NationStates

Heh, gotcha. No, it's not that kind of Maker. You know what I am talking about.



Ice maker, coffee maker, rice maker (ok, technically a cooker, but whatever), all kinds of kitchen appliances. The kind of appliances that goes "whirrrrr", sometimes goes "kaplunk!" and sometimes, when there is smoke coming out of, you should be worried.

Anyway, you ask: Okay, you have my attention, what are we supposed to talk about?

And that, my friends, is my starting OP after a clickbaity title: Do you have those aforementioned machines in your life? Or do you eat out more often than you make something at home? Can be anything - coffee, lunch, dinner, snacks, whatever! Or do you live a makerless life? Like, maybe the closest thing to cooking is boiling water, and you go out every single time to eat.

Financially, do you feel that you save more when you eat out, or when you are cooking at home?

Either way, no one side is superior, but it's a good discussion on whether or not you eat out more, or you are a chef of your own household and you must eat homecooked food on a daily basis.

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Personally, given my life as an uni student, I eat out at least 4-5 times a week. On the weekdays, it's always eating out, because I only have snacks in my dorm/hostel, and I have a canteen or a food court/shopping mall nearby, so the options are there, anyway! When all else fails... I do have my utensils and a plate just for a cup of instant noodles. Though... I'm not sure if you can call that homecooked; I'm gonna say it's homecooked, with one of the Makers involved (the maker of hot water - the coffee machine!)

Back home? It's 50-50. Sometimes I eat out with my family, sometimes we have a home-cooked meal at home.

Drinks-wise, I bought them every single time. Milo cartons, milk, coffee, etc... I have a coffee maker at home but it's never used except by my parents.

Financially, it's more or less the same. Eating out is expensive, but so is cooking at home. I mean, sure, it's cost-efficient and you can re-heat the leftovers for a good few days, but when you calculate the cost of gas, washing, etc... it all kinda adds up to the typical cost of eating outside.

Pasta is a special exception to the rule. I make it a treat, and I only eat homecooked pasta (you bought the ingredients from the market, and after 30 mins of a cooking montage, bam, food). Plus, I'm a glutton, so eating at home has absolutely no guilt, and it's cheaper.

TL;DR - I have a mix of both. Though, I eat out 85% of the time, and homecooked meals are a rare treat nowadays!

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EDIT: I might have overestimated the homecooking costs, so I stand corrected that homecooking is not too cheap, but eating out can be relatively expensive unless you are going to be economic. Homecooking more or less stays the same due to consistent costs of the groceries and the utilities, but eating out is a whole different thing. This is the case for Singapore, at least...

I don't know where you are but eating out and home cooking are in no way comparable in terms of cost.

I eat out for lunch too often, as my job takes me around a bit, and homecooked meals are almost impossible. I almost always have homecooked dinners, though. My wife and I specialize in cajun, creole, and soul food, and we can cook those things better than most restaurants we have been to. It's also way cheaper to make that stuff yourself.

Fartsniffage wrote:I don't know where you are but eating out and home cooking are in no way comparable in terms of cost.

Welcome to Singapore, yo. Eating out is pretty expensive on the face value, but with the high costs of utilities (water, gas, electricity) from cooking, it sorta balances out...

At least, that is as far as I am concerned. Other Singaporeans might have different mileage, but for me personally... there's a difference, but not much of a difference between the two.

Valentine Z wrote:

Fartsniffage wrote:I don't know where you are but eating out and home cooking are in no way comparable in terms of cost.

Welcome to Singapore, yo. Eating out is pretty expensive on the face value, but with the high costs of utilities (water, gas, electricity) from cooking, it sorta balances out...

At least, that is as far as I am concerned. Other Singaporeans might have different mileage, but for me personally... there's a difference, but not much of a difference between the two.

Damn. That sucks.

Lunch I eat out, probably 2 dinners a week as well.

I eat at home or home cooked meals and I don't use any X-maker. The most advanced techs I use for cooking are methane-fueled fires and oven, a microwave oven, a pressure cooker, and a fridge with a freezer compartment.

I have a coffee grinder and coffee maker, which are used daily. I also have a stand mixer for mixing up bread dough, which gets used every 2 weeks because I make a big batch every time. I refuse to get a "bread maker." Just like cake mixes, bread makers are total ripoffs aimed at ignorant people who never really looked at how easy it really is to do it properly. With the stand mixer, all that's being done by the machine is the kneading, and I get good loaves of the proper shape and size, made with my favorite recipe.

As you might have guessed, I almost always eat in. I'm a better cook than the restaurants, so there's no point in eating out except for the convenience or the pleasure of having someone serve me and clear away my dirty dishes. Food-wise, I always end up thinking I could have matched or exceeded what I just paid double or worse for, and that really takes the thrill off.

When it comes to cost, even if I get pre-breaded chicken in a bag, I get twice the amount I'd get for the same dollar cost of McNuggets. If I go for raw chicken, which I often do, it's WAY cheaper on an ounce-for-ounce basis, though I don't have the patience to make McNugget-shaped pieces out of it. If the food is something above chicken, say rib-eye or T-bone steak, mine is far better than restaurant fare on every level even if I go to a proper steakhouse. I can also get a 1-lb slab of Choice T-bone from the grocery store for what they'd charge for a tiny 6-ouncer!

