Windigo
Recipe challenge judge
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If I didn't have medical issues I'd be the same
Convenience foods
- Thread starter medtran49
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I guess most night we have a convenience food such as ready made vegan sausages or vegan nuggets. Once a week we'll have sweet potato chips, but that's not really this thread.
A full blown "ready meal" happens only occasionally when hubby is away from home and I can't be bothered cooking and have nothing made and ready in the fridge or freezer. Then I use 1 of 3 dishes I've found that are OK to not bad but our local supermarket has stopped selling as many vegan versions as they used to, so i guess i eat them a lot less now!
I've had to go back almost a year to find the last one I ate.
A full blown "ready meal" happens only occasionally when hubby is away from home and I can't be bothered cooking and have nothing made and ready in the fridge or freezer. Then I use 1 of 3 dishes I've found that are OK to not bad but our local supermarket has stopped selling as many vegan versions as they used to, so i guess i eat them a lot less now!
I've had to go back almost a year to find the last one I ate.
blades
Senior Member
Medical issues shouldn't stop you from eating well. You may have to deal with limitations but you are a good cook with the ability to be creative. I have many medical issues but none that affect my diet. Even missing part of my colon from cancer doesn't affect it. There are other things I have to give up.
medtran49
Forum GOD!
And then there's pain and fatigue, which DO cause you to have no desire to cook.
Walk a mile in another's shoes...
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Well, I sometimes use convenience food these days simply because I'm too exhausted to cook from scratch (as medtran49 says above). I'm a full-time carer for my partner who has dementia. And of course of there are some medical issues which can make preparing food really difficult. I recently broke my leg really badly and this affected my lower spine. Frankly, due to intense pain, I couldn't really stand up for more than a few minutes in order to cook.
Anyway, I think what is interesting to me about this thread is an underlying assumption that convenience food is not 'healthy'. To me an omelette is a convenience food. It takes but a few minutes to cook but is nutritious. Here in the UK we are very lucky (or not, depending on your viewpoint!) in terms of ready-made meals. They are not frozen meals but 'ready to cook' and most contain no nasty additives. There are whole large aisles in UK supermarkets devoted to such meals and you can buy a huge variety of cuisines. I actually think that most of these ready meals are better nutritionally than the food many people cook from scratch at home. How is that for a contentious statement!
I think for me, “convenience foods” means something that requires no steps beyond popping in the microwave or oven, or just adding boiling water, something like that - it’s all assembled/done, you’re just heating it up.
On days that I want something convenient, even scrambling eggs might be too much for me! Getting a pan, getting the butter and eggs, whisking the eggs, then standing there to (over)cook them, where something like a frozen pizza is just a matter of turning on the oven and tossing the pizza in there.
We have those, but not a huge selection, though a decent one. I won’t vouch for the absence of preservatives and additives, though. We do love our red dye no. 9 here!
We have those, but not a huge selection, though a decent one. I won’t vouch for the absence of preservatives and additives, though. We do love our red dye no. 9 here!
Most stores here have some ready to cook/eat meals, even Walmart. HEB has the biggest selection (see previous post Convenience foods).
CD
medtran49
Forum GOD!
Convenience meal tonight. InnovAsian pork pot stickers, which while not as good as our homemade, were quite good. I did make the dipping sauce though instead of what was in the box. Entrée was crispy honey chicken. It was pretty good too, though I'd rather have honey garlic chicken. I did cook some rice and there was a good amount of sauce. A definite buy again.
karadekoolaid
Legendary Member
I've always thought "convenience food" is something ready made from the supermarket. 30-40 years ago, I'd have sworn that meant "unhealthy", but these days, I don't think that applies.
When I was in Maidstone, we found a Chinese/Oriental market (conveniently next to my favourite pub) and bought some gyozas, spring rolls and some other typical dim sum. They were really, really delicious. I wouldn't evern dream of trying to make them at home if I could get them over here.
