# What do you cook from scratch? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 27, 2018, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048 "2018-09-27T19:31:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2018, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048/61 "2018-10-01T14:38:06Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > Heh, but in fact I did think you were going to post that you made cheesesteaks from scratch. 🙂 I’ve made cheesesteaks from scratch! Except I use mozzarella or taleggio rather than Cheez Whiz, so a native Philadelphian wouldn’t recognize them as such. ---
**Author:** ![araminty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5e925/32.png) [@araminty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/araminty)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2018, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048/62 "2018-10-01T14:57:13Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > I’ve yet to master chips (fries) - they end up cooked but not stiff - and I don’t make my own pasta or bread (I’ve nowhere warm to let a loaf rise). I bake a lot, and I find bread which has had a long cool rise tastes better than hurriedly proven bread. An hour or so at room temp, then I stick it in the fridge for at least a day. Many no-knead recipes espouse this approach. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2018, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048/63 "2018-10-01T15:10:11Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > I’ve yet to master chips (fries) - they end up cooked but not stiff - and I don’t make my own pasta or bread (I’ve nowhere warm to let a loaf rise). Are you deep fat frying or oven roasting your chips? ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2018, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048/64 "2018-10-01T15:13:48Z")
> [@araminty](#): > > I bake a lot, and I find bread which has had a long cool rise tastes better than hurriedly proven bread. An hour or so at room temp, then I stick it in the fridge for at least a day. Many no-knead recipes espouse this approach. Oh, absolutely! I often just let the dough rise in the fridge for several days before taking it out to use it. The final rise is done at room temperature and takes however long it takes. (Usually a couple of hours at around 20-24C.) My pizza dough is almost always made at least one or two days in advance for the same reason. There is a marked difference in taste, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![Mikemike2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikemike2/32/305_2.png) [@Mikemike2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mikemike2)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2018, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048/65 "2018-10-01T15:54:05Z")
I do a lot of scratch cooking, or close to it. Does getting tomatoes from a can count as scratch? I make pasta, but it is a lot of work, especially the clean up, so I need to feel like it. I make bread and specifically buns, but they are so good they are like crack, and not good for diets and keeping calories down. When I cook full chickens, I always make a stock. But I use more stock than that so usually have the bought stuff on hand. I love buying pre-chopped fresh vegetables and salads. If a mirepoix comes pre-chopped in a little container, that is great. ---
**Author:** ![BrickBat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@BrickBat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrickBat)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2018, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048/66 "2018-10-01T17:07:40Z")
Puttanesca sauce for pasta. I might “cheat” where tomatoes are off season and use canned diced tomatoes. ---
**Author:** ![Mikemike2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikemike2/32/305_2.png) [@Mikemike2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mikemike2)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2018, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048/67 "2018-10-01T18:02:59Z")
Yes, canned tomatoes are picked when fully ripe, not so for fresh tomatoes I have access to. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2018, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048/68 "2018-10-01T19:06:08Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > I don’t have a wide repertoire, but when I cook, I generally cook from scratch. Meat, sauces, veg, all from scratch. > > I’ve yet to master chips (fries) - they end up cooked but not stiff - and I don’t make my own pasta or bread (I’ve nowhere warm to let a loaf rise). I would guess your oil temperature isn’t correct. The way I’ve always seen it described is a first fry at 325 F/162 C and then a second one after a rest/cool down period at 375F/190C. That’s never failed for me thus far. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2018, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048/69 "2018-10-01T19:22:29Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > I don’t have a wide repertoire, but when I cook, I generally cook from scratch. Meat, sauces, veg, all from scratch. > > I’ve yet to master chips (fries) - they end up cooked but not stiff - and I don’t make my own pasta or bread (I’ve nowhere warm to let a loaf rise). Have you ever tried the starting from cold oil method? I’ve mentioned it before here, and it may even have been to you, but it’s the method I use when I just need to do a single batch of fries. [Here it is](https://www.geniuskitchen.com/recipe/easier-french-fries-cold-oil-method-cooks-illustrated-415262#activity-feed). Basically, you just fill a pot with oil, throw in the fries you cut up, set on high, and cook until they look done. It really couldn’t be easier. (And, if for some reason you’re worried about the fat content, IIRC, Cooks Illustrated determined that these fries actually absorbed less fat than the traditionally cooked ones. But if you’re doing fries/chips, that’s probably not a concern.) ---
**Author:** ![romansperson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/romansperson/32/17100_2.png) [@romansperson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romansperson)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2018, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048/70 "2018-10-02T01:04:30Z")
I make all kinds of things from scratch, but I tried Manwich sauce for the first time yesterday, mainly because I forgot to pick up a can at the store and of course I’ve got everything one needs to make it already at home. It wasn’t bad - needs a bit of tweaking though. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2018, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048/71 "2018-10-02T02:26:10Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > Someone said that if you want to truly make something from scratch you have to start with the big bang. The Big Bang? Oh yeah, I\* was there, played a minor part in the whole thing. - or the components that comprise me ---
**Author:** ![busterpickle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@busterpickle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/busterpickle)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2018, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048/72 "2018-10-02T05:13:33Z")
Key lime pie. The limes seem to come into the stores once a year, so I buy a bag or two, hand squeeze them for the juice. Make the crust from scratch as well. I’d make the condensed milk and sour cream if it was feasible. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2018, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048/73 "2018-10-02T08:41:30Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > Are you deep fat frying or oven roasting your chips? Oven chips go in the oven but it was deep fat frying to which I was referring. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-cook-from-scratch/822048.md?page=3)