Starting to get really Frustrated!

Hello again and welcome to my Soapbox edition of Jamie's 30 Minute Meals!!  I am really starting to get annoyed with these dishes now as I feel I need to cook them by first doing 30 mins of prep (Chop veges, make dressings and get everything ready to cook) and then spend another 30 mins actually cooking and then another 30-40 mins cleaning up!

The frustrating thing is that it doesn't have to be that way.  Last night I cooked the "Super-Fast Beef Hash with Jacket Potatoes, Goddess Salad and Lovely Butter Beans & Bacon".  Now I don't know what Beef Hash is supposed to be, so I can't say if this was "Super Fast" or not, but when I watched him cook it on the TV, his mince was cooked to a crisp and looked quite burnt in places.  Now my mince was cooking for the full 30 minutes and was in no way charcoaled like his!  Hmmm, 30 Minute Meal, I think NOT!

The Beef Hash itself did nothing for me.  Placing raw onion, carrot and celery on top of already cooked mince, meant the carrots were still hard.  In desperation, I added a little water and placed a lid on top of the frypan in an attempt to cook the carrots a little.  It worked, but the dish didn't have the same texture after that.  Also using the food processor to chop up the veg may of saved a little time, but it meant the celery was stringy and not chopped as nice as it would have been had I've done it quickly with the knife!  Flavour, nothing exciting.

The Beans however, different story.  Really yummy and buying some special streaky bacon (or finely sliced Speck) may of made all the difference.  The interesting part was cooking the beans in their own juice as every recipe I have ever read has said to drain and rinse the beans.  But Jamie was right on this one, the flavours are there, so why throw it away.  However, there was no need for the Basil.  I added heaps and you couldn't taste it, nor did it need the taste of Basil. 

Jacket Potato was another real surprise, cooking it in the Microwave and then popping under a hot grill.  Great idea and certainly speeds up the process.  The outside of the potato was brown and crispy but the inside was soft and fluffy.  Amazingly nice.  But then...just throw a dollop of sour cream on top!  What???  I had made the most amazing creamy dressing for the salad which would have been perfect for the potato!

Which brings me to the Salad.  Totally not required.  This meal was real comfort food in my opinion.  Beef Mince, Jacket Potato and Beans, all hot and comforting and I don't believe a salad was necessary. Three elements on the plate is more than enough.  The dressing for the salad consisted of avocado, sour cream, olive oil and lemon juice and was a perfect accompaniment for the potato!  So next time, no Salad, just the dressing thanks.

It saddens me greatly that these meals are working out this way.  I know I am not a slow cook as I have completed Masterchef Challenges in the same time the contestants had and I am starting to watch Jamie's shows really carefully, looking for all the cuts and editing.  I really really love Jamie.  I think the work he does is amazing and I have so much respect for him and this is why it saddens me so that this book does not delivering what it promises.  My fear is that people will buy this book and be disappointed and then not like him or buy any future books or watch any future shows that he produces and I don't want this to happen to someone who is working so hard to make a difference in the world.  I just wish he had normal people testing his recipes before publishing this book.  It seems a little rushed to me.  :-(