I did dinner on Sunday as Mr D was stuck behind some unfortunate train spotting cows in Deepest Sussex. Once he messaged to say the passengers had been kicked out onto the track and were walking back to the nearest station, I nipped out to the Co-op so there would be food hot and waiting for his return, whenever that was.
Whole chicken £3.75
Pack of new potatoes with herb butter £1 (couldn't be arsed to buy the cheapest because I didn't know when he'd finally get back from Cowmaggeddon)
Pack of green beans £1
Cucumber 62p
Cherry tomatoes 85p
Celery 65p
Spring onions 25p reduced to clear
And these were already in the fridge
Mayonnaise £2
Jar of Massaman paste £2
Loaf of gluten free bread £2
Sushi rice £1.70
Packet of streaky bacon £2.75
6 avocados from the market, pound a bowl £1
Chicken went into the slow cooker, breast to the base, veg went into the microwave when he finally crawled through the front door just before midnight.
So far, the chicken has done 2 Sunday dinners (used half the beans), a chicken salad sandwich each, two main meal chicken salads with the addition of cucumber, cherry tomatoes , celery, Spring Onions and a blob of mayonnaise, and will also do a quick curry for two using a bit of a jar of Massaman paste, more of the tomatoes, the rest of the beans and some rice. And then there's the final knockings and bones with which to make chicken & celery soup (or miso soup depending upon what I fancy at the time - can chuck in some frozen peas and another spring onion, plus there's some dried sea vegetables in the cupboard) for tomorrow. We've also had bacon on avocado toast (half the bacon and five avocadoes left) for a proper brunch as we did a hospital trip this morning (should have gone to see the Big Bee, but decided we didn't want to risk getting delayed by the Extinction Rebellion protests).
This means that for an initial outlay of £19.57, we've had 12 good meals, have enough for another 2 without even needing to leave the house, and, what's most important, have had food full of nutrition - protein, good fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals - it tasted great AND all for an average of £1.40 per meal. Whilst the headline price of chicken, beans and potatoes was indeed over a fiver, what actually came out of that purchase was the means to eat well for a significantly greater number of meals than the two. Oh, and the cats have had a treat as well - I wouldn't have got away with chicken for three days and refusing them even a taste.
If you don't fanny about with the basic ingredients, you can make good, nutritious and pleasurable food without bleeping it up. Staples with seasonings and flavourings are all you need, not adding 17 different things to it because more is always better. It's not about trying to imitate the worst excesses of the Western Diet and being all aspirational about it whilst you've blatantly made puke on a plate for just 4p a teaspoon size portion, it's about looking at what poor people worldwide do with what they have, how it lasts for more than one meal, how it tastes and how it still manages to look aesthetically pleasing in the process.
Bah. I suppose this is the difference - I like food. I like cooking and I like eating. I like feeling physically and emotionally well. I like taste and texture and variety. It's not something I want to mindlessly shovel down or conspicuously refuse or push around my plate because I get more attention that way. I think food is, to JM, something to be endured, not enjoyed - and the animalistic behaviour she describes is when her instinct to eat takes over from her wish to be very smol, but she resents that and makes the shittiest food possible to reduce the likelihood of that happening; when she isn't blatantly lying about eating it in the first place.
and exactly it, just nodded along throughout!
