Pantry Pods Popping Up in Oldham
15 cookery demo sessions from Cracking Good Food starting on 27th January
Project commencing at The Bread and Butter Hub in Sholver
Practical money-saving cookery skills to support less confident cooks
Starting on January 27th, Cracking Good Food will be running a series of cooking sessions at First Choice Homes Oldham’s The Bread and Butter Thing hubs across Oldham. Funded by Oldham Council, the ‘Pantry Pod’ sessions aim to support TBBT members to make the most of the fresh ingredients in their shopping bags. Using portable kitchen equipment, the Cracking Good Food team set up and demonstrate delicious, nourishing and easy-to-replicate recipes, inspiring people to get involved in cooking and to take away a sample meal to recreate at home.
Kala Mandviwala, CGF Cooking Leader: 'I am so pleased to be supporting TBBT shoppers at Sholver & Moorside Community Centre - the volunteers and customers are always so pleased to try our dishes which incorporate the ingredients from their TBBT shopping bags. We have an enormous amount of fun creating recipes which can be easily replicated at home. It is so satisfying when people are inspired as they taste our creations. It certainly is soul satisfying!'
This partnership with Cracking Good Food is part of an eco-system of support that TBBT aims to create for each of its hubs, connecting members with partners who provide guidance from fuel and energy advice to employment assistance to mental health support. And now cooking!
Whilst almost 75% of TBBT members describe themselves as relatively confident cooks, there is always a surprise element to TBBT’s bags which differ daily depending on the food available. Each session, Cracking Good Food will be challenged to create recipes with new ingredients, providing ideas and inspiration for foods that people might not have used previously – such as kale, asparagus and celeriac – or offering fresh ideas for staples such as apples and potatoes.
The Pantry Pod team will cook up three or four different recipes, all based on the contents of that week’s bags, which are then written up with clear instructions for members to take home and recreate for their families, as well as being circulated on partners and members’ social media platforms.
Mark Game, TBBT CEO said: “Using TBBT, our members often encounter some foods for the first time – food they wouldn’t normally buy in a supermarket either because it is unknown or unaffordable. Working with Cracking Good Food will empower our members to cook up a storm in the kitchen with new ingredients and flavours, diversifying diets and enabling families to eat healthily and happily. The Pantry Pods also offer our less ‘cooking confident’ members the chance to pick up new skills and knowledge while they pick up their shopping.”
Dave Brereton, Community Impact Manager at First Choice Homes Oldham said: “We’ve already had great feedback from the pilot session we ran in December, with our customers telling us how much they enjoyed the food and experimenting with their TBBT bags. We’re looking forward to expanding this work at our hubs in the coming weeks.”