processed or fresh

[zreeds]

I have a hard time cooking fresh food and find it easier just to frozen processed food. any suggestions? trying to eat healthier.

[kapeh12]

What I've learned is to collect some easy recipes and have some basic cooking tools handy to make it easier to cook fresh.

Tools:
Basic set of knives, steak, paring, mid-size serrated, chef and/or santoku knife (I highly recommend the santoku for veggies, but before I got it I made due with a mid-size serrated knife)

Kitchen shears - makes cutting meat into bite sizes so easy (don't know how I went years before recently getting one of these...)

Pot/pan set - small pot for hot cereal, medium for most others, frying pan, larger pan with lid

Basket for steamed veggies - it's a foldup metal thingy that you put in you pot to assist with steaming veggies

Crockpot

Cookie sheets for oven baking stuff


I started acquiring my cooking items via garage sales and still use a lot of them a couple decades later.  Then slowly I upgraded when Christmas gift suggestions and saving for specific items.

Cooking tips:

For steaming veggies - I put my metal steamming thingy into the pan.  Either buy pre-cut veggies or slice them up myself.  Fill the basket, add water to the base of the basket (roughly), then place on the stove on med-high heat.  Once I hear the water boiling, I'll let them steam about 5-10 minutes depending on the veggies.  Adjust the steaming next time based on if the veggies were too crunchy or soft for your taste.

Easy Pork recipe (Maple Pork and Apples):

Need larger flat pan with lid.  If you don't have a lid, find something to improvize (like a similarly sized pan turned upside down or a baking dish.

4 pork chops, 12 mini carrots (I use a few more), apple (sliced to bite size, seeds removed), 1/3 cup maple syrup (try to spring for the real stuff), 2 Tablespoons of butter.

Melt butter in pan.  Season both sides of the pork chops with salt/pepper.  Brown them in the melted butter for 2 minutes, about a minute each side.  Add the sliced carrots and apple.  Add the maple syrup.  Cover, reduce heat to simmer for about 8 minutes.  Remove pork chops, carrots and apples.  Increase heat to boil down the "sauce" - making it a little thicker, and pour over chops.

This makes dinner for me for 4 days (as I live alone).

And here's an easy stew recipe for the crockpot:

1-2 pounds of meat (stewed beef chunks, chicken, turkey)
2 carrots
2 potatoes
mushrooms (optional)
1 onion (I use half)
1 celery stick
Garlic clove
Seasonings (basic salt/pepper or whatever else to taste based on the meat selection)
1-2 cups broth (appropriate for meat selection)

If needed, cut meat into bite sized pieces with kitchen shears.  Place in crockpot.  Season and add 2 tablespoons of flour.  Mix to coat the meat evenly.  Slice up carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, onion, celery and garlic.  Add to crockpot.  Mix everything thoroughly.  Add 1-2 cups broth.  Cover and cook on low 10-12 hours, or high 4-6 hours.

For the crockpot recipe, I'll buy mean on sale and freeze it in portions to make the stew.  Most of the veggies last for quite a while.  I've been having weekly stews, with the occasional maple pork chop this winter and still have enough frozen meat to last a couple more months.  For me, this lasts me 4-5 meals.


I keep an eye out for easy recipies like these - few ingredients, nothing too fancy, and very tasty (in my opinion).

Hope these help get you going, or give you new ideas.

[aggie49]

i cook mostly from scratch so i use fresh products we don't like the processed stuff it doesn't taste the same

[vickysue]

I prefer fresh when i can get it,  everything  here in our store is always old and cost a lot.  So frozen is the next best thing. Because the longer fresh sits on the shelf the more nutrients and vitamins it loses. At least the frozen does not.

[pkrahmer]

one of the easiest ways to start cooking or eating fresh foods is to start with a couple bagged salads. It can either be a side dish or you can make it a meal by adding things like beef,chicken tuna, nuts like almonds.

today I had a salad with grilled chicken,sliced beets , peas and shredded cheese.

another great way to cook healthier to buy bags of frozen veggies and steam them. They can be served hot or cold. Seasonings like mrs dash had lots of flavor to veggies and other dishes without fat and sodium

[zreeds]

i would like to thank you all for your comments and recipes.

[BMaston12]

I have a hard time cooking fresh food and find it easier just to frozen processed food. any suggestions? trying to eat healthier.

Frozen is better than canned. Depending on what you buy, you can still be getting a lot of sodium. READ THE LABEL. It is the only way to know what the sodium count is. I have noticed that the veggies with sauces have more sodium than those that do not. Fresh is still the best. Good Luck!
BMaston12

[potluck6]

Fresh is the best and canned is the worst.Frozen veggies are ok and easier to deal with like no pealing and cutting and seems to taste the same.

[workin4alivin]

CROCKPOT CHICKEN (can be prepared night before too if you have a lift out crock) just prepare and put in prior to leaving for work.

Wash chicken - inside put 1/2 lemon, 1 bay leaf, and garlic (I use powder, it's easier)
Once in crock, sprinkle with paparika ... you are done!

I don't know if you work, but you could also put potatoes in whole depending ... but if you do work, you can chop up veggies you want and then put them in when you get home, in about an hour on high veggies will be cooked (depending on size)

We use a crock pot for just about EVERYTHING! We buy a lot of organic stuff, don't like our veggies mushy so we put them in last. AND because my aunt nor like really like to cook, it works for us!

[shepherdchik]

There are some good choices frozen but stick to the most natural foods you can. Once in a while a frozen pizza or meal is ok but not good for you. Cooking fresh vegetables is not that hard. Most you can just boil or saute in a little olive oil. There are so many fresh or even dried herbs you can use to flavor them too.

[Penwoir]

I do like to use fresh produce when I cook however I'm certainly not apposed to have frozen vegetables in the house. I feel like where fresh produce turns bad quite quickly, frozen does not and it is picked at a time when it is at it's freshest. I have happy to pay a little more for frozen because it is longer lasting and also it has been diced and prepared - it's easy going. But my ultimate preference, is fresh. I think you can get frozen ready cut vegetable for a stir fry which you can just add to cooked chicken and you have a Chinese meal already.