Fresh, home-cooked meals are a labor of love, but they’re also often seen as a luxury. We don’t all have time to spend an hour chopping vegetables and preparing an elaborate meal after work, so many of us have to pick and choose what we can have homemade. But even in this age of convenience, there are certain foods that, once you start making them yourself, you’ll never want to touch a store-bought version of again.
Redditors have recently been sharing all of the ingredients and dishes they’ve realized are much tastier and more affordable when made at home, so we’ve gathered some of their thoughts down below. Enjoy scrolling through this list that might give you some culinary inspiration, and be sure to upvote the foods you’ll only eat fresh from home as well!
#1
Coffee…. I want that first thing. I don’t want to put clothes on, drive a few miles, wait in line just to spend $6 on a simple (or complex) coffee. There’s nothing better than waking up to the smell of coffee that turned itself on 15 minutes before I have to get up
Image source: funsk8mom, Egor Komarov
#2
Kind of related – “light” coconut milk is more expensive than normal coconut milk and it’s generally just coconut milk with added water.
Just buy the normal stuff and add water if you want it light. You effectively get twice as much for less.
Image source: DuckingKoala, ALINA MATVEYCHEVA
#3
People who don’t eat the bread crusts, throw them out, and then buy breadcrumbs…..
Image source: nootimestwo, Rob Wicks
#4
Eh I understand that many people don’t have the desire, time, skills or confidence to cook from scratch all the time. So whilst I bake my own cakes, make my own pasta and ferment my own kimchi and it is all way better and cheaper, I can understand why it’s not for everyone.
I will say though I don’t understand pancake mix or bread dough mix. That is literally just flour/sugar/salt/yeast mixed together and you still have to add milk or eggs or water. It saves you a couple of mins of measuring stuff but costs like 10x more than the individual ingredients. You still have to bake it or cook it so doesn’t save you time there. Really baffles me!
Image source: destria, Vlada Karpovich
#5
I completely understand people buying just about anything rather than making it, especially products like stock, pasta, and bread that are simple to make but take more time than a lot of folks have.
Having said that – buying guacamole confounds me, unless you don’t have access to avocadoes, need a ton of guac for a party, or have a good Mexican grocer nearby where you can get quality guac. Making guac at home takes maybe five minutes, and it tastes substantially better than store-bought. Like I can get really good bread and pasta from the store, but any guac I could buy near me isn’t gonna hold a candle to homemade.
Image source: d4n4scu11y__, RDNE Stock project
#6
Sandwiches. I mean standard bread meat cheese veggies condiments.
I refuse to buy subway. They cost too much for something I can make at home in 2min.
Image source: landob, Muffin Creatives
#7
There’s a thing I remember for a while back where an American asked a French person why they didn’t respect American food they replied “You buy croutons”
That always stuck with me.
Image source: Mauve__avenger_, Cats Coming
#8
Making popcorn in a wok with coconut oil at home is a game changer. Moist, fluffy popcorn with only 3-4 unpopped kernels. Haven’t bought a single bag of microwave popcorn since.
Image source: KinkyQuesadilla, Mo Abrahim
#9
Mashed potatoes, in australia instant mash isn’t super popular but I don’t get why anyone would choose it over homemade mash tbh
Image source: tinyfenrisian
#10
ready made rice
Image source: Cstohorticulture, Pille R. Priske
#11
Ice tea. So simple and easy to make at home
Image source: WallyZona, El Salanzo
#12
Alfredo sauce. It’s only like 3 ingredients (minus seasoning), and most people already have them on hand? The jarred stuff tastes like vomit
Image source: shesabiter, Engin Akyurt
#13
Hard boiled eggs.
Image source: maccrogenoff, Алексей Вечерин
#14
Maybe less cooking and more drinking, but simple syrup.
The prices for a small bottle at the grocery store were almost as expensive per oz as the rum I was using in my mojitos. It’s literally just water and sugar boiled together in equal parts. Now I make a gallon of it at the beginning of summer and enjoy mojitos with mint from my garden all season.
Image source: MarginallySeaworthy, Helena Lopes
#15
Those pouches of pre-cooked rice that taste all stale and waxy. or even the frozen cooked rice pouches.
rice is the easiest thing in the world to cook. It takes hardly any time at all, and it’s dirt cheap.
Image source: apple-masher, b r e n t
#16
Pasta sauce! Alfredo, bolognese, all. Waaay better and far less expensive. I usually make double batches and freeze half, then, when in a pinch, all you have to do it boil some pasta!
Image source: knewitfirst, Klaus Nielsen
#17
Caramel corn. The tubs of Topsy’s here in Kansas City are something like $15 for a gallon? I can make twice that for about $3…and do at least twice a year.
Although I do miss the old KaramelKorn shops in the malls, I also miss the malls….and being 12.
But my caramel corn is awesome.
Image source: kcbirder11, Robert Anasch
#18
Hummus.
Chick peas are super cheap, but hummus is super expensive? Wtf.
Image source: Knytemare44, Nataliya Vaitkevich
#19
quiche is typically pretty expensive out, but really easy to make at home.
Image source: Alarmed-Accident-716, Antoni Shkraba
#20
Salad dressings. So easy and flexible to make with whatever you have on hand, and exponentially more delicious. I would just as soon not have a salad than have one with bottled Italian dressing.
Image source: Substantial-Sky3081, Christina Polupanova
#21
Soup, stew, chilli or gumbo. No can or restaurant can beat the quality, taste or value of making fresh at home.
Image source: Bedroom_Opposite
#22
Don’t know how much cheaper it would be (and only useful during holidays), but cranberry sauce. It’s so much better made from scratch and it takes almost no time.
Image source: derp_zilla, Karolina Grabowska
#23
Whipped Cream.
Image source: pad264
#24
Cookies!
Image source: gardengirl1984
#25
Pesto. Homemade is literally miles better than store bought, especially when you can customize it however you like, and you can make use of fresh herbs
Image source: Kyerndo, Engin Akyurt
#26
Stock. The stuff from the store is either crazy expensive or flavored water.
Image source: AuntieDawnsKitchen, Markus Winkler
#27
Chicken noodle soup…quick, simple, makes a lot, you can freeze it, so much better than canned soup.
Image source: TheOtherOneK, Babs Gorniak
#28
Homemade Mayo lasts a couple days. A jar of store Mayo lasts months. No way it’s something I’m going to do unless it’s for something special.
Pasta sauce is something I just make myself. Good canned tomatoes, onion, garlic and some occasional additions beyond that. Freeze in containers.
Image source: PlutoniumNiborg, Mathias Reding
#29
Learned how to make ghee the other day. Way easier than I thought and about 25% of the price of the pre made stuff
Image source: Tll6
#30
Pizza, there is no good pizza place near me, and making a decent pie at home is cheap and easy once you know how. I can make a good pie for like $3 and it’s a great way to use leftover anything.
Image source: ModernSimian
Follow Us
