when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

or do you use premade seasoning mixes and stuff like that (boxed rice/pasta etc)

does anyone make their own salad dressing/ marinades/sauces as part of the daily cooking routine (not "special" occassions)

eta: my own answer!

I never use premade anything. I use a lot of different vinegars and spices, fruit juices etc. everything is fresh..I chop WAYYY too much after work LOL but it's worth it.

I wonder if I'll be able to do it once we have kids though. I hope so...I actually want to make some of my own baby food purees..LOL we'll see where that pipe dream ends up!

Message edited 9/19/2006 10:26:00 AM.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

Only when I make sauce every other Sunday.......otherwise, it's pork chops and rice-a-roni! (or similar stuff)

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

every sunday I make sauce from scratch- but we use boxed pasta with it. Other than that not regularly- I make steak but use store marinades and stir frys I use the mixes.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

I'll make my own marinade (takes no time at all really). Once in a while I'll make my own salad dressing too. DH loves it when I make my blue cheese dressing.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

I do a mix of both depending on what I am making.

A lot of the times I make my own marinades and sauces ... but some of the bottle stuff is good and I'll use that.

A lor of the times I start with one thing and build on it ... so if I use a bottled BBQ sauce I build on it with brown sugar, chili sauce, crushed garlic, etc to make my own.

I make my own thick balsamic vinegarette or use Anne's Organic Low Fat Gingerly vinegarette. Those are the only two salad dressings I like really.

I use a lot of boxed rice/couscous because we like them (Near East is our favorite brand).

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

Most of my stuff is packaged. Sauces, marinades, etc. The only packaged food I really don't like is rice- like 10 minute rice, Rice A Roni.

I prefer fresh veggies to frozen and canned.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

Always from scratch.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

I only cook from scratch, that is why my grocery bills are insane!!!!!!!

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

I make my own marinades & spice combos. I make sauce from scratch & from fresh garden tomatoes.

Otherwise, we have chicken with veggies & rice.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

We generally do marinades from scratch...usually salad dressing is just balsamic and olive oil in our house, so we don't buy any premade.

Sometimes we do a vinagarette with mustard in it, or roasted red pepper sauce/dressing.

I make pasta sauce from "scratch" - meaning I use cans of crushed tomatos and add tomato paste, seasonings, onion, etc.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

not really, its too much time and work. I get home from work around 6, I don't have time to cook from scratch if I want to eat a decent time.
When I bake I always like to make everything from scratch though.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

I try to -- I use sauces like Terriyaki etc but try to use organic, or at least no high fructose corn syrup. I rarely make packaged foods, like mac & cheese, or hamburger helper, type of stuff.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

we are very low maintenance cookers-- but everything is made from scratch.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

The only thing I can make is meatballs - it's all original ingredients. Otherwise my definition of homemade is mixing water from home into different packages.

eta. DH will only cook from scratch.

Message edited 9/19/2006 10:39:03 AM.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

We use a mix of things. Sauces are always made from scratch, but we do use fajita kits and shake & bake type of things too.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

I make my own sauce and gnocci pasta.

I would NEVER make fake mashed potatoes from a box.

Message edited 9/19/2006 10:40:57 AM.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

Rarely. By the time I get home from work, I just don't have the time. If I got home earlier than 3 or 4, I would probably do much more from scratch

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

I'm a full-time working mom - Lipton Rice and Pasta sides are my best friends.

Although I do try to make as many things as possible from scratch whenever I do have time because we prefer it.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

I used to use a lot of mixes, but have moved away from that. We don't even use packets for tacos anymore.

We don't use a lot of marinades on our meats, but when we do, we make them.


I usually buy jar tomotato sauce though, but I am trying to make & freeze my own more often, made from canned crushed tomotatoes.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

tonight ill make my first meal-tacos ! lmaoooo

hey its from scratch..sort of!!

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

I prefer to but sometimes I need a little something quick

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

I cook from scratch as often as I can. Sometimes, time just does not allow me to do so or else we would be eating at 10PM.

Re: when you cook dinner, do you cook from scratch?

HELL NO