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Let me start by saying that I'm not anti-convenience food. i use them every now and then.
Yet, I never claim to be "against" convenience-type foods, either.
A friend of mine...well, she's more of an acquaintance, but we're friends on Facebook...anyway, she has talked trash to me before about her sister-in-law, who "Only fixes things like Hamburger Helper for her kids..." (And she feels so sorry for the kids, their mom should care more about them, blah blah blah...) Apparently, she's "much better" because she always cooks "homemade" food for her kids...
Yet, her claim to fame is the "Mississippi Roast," which is a roast that is plopped in the crock pot with a packet of ranch dressing mix, a packet of au jus mix and a few jarred pepperoncini peppers (and a whole stick of butter!!)...
Tonight, she posted that her husband forgot an important ingredient when he tried to replicate her "best" dip, and that when she got home, she added in the ranch packet...oh, and her daughter is a "foodie just like her mom" because she detected that it was "ranch" that was missing..
I guess I just don't see how a "Mississippi Roast" is anymore "homemade" or "from scratch" or "healthy" than Hamburger Helper. Actually, now that I think about it, it probably actually takes more prep time to brown the hamburger, etc. for HH than to dump a chunk of meat and a few packets into a slow cooker for the day.
It's not just this acquaintance, though. I see this all over Pinterest. Those who like to "cook at home because it's healthier and better for the whole family" but who use cream of mushroom soup, Lipton's onion soup mix and powdered ranch dressing, Italian dressing, gravy mix, etc. in every other recipe.
Listen, I don't have a problem with convenience foods. I still make green bean casserole with cream of mushroom soup for the holidays because my mother-in-law likes it that way. My husband's not a fan of mac and cheese, so I'll still make my Velveeta shells and cheese every now and then because it's just me eating it. Other than that, though, I mostly cook from scratch. If a recipe has "cream of" soup or onion soup mix, I'll mostly pass on by. I don't have a problem with people cooking that way, though. I think what annoys me is the air of superiority by many who are so much better than others, when what they are making is just as processed (if not more so) than Hamburger Helper or a quick meal from a restaurant down the street.
Hardly anybody grows their own wheat, mills their own flour, raises their own chickens for eggs, or pasteurizes their own dairy these days, yet they all have the gall to call their stuff homemade!
I've seen people (on here, especially) who roll their eyes at using *shudder* a premixed seasoning packet to season chili. I've done the "ground the cumin myself in a granite molcajete" thing, too, don't get me wrong. But a packet of chili seasoning works just fine, too. And, I bought the cumin seed IN A STORE, too, anyway *shudder again*.
[quote=lkmax;45961841]Let me start by saying that I'm not anti-convenience food. i use them every now and then.
Yet, I never claim to be "against" convenience-type foods, either.
A friend of mine...well, she's more of an acquaintance, but we're friends on Facebook...anyway, she has talked trash to me before about her sister-in-law, who "Only fixes things like Hamburger Helper for her kids..." (And she feels so sorry for the kids, their mom should care more about them, blah blah blah...) Apparently, she's "much better" because she always cooks "homemade" food for her kids...
Yet, her claim to fame is the "Mississippi Roast," which is a roast that is plopped in the crock pot with a packet of ranch dressing mix, a packet of au jus mix and a few jarred pepperoncini peppers (and a whole stick of butter!!)...
Tonight, she posted that her husband forgot an important ingredient when he tried to replicate her "best" dip, and that when she got home, she added in the ranch packet...oh, and her daughter is a "foodie just like her mom" because she detected that it was "ranch" that was missing..
I guess I just don't see how a "Mississippi Roast" is anymore "homemade" or "from scratch" or "healthy" than Hamburger Helper. Actually, now that I think about it, it probably actually takes more prep time to brown the hamburger, etc. for HH than to dump a chunk of meat and a few packets into a slow cooker for the day.
It's not just this acquaintance, though. I see this all over Pinterest. Those who like to "cook at home because it's healthier and better for the whole family" but who use cream of mushroom soup, Lipton's onion soup mix and powdered ranch dressing, Italian dressing, gravy mix, etc. in every other recipe.