As for the cost of cooking it, it seems to be negligible, especially at the low low rates of my current location. Washing is similarly cheap due to a combination of well water and hand-washing. The hand-washing, though, will be ending at some point because I'm getting sick enough of it to go ahead and get a dishwasher. Installing that will be a bit more of a job than usual since this house has never had one, so a cabinet will have to be modified and then it'll need plumbing.

I have a panini maker and a blender and I barely use either.

I cook and make everything at home; just get me the groceries. Nao.

I never really eat out, maybe once a week if it's late on a Saturday night and an inexplicable bodily urge to go to Taco Bell kicks in.

But, generally, I cook, make my own meals, coffee, smoothies, etc, it's just cheaper and healthier.

Page wrote:I have a panini maker and a blender and I barely use either.

Blenders always seem to be that one appliance. You probably bought one for some fruit smoothies or some nice juice now and then, then fast forwards a few days or weeks, it's back into its box and in the kitchen storage.

Major-Tom wrote:I never really eat out, maybe once a week if it's late on a Saturday night and an inexplicable bodily urge to go to Taco Bell kicks in.

But, generally, I cook, make my own meals, coffee, smoothies, etc, it's just cheaper and healthier.

I think thats what most people do. I never understood much the appeal of going out either. Unless, special reasons or opportunity etc.

Nakena wrote:

Major-Tom wrote:I never really eat out, maybe once a week if it's late on a Saturday night and an inexplicable bodily urge to go to Taco Bell kicks in.

But, generally, I cook, make my own meals, coffee, smoothies, etc, it's just cheaper and healthier.

I think thats what most people do. I never understood much the appeal of going out either. Unless, special reasons or opportunity etc.

Exactly, if it's a date or a social gathering, I'll happily eat out. Though, in my town, big social gatherings and even dates tend to take place in outdoorsy, less costly settings, which is pretty nice.

Nakena wrote:

Major-Tom wrote:I never really eat out, maybe once a week if it's late on a Saturday night and an inexplicable bodily urge to go to Taco Bell kicks in.

But, generally, I cook, make my own meals, coffee, smoothies, etc, it's just cheaper and healthier.

I think thats what most people do. I never understood much the appeal of going out either. Unless, special reasons or opportunity etc.

I'm always in a pickle between "Going out a short distance for dinner but lazy" or "Eating whatever I can find in my hostel, but it's instant noodle."

My cooking prowess is nigh nonexistent, but I try.

If you live on Arrakis, you have no real choice.

We don't go to restaurants as much as I'd like. We go through peaks of home cooking and troughs of scrounging. I like to cook but cleaning up is a pain.

Never felt the need for them, so I don't feed myself with them.

Makerless gang unite.

I have a coffee grinder and coffee maker I use them occasionally , but I also have a bottle of Maker('s Mark) that I use much, much more frequently.

Kowani wrote:My cooking prowess is nigh nonexistent, but I try.

We can work on that. Also theres always Microwaves in case of an low blood sugar emergency.

I don't need a maker in my life, love camping and cooking outdoors.
But, it does save loads of time.
And to cook daily for 6 p. (2 adults 3 teens and a preschooler) saves me money. If I cook a meal it usually costs 20 euros a day. If we go out for dinner that will be the price per person per meal...

So yes I have the coffee maker, the mixer, the oven, the large assortment of pots and pans, the cake tins, the blender, the water boiler, the rice cooker, 4 colanders, the egg yolk separator for the kids; I separate them with the halves myself, the sieves, the meat tenderizer ( big wooden hammer with "spikes") and of course several garlic presses.
Oh fair warning: be careful with my knives. The will cut through the drying cloth if you face them the wrong way. I sharpen them myself.

And having a kids with gluten intolerance, I feel safer when cooking myself.

Tbh I was surprised Valentine. Thanks for the unexpected turn.

Well, I do have a rice cooker at my room during my stay at the city where my college is located at. Having one to cook rice saves time and it's more efficient in terms of space and others. Sometimes I use that rice cooker to heat things too when I want to eat warm.

Hmm. I usually go out for lunch, but I usually eat at the boarding house for breakfast and dinner. I don't cook, but I usually has some dried foods packed when I'm coming back from home. Though, when I feel like it, sometimes I go out to eat for dinner when I feel lazy to cook rice.

As for the financial question, I save more when I'm eating at home, as I don't have to spend more money for eating.

TL;DR, I guess I've a mix of both, but I'm still eating at home more than going out for eating.

Kowani wrote:My cooking prowess is nigh nonexistent, but I try.

You can always learn bud. Start with simple stuffs - such as fried eggs, then you can start to make other things. It's a long road, but it's useful

Nakena wrote:

Kowani wrote:My cooking prowess is nigh nonexistent, but I try.

We can work on that.

…Thanks, I think?

Also theres always Microwaves in case of an low blood sugar emergency.

This is very true.

Samudera Darussalam wrote:

Kowani wrote:My cooking prowess is nigh nonexistent, but I try.

You can always learn bud. Start with simple stuffs - such as fried eggs, then you can start to make other things. It's a long road, but it's useful

I used the word nigh for a reason. I am not that incompetent.

Depends, food is mostly made at home because its easier than going out all the time. Now, I could completely throw the coffeemaker in the Goodwill donation pile. I never use it and prefer just getting all my coffee at a local coffeeshop that I'm particularly fond of.