Stuff That's Just Not Worth Making at Home

[christine007]

For me, it's deep fat frying. It's dangerous, it stinks up the house, you pretty much ruin the oil, (specially for fish) and I know a dozen places I can get decent, inexpensive french fries, battered fish, mushrooms, etc.

I really don't see the point, especially since I have an eleven year old and a very large dog running around. Plus, yes. I have burnt the HELL out of myself in the past. Just not worth it.

[Moopheus]

For me, it's deep fat frying. It's dangerous, it stinks up the house, you pretty much ruin the oil, (specially for fish) and I know a dozen places I can get decent, inexpensive french fries, battered fish, mushrooms, etc.

And in addition to all of that, it would mean having more deep-fat fried food at home. One of the factors in the calculus is limits of consumption. Some things I only have once in a while because I only have them when I am out. Other things I only have once in a while because I make them myself and it is too much work/expense to do more than once in a while. I think, hey, if I had my own fryolator, I could have fried clams whenever I want! Which would be all the time.

[Jenni]

^^^

Moopheus, that along with the price of buying extra oil/ghee for frying is why I do not deep fry at home. I prefer to indulge when I eat out, and the professionals do it without me setting my house on fire and making the food really greasy because I haven't done it right.

[eternal]

Price shouldn't be a problem for frying. You can just freeze oil when you aren't using it. This also keeps you from doing it often because you need to defrost the oil, fill the fryer, use it, then empty back into container to refreeze and clean the fryer. But the results of twice fried french fries, croquettas, etc are delicious.

[Blether]

I deep fry at home, at least monthly on average. No deep frying, no chips. The oil is perfectly hygienic for storage and re-use - I haven't space for an electric deep-fryer, but a dedicated pot works - it goes in a cupboard when it's cool. S'longs you cook out any water (not difficult, it mostly happens that way automatically, no thought required) it won't go rancid. Of course it won't stay good forever (integrity of the oil as opposed to rancidity), and some seafood products (taste) and meats (melted-out fat) will 'contaminate' it more than others. Battering/breading dampens both, and personally I don't deep fry much in the way of meat anyway.

In Japan - the home of breadcrumbs and fritters, haha - they sell dedicated storage cans with a built in mesh strainer. My pot saves on pouring in & out, and I use a mesh-strainer ladle to lift out crumbs.

Fish & chips. Kaki fry. Onion pakora (delicious and an absolute dawdle). Mmm.

Edited March 22, 2011 by Blether (log)

[Jenni]

Price shouldn't be a problem for frying. You can just freeze oil when you aren't using it. This also keeps you from doing it often because you need to defrost the oil, fill the fryer, use it, then empty back into container to refreeze and clean the fryer. But the results of twice fried french fries, croquettas, etc are delicious.

For someone who prefers to cook in home made ghee or very good oil, doesn't want to re-use oil, and doesn't have a huge income, deep-frying looks less attractive!

But as moopheus says, the main reason is that deep fried foods are so delicious that I know I'd make them too often. It'd be pooris every night! So as you can see, it's a personal reason. I agree that many deep fried foods are easy to make at home and delicious too, and I wouldn't say they necessarily belong in this thread as something that it's "not worth making at home".

[christine007]

For me, it's deep fat frying. It's dangerous, it stinks up the house, you pretty much ruin the oil, (specially for fish) and I know a dozen places I can get decent, inexpensive french fries, battered fish, mushrooms, etc.

And in addition to all of that, it would mean having more deep-fat fried food at home. One of the factors in the calculus is limits of consumption. Some things I only have once in a while because I only have them when I am out. Other things I only have once in a while because I make them myself and it is too much work/expense to do more than once in a while. I think, hey, if I had my own fryolator, I could have fried clams whenever I want! Which would be all the time.

Those reasons you cited are in my equation also. I to would overindulge as would my son, and the weight gain is truly not worth it.

Here in the Cleveland area, there's no end of places to go for inexpensive, good fried food, and as you said, it's then more of a treat.

[heidih]

For me, it's deep fat frying. It's dangerous, it stinks up the house, you pretty much ruin the oil, (specially for fish) and I know a dozen places I can get decent, inexpensive french fries, battered fish, mushrooms, etc.