Yesterday I had to take the wife to the docs again, and went to an upscale supermarket while I was waiting. They seemed to have a huge selection of convenience foods, but a closer look revealed about 30 different varieties of tequeños , empanadas,pastelitos, kibbe and meatballs. Nothing else.
I’d consider this a convenience meal which I made for my kids. Since I made curry from scratch for my wife and myself, I needed something easy and mess-free for them.
Air-fried fish fingers (10 mins) , packet pasta (add water and milk and boil for 5 mins) and some boiled potatoes which were extra from an Indian dish I was making. I know - two starches, no green ; they’ll get something more tomorrow…
Air-fried fish fingers (10 mins) , packet pasta (add water and milk and boil for 5 mins) and some boiled potatoes which were extra from an Indian dish I was making. I know - two starches, no green ; they’ll get something more tomorrow…
blades
Senior Member
My wife suffers from dementia as well. It makes life difficult for me. Everything seems normal to her. Luckily she isn't debilitated and still does chores and tends to her garden and pet cats. She doesn't communicate well any longer and suffers memory issues but we get through it. I understand the issues.Well, I sometimes use convenience food these days simply because I'm too exhausted to cook from scratch (as medtran49 says above). I'm a full-time carer for my partner who has dementia. And of course of there are some medical issues which can make preparing food really difficult. I recently broke my leg really badly and this affected my lower spine. Frankly, due to intense pain, I couldn't really stand up for more than a few minutes in order to cook.
Anyway, I think what is interesting to me about this thread is an underlying assumption that convenience food is not 'healthy'. To me an omelette is a convenience food. It takes but a few minutes to cook but is nutritious. Here in the UK we are very lucky (or not, depending on your viewpoint!) in terms of ready-made meals. They are not frozen meals but 'ready to cook' and most contain no nasty additives. There are whole large aisles in UK supermarkets devoted to such meals and you can buy a huge variety of cuisines. I actually think that most of these ready meals are better nutritionally than the food many people cook from scratch at home. How is that for a contentious statement!
I think people are talking about commercially available processed convenience food or fast food restaurant fare. While making an omelette is quick and easy, it is still cooking from scratch and certainly nutritious. This morning the omelette was avocado, onion and cheese seasoned with some salsa verde - double cheese for my wife.
Incidentally our supermarket has an entire aisle dedicated to packaged snack crackers and chips and dips and another dedicated only to soft drinks. And Americans wonder why we suffer so much obesity.
I view caloric intake as something like a bank account. There is a limit to what I can consume just like a bank balance. I try to make each calorie be worth the withdrawal from the account so chips and dips or soft drinks don't enter the picture. Omelettes, on the other hand certainly do. You can tell from the recipes I post that I don't fear fattening foods. I just practice moderation on the intake. I hate "diet food."
medtran49
Forum GOD!
Publix had Barber Foods chicken entrees like chicken Kiev, Parmesan chicken, chicken margaritas, etc. on BOGO last week. We bought 1 Kiev and 1 Parmesan. They come 2 to a package. Had the Kiev tonight. They were pretty good, though the coating had just a tiny bit sandy/gritty mouth feel. They were very small though, 3.5 to 4 inches long and a little over 2 inches wide. The box had plenty of empty space. We would eat them again, but I'd buy 2 packages because 1 was enough for me, but not Craig.
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SandwichShortOfAPicnic
Über Member
Tried these yesterday. They have bad reviews, people complain they are too soft. They are very soft, a bit like a bubble and squeak patty except breaded (gluten free breaded that is).
I enjoyed them with some spicy mayo and it was another win for the Cheddarton vegan cheese too.
I’ve ordered more but cos I think they’d make an excellent store cupboard (freezer) breakfast item.
Add some frozen veggie sausages to mix and happy days.
I enjoyed them with some spicy mayo and it was another win for the Cheddarton vegan cheese too.
I’ve ordered more but cos I think they’d make an excellent store cupboard (freezer) breakfast item.
Add some frozen veggie sausages to mix and happy days.