How not to do your weekly shop (Economy Gastronomy)

Member Name: mickeyhunt

Product:	Economy Gastronomy
Date:	27/08/09 (79 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Some good ideas and some nice recipies

Disadvantages: The presenters are a bit self satisfied and some of the ideas are patronising

I have to say that I quite like this program. I have now seen two of the three episodes and their are many ideas that I like, particularly the idea of making a basic recipe that can be used as the basis for a number of other meals, like the basic mince recipie. It can be used for chillie, cottage pie and bollognaise. It was an idea that had just never occured to be before. I often make a chillie, but just make chillie. I would be better placed to make the basic mince recipie which would take the same amount of time and then extract enough for chillie and freeze the rest for later in the week. Sometimes it is the simple ideas that people miss.

I am amazed at what people spend on their shopping, particularly since we have started to make and effort over the last 5 months to bring our bills down. The family of 7 this week were spending over £400 a week. All the families faced the same problems that we all face, the trade off of time to prepare good wholesome food against the easy ready prepared trash that is on offer. We know it is not good and most of tastes pretty awful if we are truthful, but we do it for convienience. We have forgot the principals that our parents and grandparents lived by such as using basic fresh ingredients to prepare foods.

Yes I can agree with some of the other views about the two chefs being a bit smug and patronising, especially as cooking is their job, so far easier for them to do than Joe Public. That does not make that ideas they have wrong. I will definitley watch the rest of the series to try and pick up as many ideas as I can, because I am heartily fed up with the prepacked culture that we have come to exist in. I want to find a happy balance between being able to prepare good home cooked food and still work full time and being a total kitchen slave.

This program does tie in with another program that is on BBC2 on a Monday evening at 9pm with George Alagia which is examining how Britain and the world and indeed each one of us will cope with the coming food crisis. Gastronomy Economy seeks I think to give people options to create good food without breaking the bank and reducing the amount for waste food that is just dumped. This one thing, the amount of waste food that we throw away is shaming, considering that two thirds of the worlds population go hungry most of the time and could like like kings on our waste.

I do have to say that even thought I sadly quite like tinned frankfurters I agree with previous review that stated that the Frankfurter casserole was foul. Old Gillian Mckeith would turn in her grave. This is not good food and is certainly not good family food, unless you like feeding your kid minced up pigs ears and b****cks. That was a miss for me too.

I think that the key is to watch this program and accept some of the patronising ideas to pick out those small jewels that will help everyone. After all slashing money of your bill when prices are rising faster than a hot air balloon has got to be a good idea.

Summary: Helping the family with planning the shopping and improving the cooking