Register

Food Nemisis/nemises ?

For all refugees from the old Beeb Food Boards :-)
Chill out and chat with the foodie community or swap top tips.
NOTE: CHATTERBOX IS IN THIS FORUM

Moderators: karadekoolaid, THE MOD TEAM, Stokey Sue, Gillthepainter

User avatar
Posts: 2152
Joined: Tue Sep 19, 2017 2:38 pm

Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby PatsyMFagan » Fri May 08, 2020 7:43 pm

Not quite the word I am looking for, but I think you probably get the gist.

It's Fresh Tuna and Aubergine for me. I buy them (not at the same time) with the intention of making something tasty, but then I never know what to make and end up throwing stuff away. I currently have an aubergine that I don't think will last much longer.

Is it just me?

User avatar
Posts: 1790
Joined: Sat Feb 13, 2016 4:25 am

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby Amyw » Fri May 08, 2020 7:48 pm

So foods that you buy but never have any ideas what to do with ?

Site Admin
User avatar
Posts: 3253
Joined: Mon Apr 23, 2012 1:56 pm
Location: Bushey

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby Sakkarin » Fri May 08, 2020 8:05 pm

If it's food that gets thrown out, cooking for one it often happens. For example a pack of three peppers is usually cheaper than two individual ones, but invariably the third one goes to waste. By the time I get to the end of bags of carrots and potatoes they are invariably past their best so the last two or three get thrown out, again it's cheaper to buy a bag and live with the wastage.

Spring onion I buy primarily for Chinese dishes, but I only make those for a couple of meals at a time, so the last few stalks often get thrown out.

Celery. I don't think I've EVER finished a head of celery. A few days back I was even going to start a thread asking for suggestions for the half head of droopy celery I was about to throw out. Not mouldy, just completely droopy.

EDIT: How can you throw fresh tuna away!?!?!

Posts: 55
Joined: Tue Mar 31, 2020 11:26 pm

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby spangle » Fri May 08, 2020 8:27 pm

Avocados.
Don't know why, I love them, but so often I buy them (usually more than one as it works out cheaper per avo), spend days feeling happy that I've got avocados, then spend days thinking "I need to use the avocados", then another couple of weeks goes by and they've gone hollow and I feel terrible and chuck the poor things.

User avatar
Posts: 797
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 10:17 pm
Location: East Anglia, UK

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby Suelle » Fri May 08, 2020 8:28 pm

I thought the word 'nemesis' was usually applied to something that always defeated you; in food terms it could be a dish you kept trying to make, but never managed to succeed with.

So in Patsy's case it's cooking aubergines and tuna successfully, to produce something she enjoys eating, rather than having to throw them away.

My nemesis is yeast baking - rarely succeed and if I manage to produce something good once, it's not a guarantee that the same recipe will work as well next time.

But going with the developing theme, I rarely throw anything away. I've been known to decide what to make for dinner on the basis of having half a tin of tomatoes that needs using. But..... I never manage to get to the end of a pack of fresh herbs.
Last edited by Suelle on Fri May 08, 2020 8:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Traditional home baking, and more:
http://mainlybaking.blogspot.co.uk/

User avatar
Posts: 2152
Joined: Tue Sep 19, 2017 2:38 pm

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby PatsyMFagan » Fri May 08, 2020 8:30 pm

Amyw wrote:So foods that you buy but never have any ideas what to do with ?


Not that I no idea what to do with them, it's just that I intend to make something (just to fry the tuna perhaps), but then never really fancy cooking it. I bought aubergine as someone on here mentioned making something with it (Moyra often mentions Baba Ganoush for instance), or I might have seen Mary Berry do something with it, but then it gets forgotten ... :roll: :oops:

User avatar
Posts: 2152
Joined: Tue Sep 19, 2017 2:38 pm

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby PatsyMFagan » Fri May 08, 2020 8:31 pm

spangle wrote:Avocados.
Don't know why, I love them, but so often I buy them (usually more than one as it works out cheaper per avo), spend days feeling happy that I've got avocados, then spend days thinking "I need to use the avocados", then another couple of weeks goes by and they've gone hollow and I feel terrible and chuck the poor things.


Exactly :thumbsup

User avatar
Posts: 2152
Joined: Tue Sep 19, 2017 2:38 pm

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby PatsyMFagan » Fri May 08, 2020 8:34 pm

Yes, you've got it Suelle ... :thumbsup

Now I seem to have success with yeast, even though I am always surprised :o

Posts: 2386
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 8:12 pm

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby liketocook » Fri May 08, 2020 8:45 pm

Yoghurt for me, bought with great intentions, use a couple of spoons and then unless I use it up quickly it sits in the fridge neglected until it goes off...…. :oops:

Site Admin
User avatar
Posts: 3253
Joined: Mon Apr 23, 2012 1:56 pm
Location: Bushey

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby Sakkarin » Fri May 08, 2020 9:21 pm

In the usual sense of the word "nemesis", I guess one of mine has to be pork crackling. I HAVE made it perfectly a couple of times, but usually there are rubbery bits left, particularly annoying as one of my favourite dishes is crispy roast pork belly. I've even made it to couple of people's "foolproof guaranteed perfect every time" recipes, but still not quite there for me :-(

Sorry to hear that yeast defeats you, Suelle. Today's VE Day bake for me was another batch of perfect Hot Cross Buns (3rd or 4th since lockdown). I have an elaborate but not particularly time consuming method which works for me!

