Do younger people really not know how to shop and cook?

mitchezz said:
I have read of a program wheren older women visit younger single Mums and help them sort out their domestic situation. They help with budgeting, organisation, cooking, shopping etc until the younger women can manage by themselves. It's often the case that no one has ever shown them how to run a household.
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This sounds like an excellent solution. :)
 
Karen99 said:
Hi mitchezz...yes, the OP included a link which has her background story.
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Hi Karen,

Yeah I read that but all it really tells us is that she didn't have a great childhood and that she made a poor choice at 17. I'm glad she's turning her life around via education.
 

Karen99 said:
This woman deliberately chose to have three children knowing funds were low..so why not learn the survival skills necessary to give them the basic neccessities of life? It's fine that she gets her education, but too bad she didn't do that first. I'm sure there are free services to help educate a woman like this in the practical aspects of feeding her kids. It just has to be a priority. Woman are great at networking and maybe she could find other women who are successful in this situation to mentor her.

Her present challenge is feeding her kids on $500 a month and you can either whine about why you can't do that or you can face up to your responsibility and have the satisfaction of seeing your kids well fed and never needing to share their friends food or go hungry. Georgia..I do agree with you..if feeding your kids isn't on top of the list...what is?
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Her present challenge...

Not past or future, not blame but the present. This is where we're at: kids to be fed and bring up to be self sufficient which should include practical decision making skills let alone choices.
 
WhatInThe said:
Her present challenge...

Not past or future, not blame but the present. This is where we're at: kids to be fed and bring up to be self sufficient which should include practical decision making skills let alone choices.
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Agreed. And that's how I dealt with a stretch the food budget problem back in the day. Here's the problem -- so many dollars for food. First you cut out junk foods, crap snack foods, soft drinks. Then you sit down and figure out what you can afford and how to stretch it. Sometimes you have to get creative -- I knew about 10,000 things I could do with a pound of hamburger and things like that. And I was no-nonsense about it -- this is your supper and mine -- no there is nothing "gross" about spaghetti with meat sauce -- and no, you can't make a sandwich instead -- eat your dinner. And forget about pre-prepared foods, I actually cooked. Also, there is nothing "gross" about school food -- eat your lunch at school so we can afford to have more to spend on breakfast and dinner. When money is short we can't afford to be so picky, and we eat what we can afford.

And we got through that rough patch and nobody starved or was malnourished.
 
Butterfly said:
Agreed. And that's how I dealt with a stretch the food budget problem back in the day. Here's the problem -- so many dollars for food. First you cut out junk foods, crap snack foods, soft drinks. Then you sit down and figure out what you can afford and how to stretch it. Sometimes you have to get creative -- I knew about 10,000 things I could do with a pound of hamburger and things like that. And I was no-nonsense about it -- this is your supper and mine -- no there is nothing "gross" about spaghetti with meat sauce -- and no, you can't make a sandwich instead -- eat your dinner. And forget about pre-prepared foods, I actually cooked. Also, there is nothing "gross" about school food -- eat your lunch at school so we can afford to have more to spend on breakfast and dinner. When money is short we can't afford to be so picky, and we eat what we can afford.

And we got through that rough patch and nobody starved or was malnourished.
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Exactly. I used to be a big coupon clipper buying name brand products but have shifted to mostly house brand generics(have to hunt for one that suits you) but in either case I have been ridiculed or chastised as being cheap yet many of those same people have been in financial crap for years including bankruptcy.

I see little or no effort by many to save money or shop a lower price. Shopping or being a consumer is a modern day survival skill as is doing as much as one can do for themselves, by themselves and not depend on someone else doing it for them.

I personally see an entitlement culture that wants no part of thrifty or if one is not a so called expert why bother to even learn how to do something when all you have to do is find the money to pay for it.

There is a reason there are old sayings like 'sometimes you have to take matters into your own hands'.
 
When I was in my twenties, I was amazed at how few people made "real" food. Betty Crocker was not welcome at our house. Everything was made from scratch, partially because money was tight, but also because homemade tastes far superior.

