4 ms·

Short answer: time and effort. I'm the main mealmaker in my family. I generally like cooking, but I get tired of doing it every day. Processed stuff like Rice-

Short answer: time and effort. I'm the main mealmaker in my family. I generally like cooking, but I get tired of doing it every day. Processed stuff like Rice-A-Roni or Kraft Mac & Cheese, or frozen pizza takes single minutes of my time and only the most minimal effort and will generally be eaten without complaint. As for cost, these items are pretty cheap averaging $1 or $2 per meal for three people. Maybe add some meat for another $2. That said, ISTR that Americans pay proportionally less of their income for food than anywhere else in the world, so food, processed or not is fairly inexpensive. Yeah, I know there are other cheap, fast meals I can make starting from raw ingredients: I'm a fairly good cook. However, as I mentioned above, sometimes I simply don't feel like it.

roland35 6y ago
When I was a kid, I used to love Mac and cheese dinner night! Now as a parent, I love Mac and cheese night even more! I can get both kids fed in 5 minutes and everyone is happy.
mynameisash 6y ago
I don't disagree, but I think a lot of people have skewed perception of cost and effort in cooking. The two complaints I hear from people are generally, "But I don't know what I'm going to _want_ to eat until it's dinner time!" and "It's too hard/I don't know how to cook." I love to cook and bake, though I have the luxury of doing it when I want to. (My wife usually does most of it). I can make a batch of bread dough for three baguettes in under three minutes. Letting it rise takes no time, though it does require some foresight. Baking is only a few extra minutes of additional effort. I think I calculated that one baguette costs me about $0.17 of ingredients, almost all going toward flour, which I buy in bulk. It's also delicious - frankly, much better than anything I've bought anywhere else except for the boulangeries in France.
- natdempk 6y ago
  Can you share a recipe for this please? I’d love to make quick and delicious baguettes!
  - mynameisash 6y ago
    Apologies for missing your question. Here's the link for my recipe[0]. It's really easy, but I think keeping the dough moist and the oven sufficiently humid is quite important. Fortunately, that's generally hard to mess up. Bonne chance ! [0] http://www.dingostick.com/2017/10/recipe-french-bread.html http://www.dingostick.com/2017/10/recipe-french-bread.html
- StrictDabbler 6y ago
  Do you have a Kitchenaid or similar mixer, a large sink, counter space, nice cupboards, an assortment of pans/bowls, a quality oven and a dishwasher? I learned to bake bread as a child in my mother's kitchen, equipped with all these amenities. I made some fantastic bread. I tried it again as a young adult in a small apartment with no dishwasher, a tiny sink, mixing the bread entirely by hand, kneading it on the one corner of a counter not occupied by the microwave, then hand-washing the mixing bowl in a sink with a non-spray faucet while the dough rose before baking it in a cheap oven from 1992. My apartment was not shitty. Many American adults are currently raising their children in equivalent apartments... more bedrooms, no significant kitchen space, no tools. A kitchenaid mixer is 1/4 of a month's rent for most. "Three baguettes in under three minutes" ignores every externality involved in the process.
  - mynameisash 6y ago
    Actually, I mix everything by hand, have fairly limited counterspace, use mixing bowls from Goodwill and a run-of-the-mill electric oven. I don't deny that I have certain privilege, but my baking is _far_ from privileged save for having an upbringing in which I had a mom that did a lot of baking and was patient with my 'helping out'.

roland35 6y ago

When I was a kid, I used to love Mac and cheese dinner night! Now as a parent, I love Mac and cheese night even more! I can get both kids fed in 5 minutes and everyone is happy.

mynameisash 6y ago

I don't disagree, but I think a lot of people have skewed perception of cost and effort in cooking. The two complaints I hear from people are generally, "But I don't know what I'm going to _want_ to eat until it's dinner time!" and "It's too hard/I don't know how to cook." I love to cook and bake, though I have the luxury of doing it when I want to. (My wife usually does most of it). I can make a batch of bread dough for three baguettes in under three minutes. Letting it rise takes no time, though it does require some foresight. Baking is only a few extra minutes of additional effort. I think I calculated that one baguette costs me about $0.17 of ingredients, almost all going toward flour, which I buy in bulk. It's also delicious - frankly, much better than anything I've bought anywhere else except for the boulangeries in France.

natdempk 6y ago
Can you share a recipe for this please? I’d love to make quick and delicious baguettes!
- mynameisash 6y ago
  Apologies for missing your question. Here's the link for my recipe[0]. It's really easy, but I think keeping the dough moist and the oven sufficiently humid is quite important. Fortunately, that's generally hard to mess up. Bonne chance ! [0] http://www.dingostick.com/2017/10/recipe-french-bread.html http://www.dingostick.com/2017/10/recipe-french-bread.html
StrictDabbler 6y ago
Do you have a Kitchenaid or similar mixer, a large sink, counter space, nice cupboards, an assortment of pans/bowls, a quality oven and a dishwasher? I learned to bake bread as a child in my mother's kitchen, equipped with all these amenities. I made some fantastic bread. I tried it again as a young adult in a small apartment with no dishwasher, a tiny sink, mixing the bread entirely by hand, kneading it on the one corner of a counter not occupied by the microwave, then hand-washing the mixing bowl in a sink with a non-spray faucet while the dough rose before baking it in a cheap oven from 1992. My apartment was not shitty. Many American adults are currently raising their children in equivalent apartments... more bedrooms, no significant kitchen space, no tools. A kitchenaid mixer is 1/4 of a month's rent for most. "Three baguettes in under three minutes" ignores every externality involved in the process.
- mynameisash 6y ago
  Actually, I mix everything by hand, have fairly limited counterspace, use mixing bowls from Goodwill and a run-of-the-mill electric oven. I don't deny that I have certain privilege, but my baking is _far_ from privileged save for having an upbringing in which I had a mom that did a lot of baking and was patient with my 'helping out'.