19
   

It’s cheaper to buy fresh

 
 
Joe Nation
 
  2  
Reply Thu 2 Feb, 2012 11:45 am
@Setanta,
I forgot to add that when the "Chicken bone bag" gets full enough, I make about two quarts of reduced broth and put that in bags too.

Um. Chicken Bone Bag also gets all of the leaves from the celery, the onion peels, bits of green pepper, some chunks of chicken fat and whatever other suitable detritus I create while chopping stuff up. Start with about 4 quarts of water, a couple cloves of crushed garlic (you can brown those if you want), some bay leaf, celery seed, lots of pepper.....let it all boil good for twenty minutes or so, skimming off any foam ...then it simmers until bedtime. I let it cool in the fridge over night, skim off any really big chunks of fat, strain it through a fine wire sieve and ladle it into the bags.

~Setanta~ Good deal on the burgers, boss, I like'em brown and crunchy on the outside and pinkish on the inside. I like to put chopped onions in the pan and fry them in as I go or, if I think about it before freezing, mix a nice handful of chopped green olives into the meat before making the patties.

The other day at the store I looked at one of those boxes of Chicken Broth------- $3.59. Huh? I said.

Joe(mine's free)Nation
Setanta
 
  2  
Reply Thu 2 Feb, 2012 11:48 am
@Joe Nation,
We make a broth for the little dogs' kibble. All bones go in that, along with carrotses (the little dogs love carrotses--and it makes a great aromatic broth). Chicken, turkey, lamb, pork--you name it. We went out to eat the other night, and took a plastic bag along for the chicken bones which we took home for the "dog broth."
0 Replies
 
jcboy
 
  4  
Reply Thu 2 Feb, 2012 06:29 pm
@Setanta,
We can’t bond as a family because I’m not allowed in the kitchen when he’s cooking, it’s off limits Cool
Setanta
 
  1  
Reply Fri 3 Feb, 2012 06:44 am
@jcboy,
Were you a bad boy?
thack45
 
  1  
Reply Fri 3 Feb, 2012 07:34 am
@jcboy,
We should all be so lucky to have a man like 'arco in our lives...
thack45
 
  1  
Reply Fri 3 Feb, 2012 08:03 am
@thack45,
Oops. I meant "Marco"...

stupid droid keyboard... (yeah, that's it. the keyboard)...
0 Replies
 
jcboy
 
  2  
Reply Sun 5 Feb, 2012 10:05 am
@Setanta,
He says I just get in the way while he’s cooking.

We missed the Saturday morning market downtown yesterday, fresh veggies, fruit, etc.

Need to head back to the market today, I've been warned to stay away from the canned good section Cool
Irishk
 
  1  
Reply Sun 5 Feb, 2012 11:09 am
@jcboy,
We mostly try to buy fresh, but I do rely on things like tomato sauce and tomato paste as pantry staples. I imagine a lot of people make their own, but I'm not there yet. (Actually, the tomato paste comes in a tube -- really, really convenient when only a tablespoon or so is needed).
0 Replies
 
Butrflynet
 
  3  
Reply Tue 6 Mar, 2012 04:30 pm
Thought the readers of this thread would be interested in this article I got in a newsletter today:

Quote:
Can You Save $40/Hour By Washing Your Own Lettuce?
By Sally Herigstad

Who wants to wash lettuce or peel carrots after a hard day's work? It's so much easier to grab a bag that's ready to eat. What would it take for you to start washing lettuce again? Most of us would be motivated by $20 per hour, and certainly by $40. Let's see what's worth your time:

Peeling and grating potatoes. This is a bit of work. You could peel a pound of potatoes and grate them into hash browns. Bagged potatoes are 66 cents per pound, vs. $2.08 for frozen hash browns. If it takes you ten minutes to prepare the potatoes, you'll make about $8.50 per hour - minimum wage many places. But there's no going back when you find out what hash browns should taste like.

Spooning yogurt into single-serve dishes. Strawberry yogurt in the big carton is $1.10 a pound, but twice that in single-serve cartons. Grab a spoon. If it takes five minutes to spoon out that yogurt, you made $13 per hour - not a killing, but it's easy work and you'll have less packaging to throw away.

Making ice. Surprisingly, ice costs almost as much per pound as some food - 47 cents in our search. Make it for free. If it takes you two minutes to make a pound of ice, pay yourself $14 per hour.

Washing and chopping broccoli. Ready-to-microwave broccoli is $4.39 per pound, vs. $2.49 if you can bring yourself to rinse it under the faucet and give it a quick chop into a bowl. Manage that in 5 minutes and you just made $23 an hour.

Washing lettuce. Too tired to rinse lettuce? The red leafy kind is $1.99 if you bag it yourself, or $5.33 per pound if you toss a pre-washed bag in the cart. If you can wash a pound in five minutes, give yourself credit for making $40 per hour.

Washing green beans. It's a hassle cutting off the ends of green beans. But if you buy them pre-cut, they're probably dried out and you'll cut them again anyway. Ready-to-nuke beans are $5.85 per pound, vs. $1.99 if you wash and snip them yourself. Five minutes here and you'll make $46 an hour.

Peeling carrots. Baby carrots are cute, but at $2.65 a pound, they'd better be. Peel regular carrots that cost 88 cents per pound in 5 minutes, and you made $53 per hour.

