parityanimal wrote: »

My take on the frozen food upswing is also that there are multiple reasons.

Many millennials don't cook, or don't cook much, it seems, and it is very convenient to have a frozen meal or two handy when you are hungry and don't have the time and/or inclination to cook.

The same may be true for some of the more elderly who are still living on their own and would, perhaps, like to cook but may not really be physically up to it as much as they were, so they may also turn to pre-packaged and more or less ready to eat options. Of course there are probably just as many fit and hearty elderly who are still happy to cook from fresh!

Another reason is that frozen foods just seem to keep improving in taste, texture, and overall quality. When I was growing up, frozen foods, aside from some really quite nice dessert items and ice cream, were often, if you were lucky, not bad. Not GOOD, but not really bad either. That was if you were lucky.

Some of them were seriously bad, and, while barely edible, could be used as a fallback, especially if you couldn't quite afford the "not bad" options but still, for whatever reason, needed to have readily available frozen foods. Some vegetables might even have been considered "good" if frozen correctly, but even most of those weren't well processed and tended to be badly degraded by the whole process. Corn and maybe peas were probably the best bets in frozen vegetables.

I remember we kids liked the inexpensive Banquet pot pies, when Mom bought them on sale. I remember this and am appalled at how our childish taste buds actually thought those things were good. They weren't. And when I tried them again as an adult, they really hadn't improved much.

There are still many terribly mediocre frozen foods out there and I expect my generation is probably eating a lot those because they may have liked them as children, and they may even have put those foods in front of their children and/or grandchildren, so I expect there may always be a market for them. I'll freely admit that there are a few appallingly mediocre childhood foods that I still occasionally crave and will then, occasionally, buy and consume. LOL. Usually after doing so I'm reminded about how good they are NOT and it will be quite a while before I buy them again.

Freezing processes for foods have greatly improved over the years and now they can make some frozen foods that are really quite good. Some are even as good, or nearly as good, as home made.

If you can't make the food in question yourself and aren't inclined to learn how, then buying a high quality frozen version allows you to enjoy that food at home anyway. The prices for the higher quality frozen foods will deplete your wallet faster, but if you can afford them, then your freezer can be an inviting "go to" place for times when you need a meal quickly and easily.

parityanimal wrote: »

Howdy y'all. It's terrific Tuesday! 70 with an expected high of 78 and 40% chance of afternoon showers and then some overnight rain.

Need to get out to the store for a few things but Walgreen's, Publix, and Aldi aren't far. I'll probably head out after 10:00 and should be back relatively quickly.

Sink is cleared but need to clean yesterday's cat bowls and feed the cats. Dishwasher is running. I'll probably start some laundry shortly too.

parityanimal wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K39_zWn2ZVQ

parityanimal wrote: »

My face would probably look the same as the kids in anticipation of these "treats"...

parityanimal wrote: »

Tonight's dinner was prepared in my new, actually several days old, but I had some serious issues with the "pre-seasoning" it came with and spent several days re-seasoning it, two and a half quart cast iron bean pot.

The pre-seasoning was unevenly applied, and not properly baked in, with about half the pan being VERY sticky. I scrubbed off any "pre-seasoning" that would come off fairly easily, and some parts got down to the bare metal using only a sponge type pot scrubber with the one green, somewhat abrasive side. Not steel wool. A sponge. That badly pre-seasoned. I added about eight or nine coats of my seasoning and finally deemed it ready to attempt cooking.

The red lentil and vegetable soup came out delicious. I had one bowl. J really liked it and had two.

Cleaned up like magic, so I guess I got it reasonably well re-seasoned. Now a REAL test of that would be to prepare some rice in it...which I'll try some day.

parityanimal wrote: »

Howdy y'all. It's wonderful Wednesday! 69 with an anticipated high of 77 and a verified 100% chance of rain. I went to bed with a headache and woke up with a headache. My bad knee is also a bit unhappy so I'm not the least bit surprised by the weather. I felt it coming and I feel it now that it's here.

Got laundry and dishes done yesterday. I do need to still put away the last of the laundry, but it's all folded and sitting on top of the washer and dryer.

This morning I finished the fourth coat of home seasoning on my small (received yesterday) one quart cast iron saucepan and I'm going to call that one done for now. I'll cook something in it soon.

I still need to cook something in the combined three quart deep frying pan/Dutch oven with lid that doubles as a shallow, rounded skillet. I may do something for lunch in that, involving using both pieces separately. I always like to cook at least once in any new pan shortly after acquiring it, and then hope to just use it in regular rotation. I also need to cook something in my two quart cast iron Dutch oven. It might be perfect for rice since there are no pour spouts and I can get a good seal for steamed rice.

All of the other cast iron has pour spouts and I would have to make boiled rice instead, and still have to figure out a way to tightly cover it and let it steam for ten minutes off the burner at the end. It's been a long time since I made boiled rice but I'm sure I could handle it.

parityanimal wrote: »

Not something we should eat often, but a tasty treat for an occasional splurge.
Recipe link.

https://foodwishes.blogspot.com/2018/02/chinese-scallion-pancakes-happy-new.html

parityanimal wrote: »

RogerToo wrote: »

Was that factory pre-seasoning or was this a previous owner had applied ?

The bean pot used in this house is a Stoneware pot from Lehmans.

Congratulations on getting it into usable condition.
Roger

It was factory pre-seasoning. My one quart saucepan, marketed by the same company, arrived yesterday. It had a MUCH better factory pre-seasoning, though there was still a coat of black ashy substance that needed to be scrubbed off. I have finished giving it only four coats of home seasoning and declared it fit for use.

Just ordered a one and a half quart sauce pan from a different manufacturer. It had mixed reviews on Amazon but we'll see. I have no doubt I can fix any seasoning issues that may be present.

parityanimal wrote: »

Lunch today used the new 3 quart Dutch oven/deep frying pan and the lid/shallow skillet and both performed flawlessly. No sticking and I am sure cleanup will be a breeze.