Guilty pleasures

TheSoloChef

TheSoloChef

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Mod edit: new thread started, old one was just too old.

Sorry to dig up and old thread but I had my (food) guilty pleasure this evening!

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Fray Bentos have been making tinned processed meat since 1881 and in 1961 they made their first pie in a tin.

The reason this is my guilty pleasure is because, well, you see the image on the tin? Looks amazing doesn't it? Well that is for illustrative purposes only as in all the decades of me eating them I have never, ever seen it looking as nice as that 🤣🤣🤣

Put simply, they are the Pot Noodle of the Pie World!!

Eaten by students up and down the land as (up until recent times) they were cheap and cheerful. You just use a tin opener to remove the lid, bung in the over and 30 minutes later your dinner was ready.

Under the thin crispy pastry is more pastry, but oh no it's not crispy like the photo, it's soggy as anything and see all that meat on the spoon? Well, that's all the meat you'll find swimming in the gravy in the whole pie! What bits of steak and kidney there are though are delicious and not a piece of gristle ever to be had! It may not sound very appetising, but they taste great.

They go well with a small tin of carrots and if you eat it straight out of the tin then there's no washing up to do! 100% reminds me of being a student and cooking my own dinner.

Don't throw the tin away though when you've finished scraping off every last piece of pie - they make the absolute best tin to do a Yorkshire Pudding in.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
TheSoloChef said:
Mod edit: new thread started, old one was just too old.

Sorry to dig up and old thread but I had my (food) guilty pleasure this evening!

View attachment 119402

Fray Bentos have been making tinned processed meat since 1881 and in 1961 they made their first pie in a tin.

The reason this is my guilty pleasure is because, well, you see the image on the tin? Looks amazing doesn't it? Well that is for illustrative purposes only as in all the decades of me eating them I have never, ever seen it looking as nice as that 🤣🤣🤣

Put simply, they are the Pot Noodle of the Pie World!!

Eaten by students up and down the land as (up until recent times) they were cheap and cheerful. You just use a tin opener to remove the lid, bung in the over and 30 minutes later your dinner was ready.

Under the thin crispy pastry is more pastry, but oh no it's not crispy like the photo, it's soggy as anything and see all that meat on the spoon? Well, that's all the meat you'll find swimming in the gravy in the whole pie! What bits of steak and kidney there are though are delicious and not a piece of gristle ever to be had! It may not sound very appetising, but they taste great.

They go well with a small tin of carrots and if you eat it straight out of the tin then there's no washing up to do! 100% reminds me of being a student and cooking my own dinner.

Don't throw the tin away though when you've finished scraping off every last piece of pie - they make the absolute best tin to do a Yorkshire Pudding in.
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An accurate description! I've been known to eat them too, though I can't manage a whole one. They do individual little puddings as well.

Good tip about using the tin for Yorkshires.
 
Morning Glory said:
An accurate description! I've been known to eat them too, though I can't manage a whole one. They do individual little puddings as well.

Good tip about using the tin for Yorkshires.
Click to expand...
Same here so I take the remaining half to work with some leftover veg and nuke it in the microwave for a few minutes, OK so the pastry goes a bit soggy in the microwave but it's still tasty and saves making a packed lunch!
 
I must say, while I understand the concept, I don’t count any pleasures as guilty - I embrace them wholeheartedly, no shame or apologies…and that includes my yearly can of ravioli and my boxed pizza mix treat!
 
I usually get this:

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Walgreens (because of course a drug store as the best in canned foods!)

And this is the pizza kit I was talking about, pure nostalgia:

1728738228083.png

Amazon

Note it doesn’t include cheese. In the ‘70’s, it had an envelope of crust mix (just add water!), a can of really greasy sauce, and a little packet of parmesan.

Because my dad was against all things “foreign,” I couldn’t put any cheese on it except slices of American cheese.
 
This is an odd one. I am a bit of a fan of instant mash. I don't pretend for a minute it's the same as or even close to, home-made mashed potato. It's a thing unto itself. And is also a useful ingredient which can be used in other dishes.

But here is the quirky thing. I sometimes eat it in a bowl, with a generous dollop of low calorie salad cream and some Mr Naga pickle on top. For those that don't know, Mr Naga is the hottest Indian pickle you will ever eat (if you can eat it at all). I love it.
 
Morning Glory said:
This is an odd one. I am a bit of a fan of instant mash. I don't pretend for a minute it's the same as or even close to, home-made mashed potato. It's a thing unto itself. And is also a useful ingredient which can be used in other dishes.

But here is the quirky thing. I sometimes eat it in a bowl, with a generous dollop of low calorie salad cream and some Mr Naga pickle on top. For those that don't know, Mr Naga is the hottest Indian pickle you will ever eat (if you can eat it at all). I love it.
Click to expand...
Makes decent gnocchi as well.
 
TheSoloChef said:
They sound like the Birdseye Fish Fingers we have here in the UK which are great in a sandwich and are many peoples guilty pleasure! I enjoy them with tomato ketchup.
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We have the Birdseye brand in the US but they are mostly known here for vegetables. We call fish fingers "fish sticks" over here but I am sure it's basically the same thing.

I just checked and my grocer carries Gorton's fish sticks, fillets, etc. but not Birdseye--a whole bunch of frozen vegetables and veggie blends, though.
 
JAS_OH1 said:
We have the Birdseye brand in the US but they are mostly known here for vegetables. We call fish fingers "fish sticks" over here but I am sure it's basically the same thing.

I just checked and my grocer carries Gorton's fish sticks, fillets, etc. but not Birdseye--a whole bunch of frozen vegetables and veggie blends, though.
Click to expand...
It’s mainly frozen veg here too. Other than Captain Birdseye advertising his Fish Fingers they’re next most famous for their Potato Waffles 😎
 
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