Cooking food early

We used to joke that my mother in law, bless her, put the Christmas sprouts on in November. They were always yellow and mushy.

shysal

When my husband and I were separated but still living in the same house, he used to cook for himself this way. I think it was because he was incapable of working out when to start things to all finish together!
I have seen Mary Berry and Prue Leith cook veg ahead of time. As others have said veg are so quick to cook in real time, why bother to do them before?

My gran used to cook boil veg for 30 minutes; I'm really unsure why. Can't think of any veg I cook for that long, unless it's in the oven,
I rarely reheat, but if I've done way too much I may freeze or refridgerate for another day.

If I've got a crowd for Sunday lunch I'll often cook the roast potatoes/parsnips and yorkshire puds the day before . Roast veg are really good reheated in the air fryer and yorkshires also reheat well. The meat goes in the aga and I cook the veg at the last minute plus reheat the veg in the air fryer. It means I can join people pre lunch and spend minimum time in the kitchen.

Bubble and squeak!

If I do have a lot of veg I sometimes steam it for a short time then freeze for another time.

I sometimes find I have cooked too much veg, so it might get reheated in the microwave the next day rather than wasting it.

When family come to stay, I still use my old fashioned hostess trolley to keep everything at the same heat, so no need for reheating.
Wouldn’t be without it.

ferry23

CariadAgain

No chance here - as I don't even have a microwave. I read about the health hazards of them years ago - so many years ago we're probably talking decades by now. That was followed by me chucking mine out instantly....

And here we all are, years later. Still here.

Well, there was that man who set his kitchen on fire by heating the Christmas pudding for about 30 minutes ....

That was hazardous.

I have an electric steamer, very good for vegetables.

This one has two tiers and quite a large capacity, the previous one I had when family were still here was three tiers.

Not me, veg cooking is accomplished during meal cooking.

I do re-heating of leftovers, if necessary, another day.

No microwave, merely a double boiler.

Our son currently works in hospitality, free meals on shift, but has become increasingly fed up with what’s on offer. On a day off, he batch cooks something tasty and healthy, freezes and takes one into work to reheat each shift.

I cook pasta in advance and freeze it for24 hours. Reheat when I need it.Does something to the carbs so doesn’t give such a sugar spike when diabetics eat it.

I prefer to boil them in separate saucepans and keep an eye on them, not too hard, not too soft, then I drain with a colander and use the vegetable juices with gravy granules to make the gravy 🙂.

TheSunRisesInTheEast

I cook all the veg in advance, wash, dry and put the saucepans away, put the veg in an earthenware square dish and reheat for a couple of minutes in the microwave just before serving. It cuts down on the washing up after eating, and I don't have to eat my meal looking at dirty pots stacked up in the sink.

Why don't you just cook them in the microwave to start with?

I cook all the veg in advance, wash, dry and put the saucepans away, put the veg in an earthenware square dish and reheat for a couple of minutes in the microwave just before serving. It cuts down on the washing up after eating, and I don't have to eat my meal looking at dirty pots stacked up in the sink.

CariadAgain

No chance here - as I don't even have a microwave. I read about the health hazards of them years ago - so many years ago we're probably talking decades by now. That was followed by me chucking mine out instantly....

And here we all are, years later. Still here.

I do it all the time because I have to. I cook full meal in the morning, divide in two, plate both, cover and put in the Fridge. Microwave one at tea
time, the other the next day.
The reason is that I have more energy in the morning and I still prefer home cooking to ready meals. Never had a problem with this method. And it saves fuel.

I will reheat anything at any stage of the process. I reheated leeks in butter today, just left them in the frying pan and turned the heat on.

Why did Ido it? because I was cooking sevral dishes all at once rather than seriaally one after the other. That meant I had 15 minutes when the main course was in the oven and the veg on the ide when I could sit down with a coffee and read the papers.

No putting the sprouts on in August then?
Victoria Wood, very much missed.

To me nearly all veg, especially green veg, should be cooked at the last minute, and for the absolute minimum time. I truly loathe e.g. soggy, overcooked cauliflower and broccoli.

Obviously anything like carrot and swede mash would be a different matter.

No chance here - as I don't even have a microwave. I read about the health hazards of them years ago - so many years ago we're probably talking decades by now. That was followed by me chucking mine out instantly....

Old thread but I did watch Prue Leith last Sunday demonstrating how to cook green veg in advance….

When my husband and I were separated but still living in the same house, he used to cook for himself this way. I think it was because he was incapable of working out when to start things to all finish together!
I have seen Mary Berry and Prue Leith cook veg ahead of time. As others have said veg are so quick to cook in real time, why bother to do them before?

Reported.
Egg-sucking advice also available?

Message deleted by Gransnet. Here's a link to our Talk guidelines.

Mary Berry par cooks veg the day before Christmas and finishes them off on the day.