User avatar
Posts: 5297
Joined: Fri Mar 27, 2020 11:58 am
Location: Wiltshire

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby Earthmaiden » Fri May 08, 2020 9:34 pm

Anything like that ends up in the freezer until the day I do want to attempt whatever it is. I agree about avocados - occasionally I think I'll go on a health kick but don't like them that much and just look at them for days - thank goodness they make an edible chocolate dessert when all else fails! I suppose things like quinoa fall into the category too, hence the reason I've been using up packets of less common grains and flours during lockdown.

The thing I always have to use up is milk. I just don't use it much but keep it in case visitors drop in and have to have a day every so often to catch it before it goes off and plan meals round it. No difficulty in thinking of things to use it for though! I've just had long life in stock since lockdown in case I want any.

Posts: 712
Joined: Fri Jul 06, 2012 11:08 pm

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby miss mouse » Fri May 08, 2020 9:56 pm

Carrot, onion roots and celery I freeze and when the bag gets big enough make into veg stock in the slow cooker.

Aubergines thinly sliced and grilled also freeze well and a a big time saver when making moussaka. Peppers grilled and skinned also handy to have in the freezer if that helps anyone.

A compost bin is a great conscience soother, I have all those hungry worms to feed, it is a heavy responsibility.

User avatar
Posts: 8629
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 2:02 pm
Location: Stoke Newington, London

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby Stokey Sue » Fri May 08, 2020 11:16 pm

I don’t often throw stuff away because I can’t get round to using it, and I seldom throw away the last item in a multipack though the last spring onion does sometimes go slimy

If things look like getting left behind I really do try to use them up, i very seldom waste fresh food, apart from the last handful of bean sprouts

Store cupboard stuff is a different matter. Why do I have a pack of puff pastry in the freezer when I hardly ever use it? There’s a pack of small peeled onions in there too, I really wanted them for a couple of dishes but only found them after the event. They have survived the winter casserole season somehow. I also tend to buy things - bottles, jars, cans - that will be a “special” treat then not find the special occasion. Maybe I should have a meal of canned escargots, jarred grilled artichoke antipasto, and Chablis before they go off. There’s a big bottle of truffle oil too, I’m not really keen on truffles

Posts: 55
Joined: Tue Mar 31, 2020 11:26 pm

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby spangle » Fri May 08, 2020 11:39 pm

Quoted from Stokey Sue, sorry, haven't quite worked out how to use the 'Quote' thing yet: "I also tend to buy things - bottles, jars, cans - that will be a “special” treat then not find the special occasion."

I do this too, Sue, usually with items I won't be able to replace, e.g. bought on holiday or some kind of one-off product. It feels like it has to be The Perfect Occasion for the item not just a normal special occasion like a birthday, and even if there is a really special occasion I keep hold of the item in case an even more special occasion comes along! Then it ends up sitting in a cupboard for years...

Posts: 712
Joined: Fri Jul 06, 2012 11:08 pm

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby miss mouse » Fri May 08, 2020 11:49 pm

spangle wrote:
I do this too, Sue, usually with items I won't be able to replace, e.g. bought on holiday or some kind of one-off product. It feels like it has to be The Perfect Occasion for the item not just a normal special occasion like a birthday, and even if there is a really special occasion I keep hold of the item in case an even more special occasion comes along! Then it ends up sitting in a cupboard for years...



So do I, it is silly of me.

User avatar
Posts: 2993
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 12:33 pm

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby Pampy » Fri May 08, 2020 11:53 pm

To "quote" something, just click on the "Quote" button at the top right of the post in question. This will open the usual "post a reply" page. If you want to quote the whole of the post, just type your reply on the lines below and submit in the usual way. If you only want to quote a section of the post you're replying to, then just delete the text you don't want - just make sure that you leave the final [/quote] as the last thing in the text that you're quoting. Hope that makes sense!

User avatar
Posts: 8629
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 2:02 pm
Location: Stoke Newington, London

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby Stokey Sue » Sat May 09, 2020 12:01 am

Hi spangles
Yes, exactly, that’s how it happens - and because it’s stuff with a long shelf life it seems likely (ha!) that it will keep until twanged (eta I meant wanted of course, autocorrect!)

Quoting
Go to the post you want to quote and click the Quote button. The whole text will be copied to the “Post a reply” window with a bit of code round it that looks like this [quote = “spangles” ] and then [ \quote] except I’ve put in some spaces so they show up. You can put text before or after the quotation and you can edit within the quote
You can do a lot more with it but that’s the easy way

Posts: 55
Joined: Tue Mar 31, 2020 11:26 pm

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby spangle » Sat May 09, 2020 12:04 am

Pampy wrote:To "quote" something, just click on the "Quote" button at the top right of the post in question. This will open the usual "post a reply" page. If you want to quote the whole of the post, just type your reply on the lines below and submit in the usual way.


Thanks Pampy and Stokey Sue, I think I deleted the [/quotes] in my last post. Will see if this one works :)

User avatar
Posts: 2993
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 12:33 pm

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby Pampy » Sat May 09, 2020 12:14 am

It did! Well done! :thumbsup

User avatar
Posts: 4920
Joined: Thu Feb 21, 2013 5:52 pm
Location: North West London

Re: Food Nemisis/nemises ?

Postby Pepper Pig » Sat May 09, 2020 5:42 am

It’s a long standing joke in my family that there is always a large butternut squash propping up something or other in my kitchen. I buy them with all sorts of culinary ideas and then they just sit there getting harder and harder and I keep wondering if I’m going to have the strength to take the peel off. 6 months later I admit defeat and consign them to the compost. Next day I buy another.

Next

Return to Food Chat & Chatterbox

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 25 guests