Listen, I don't have a problem with convenience foods. I still make green bean casserole with cream of mushroom soup for the holidays because my mother-in-law likes it that way. My husband's not a fan of mac and cheese, so I'll still make my Velveeta shells and cheese every now and then because it's just me eating it. Other than that, though, I mostly cook from scratch. If a recipe has "cream of" soup or onion soup mix, I'll mostly pass on by. I don't have a problem with people cooking that way, though. I think what annoys me is the air of superiority by many who are so much better than others, when what they are making is just as processed (if not more so) than Hamburger Helper or a quick meal from a restaurant down the street.[/QUI
I don't think I totally agree with you. Many of us who really do cook a lot from scratch and stay away from processed foods most of the time still use certain ingredients for seasoning. To me there is a difference between using a can of soup or an pack of Italian dressing and using a totally processed mix or a bunch of canned veggies. It also depends on how often one cooks with some of the ingredients you are talking about. An example and you judge whether I cooked a "from scratch" meal last night. We had seafood crepes. The crepes were home made, the shrimp, lobster tail and swordfish I cooked from scratch, the salad was a basic green salad with homemade blue cheese dressing and the squash was fresh. I did use a jar of prepared cheese sauce. From what you are saying, it seems you would not consider this a meal from scratch because I used a prepared cheese sauce. Am I understanding what you are saying?
Hardly anybody grows their own wheat, mills their own flour, raises their own chickens for eggs, or pasteurizes their own dairy these days, yet they all have the gall to call their stuff homemade!
I've seen people (on here, especially) who roll their eyes at using *shudder* a premixed seasoning packet to season chili. I've done the "ground the cumin myself in a granite molcajete" thing, too, don't get me wrong. But a packet of chili seasoning works just fine, too. And, I bought the cumin seed IN A STORE, too, anyway *shudder again*.
All I have to do is remember somethin my dad said before he died: He was an awesome cook, no one would ever question his skills in the kitchen, especially when it came to meats, veggies and sauces. He loved to make Hollandaise sauce over the holidays to use with broccoli. One time, when he was probably in his late 80s I asked him did he still make it and if so; how? His comment to me: honey I open a package that says Hollandaise sauce on it. After I laughed for a minute, I realized it is ok to depend on packages for some things and still be a good or great cook who does enjoy scratch cooking.
I have a coworker who loves the store-bought, prepackaged Rice Krispie treats. We went to a bakery to get cookies after lunch and they had thick, delicious-looking Rice Krispie treats in the cookie case. My coworker said she didn't know you could make them from scratch.
Rice Krispie treats #2:
Another coworker brought in Rice Krispie treats that she said she make from scratch. They were very sticky and soggy, difficult to even get out of the pan. I asked her about the ingredients, and she said the recipe she used only had two ingredients: marshmallow cream and cereal, and then you mix them up and put them in a cake pan.
Come on, people. Rice Krispie treats were one of the first recipes I ever made as a kid. And we didn't even use the microwave, we melted the marshmallows and butter on the stove.
Hardly anybody grows their own wheat, mills their own flour, raises their own chickens for eggs, or pasteurizes their own dairy these days, yet they all have the gall to call their stuff homemade!
I've seen people (on here, especially) who roll their eyes at using *shudder* a premixed seasoning packet to season chili. I've done the "ground the cumin myself in a granite molcajete" thing, too, don't get me wrong. But a packet of chili seasoning works just fine, too. And, I bought the cumin seed IN A STORE, too, anyway *shudder again*.
I prefer to use my own spices in chili rather than rely on a premixed packed because I can control the amount of each spice. But premixed seasoning works ok too.
But I draw the line at dumping chili out of a can, topping it with cheese and calling it homemade.
I try not to let myself get annoyed by such things, and focus instead on the fact that they're cooking dinner for their family. It's becoming more and more uncommon, unfortunately.
Yeah, I buy all my ingredients at a store, too. I don't have the room, time, skill, or interest (or the climate) to grow, raise, or otherwise produce everything from seed/embryo/molecule/whatever. I don't know anyone who does. Even my relatives who are still farming buy food and seasonings from stores.
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