Do you Cheat in the kitchen?

[Nicholas Mosher]

FraidKnot got it right.

They're nugget-like hashbrowns. I used to eat 'em by the bag when I was little, then go crawl into a fetal position and twist with agony.

No seriously, they're a guilty-pleasure I enjoy every now and then. I usually hide them under a few bag-o-lettuce packages on the conveyor at the store, followed by some thumb-twiddling and honest whistling.

My mom used to be a "freezer-queen" too. We'd have a good meal on Sunday, but during the week it was mysterious bags and boxes pulled from the darkness of the ice-box. Mystery meat & gravy with taters was a common one.

 

[FraidKnot]

No seriously, they're a guilty-pleasure I enjoy every now and then. I usually hide them under a few bag-o-lettuce packages on the conveyor at the store, followed by some thumb-twiddling and honest whistling.

Why bother to hide them? They are right in the front of my freezer as I type! Right next to the Gorton's Fish Sticks.

I can't tell you how many times I have had to tell the person running the cash register what a particular vegetable is. I, for one, would be totally embarrassed if I worked in a grocery store and couldn't identify (for example) butternut squash or leeks, whether I eat those things or not. It's so funny when some pimply faced kid says to me, "What's this?" Or "How much does this cost?" I could tell them virtually anything and they'd believe me. Being an honest person I don't do that, of course, but the possibilities... hmmmm

Fraidy

 

[Nicholas Mosher]

I wretch when I pass by these things on my way through the dairy section in the upright freezers. I saw more of these packages growing up than I care to admit...

"For Taste and More it's On-Cor!"

If I think about 'em too long my knees give out and I have to go outside for fresh-air.

 

[FraidKnot]

On-Cor boneless "rib shaped" pork patties in BBQ sauce! EWWWWWWW! Wait, they correctly list it as BBQ sauce AND... because of course there is more sauce than anything else in the package. This sounds suspiciously like a McRib. McDonald's is another major EWWWW for me, but then I don't like fast food in general.

Unfortunately I'm all to familiar with the 'Salisbury Steak in Gravy' thing, although Mom always bought Banquet brand. Disgusting! And I don't want to know what that meat is in the 20% more MEAT in the frozen Lasagna. <shudder>

Fraidy

 

[bullseye]

I'm not sure where cooking stops and cheating starts. I often make my own stock, but also use off the shelf. I have yet to try boxed potatoes, but I think that is a holdover from eating my aunt's in the 60s. It was difficult to tell the difference between them and the centers of her huge (where did she get them?), overcooked, lima beans (except for the skins, of course.). Personally, I am much more apt to use oil and vinegar with S&P on salad than more complex dressing; I do use both bottled and homemade for company.
I have made pastry dough by hand, and find the result to be indistinguishable from the store bought product--it's not worth the effort. I much prefer minced, fresh garlic; when pressed, I always have jarred minced garlic in the refrigerator. I could go on, but the point is that whatever gets food to the table on time and palatable, is fine by me.

 

[Little Miss J]

I've never seen the 'Salisbury Steak in Gravy' thing before. I am assuming that they are not avaliable here. Although I have no great desire to try them ( I have some real steak in the freezer). What are they actually? They don't look like steak from the picture on the box. Is it a meat pattie type thing?

 

[licia]

To me it makes good sense to use some of the time saving products. A rotisserie chicken can be the start of several good meals without the mess or trouble and time. Instant mashed potatoes are a good thing to keep on hand in case your own need fluffing up, your soup needs thickening, or if you just need a cup of potato soup in a hurry. I like to cook most things from scratch, but certainly don't mind a bit of help here and there from good products with more than one use. Sometimes it is a matter of time between having a sandwich or a better meal with a convenience product. I say make the best of what is available (and what you like) and don't worry about what the purists think.

 

[philso]

What worries me is that I don't even understand this reference! I'll betcha I can say nyuk, nyuk, nyuk mind you

Do I have to understand the meaning of what I'm saying to qualify?

you'll have to find some early "3 stooges" videos, with moe, larry & curly. i don't know if they even air on tv anymore. i suppose most people raised in the states between the ages of 40-something to 80 something were raised on 3 stooges shorts at the movies or tv reruns.

if anyone claims to "understand" the 3 stooges, they are way too cerebral.

and by the way, there's always "woob, woob, woob..."

for all you non-americans, "nyuk, nyuk, nyuk" & "woob, woob, woob" is american-existentialist talk for expressing higher philosophical truths about the human condition. kind of a blend of emmanuel kant, jean-paul satre, and nietzsche, you might say. a little harder to understand for some.

