Current Affairs Cost of living…

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Tree13 said:
Do you not see the questionable value of mocking suggestions of "try cooking it from scratch" and "buy a cheaper own brand version" when they are offered as alternatives to expensive branded convenience foods?

There seems to be a prevailing theme on this specific topic that somehow it is rude to offer ideas for cutting costs relating to food spend, or that cooking from scratch is somehow demeaning.

Framing these suggestions as "judgey" seems downright bizarre to me. Batch cooking a couple of litres of red sauce for pasta takes very little skill and provides a decent saving against all but the cheapest own-brand sauces. You might not want to do it - that's fine, entirely your choice. But the fact remains it's a sensible option - as is the purchase of own brand sauces. Feel free to convince me otherwise.
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No one mocked that so far as I can see.

The very concept of the poorest choosing top of the range pasta sauce out of some laziness when they don't even have the energy to cook the sauce and boil the pasta is just maddening. It's sunak asking the homeless man if he works in business.

some nerve!
 
Mr. White said:
I'm not an 'Ideas Man'. I cook from scratch... more often than not. I don't complain about the price of expensive, convenience food.

The price of pre-made, eg, Loyd Grossman sauces, is not only driven by shortages. The price is also driven by demand/convenience/laziness. Consumers will pay a premium for convenience. That's their choice.

Tomatoes, herbs, spices, vinegar, pasta... all store cupboard basics, and cheap.

Buy local and buy seasonal foods! People complain about the cost of convenience foods. If anybody is complaining about the cost of seasonal veg... carrots, cabbage, parsnips, I'm yet to see it.

Being lazy is expensive.
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Tree13 said:
Do you not see the questionable value of mocking suggestions of "try cooking it from scratch" and "buy a cheaper own brand version" when they are offered as alternatives to expensive branded convenience foods?

There seems to be a prevailing theme on this specific topic that somehow it is rude to offer ideas for cutting costs relating to food spend, or that cooking from scratch is somehow demeaning.

Framing these suggestions as "judgey" seems downright bizarre to me. Batch cooking a couple of litres of red sauce for pasta takes very little skill and provides a decent saving against all but the cheapest own-brand sauces. You might not want to do it - that's fine, entirely your choice. But the fact remains it's a sensible option - as is the purchase of own brand sauces. Feel free to convince me otherwise.
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I never use tinned sauces and always make my own sauce. Is it really that much cheaper?

It certainly isnt more convenient. It's more time consuming and messy.

To people who are single, or don't have children, then, yeah, make your own sauce.

To a single mother working full time? Nah, they don't have the time or energy. They just want to put the sauce in the pan, boil the pasta and save as much time as they can.
 
Tree13 said:
There seems to be a prevailing theme on this specific topic that somehow it is rude to offer ideas for cutting costs relating to food spend, or that cooking from scratch is somehow demeaning.
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I think it's because it's the Tory thread, and we're talking about it in the context of the clowncar administration which has foisted this situation on the public. People should rightfully mock any Tories who have the gall to propose these costcutting measures after the mess they've made.

If the home cooking tips were on a separate thread, unrelated to the conservative party, I doubt they'd be ill-received
 
Charro said:
I never use tinned sauces and always make my own sauce. Is it really that much cheaper?

It certainly isnt more convenient. It's more time consuming and messy.

To people who are single, or don't have children, then, yeah, make your own sauce.

To a single mother working full time? Nah, they don't have the time or energy. They just want to put the sauce in the pan, boil the pasta and save as much time as they can.
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The trick to making your own sauce is doing it in batches. I'm not suggesting making a sauce for one meal from scratch and then repeating that process four nights a week! Batch cooking definitely saves money if your current modus operandi is to just buy the most expensive sauce in a jar

I'll address your point re convenience now.

People in the scenario you describe, just not having enough time to cook from scratch, would be wise to switch to own brand sauces at £1 per jar, instead of paying £4+ for a Lloyd Grossman jar and complaining about the price.

The issue of expensive jars getting more expensive is addressed by either:

a) make it yourself in batches, if time allows; or

b) switch to cheaper brands. Most of them come from the same factories as the expensive stuff!

The entire population can find an answer in one of those two suggestions.
 
Tree13 said:
The trick to making your own sauce is doing it in batches. I'm not suggesting making a sauce for one meal from scratch and then repeating that process four nights a week! Batch cooking definitely saves money if your current modus operandi is to just buy the most expensive sauce in a jar

I'll address your point re convenience now.

People in the scenario you describe, just not having enough time to cook from scratch, would be wise to switch to own brand sauces at £1 per jar, instead of paying £4+ for a Lloyd Grossman jar and complaining about the price.

The issue of expensive jars getting more expensive is addressed by either:

a) make it yourself in batches, if time allows; or

b) switch to cheaper brands. Most of them come from the same factories as the expensive stuff!

The entire population can find an answer in one of those two suggestions.
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Patronising, and actually quite insulting drivel this mate

You actually think people who are struggling financially need to be told to use the cheaper stuff?

They are making whatever is cheaper and convenient night on night. They're getting by as it is.

They aint wasting money on premium products, nor do they have the time or energy to batch cook.

I've seen it and lived it for most of my life.
 
Charro said:
Patronising, and actually quite insulting drivel this mate

You actually think people who are struggling financially need to be told to use the cheaper stuff?

They are making whatever is cheaper and convenient night on night. They're getting by as it is.

They aint wasting money on premium products, nor do they have the time or energy to batch cook.

I've seen it and lived it for most of my life.
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The other half works with a bunch of families that are struggling and it's perhaps not surprising that the reality is in the middle. While it's not a case that they all just need to pull themselves up by their bootstraps, as the right often suggest, neither is it a case that some aren't making really bad choices, as the left would have you believe. It would be perhaps more useful for those people if we stopped polemicising things.
 
Charro said:
Patronising, and actually quite insulting drivel this mate

You actually think people who are struggling financially need to be told to use the cheaper stuff?

They are making whatever is cheaper and convenient night on night. They're getting by as it is.

They aint wasting money on premium products, nor do they have the time or energy to batch cook.

I've seen it and lived it for most of my life.
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The other half works with a bunch of families that are struggling and it's perhaps not surprising that the reality is in the middle. While it's not a case that they all just need to pull themselves up by their bootstraps, as the right often suggest, neither is it a case that some aren't making really bad choices, as the left would have you believe. It would be perhaps more useful for those people if we stopped polemicising things.
 
Bruce Wayne said:
The other half works with a bunch of families that are struggling and it's perhaps not surprising that the reality is in the middle. While it's not a case that they all just need to pull themselves up by their bootstraps, as the right often suggest, neither is it a case that some aren't making really bad choices, as the left would have you believe. It would be perhaps more useful for those people if we stopped polemicising things.
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I've lived it and worked with people and families myself.

Everyone can make better choices.

I do think you have to have lived it to understand the pressure a lot of people are under. A lot of people are in the situation they are in through no fault of their own, they need help, but also a bit of sympathy and understanding which I always find lacking in this country.

Assuming people are picking top end stuff over own brand stuff and thinking they need to be told to buy cheaper products is insulting imo.

Plenty of people are picking the cheapest option and still struggling, that's the crux of the matter.

Then you have people who will pick the more convenient option, which isn't as cheap, but will save them time and give them a bit of rest bite.

Too much judgement, not enough sympathy or understanding.
 
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