Along with a variety of meat dishes, I have learned to cook gourmet vegetarian fare. Once one learns the basics, cooking becomes an adventure--even beans and rice can be transformed into a gastronomical delight--without gassy after effects, if a

smidgeon of mustard powder is added to the pot. Lol. Judicious use of herbs and spices transform plain fare into delicious meals. My Kids still ask for black bean soup with cheese and cornbread, peanut porridge, (which tastes like peanut butter

cookie batter, and contains half your daily protein requirement,) Toad in the Hole, etc. Stir fries, and curries also. I baked my own bread, canned, froze, pickled, for the winter. Sold pies and baking where I could. Still bake for Xmas. I found that most of

my genervation, with the exception of those of us who were poor, disdained homemade. Hmm. a status thing, I suppose. I felt like a dinosaur. Lol. Many of today's young cook and bake as I have always done. How do I know? Why because I have taught

classes re simple, affordable cuisine in a variety of styles. The majority of my students have been young people. Frankly, the majority of "entitled" persons I meet are my age or older. Oooh, are they smug and self righteous. Longing for the "good old

days," which, if one is a woman-- never existed. I have little in common with such negativity, and much prefer the vibrancy of a younger mind set--not that such a thing is limited to the young. Some are old at thirty five, some ageless at ninety. A certain

capacity for self deprecating humour helps keep one from fossilising into an aged mind set. Life is very funny after all!
 
I was just thinking ...

Feeding a family of 4 on $500/mn ... McDonald's has a dollar menu. 4x$1x3=$12/day= $360/mn., with enough left over for some chips and sodas ... :applouse:
 
Shalimar said:
... For those who have expressed an interest, toad in the hole consists of sausages in a pan, covered with Yorkshire pudding batter and baked in the oven. Mmmmm.
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Ah, okay, thank you - that sounds delicious!

I was having dark thoughts of it being a freshly-caught frog stuffed inside a deep-fried doughnut ... :chargrined:
 
When I was a poor single mom, back in the early 70s, living on the west coast most of my quasi/hippie/vegetarian friends and myself made our own bread, soups, ate brown rice with beans and veggies, pressed our own juices, grew our own veggies. We kept our grains and dried food in jars on an open shelf in the kitchen, sewed and knitted our own clothes, drank herbal teas and were healthier and better fed than our rich relatives for a fraction of the cost, and heck, we were even prettier too.

I think people's dependence on too much meat really cuts into their food money and leaves little room for creative eating/cooking. It's a lifestyle choice and many believe that to eat well you have to have lots of red meat and protein, which isn't exactly true. People do need to be educated on how to eat/live economically and unfortunately if young people have no guidance in this regard they are stuck using television and movies as role models.
 
Butterfly said:
Some people's idea of cooking is to put a frozen dinner into the microwave!
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Ha! Cooking is cooking, is it not? My Nephew invited us to dinner prepared by his new wife. Sitting down, we watched as she withdrew a large dish from the microwave: Lasagna!

Right out of the frozen package. My wife inquired about home made lasagna. His wife immediately began railing about how preparation is "too much trouble', .....blah, blah. She couldn't cook was the fact of the matter. 15 years later now, poor Dan does all the cooking. imp
 
imp said:
Ha! Cooking is cooking, is it not? My Nephew invited us to dinner prepared by his new wife. Sitting down, we watched as she withdrew a large dish from the microwave: Lasagna!

Right out of the frozen package. My wife inquired about home made lasagna. His wife immediately began railing about how preparation is "too much trouble', .....blah, blah. She couldn't cook was the fact of the matter. 15 years later now, poor Dan does all the cooking. imp
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I think your wife was rude. When being served a meal the correct response should be Thank You.
 
Imp, your poor nephew Dan, who has to cook himself. I see nothing wrong with this as cooking isn't just a woman's job -- this is the 21st Century. Frozen lasagna is A-OK in my books and it would have been nice if your wife and you had been more appreciative.
 

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