什么时候从商店买的比自制的好?

When is store-bought better than homemade?

什么时候从商店买的比自制的好?

Cooking a meal from scratch can be a truly rewarding experience. It can also make you want to toss up your hands in despair, throw the uncooperative dough in the trash (for the third time) and go get take-out instead. I'm familiar with both of these experiences, and if there's one thing I've learned while cooking, it's that some foods just might not be worth the effort.

从零开始做饭可能是一个真正有益的经验。它还会让你绝望地举起双手，(第三次)把不合作的面团扔进垃圾桶，然后去叫外卖。我对这两种经历都很熟悉，如果说我在烹饪中学到了什么，那就是有些食物可能不值得我去努力。

Cooking from scratch is wonderful — if you have the time, patience and inclination. (Photo: Everett Collection/Shutterstock)

Of course, if your idea of a good time is spending hours in the kitchen kneading, punching down and rolling out dough, go for it! But for those of us who like to eat well but don't have any secret ambitions to end up on a certain British baking show anytime soon, there are some foods that are perfectly acceptable to buy from the experts. From puff pastry to ketchup to chips, here's a few foods that probably aren't worth the hours you'll need to churn them out in your kitchen.

当然，如果你认为在厨房里花几个小时揉面、打下来、擀面是一种享受，那就去做吧!但是对于我们这些喜欢吃得很好的人来说，又不想在短期内参加某个英国烘焙秀，有一些食物是完全可以从专家那里买到的。从酥皮点心到番茄酱再到薯片，下面这些食物可能不值得你花那么多时间在厨房里炮制。

Puff pastry/croissants

泡芙酥皮/起泡面

All those buttery layers require a lot of time, and a lot of work. (Photo: SKopp [CC by SA 3.0]/Wikimedia Commons)

Having watched my fair share of competition baking shows, seeing firsthand how puff pastry is made is both inspiring and exhausting. Similar to phyllo dough, it's a flaky light pastry made from laminated dough. Creating the dough requires not only a chunk of time, but very particular temperatures as well. Stacey Ballis writes in Extra Crispy, "They need everything just right. They are finicky, fussy doughs. They require the perfect atmosphere, lots of time, and you can treat them with kid gloves and they still might fail you."

看了我的公平份额的竞争烘焙节目，亲眼看到如何制作泡芙糕点既鼓舞人心，又令人筋疲力尽。与千层酥皮类似，千层酥皮是一种由层压面团制成的酥皮。制作面团不仅需要大量的时间，而且需要非常特殊的温度。Stacey Ballis在《Extra Crispy》中写道:“他们需要一切恰到好处。他们是挑剔的、吹毛求疵的人。他们需要完美的氛围，大量的时间，你可以小心翼翼地对待他们，但他们仍然可能让你失望。”

Ketchup

番茄酱

If you've got the hours and the patience, by all means, go ahead and make that ketchup from scratch! (Photo: Ralf Beier/Shutterstock)

Though I love the idea of a "locally sourced" ketchup at a trendy burger spot, I must admit, the muddy, strongly spiced sauce that I dunk my fries into is usually a disappointment. Writes Tommy Werner in Epicurious: "At restaurants, nothing makes me run to the Heinz faster than reading 'housemade ketchup.'"

虽然我很喜欢在流行的汉堡店买到“本地出产”的番茄酱，但我必须承认，薯条蘸上的酱汁通常是令人失望的。汤米•维尔纳在《美食家》一书中写道:“在餐馆里，没有什么比阅读《自制番茄酱》更能让我奔向亨氏的了。”

Bagels

百吉饼

Bagels must be boiled to get that shiny crust and chewy texture. (Photo: liz west [CC by 2.0]/Flickr)

Many bagel purists believe you can't beat the bagels out of New York City because of the city's soft water. While it's true that the Big Apple's tap water has lower levels of calcium carbonates and magnesium (hard water makes tough gluten, which begets tough bagels), there are even more tricks to the trade.

许多百吉饼纯粹主义者认为，由于纽约市的软水，你无法将百吉饼赶出纽约市。虽然纽约的自来水的确含有较低水平的碳酸钙和镁(硬水会产生坚硬的面筋，从而产生坚硬的百吉饼)，但这个行业还有更多的窍门。

Marshmallows

棉花糖

Homemade marshmallows are a labor of love — will your cup of cocoa even appreciate them? (Photo: bigacis/Shutterstock)

Marshmallows are magical chemistry. They are also, dare I say it, not exactly necessary — except when it comes to a traditional Thanksgiving sweet potato casserole. Other than that, I'm not sure what would compel me to spend an afternoon with a couple gelatin packets, candy thermometer and a pizza wheel.

棉花糖是神奇的化学物质。我敢说，除了传统的感恩节红薯砂锅之外，它们也不是完全必要的。除此之外，我不知道是什么迫使我花一个下午的时间带着几包明胶、糖果温度计和一个披萨饼。

Chips and crackers

薯片和饼干

The flavor combination of processed chips don't happen by accident — food scientists play a large role in making them taste so irresistible. (Photo: Marco Verch Pro [CC by 2.0]/Flickr)

Crunchy, crispy, heavily seasoned chips are usually not the healthiest snack. Loaded with sodium and fried in oil, they're a lot of labor without the payoff. Even if you wanted to recreate their "can't have just one" addictive flavor profile, you'd probably need a science lab to figure out its exact chemistry.

脆脆的、香脆的、大量调味的薯片通常不是最健康的零食。它们含盐量高，用油煎，是一项没有回报的劳动。即使你想要重现它们“不能只有一种”上瘾的味道，你也可能需要一个科学实验室来找出它的确切化学成分。

Food companies have specifically designed processed foods to be "hyper-palatable," meaning, you'll find it impossible not to eat the whole bag of chips in one sitting. Even Bon Appétit recipe developer Sarah Jampel has written her own love letter to Fritos: "You could substitute your favorite tortilla chips in this soup or fry up your old tortillas on the stovetop. Or, you could accept that Fritos are better than anything you'll concoct at home."

食品公司专门设计了“超级美味”的加工食品，这意味着你不可能不吃一整袋薯片。甚至连“祝你胃口好”的食谱开发者莎拉·詹佩尔也给菲图斯写了一封情书:“你可以把你最喜欢的玉米饼片换成这种汤，或者把你的旧玉米饼放在炉子上炸。或者，你可以接受菲力多比你在家做的任何东西都好吃。”