board77

Well Pips, when I was in England pretty much all the ketchup that I tried in restaurants and the school cafeteria was seriously gross to me. I think English ketchup is way sweeter than what Heinz makes.

But, we just buy Stop and Shop brand ketchup. I always bought Heinz, but Stop & Shop's brand tastes just the same.
According to Holby (who works for a grocery chain) large companies like Heinz, Proctor & Gamble, etc are the ones that make store brand items. For the most part they use the same product, just with a different label.

Eh, free ketchup is always sweet cheap shit. I think I prefer Tesco's ketchup to Heinz because it's a tad more vinagery, or something.

*-Pips-*

Rebecca, I think that's generally true; however, I also think sometimes the name brand manufacturer uses lower quality ingredients and the like in some of the store brands they produce. Not always, obviously, because the store brands are often just as good.

For example, I like Red Gold canned tomatoes. I'm not sure who makes Kroger brand tomatoes (I'm guessing Hunts or something), but they're not even as good as Hunts. It's like they use a lower quality tomato or something.

And I'd have to agree with Pips--Tropicana orange juice is the best. The store brand is just not quite the same.

I don't really like honey at all.

Making ketchup is easy enough, but it's a LOT of tomatoes and a LOT of time and work to get it. I've done it, but Heinz is good enough for me.

OTOH, I definitely make better salsa than any brand we've ever tried. And, I'm going to make my own chili sauce in a few days. From good quality canned tomatoes.

Lord_M really likes pickled beets, so I might make another batch or two. He also goes for bread and butter pickles, but it's too late to make more now.

LalaithUrwen wrote:

Rebecca, I think that's generally true; however, I also think sometimes the name brand manufacturer uses lower quality ingredients and the like in some of the store brands they produce. ...

True to an extent.

In order to be able to make a product that can be sold for less money, companies will use substitutes (like more water). Generally they are basically the same recipes, just watered down versions.
It would be suicide for them to make the "exact" same recipe and sell it for less money with someone elses label on it.

Still companies that produce products for retailers save money because the name on the label determines who has to back the product and is liable for quality control. We test products with our name on the label, but not those with a brand name on them. Excepting things like produce which is always inspected for quality.

Definitely grew up on cheapie brands. I don't think it knocked my socks off, but as a somewhat picky eater, I was totally fine with it. The weird thing with mac & cheese was that I preferred the no-name brand for ages and then suddenly went back to Kraft Dinner and you can't pry me from that now.

But I need my pepsi and heinz ketchup in life. No other way. That's probably it!




*E*

All in all for me it is a hit and miss thing. Some items cut it and some don't.

Just please don't call KD "macaroni and cheese". It's macaroni, all right. But with some orange chemical substance that was never cheese and is NEVER going to be cheese.

I apparently make wonderful macaroni and cheese. From scratch, with the bechamel sauce and real wonderful grated cheese and all those good things. But I don't like it. I make it for the husband, but for myself, it's nearly Spawn of Satan, or nearly.

Macaroni, cheese and broccoli. From scratch, of course. Lightly grilled... mmmmm. Red Leiscester. Yes.

Yes, precious, yes.

*-Pips-*

Red Leicester is a good idea. I crumble up some wholemeal breadcrumbs to go on top too- they make a nice crunch to it - but they blacken easily so need to go on only when the cheese starts to colour. I flavour the cheese/bechamel sauce with nutmeg, powdered bayleaf and chilli.

I invariably go for store brands, in fact I'm scratching my head to think of anything made by a well known brand that I search out to buy.
I'm wary of meat products. The sausages and meat pies made by local butchers are far preferable to the dubious concoctions made by any mass production process. Marks and Spencers pork pies are fairly good and reliable though.

Quote:

Marks and Spencers pork pies are fairly good and reliable though.

As indeed are their sausages. Relatively cheap, and gluten free! Win win!

Lightly grilled?

*isn't sure what culinary matter of ill-taste she has just displayed*
Well, I boil the pasta and the broccoli, and make the sauce, and then put it all into a baking dish with cheese (and yes, sometimes breadcrumbs ) on top, and grill it for a bit.

But right now I am not cooking macaroni cheese. I am boiling half a (frozen, roasted - it was cheap, don't ask) chicken, with a spoon of miso paste, some coconut milk, a splash of lime cordial (I lost my fresh limes ) and some seaweed. I'm going to extract the meat and keep it for tomorrow when this mess is finally cooked. It looks horrible, but I tasted some just now, and it was good.

And, just so's I'm not osgiliating, the miso and the seaweed are Sanichi, and the coconut milk was made from Blue Dragon paste. I think the lime cordial is Spar now I think about it - no wonder it doesn't taste as strong as I'd hoped. Rose's all the way.

*-Pips-*

Pippin4242 wrote:

*isn't sure what culinary matter of ill-taste she has just displayed*
Well, I boil the pasta and the broccoli, and make the sauce, and then put it all into a baking dish with cheese (and yes, sometimes breadcrumbs ) on top, and grill it for a bit.

But right now I am not cooking macaroni cheese. I am boiling half a (frozen, roasted - it was cheap, don't ask) chicken, with a spoon of miso paste, some coconut milk, a splash of lime cordial (I lost my fresh limes ) and some seaweed. I'm going to extract the meat and keep it for tomorrow when this mess is finally cooked. It looks horrible, but I tasted some just now, and it was good.

And, just so's I'm not osgiliating, the miso and the seaweed are Sanichi, and the coconut milk was made from Blue Dragon paste. I think the lime cordial is Spar now I think about it - no wonder it doesn't taste as strong as I'd hoped. Rose's all the way.

*-Pips-*

I don't "grill" mac and cheese. I put the macaroni and sauce in a baking dish and top it with either cheese or breadcrumbs or a mixture of both, and BAKE it. I suppose if it didn't get nice and lightly browned on top, I might "grill" it a bit. I'd say "broil", but it's the same thing. Only, it always gets nice and lightly browned without doing that, because it's in a medium oven for 25 - 40 minutes. Depending.

The store-brand chicken noodle soups almost always have more fat attached to the pieces of meat than the name brand ones do. I assume they cut costs by using the edge pieces or something.

Canned chicken noodle soup has a very distant and limited knowledge of chicken whether Campbell's or store brand. I believe they walk a chicken through the factory once a month. Or once a year. Forget which.

Few soups can be easier to make than chicken noodle soup. At home. Easy peasy. Honest.

It is easy to make. But Progresso does make a rather decent canned chicken noodle soup. Very decent, in fact. It's not as good as homemade, obviously, but it far surpasses Campbell's.

Vison is right (of course) Baked in the oven is much better but I reckon Pips and I go for speed.
Now what can you do with biscuits?

Your biscuit or mine?

I've never heard of baking mac & cheese in the oven before.

Chicken soup is easy. The biscuits I make are even easier. I can have a batch ready for the oven in less time than it takes to preheat the oven.