[rosseloh]

I can't comment on the actual subject at hand (I haven't read the article yet nor really done any research on this), but you absolutely have to factor in your time.

I like to cook. If my home situation was a little bit different, I'd probably cook full proper meals every night, no questions asked. It would take me at minimum an hour each night, and often more when you include prep and cleaning (which you should, they're integral parts of cooking a meal).

Combine that with long hours at work and the fact that I like to at least get some leisure time in my day along with sleep, and those hours add up. I've actually taken to eating mostly frozen food (stuff that still requires a little prep, not TV dinners, mind you), because it's a little faster and the cleanup is easier(stick some frozen chicken on foil in the oven and the cleanup is "throw the foil away"). When I don't do that, I'm meal-prepping on sunday afternoons, which takes four or more hours out of my precious weekend (with the exchange of being able to just microwave whatever I'm eating for lunch and dinner that week, again saving time).

Yes, where I live, groceries cost far less than anything you can get at a restaurant. And I'm hesitant to say that this will go anywhere, because it really seems like a long shot. But if it does get somewhere...the dollar cost of groceries is not the only thing to focus on. Time spent making meals absolutely matters.

[devchix]

I tell my work mates I spend probably 8+ hours in the kitchen during the weekend doing meal prep and they are some combination of aghast and disbelieving. Yes, 8+ if you want to eat decent, we're not being fancy. You can't just get groceries and come home to stuff them in the fridge. They need to be semi-prepped: unwrapped, minor cleaning, portioning out. Herbs and greens need to be washed and stored properly or they'll spoil. Want good soup? Have to break down the chicken to make stock, defat and freeze it. There's also the planning aspect, if you wake up on Saturday and start the grocery list, it's too late. I like to say "I like cooking", but most of cooking is drudgery: peel carrots, potatoes, break down chicken, trim the meat, manage food portion and storage. It's a huge time suck and if I factor in the cost of my time it's exorbitant. Having said all that, there is no reasonable alternative for me, right now. Everything else is garbage or unpalatable or exorbitant, and I still have to do supplemental cooking. I'm resigned to the fact that cooking, eating, cleaning, laundry is all part of living and I can't pay for all of it to go away. I'm trying to be a better planner, and chop and peel faster.

[rosseloh]

> I like to say "I like cooking", but most of cooking is drudgery: peel carrots, potatoes, break down chicken, trim the meat, manage food portion and storage.

Totally. I love cooking. But when I say I love cooking, I mean I love standing over a pot or pan, stirring, tasting, seasoning, and sauteing. Prep work is the worst part, and also often the part that takes the longest.

[notyourday]

Time spent making meals is a dead time. Those that do not consider that to be a dead time simply buy instapots, slow cookers and rice cookers.