In Some Instances Cheating CAN Be A Good Thing! Or Can it?!

I think most people change things around when it comes to a recipe. They make these things for us to try because they sound good. But not everyone like all the different spices used in some of these recipes. So, we turn around and substitute our favorite spices for the ones we don't like. It's okay to cheat on a recipe. Don't feel bad.

I do cheat sometimes...but most of the time, I prefer cooking from scratch and use my own spices.Yes, there are a few ready made spices that I use regularly....but I've used ready made sachets of food only during an emergency and I'm running short of time.

I have a number of things I cheat with. Things like tomato, chilli, mint sauces and various others too. I like Chinese sauces I can use as marinades or dipping sauces too. I also like a couple of Chinese sauces like a lemon chicken sauce with a great recipe for preparing the chicken and the same company does a splendid sweet and sour with crispy coated pork too. I always have some pasta or rice side dish packets biut I rarely use them as they are so processed as to barely resemble actual food. There is a Continental Beef stroganoff pkt of powder that when dished up tastes absolutely wonderful...I love beef stroganoff but I cannot do it this well on my own. I also use a "light blend" of gravy powder instead of flour when making gravy. I like to cook from scratch really but looking at this response of mine it seems as if I am a huge cheat.

I don't call that cheating. I just call it an alternative way of doing things.

I am happily using more and different spices than ever before. It's fun to figure out what goes best with what and occasionally get a surprise when something that isn't recommended works great. Although I get lazy occasionally, I find it's more exciting to cook now that I'm retired and have the time to try different things.

There's an Indian Restaurant near here, and I have liked their Buttered Chicken. I've ordered from there, brought it home, and have combined the dish with anything we have in the house, and it has become a favorite. Recently, I've found a jar of buttered-chicken-sauce at the local grocery. It even has instructions on how to cook it! I think that one of these, I might cheat and not buy from the local restaurant.

I don't use a lot of that stuff, since so many have corn starch... but I would if I could!

hey, if some hoity toity chef puts together a great blend of spices, why not use them?

Cheating can be an advantage in some other sense but then of course the ending point there is cheating is still wrong.

You seem to have many creative thinking in cooking.What a shame,I have no idea what the dishes you said are like.However I have an interest in the spices such as smoked paprika about which they say it has an intoxicating smoky aroma from the slow oak smoking,as well as mint and nutmeg.I guess the Lemon Herb crust isn't like the Lemon but a type of plant like mint.

This reminds me also of my nutmeg and some herbs which always reach its expiration date because I only have the desire to cook/bake but don't have the luxury of time to accomplish them.

Hi there Janye, Well I guess, you can do any of the two i mean both are reasonable arguments, for you ingredients at home it is accessible and would not cost you more time to waste nor money and yet in your description that recipe of Jamie sounds absolutely fantastic your choice, but being the lazy me just do with your ingredients there tomorrow just go to the grocery.

Personally I don't see anything wrong with "Cheating" in the manner that you described, because after all, you're still making a home-made meal. Sure you didn't make the spice concoction yourself, but isn't using a pre-made mix/ingredient still better than just ordering take away? Now don't get me wrong, I love fast food and restaurants, and they are probably one of my favorite places to go, but in the same breath we should all use moderation, and so I think even using "cheats" to cook your own dinner is better than only eating fast food, if that makes sense. I look at it in the same way as buying a pre-made pie crust or a tub of cookie dough. Sure, I could easily make the pie crust or cookie dough from scratch, but why ignore the convenience if it's there? I don't see it as lazy at all and again, at least you're still doing some cooking. In regards to what you wrote about spices and herbs - I can definitely relate. There have been times where a recipe calls for something like "powdered ginger", and I end up buying a bottle of the stuff, only to use 1/4 teaspoon and then never again! Fresh herbs are another culprit of this! So many recipes list things like parsley or basil "1 tablespoon" finely chopped. But again, most of the time I can only buy huge stalks of the stuff, and it doesn't stay fresh forever. It is a little annoying to say the least!