Strictly Cheese Sandwiches

Primrose53

Blondiescot

Some things definitely don't keep well. Twice in the past fortnight I've bought carrots from Aldi which have gone mushy within a day or two. I've had the same happen with fruit too - strawberries in particular.

Do you store them in plastic bags or in a warm place? We buy big bags of carrots for our horse and very seldom do they go off.

I don't store my veg in plastic bags, nor do I keep them in a warm place. They rarely go off because I keep an eye on them and make them into soup before they go off. However, there have been times when veg doesn't last more than a few days (even the stuff I've bought from shops) and salad stuff doesn't last. Maybe it's more difficult if you live on your own.

Thanks for your tips for the poor and needy!

Germanshepherdsmum

I do the same, though most supermarkets sell paper sandwich bags these days,

Daughter4 even procured eco-friendly Irish muslin bags for her sister's Italian sugared wedding almonds. One can buy anything.

I do the same, though most supermarkets sell paper sandwich bags these days,

MaizieD

Where do all the paper bags come from? They're not exactly common these days..

I buy eco friendly at Amazon. Need a link?

Where do all the paper bags come from? They're not exactly common these days..

Leaving fruit or veg in a plastic bag will hasten its decomposition, even in a fridge. Decant into paper bags! I can honestly say that no food I buy - even that delivered rather than personally selected - goes off before I can use it.

Primrose53

Blondiescot

Some things definitely don't keep well. Twice in the past fortnight I've bought carrots from Aldi which have gone mushy within a day or two. I've had the same happen with fruit too - strawberries in particular.

Do you store them in plastic bags or in a warm place? We buy big bags of carrots for our horse and very seldom do they go off.

We also buy enormous bags of carrots. I cull them after delivery, cut off both ends - spots where rot sets in. None go off.

No, I took them out of the plastic bags as soon as I unpacked the shopping and they were kept in a cool place, but still went soft and slimy. I regularly buy carrots and they usually keep really well, but for some strange reason, these didn't.

Blondiescot

Some things definitely don't keep well. Twice in the past fortnight I've bought carrots from Aldi which have gone mushy within a day or two. I've had the same happen with fruit too - strawberries in particular.

Do you store them in plastic bags or in a warm place? We buy big bags of carrots for our horse and very seldom do they go off.

They can't win can they!

choughdancer

Glorianny

I've just read through this thread and it brought home to me how little some people know about the way others live.
Being poor today is much worse than it ever was.
You are likely to be living in expensive private rental property instead of a reasonably priced council house.
Your house is liable to be in an area some distance from a decent supermarket and your nearest shop will be an over-priced newsagents which stocks a small range of expensive/carb rich food.
You will pay more for your energy because you are likely to have a coin meter which costs loads more.
Travel by bus is more expensive but if you have a job you will need to use it or have a car.
You will probably be on a zero hours contract at minimum wage

This. As well as spiralling food costs, this unfairness of many things (such as electricity if you have a coin meter) actually cost poorer people MORE, when they are the ones most in need of lower costs.

You also pay a higher percentage of your income and/or value of the property in which you live as council tax.

choughdancer

Glorianny

I've just read through this thread and it brought home to me how little some people know about the way others live.
Being poor today is much worse than it ever was.
You are likely to be living in expensive private rental property instead of a reasonably priced council house.
Your house is liable to be in an area some distance from a decent supermarket and your nearest shop will be an over-priced newsagents which stocks a small range of expensive/carb rich food.
You will pay more for your energy because you are likely to have a coin meter which costs loads more.
Travel by bus is more expensive but if you have a job you will need to use it or have a car.
You will probably be on a zero hours contract at minimum wage

This. As well as spiralling food costs, this unfairness of many things (such as electricity if you have a coin meter) actually cost poorer people MORE, when they are the ones most in need of lower costs.

I've just realised as well that poor people now pay far more in tax because of VAT. Until 1973 purchase tax was only charged on luxury goods, now clothes and shoes for adults and older children are taxed. In fact almost everything is.
It is so completely unfair.

Glorianny

I've just read through this thread and it brought home to me how little some people know about the way others live.
Being poor today is much worse than it ever was.
You are likely to be living in expensive private rental property instead of a reasonably priced council house.
Your house is liable to be in an area some distance from a decent supermarket and your nearest shop will be an over-priced newsagents which stocks a small range of expensive/carb rich food.
You will pay more for your energy because you are likely to have a coin meter which costs loads more.
Travel by bus is more expensive but if you have a job you will need to use it or have a car.
You will probably be on a zero hours contract at minimum wage

This. As well as spiralling food costs, this unfairness of many things (such as electricity if you have a coin meter) actually cost poorer people MORE, when they are the ones most in need of lower costs.

M0nica

Norah You are taalakin abiut foodstuffs that simply will not be found in inner city food desserts, nor in there few remaining street markets.

Tofu is made from soya, and that is always in emboldened type in every list of ingredients, along with milk, nuts and several ther items because allergy to these products is so common. my DDiL developed a range of food allergies, after she developed an auto immune disease. She has been issued with an epipen specifically because her soya allergy is so severe. She is also allergic to nuts and fresh fruit. Were she to go vegan, her diet would be very restricted.

I never assumed these foods in desserts - I was answering to sandwiches.

I'm aware tofu is soy. As is soy sauce, edamame, tempeh.

I understand some people can't eat soy, various nuts, dairy, gluten. Our children can't eat some raw egg products.