And in addition to all of that, it would mean having more deep-fat fried food at home. One of the factors in the calculus is limits of consumption. Some things I only have once in a while because I only have them when I am out. Other things I only have once in a while because I make them myself and it is too much work/expense to do more than once in a while. I think, hey, if I had my own fryolator, I could have fried clams whenever I want! Which would be all the time.

I join you in this thinking.

[andiesenji]

For me, it's deep fat frying. It's dangerous, it stinks up the house, you pretty much ruin the oil, (specially for fish) and I know a dozen places I can get decent, inexpensive french fries, battered fish, mushrooms, etc.

And in addition to all of that, it would mean having more deep-fat fried food at home. One of the factors in the calculus is limits of consumption. Some things I only have once in a while because I only have them when I am out. Other things I only have once in a while because I make them myself and it is too much work/expense to do more than once in a while. I think, hey, if I had my own fryolator, I could have fried clams whenever I want! Which would be all the time.

I join you in this thinking.

Me too, me TOO!

I was given one of the new T-Fal low fat fryers for Christmas and immediately gave it to someone who will really use it.

I've spent two years steadily losing weight and do not want to backslide. As much as I love fried foods, I know having this appliance would have put a serious crimp in my routine.

[Blether]

Weird. I like deep-fried things, now & again. But if I get lazy and cook two or, god forbid, three deep-fried meals in close succession I really don't want it any more. And until I fell under you guys' evil influence, I'd managed to avoid frying clams up in a bunch of butter and garlic every day without locking away my saute pan.

Now, orange juice... juice squeezed from fresh oranges at a dollar and more per orange, locally ? When I can drink albeit-inferior Tropicana 'home-made style' for about 2 bucks a litre ? I love fresh OJ, but no, not worth it.

Tomato ketchup - why would I go through all that effort to go up against Heinz ? (I've never tried, enlighten me if I'm making a mistake).

Edited March 22, 2011 by Blether (log)

[gastronaut]

It would definitely have to be deep-fat frying in mass quantities (fries, chips, etc). I don't find it a problem to take some fat, stick a thermo in it and let it heat on the burner in a dutch oven. Actually, I enjoy it, but it gets pricey as I use fresh oil every time I cook at home.

Second, is basic condiments. Ketchup, Mayo, that sort of thing. Heinz and Hellmans are hardly ever matched.

Edited March 22, 2011 by gastronaut (log)

[IndyRob]

It would definitely have to be deep-fat frying in mass quantities (fries, chips, etc). I don't find it a problem to take some fat, stick a thermo in it and let it heat on the burner in a dutch oven. Actually, I enjoy it, but it gets pricey as I use fresh oil every time I cook at home.

Second, is basic condiments. Ketchup, Mayo, that sort of thing. Heinz and Hellmans are hardly ever matched.

You've captured my view and I'm jumping on the deep frying bandwagon. Until someone invents a cooking vessel that can make efficient use of cooking oil for deep frying, I'm out.

And Mayo, I absolutely love to make it. It's so magical. But so inferior. When really I'm looking for anything more than Hellman's, I can add some garlic or sriracha.

You bread heathens, though,....we're going to have to have words....

[Katie Meadow]

Ketchup, yes, you're missing out. I make my own and Heinz tastes like a very pale imitation. It only takes an hour, uses relatively cheap ingredients you probably already have in your pantry, lasts a long time in the fridge. The flavors can be played with (for instance by using maple syrup, brown sugar or Lyle's Golden instead of corn syrup) and it's dynamite on a hamburger.

[Florida]

1) Sushi: it's much easier to get what I want at a restaurant.

2) I'm in the deep frying crowd as well. Just too much of a pain in the ass.

3) Normal condiments. Can I make mayo? Yes, but when you need less than 1 tablespoon for the one turkey sandwich I have maybe once a month, what is the point?

[Blether]

Ketchup ...

Thanks, Katie. I'd now like to try it some time... when I'm in a different country. I surmise from

... uses relatively cheap ingredients ...

that you've never shopped for tomatoes in Tokyo. On the exceedingly rare later-summer occasion I get a few pounds for as little as 6 bucks or so (and these are not an especially flavour-rich variety), I tend to make chutney, where the win is bigger (not available at all, retail).

