What To Stock in the Pantry (chicken breast, cumin, dinner, baking)

[mainebrokerman]

if I had to live off the land....I think I could... I saw 3 deer roadkills just yesterday
and the lake I live on is loaded with fish ..many ducks and geese around..

the older I get I try to steer away from process stuff but im a hypocrite....will spend 15 minutes reading labels …..to see which food item is better but then get a hot fudge sundae with chocolate syrup with whipped cream ….. and don't think twice whats in that ….because it tastes so good...even if they use the cheap canned whipped cream I refuse to buy..

so yes my cupboards have commercially made items in them

[bale002]

Originally Posted by fishbrains

Basically I avoid the frozen food section of the grocery store ...

I buy frozen peas, but avoid the rest.

Again, does anyone know to what extent frozen legumes and vegetables are industrially processed? Apart from frozen vegetables tasting terrible (the peas are okay), do they lose nutrients in the freezing process?

Thanks.

[fishbrains]

Originally Posted by bale002

I buy frozen peas, but avoid the rest.

Again, does anyone know to what extent frozen legumes and vegetables are industrially processed? Apart from frozen vegetables tasting terrible (the peas are okay), do they lose nutrients in the freezing process?

Thanks.

The OP is difficult to answer because the definition of processed food is so subjective.

I have 3-5 different types of flour in the house at any time (White, whole wheat, almond, chick-pea...), and as I do not grow my own grains nor mill them into flour, I am definitely purchasing a processed food product. Same thing with rice, oatmeal, nuts, beans, spices, cheese, etc.

My assumption was that the discussion was around things similar to prepared foods. Croissants, TV dinners, spray cheese, canned ravioli, bottled Alfredo sauce, and the like.

In my opinion, frozen vegetables are pretty good. They lose some texture, but should maintain most nutrient value. Fresh is inevitably going to be better, but frozen seems to be a reasonable alternative.

[nmnita]

sounds like most of us are on the same page about what we buy processed. I did mention beans, the canned beans I keep on hand are mostly for things like bean salad (about once a year) of cans used for Mexican cooking, when I want beans for anything else, especially soups I used dried and fix them in the insta pot

[lieqiang]

How did the OP's question morph from "commercial" to "processed" so quickly? Tyson chicken is commercial, my aunt's cellar shelf full of home-made pickles is processed.

[bale002]

Originally Posted by fishbrains

In my opinion, frozen vegetables are pretty good. They lose some texture, but should maintain most nutrient value. Fresh is inevitably going to be better, but frozen seems to be a reasonable alternative.

Thanks for response.

Originally Posted by fishbrains

The OP is difficult to answer because the definition of processed food is so subjective.

I have 3-5 different types of flour in the house at any time (White, whole wheat, almond, chick-pea...), and as I do not grow my own grains nor mill them into flour, I am definitely purchasing a processed food product. Same thing with rice, oatmeal, nuts, beans, spices, cheese, etc.

My assumption was that the discussion was around things similar to prepared foods. Croissants, TV dinners, spray cheese, canned ravioli, bottled Alfredo sauce, and the like.

We are on the same page with regard to flours (white, whole wheat, white whole wheat, rye, teff, sometimes oat, millet, corn) and the other foods you mention that need further at-home preparation, but they are certainly less industrially processed than prepared foods that only need heating up, shaking or spraying, etc.

As I'm sure you know, there are people who grind their own grains and coffee with at-home machines.

I did live in a rural area in Greece for a while and participated in the entire process of producing olives and olive oil, from watching the fruit grow on the trees, picking by hand, cracking open olives on stone by hand and curing them with salt and lemon, to milling (admittedly a machine made in Italy), collecting and storing the oil in underground vats; one thing I learned is that freshly milled olive oil has a blue-green color, not that yellow stuff we buy in bottles in stores months or maybe years later.

[rodentraiser]

I'm not sure I'm understanding the question. Do you mean store bought as opposed to home canned or home jarred?

I do a lot of cooking, but some things are homemade and some aren't. I found a jar of tomato sauce I like and haven't been able to reproduce it, so I buy that from the store. But I make my own Caesar and blue cheese dressings and my own teriyaki sauce because I like mine better. I can bake bread, but it's easier to buy it. I also like Hamburger Helper, so I'll buy that once in a while.

I don't especially like cake, so I never buy or make any, and if I want cookies I'll make my own, same as I make my own cheesecake. I love making my own butter from cream, but that gets really expensive, so I buy butter in the store.

Otherwise, I keep some powdered beef and chicken broth, cans of tuna, store bought bread crumbs, some liquid smoke, lemon and lime juice, sometimes a can or two of soup on hand.

Right now I don't really have anything but meat in my freezer: 8 pounds of hamburger, a couple pounds of pork, some chicken breasts, frozen shrimp in a 2lb bag, 5 pounds of bacon, and I used the ham tonight with the potatoes. Once in a while I'll buy a frozen pizza, but I think Round Table is much better than anything in the stores. I don't usually have any frozen dinners or vegetables in the freezer. If I want fruit or veggies, I'll go to the Farmers Market and get them there.

OK, I forgot, I have Freezer Jam in the freezer right now, although I've made my own jam in the past. And occasionally I'll buy frozen blueberries.

[silibran]

Originally Posted by mainebrokerman

if I had to live off the land....I think I could... I saw 3 deer roadkills just yesterday
and the lake I live on is loaded with fish ..many ducks and geese around..

the older I get I try to steer away from process stuff but im a hypocrite....will spend 15 minutes reading labels …..to see which food item is better but then get a hot fudge sundae with chocolate syrup with whipped cream ….. and don't think twice whats in that ….because it tastes so good...even if they use the cheap canned whipped cream I refuse to buy..

so yes my cupboards have commercially made items in them

I can so relate! I try to eat healthy, and then succumb to some stupid thing I suddenly am presented with.

I made brownies yesterday, sent a half batch home with guests, but still have several sitting and beckoning on my kitchen counter. I seriously considered having one for breakfast!

On topic: one of the processed foods I keep around is cocoa. Oh, and I keep Penzey’s hot cocoa mix and lots of different teas in my cupboards too. And I have several bottles of no sugar coffee flavorings as well.

[Taffee72]

Small, white beans in a can. It is way too much work to soak and cook dry beans. I like to add the small white beans to soups, tabouli and other salads. Typically I first rinse the beans under cold water because there's some kind of foamy liquid in with them in the can. Not sure what it is, but I get rid of it with cold water.

[Jkgourmet]

Is he here for DAYS if I tried to reply to this. . .