This is not, as it might suggest, a discussion about the merits of home cooking against those of take-away (or other ready) meals. Rather, it is the result of some pondering earlier today, whilst watching a food programme. The presenter, Jamie Oliver, commented that a long list of ingredients was one of the factors that might put people off choosing to cook a particular recipe[1].
I own a large number of cookery books and probably, like many people, have not cooked every single recipe from any of them. In fact, the first thing I used to do when I acquired a cookery book was to look through it and make a quick assessment of whether I thought the recipe was worth trying (usually the acquisition of the book meant that I had seen at least one of the recipes it contained prepared and chose it on that basis).
I can be indecisive in some areas of life, but not in this one; my decisions are made rapidly and without any perceptible difficulty.
So, what makes me decide to cook, or not to cook, a particular recipe.
The first factor is the combination of flavours which I perceive the ingredients will produce. I think I have some sort of mental ‘flavour synthesiser’, which enables me to work out how a certain dish will taste. This is clearly a personal thing, as everyone’s taste perception is different and as they say (albeit in a different context) ‘one man’s meat is another man’s poison’. Of course, it may be possible to substitute a disliked ingredient with one you find more palatable and I have done this before.
Mr. Oliver’s comments about long lists of ingredients are also pertinent to me; I find recipes containing numerous ingredients a deterrent, partly because it’s likely I may not have one or more of them, and partly because I am more likely to forget an item if it is part of a very long list.
Still on the subject of ingredients, cookery writers are not always cognisant of the fact that most of us need to work to a budget and the use of expensive cuts of meat or niche varieties of fruit or vegetables can put some potentially good dishes out of the reach of the ordinary cook.
The final point about ingredients is concerned with their nutritional value. When many of us are concerned with healthy eating, the total energy content of the suggested portion of a dish renders it either completely unsuitable or only appropriate for high days and holidays.
The number of processes involved in the preparation of a recipe, or the total time likely to be taken can also be a disincentive; even though I am now largely retired from paid work, it does not mean that I want to spend endless hours in the kitchen. Again, I have been known to tackle a recipe in a completely different way (or order) to that suggested in order to cut down on the time involved or to carry out the preparation in what I consider to be a more efficient way.
Sometimes a recipe may contain techniques with which I am unfamiliar (or not confident) and that can certainly put me off trying it.
Lastly, the cost of ingredients is not the only expense to be involved in home cooking. The food is generally cooked and at times, the use of the oven for hours on end (possibly at a very low temperature) is neither economical nor practicable for those of limited means or living a busy life. In addition, a gas oven (such as the one we currently own) can’t be programmed in the way that is possible for its electric equivalent.
24/10/19
[1] The programme in question contained recipes with only five ingredients, plus additional items from the store cupboard.
Photos are courtesy of Pixabay: Free Photos (Heading) and Marina Pershina (Spices).
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