Pre made vs Homemade

LKArgh

francinejones7 wrote: »

Today I went to the supermarket to get ingredients to make chicken pot pie. Items such as carrots, onions, chicken and spices etc. Half way through shopping I found a small container of pre made chicken pot pie. I scanned the barcode and it fit within my calories for the day. I decided to get it in instead as at the moment I'm struggling with money. The pre made 350gram chicken pot pie was $5 and the chicken I had in my basket was $8 for 240grams. I also checked the ingredients and no ingredients that shocked me. The brand prides itself on using natural Ingredients.

Anyway what are your opinions? Would you pay make it yourself or buy pre made?

First, I would look for cheaper chicken. I cannot imagine there are no other options: local butcher, frozen?
Second, in the 350 grams of pie, there would be far less than 240 grams of chicken, I would expect most of the weight to come from crust and filling other than chicken. So, 240 grams of chicken would probably end up making double or triple, if not more of pie. In other words, it would be cheaper per portion to make it from scratch.
I would buy a chicken, bake it with potatoes or rice or use it to make soup, then use the leftovers for the pie. If you plan for the whole week, making things from scratch is usually much cheaper.

88meli88

I do not trust what kind of meat they put into pre-prepared foods w meat. Probably, the cheapest cuttings of the chicken and that is why so cheap. It's just like sausage that way.

FrancineDesign

aggelikik wrote: »

francinejones7 wrote: »

Today I went to the supermarket to get ingredients to make chicken pot pie. Items such as carrots, onions, chicken and spices etc. Half way through shopping I found a small container of pre made chicken pot pie. I scanned the barcode and it fit within my calories for the day. I decided to get it in instead as at the moment I'm struggling with money. The pre made 350gram chicken pot pie was $5 and the chicken I had in my basket was $8 for 240grams. I also checked the ingredients and no ingredients that shocked me. The brand prides itself on using natural Ingredients.

Anyway what are your opinions? Would you pay make it yourself or buy pre made?

First, I would look for cheaper chicken. I cannot imagine there are no other options: local butcher, frozen?
Second, in the 350 grams of pie, there would be far less than 240 grams of chicken, I would expect most of the weight to come from crust and filling other than chicken. So, 240 grams of chicken would probably end up making double or triple, if not more of pie. In other words, it would be cheaper per portion to make it from scratch.
I would buy a chicken, bake it with potatoes or rice or use it to make soup, then use the leftovers for the pie. If you plan for the whole week, making things from scratch is usually much cheaper.

Hi, sorry I should of mentioned the pre made was just the inside filling I didn't use crust I has mashed sweet potatoes on top.

shaumom

In my experience, homemade anything is frequently healthier, looked at overall. Fat content, sodium content, lacking weird ingredients (like, for example, sometimes ground silica (rock, basically) added to some ingredients so they flow more freely on factory machines), that sort of thing.

However, cost-wise, if you are going to make something from scratch, it's almost always more expensive, especially if you follow a recipe exactly that you just looked up. Because recipes aren't taking into account what is in season (and therefore cheaper) or what is on sale (and therefore cheaper) or what is very expensive (like certain herbs).

One thing that we've done the last few years is to, well, basically plan a LOT more than we used to. If we like meat a lot, we look for it on sale and buy it then, but not when it's not. If we like fresh herbs, we've been growing them (SO much cheaper than from the store, even if grown in pots, it's unreal). If we want a certain dish with lots of a certain type of veggie, we make it when that veggie is in season, or buy extra then and freeze it for later use.

And we also rarely make recipes as-is anymore. We substitute in season veggies for more expensive out of season ones, or different cuts of meat, or different spices. We started doing this due to allergy reasons, but then noticed the difference it can make in the pocket book and now I'd do it even if the allergies went away. It's very helpful. :-)

Strawblackcat

I pretty much always go with homemade. I can't have dairy or gluten, so a lot of convienence foods are ruled out for me automatically. Plus, I'm really discriminatory as to where the meat I eat comes from, and not many companies that make frozen dinners source their meat from places that I approve of. If I want a meal that satisfies my dietary needs, as well as my ethical morals, I usually always have to end up making it. But I like to cook, and I'm rather good at it, so having to make it doesn't really bother me.

My parents are just as happy to buy it pre-made, but I'll oftentimes end up making them pot pies and stuff so that they aren't eating all the partially hydrogenated oils and preservatives and other crap that are in industrial pot pies.

Osiris275

I lie alone, everything I eat is either pre-made, frozen or from a packet/tin. I hate cooking, and don't really enjoy eating fresh things. I wish I did but I've tried and I just don't!

It's not done me any harm though, as long as it's weighed I still lose weight. I've lost 70lbs, with not one meal cooked from scratch! I'm hoping as I lose weight I will be more willing and confident to try new foods/meals/cooking.

jimmmer

I cook for myself because it'll taste better than 90% of what's in the shops.

It has no impact on weightloss/body comp - that's down to calories, macros and training - but if I want to eat something that has all the personality of cardboard I'll have something shop bought.