 

[Poppinfresh]

I generally tro to avoid cheating in the kitchen. It's too close to the Lady of the House's office. I'm sure she'd hear the ruckus if I found and then brought someone over :P

 

[XeniA]

I generally tro to avoid cheating in the kitchen. It's too close to the Lady of the House's office. I'm sure she'd hear the ruckus if I found and then brought someone over :P

Was wondering when somebody was going to give it this twist!!

you'll have to find some early "3 stooges" videos, with moe, larry & curly. i don't know if they even air on tv anymore. i suppose most people raised in the states between the ages of 40-something to 80 something were raised on 3 stooges shorts at the movies or tv reruns.

Ah-ha. Well then, shame on me I guess. I fit your criteria (on the 40-side, mind you, puleese!) just didn't happen to like them so the reference went over my head. (By the way, before I get labeled a snob: the three stooges actually scared me as a kid!)

for all you non-americans, "nyuk, nyuk, nyuk" & "woob, woob, woob" is american-existentialist talk for expressing higher philosophical truths about the human condition. kind of a blend of emmanuel kant, jean-paul satre, and nietzsche, you might say. a little harder to understand for some.

Ah, time to play "fun with foreigners" Philso?! (This may be the first and last time in history that "The Three Stooges" and "Jean-Paul Sartre" were mentioned in the same sentence.)

 

[karadekoolaid]

you'll have to find some early "3 stooges" videos, with moe, larry & curly. i don't know if they even air on tv anymore. i suppose most people raised in the states between the ages of 40-something to 80 something were raised on 3 stooges shorts at the movies or tv reruns.

if anyone claims to "understand" the 3 stooges, they are way too cerebral.

and by the way, there's always "woob, woob, woob..."

for all you non-americans, "nyuk, nyuk, nyuk" & "woob, woob, woob" is american-existentialist talk for expressing higher philosophical truths about the human condition. kind of a blend of emmanuel kant, jean-paul satre, and nietzsche, you might say. a little harder to understand for some.

THERE! And I thought "nyuk, nyuk, nyuk " was the noise chipmunks made...

 

[JDP]

If you dig deep into my pantry closet you would occasionally find a box of stove top stuffing mix. I do enjoy making homemade stuffing but in a pinch it works.... and after a beating with a rubber hose I would actually admit that I do like it.

JDP

 

[Robo410]

Instant mashies? no , horrid taste.

But some frozen veggies, such as chopped spinach for some dips and spreads,
frozen peas. WHipped cream in a can. Stock from cans etc.

 

[CharlieD]

Oh, yeah, Rhodes Italian brad frozen dough - I use it for pizza all the time.

 

[angelbear9114]

I cheat all of the time...

I work 8 - 6 Monday through Friday and DH does NOT cook...When I get home I typically like to eat before say 9:00 when I am wanting to wind down and RELAX.

I use so many "cheater" foods it is rediculous...

In fact dinner tonight is entierly cheated.

Mondays

 

[Billdolfski]

I can't and don't bake. Canned biscuits for me when I make sausage gravy.

 

[mudbug]

Now just look what you've stirred up, YT!

I love this thread.

I'll be back later to confess my many sins.

 

[Happy@Cooking]

Let's see...
Frozen onions
Frozen bell peppers
Swanson broth in the box
canned tomatoes(all kinds)
canned mushrooms
On cor(everything)
Frozen bisquits(and then make sausage gravy)
canned artichoke(fresh and frozen are hard to find here sometimes) and just about everything that has been confessed to.

When I was younger I worked in a couple of professional kitchens and I love to make meals from scratch when I have the time. I love too cook from scratch, but if I have a large meal to prepare and I don't have a lot of time...I cheat. Most of the time people say the food is great and they keep coming back.

This is a great thread btw

 

[Shunka]

The mention of can biscuits makes me remember that I never ever saw my Grandmother make biscuits from scratch. I know she did long ago from hearing my Grandpa and one of his brothers telling stories. I think the canned was such a good convenience for her by the time us grandkids came along and I do have to admit that it was a thrill for us little kids to be the one to peel the paper off and set them up in the pan for her.

 

[BreezyCooking]

Happy@Cooking - your pantry items are almost an exact duplicate mine except for the onions.

I also use canned chopped clams & clam juice in place of fresh clams with no loss of quality to the specific dishes I use them for that I can tell.