But "in the fridge" ? Is that then a proper preserving ketchup, or just a ketchup-esque fresh sauce ? Or is it just that you're not interested in off-fridge keeping, and simply leave out the sterilisation ? Seriously, I'd love if you'd point me at a recipe. My British-authored preserving bible includes ketchup, but it's an American thing, and it'd be cool to hear it from the source. Anyway what I have uses:

1-2tsp pickling spice

3/4 pint (1 US pint) white malt vinegar

4lb tomatoes

8oz onions

12oz cooking apple flesh

3/4 pint (3/4lb) caster sugar

Salt/pepper/cayenne

Have you ever made other-fruit ketchups like cranberry or blackberry ? Or mushroom ketchup ?

[Blether]

And OK, here's a home-deep-fryer's confession. Basically I don't change or need to change the oil that I keep in the pot as I described above. Somewhere between the size of the pot / volume of oil (pretty much exclusively, in d-f'ing I do one or two portions, and the rig is that scale) and the frequency I do it, I find that if I replenish the volume of oil that's been spent on the food, it just keeps in good enough condition for my needs. In a cupboard at room temp, usually between 20C - 30C year-round with summer weekend bursts to 40C.

I won't tell anyone that it's just as good as using a perfectly new batch of oil. I'll use a new batch if & when I'm ever cooking for company. But throwing out your deep oil at any sort of rate that makes it uneconomical ? You guys are nuts. (Background: my choice is peanut oil for which I pay JPY700 / maybe 8 bucks a litre).

[Dakki]

Agreeing with Blether on the deep frying oil, except for the part where he pays 8 bucks a liter. That's just nuts. I get canola in bulk for maybe 1.50-2.00 USD/liter.

[mukki]

Ethiopian food: tried it and it didn't come anywhere close to the food I get in restaurants. Just not worth the learning curve.

Chorizo (Mexican): never tastes as juicy and tasty as the commercial stuff. I'm probably not getting enough juicy pig parts and extra fat in the mix, though there seems to be something lacking in the spicing, too...

OJ is one thing I *won't* buy when I can squeeze Valencias at home. I used to be able to get good fresh-squeezed juice at restaurants here in CA, but in the past year, it always tastes pasteurized when I order it. Not sure if there's a new law on the books or something...

[IndyRob]

A thought I had earlier in the thread....Making something once is always worth the trouble. It's a MacGuyver thing.

[tonyrocks922]

Tomato ketchup - why would I go through all that effort to go up against Heinz ? (I've never tried, enlighten me if I'm making a mistake).

I don't bother either because I'm not a huge ketchup fan, but real homemade ketchup is amazing, and easy.

[therippa]

Stuffed pasta varieties. I once made tortellini by hand for four people...it had to have taken at least two hours of rolling, my hand was in some serious pain for the next couple days.

[annabelle]

Pierogis. Mrs. T's are just as good when you are feeding hungry teens and a lot less trouble. Ditto to raised doughnuts. I will make bagels and soft pretzels from scratch, though. I've turned my children into bagel snobs and haters of Auntie Anne's pretzels (mall food).

And I totally second the MacGyver aspect of making something once. I boned a whole duck once and stuffed it without breaking the skin. I'll never do it again. I don't care how impressive it was to slice at the table.

[Katie Meadow]

Blether, I rarely have enough fresh tomatoes to use up making ketchup, and if I did I would probably use them for something else. My confession: I use Italian San Marzano canned tomatoes for my ketchup, along with onion, cider vinegar, some source of sweetness or combo thereof, dry mustard, allspice, ginger, ground celery seed, cinnamon and cloves and either a little cayenne or the late addition of a dollop of good BBQ sauce to get a little smoke and heat in the mix. With fresh tomatoes I can so imagine making something better, but this ain't bad and only takes an hour, total.

[farmandforage]

I just made my first batches of red and green Thai chili paste. I don't know if it is so much better than store bought, but it is really good, and having made it from scratch I was much more likely to use it more often (might go bad w/no preservatives) in all kinds of dishes besides a coconut milk curry. I smeared it on fish for roasting, steak for flavor, even put it in guacamole when I had no other chilies. That's why I like to challenge myself to make something from scratch that I could easily buy. Inspiration!

That said I do hesitate in making things that you have to make a lot of if it's just me eating it. So bread, cheese, Lasagna etc... I only make when I've got a crowd or event. Yes, I know the freezer option but a normal freezer can only hold so much. I started canning because of that problem- now I've got stacks of jars everywhere ha ha.

[Chris Amirault]

Can you share that chili paste recipe?