Budget Cooking Revision

     $5.00 for a dozen organic eggs, or $1.50 for eight non-organic eggs? This was my first stop pushing my empty cart through the tightly packed aisles of Meijer. I waited in line behind two people for access to the eggs and watched them both select organic (an observation that slightly surprised me). Prior to entering Meijer, I had not set any guidelines for my meal. I figured with my lack of cooking skill, I’d select something I could cook that would be edible and leave it at that. Standing in front of the refrigerator though, I decided to impose a few restrictions on myself. Some of my strongest reactions to The Omnivore’s Dilemma came from an economic viewpoint. So I decided to approach my meal with economics and dollar signs in mind.

     I went with the non-organic eggs. Not because I do not support the organic food movement, but because of my guidelines. I wanted to make an effort to approach the meal from the same position as many Americans. I was cooking one meal, so I could have afforded the one-time charge for the organic eggs. But if I had to purchase eggs weekly, I’m not so sure I could afford the organic eggs and I’m confident that many American families cannot justify paying more than triple the price for four more eggs. I cannot deny that as I reached for the factory-farm eggs that images of the chicken houses in Food Inc. popped into my brain, but I tried to block them out. I was focused on attempting to make a healthy meal (hopefully one that tasted good too), but a healthy meal for a reasonable price, which is a dilemma I think many shoppers face every time they enter a supermarket.

     Though I could not justify the organic eggs, whole-wheat bread was of a close enough price to its competitors that it made sense to purchase it (plus it contained no high fructose corn syrup!). I went with simple Sara Lee brand ham and cheese. The label on the ham claimed no fillers and 30% less sodium than USDA data for ham. I’d be lying if I said I fell for all this bullshit (Michael Pollan made sure of that), but compared to other options in the same price range, I made an executive decision that this was the least of all evils.

     Another issue came up in the fruits and vegetables section. For my meal, I wanted to make a fruit salad. I figured even I could cut up a few different kind of fruits and spin them together into an all right mixture. Once again, though, price was an issue. A fruit salad requires multiple types of fruit. After perusing the different options, I came to a conclusion that even buying just blueberries, pineapple and strawberries (three of my favorites) did not make sense for the price. I was then forced to make a decision: select just one or go with a Meijer brand fruit salad of pineapple, cantaloupe, honeydew, blueberries, watermelon and strawberries. This was more of what I pictured when I thought of fruit salad so I decided to go for it. In addition, a package of just one fruit would have cost me pretty much the same as the fruit salad did. As I contemplated my decision, I began to wonder how many other people around me faced similar issues, only theirs were not for one meal assigned for school, but instead their decisions would effect the mouths of their families.

     I ended up spending right around $25 total, which I was satisfied with. $25 seems kind of pricey for a meal for two people, but I knew some of the food would last beyond the meal, how far past though I didn’t know. Throughout my life, I have not been blind to the costs of food for a family, but there are some things that you never fully understand until you’re faced with the full burden of the decision. That being said, there are still many things I need to learn, but I think this project further opened my eyes to the issues people face every day in kitchens and supermarkets around the world.

     I cooked for myself and my girlfriend, Karianne. I’ve grown accustomed to eating with her a lot as neither of our families are very big on the classic sit-down-how-was-school-today dinners. She has been present at a number of my memorable meals, so I knew if I could only have one guest for my meal, I wanted it to be her. In addition to that, she has a kitchen and I knew she’d like pretty much anything I made her. My planned meal consisted of fried egg, ham and cheese sandwiches, hash browns and fruit salad. Simple, I know. But a fear of completely ruining a meal due to my previously mentioned lack of culinary skill definitely played a factor. I’m also a big fan of breakfast foods and since I rarely roll out of bed in time to enjoy them when normal people do, I figured why not do breakfast my way. So I cooked around 2:00 in the afternoon. If that isn’t perfect, then honestly I don’t know what is.

     My girlfriend was, of course, very satisfied with the final product. She raved to me that the hash browns were great, telling me, “you can make me hash browns anytime you want,” and about how wonderful the sandwich was. I love her, but she is prone to feeding my ego and even if the food were horrible, she would have probably eaten it with a smile on her face and flooded me with comments just the same. Plus, her cooking ability makes me look like Bobby Flay so it’s no surprise she’d let me cook anytime I’m willing.

     I tend to be a tougher critic on myself, but I was pleasantly surprised with the food after completing my meal (maybe I really am just good at everything). The hash browns were not the best and I think cooking them with more salt and pepper would have helped with the overall flavor, but that issue could be somewhat solved on the plate. I honestly don’t know enough about cooking to point out other flaws, I don’t have the palate or the knowledge to taste something and know how the preparation should have been altered. I would be willing to bet that my meal contained a number of faults though. The sandwiches were better than the hash browns. I’d even feel confident making them for someone besides Karianne. However, an attempt at adding artichoke hearts was not a great choice on my part. I don’t know if it’s because taking the cheap way out and buying a jar of artichoke hearts is just not a good idea or if the way I prepared them was just a poor method (I’d bet a mixture of both). Outside of that, I had no true complaints. The flavors came out in everything and nothing overpowered its counterparts. Plus, I didn’t burn anything so that was a positive. 

     Doing some simple calculations, I figured out I could make eight fried egg sandwiches and two sandwiches without eggs. The fruit could have been used for two of my meals and the two potatoes I bought were just enough for the one meal. For $25, I think that’s not bad. Pretty much all of the money I personally spend on food is at restaurants or Circle K, so maybe I’m still just a dumb kid trying to play grown up.

    This meal opened up my eyes to a lot of things. Money was my focus, but the meal put taste on my mind too. Maybe one day I’ll be able to craft a meal I can serve to people without worry. And if I never reach that goal, I’ll just have to keep Karianne around so she can keep telling what a great cook I am.