Cheating

Perhaps it's not the best idea to have one of the first few entries of your cooking blog describing how to get around cooking from scratch, however this post got written anyway. (I will blame my new job, if necessary. Not only does it keep me busy, but I keep on getting given so much food at work that I haven't been able to cook).

Harry Balzer, a researcher at NPD group, has been documenting cooking trends in the U.S. for decades. His definition of "cooking from scratch" means to making a dish requiring an "assembly of elements." Of course this refers to things such as egg, prosciutto, artichokes, olives, mozzarella, tomato sauce& basil on a homemade pizza base. Or it can apply to unwrapping a $1/£1 pizza from your local supermarket and adding a couple of slices of pepperoni and extra grated cheese.

With this in mind, I try to "cook" at least part of every meal I eat at home. Sometimes I manage to make the entire meal. Sometimes, I throw together a salad to go with the quiche. Sometimes, I just "upgrade" pre-made food, making it nicer by adding extra ingredients or spices (I am generally a big fan of both approaches).

Making things from scratch? Still a lot of fun, and definitely a sense of accomplishment. But sadly, I'm not a stay-at-home housewife, who has three hours to prepare dinner every day.

I've heard all sorts of criticisms about store-brought food, from being made with inferior ingredients, to costing more than the sum of the ingredients, to possible additives. Those people push organic ingredients and cooking from scratch. Leaving aside the point about organic food (save that I am wary of how the label is used and skeptical about true value for cost), cooking from scratch is not really possible. As Balzer points out, once upon a time, roasting a chicken would involve killing, plucking, and gutting the bird yourself. Its possible to get a live chicken in many Asian cities (and western ones with a significant immigrant population and friendly livestock legislation), however most modern cooks would not consider these steps as essential to the experience of cooking from scratch. However, in terms of processing, there's very little difference between the neatly packaged container of raw chicken thighs and the neatly packaged container of pre-cooked BBQ chicken thighs. In both scenarios, you can take the chicken home, add some rosemary and coriander, and stick it in the oven. Essentially, you are relying (and paying for) someone else to simplify part of the process for you. What's more important is that you consider what you have vs. what you want as an end result, and add stuff as necessary.

So, I cook as time and effort allows. But it's ALWAYS worth the extra five minutes to chop up some vegetables to throw into the pasta sauce, or adding a dash of basil and oregano on top of the store-brought lasagna.

These are "improvements" to store-brought food, which can technically be called "cooking."

Vanilla Ice Cream with Whipped Cream, Berries, and Disaronno

Chocolate Cake with Strawberry

Yoghurt with Kiwi, Cherries, Grapes, and Plums

References: Pollan, Michael. Out of the Kitchen, Onto the Couch. New York Times, July 29, 2009.