There is tremendous delicious vegan fare beyond foods above.

Nobody is asking anyone to be vegan or even vegetarian. I answered a question to our frugal tasty meals, simple as that.

Sadly, no cheese in our parcels- so no cheese sandwich. Not sure if Ms Widdecombe approves of that or not.

I would like to add to the point about a wide variety of people struggling to feed themselves, not just families. At the foodbank at which I volunteer, a significant percentage of our parcels go to single people.

growstuff

Sorry Dickens I didn't intend to get at you .

I get irritated by the people who think all the poor have to do is cook from scratch (despite the cost of fuel) and learn how to cook (because they fill their faces with crisps and pizza, presumably ).

Cooking from scratch is a breeze if you've the time, the know-how - and sufficient money!

Norah You are taalakin abiut foodstuffs that simply will not be found in inner city food desserts, nor in there few remaining street markets.

Tofu is made from soya, and that is always in emboldened type in every list of ingredients, along with milk, nuts and several ther items because allergy to these products is so common. my DDiL developed a range of food allergies, after she developed an auto immune disease. She has been issued with an epipen specifically because her soya allergy is so severe. She is also allergic to nuts and fresh fruit. Were she to go vegan, her diet would be very restricted.

Doodledog

Maybe my fridge has a special rottenator salad compartment then. I can expect some things -spring onions, mushrooms and tomatoes spring to mind - to last a week, but leaves and cucumbers don't, and nor do the tubs of things like endame or other prepared salads - they are often sold with a day or two to go.

And before I hear how everyone else grows their own and would never buy wasteful pots, I am talking about being on my own on a holiday park , and suggesting that this is a similar position to those who also don't have a handy supply of fresh goods or a car to go and get them.

The same applies at home - Mr D has to replenish salad regularly as it just doesn't last. Vegetables are a different matter, but even they don't have the life they used to in my experience, which is all any of us can speak for.

Doodledog, Ha. Rottenator.

We grow our veg, of course dependent on weather. Can only expect hardy greens 8-9 mos a year and tomatoes slightly less.

Some veg must be purchased in winter. We're sorting lights for cold weather pots -- should work well next winter.

Sorry Dickens I didn't intend to get at you .

I get irritated by the people who think all the poor have to do is cook from scratch (despite the cost of fuel) and learn how to cook (because they fill their faces with crisps and pizza, presumably ).

I must have the same kind of salad compartment Doodledog I don't throw much away, although I probably throw almost as many avocados away as I eat. They're expensive in the first place and by the time I've waited for them to ripen, they have sometimes already gone black. If I only want to eat half, the other half doesn't keep that well.

Don't listen to the people who tell you to grow your own. You need space, time and it's not a cheap option. I used to grow much of my own veg (hence my username), but it was just becoming too expensive. One thing I do still grow (and saves me money) is salad leaves. I have three troughs of them and they last me all summer. If I ever have a glut of them, I've discovered that lettuce soup is quite nice.

Some things definitely don't keep well. Twice in the past fortnight I've bought carrots from Aldi which have gone mushy within a day or two. I've had the same happen with fruit too - strawberries in particular.

Maybe my fridge has a special rottenator salad compartment then. I can expect some things -spring onions, mushrooms and tomatoes spring to mind - to last a week, but leaves and cucumbers don't, and nor do the tubs of things like endame or other prepared salads - they are often sold with a day or two to go.

And before I hear how everyone else grows their own and would never buy wasteful pots, I am talking about being on my own on a holiday park , and suggesting that this is a similar position to those who also don't have a handy supply of fresh goods or a car to go and get them.

The same applies at home - Mr D has to replenish salad regularly as it just doesn't last. Vegetables are a different matter, but even they don't have the life they used to in my experience, which is all any of us can speak for.

growstuff

But Dickens, it's not just about having knowledge. Many people do have the knowledge to prepare meals on a shoestring budget and have been doing so for years. The fact is that food prices have risen on average 19% over the last year - more if you're already buying the basics - and there just isn't anything spare to cover that cost.

The argument that people don't know how to cook is victim-blaming.

Yes, I do realise that it isn't just a matter of knowing how to cook and how to budget. And I'm aware - isn't everyone on here - of the rise not only in food prices, but utilities, council tax, etc - every damned thing is now more expensive. If you've already cut back to the bone, it means that you simply have to go without certain things - and the choice is usually food. You can starve yourself, but if you don't pay your rent or utility bills, you could end up homeless or cut off.

My point was about those high-profile politicians and others who moralise about the poor suggesting that they are simply leading chaotic lives and don't know how to cook or budget.

Of course, some do lead chaotic lives - for various reasons. So do individuals from affluent families, but they have the cushion of comparative wealth, so don't come under the same scrutiny.

I once went through a period of simply not having enough to live on. I know how to cook, understand food values and can budget. But it's draining and soul-destroying, and there were times after I'd finished work and collected my son from nursery when I hardly had the emotional, mental and physical energy to construct a meal from scratch. Fortunately, it was a short-lived episode, but I dread to think how I'd have coped if it had been long-term, or for an indefinite period. Poverty grinds you down.

And I was lucky - I had a full-time job.

Germanshepherdsmum

I’m in north Norfolk Doodledog. Of the salad items I purchased last week only the tomatoes (still perfect and would certainly have lasted longer) were imported. The rest was grown in the UK. All the veg I purchased was also homegrown.

Agreed. We buy local.

Thankfully all our garden greens are all doing well!