consuming

That's about it, I think, but would be interested in other shortcuts that work well!

Interesting thread and I think it shows everyone's version of from scratch is different which is fine! I think I cook from scratch but reading this I dont completely as I definitely use a lot of these shortcuts. I like the easy garlic and ginger and I use frozen chopped peppers , tinned tomatoes and I buy ready to roll pastry. I'm trying to be more adventurous and starting to cook things I used to buy the premade version of. I'm going to have a look for some Delia recipes as maybe it is time for me to go back to basics a little bit! For example I never learned to make gravy from scratch.

Frozen garlic from Waitrose is handy. Just shake out what you need. It's better than the Lazy garlic in the jar I used to use.

Frozen pastry is another thing that I don't bother wasting my time on.

or rather making.

Puff pastry. I keep meaning to try but it scares me!

I do make my own pasta though

Bisto gravy (would love to make my own gravy one day)

Homemade gravy is SO easy. Stick a sliced onion under your roast, remove roast at the end of cooking and while it's resting add a tablespoon of plain flour to the caramelized onion and meat juices, stir well then add water (I use the water I cooked the potatoes or veg in) and simmer for a bit. Add salt and sugar to season, chuck in some red wine if you feel like it. You'll never go back to Bisto!!

Pesto, pasta, pre-cooked lentils or grains, pastry occasionally, rice pudding, custard, tinned beans and tomatoes, pizza for the kids, stock cubes and sometimes fresh gravy, greek yogurt, houmous, coleslaw, pate, fishfingers, frozen veg, occasionally ready roasted chicken. Cook most other stuff from scratch, and am very lucky that my DC are great eaters, long may it stay that way!

I hadn't even considered that tinned beans and tomatoes aren't 'from-scratch' ingredients! But I definitely use them. I admit to frozen Yorkshire puddings too.

I hadn't even considered that tinned beans and tomatoes aren't 'from-scratch' ingredients!

Nor did I but this is MN afterall.

I use pre-made mash, jars of pasta sauce, instant gravy, stock cubes and pre-crushed garlic. I also buy regular bread but like a pp will sometimes make a loaf if I fancy it. DS2 literally can't be left alone for more than two bloody minutes right now, so any shortcut is worth it to me!

I find it doesn't have that 'raw' garlic taste and it's much harder to burn too, which is great

I've found that all the pre-minced/pureed garlic/ginger stuff tastes a bit tinny - or not fresh, at any rate.

I just bung a whole head of garlic in the oven every now & again. Bakes it into lusciously sweet squeezable cloves. Gorgeous - if it weren't for the fact that I work closely with other, I'd use it as a spread on toast. I

Oh also sometimes I use the dried risotto mix from Waitrose (either saffron or mushroom) because it genuinely is ready in 12 mins although despite what the pack says you do still have to stir it.

Oh and another shirt cut - sometimes I use the packs of couscous with flavourings already rather than using normal couscous and adding my own.

Frozen fresh chilli
Frozen chopped onions

Puff pasty, sometimes even shortcrust. Baked beans, gnocchi and bisto gravy - I make my own gravy with roasts but use packet if If I am doing for e,g sausages and want onion gravy. Pasta too, I make ravioli from time to time but I’m not about to produce my own spaghetti.

Puff pastry or the spice paste is the usual thing.

I made gnocci once - never again. Same for pasta! Total waste of my time.

I like ready made packets of ravioli/tortellini with fresh pasta, delicious and so quick. I can and have made my own fresh egg pasta and filling but the mess, he rolling, cutting, crimping, too much effort normally! Also regularly use oven chips, ready made hummus and dips, occasionally ready rice, very rarely make my own bread or pastry (only for a special occasion). I love to cook from scratch but am absolutely not snobby about prepared foods, they really aren't the devil and make life so much easier! Read The Angry Chef blog for more on this...

The secret to a good Bolognese sauce is a long slow cook after you've added the tomatos/liquid. So many recipes say you can eat after 10 mins or simmering but although it's technically edible then it's 100x better after at least an hours gentle simmering, and IMO better still if you cook, chill overnight and eat the next day! I add a pinch of sugar, dash of Worcester sauce and plenty of seasoning (to taste) before cooking also...

I couldn't cope without a tablespoon of bistro gravy for thickening up my own thin gravy.

Good quality pasta sauce, plus veg, pulses, pasta and stock make a good quick cheats minestrone.

Pancakes, I can't be arsed making them because I don't like them much myself so I buy the chilled ones as an occasional breakfast treat for the kids.

I mostly cook from scratch.
I no longer bake so buy muffins and biscuits.
I only make bread occasionally.
My main cheats are; frozen garlic puree, frozen Yorkshire puddings, stuffing mix and jars of curry sauce.
I don't often cook meatballs but discovered the supermarket ready made ones are good quality and save a lot of faff.
I can make curry but it's never great and not worth the effort.

Can anyone recommend any first recipes for a totally new 9yo cook? I've been a bit lax with letting the DC help as it always takes so much longer and I'm scared they'll cut/burn themselves, but I need to get over it and get them cooking!! Youngest is still a bit young but I'd love some help or tips in getting the 9yo started.

Any recipes for making veggie gravy from scratch?

octopusrus it doesn’t matter what they cook as long as they enjoy the first experience. Making pasta is easy but takes ages so I wouldn’t recommend that. You want quick payback Something like a salad they’d enjoy eating- Waldorf if they like the components? Or cookies where the mix of ingredients (nuts, cranberries, choc is up to them.

Start with something like couscous salad, Octopusrus.

There are lots of recipes online.

My youngest is 7 and has started cooking this holiday Octopusrus - I guilty realised that DD is a bloody good cook already but I've let it slide with dc2 and 3, which is doubly bad because they are boys.

Dc1 made strawberry tarts (including a sweet, biscuity flan case like shortbread) a few days ago, and dc3 made pancakes yesterday and profiteroles today! I've never even made profiteroles myself but he chose them from a kids cook book.

I'm doing with the boys what I did with DD years ago and letting them choose a recipe, then we shop for ingredients and they cook it. It doesn't matter if it's sweet recipe at first.

Once you can follow a recipe and by following recipes have learnt basic methods (what it means to grease a tin, how to separate eggs, what gold means as opposed to beat, what the names of kitchen equipment are, weights and measures etc) you can experiment and improvise, but essentially the first thing is to follow a receipe.

A good kids wipe clean spiral bound, illustrated step by step children's cook book is invaluable, we have 3, one is Usborne, one is old, and one is not in English... We also have some Usborne baking cards.

Let your Ds browse a good children's cook book and pick a recipe.

This is one of the ones we have:

usborne.com/browse-books/catalogue/product/1/2145/first-cookbook/

Sorry, so many typos in my post and you haven't said whether DC is DS or DD, I just projected. Hope it still makes sense!