Roberta
 
  2  
Reply Tue 6 Mar, 2012 04:53 pm
Most of the meats in the supermarket are too big for one serving. I do my own freezing.

I have no problem with frozen vegetables. But I have to buy veggies that can be divided without a saw. Frozen spinach is impossible. I buy peas, broccoli, cauliflower, and mixed veggies.

I figure having no waste is cheaper than buying too much fresh and not eating it before it rots.
Cycloptichorn
 
  1  
Reply Tue 6 Mar, 2012 05:03 pm
@jcboy,
jcboy wrote:

We both actually cook but Marco is still a much better cook then I am, but I’m learning.

He won’t buy anything from a can, vegetables, etc, or any frozen foods. He makes everything from scratch, even his own salsa. Everything has to be fresh when he cooks. For instance I would buy mushrooms already chopped and packaged or canned mushrooms, he buys fresh mushrooms and chops them.

So we went through the pantry and took out all the can goods and will take them to one of the food banks in town. He claims it doesn’t take that much more time to prepare the foods yourself and you save more by buying fresh.

Not sure if you actually save money but the foods sure have a much better taste.

I’m thinking of taking a cooking class two nights a week.
Cool


If you buy fresh food and then prep it and freeze it, do you count that as fresh, or frozen?

Cycloptichorn
jcboy
 
  1  
Reply Tue 6 Mar, 2012 07:51 pm
@Cycloptichorn,
That would make it freshly froozen, still better than a can Cool
ossobuco
 
  1  
Reply Tue 6 Mar, 2012 08:31 pm
@jcboy,
Someone said earlier - maybe ehBeth - that flash frozen is often better than produce long sitting. I'll agree, especially at my nearest market, where produce seems like a new concept to the managers/and maybe owners. Not to totally dump on them - they have been slowly changing since I've been here and awakening to some new products compared to my old Safeway store back in CA.
Plus, they are keeping all their mexican and new mexican products, which is 3/4ths of why I like the place, along with that the store is near by. Oh, and that I like the people who work there.

Back in my last home town/nirvana, I used several stores, best being the local co-op. BBB will likely agree with me on that, she knows the exact store; next being a superb store in Arcata (Wildberries), and third being a toss up between Canned Foods (an outlet) and Safeway.
0 Replies
 
Joe Nation
 
  1  
Reply Wed 7 Mar, 2012 05:42 am
@Butrflynet,
I printed this out and hung it on my refrigerator near where I write down my grocery list. Thanks, Butrflynet.

Jcboy: I used to really dislike having anyone else in my (small) kitchen until I decided to let that go.
Now, when C. is here, I try to find things for her to do to help me with the meal. Do I need the help?
No.
Is she better at chopping, rinsing, stirring, slicing, mincing, grating or checking if the bread is done?
No.
I had to teach myself to like the closeness and now I do.

Good luck. If I am capable of change. (Un-urged) anyone is.

Joe(No, really, anyone.)Nation
farmerman
 
  1  
Reply Wed 7 Mar, 2012 06:29 am
@Roberta,
Quote:
No canned veggies either.
Well, as osso said, theyve not found a way to make winter tomatoes even taste like anything so we use CANNED tomatoes for all winter sauces or jambalaya , The canned ones have a reatined flavor that has been found to be preferred by almost everyone who tries em.

As far as fresh veggies this time of year, you can keep several rows of root crops in the garden. I keep carrots and red beets and turnips and I mulch them heavily. CArrots are excellent for things like julienned veggies and I supplement the garden veggies with stuff like squashes or mushrooms from our local (Kennet Square) mushroom industry.

Julienning veggies and then just sauteing them in a garlicky butter and served witha bit of grilled lemon drip is great.

Of corse nothing beats veggies fresh INSEASON , and even fresh market veggies , unless locally grown, are pretty much tasteless.

0 Replies
 
Setanta
 
  1  
Reply Wed 7 Mar, 2012 06:44 am
@Joe Nation,
I take it we can assume she doesn't read here.
Joe Nation
 
  1  
Reply Wed 7 Mar, 2012 08:51 am
@Setanta,
heh.

Joe(yah)Nation Cool
0 Replies
 
farmerman
 
  1  
Reply Wed 7 Mar, 2012 11:25 am
@Joe Nation,
Quote:
chopping, rinsing, stirring, slicing, mincing, grating or checking
and, of corse, youve forgotten julienning, unless to julienne is not a verb. However I think it is a perfectly acceptable verb, sorta like blanc-mange
Joe Nation
 
  1  
Reply Wed 7 Mar, 2012 12:01 pm
@farmerman,
C is Arcadian French. She says she is A'cadiAN. No 'r'.
Everything must be 'toothpick' clean.
AND she cleans AS we cook so the only things left to wash after dinner are the plates, wine glasses and the silverware we used at dinner.

I have to say "Wait!" before she tosses out the remaining pasta water that I might want to put into the clam sauce.... . Shocked

She's been a revelation to me.

Joe(lucky s.o.b.)Nation
ehBeth
 
  1  
Reply Wed 7 Mar, 2012 12:32 pm
@Joe Nation,
Joe Nation wrote:

C is Arcadian French. She says she is A'cadiAN. No 'r'.


the real deal ('round where Montana is IRL) is A'ca dien. Definitely no 'r'.
 

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