Elderly Mum and Fray Bentos pie tins....

A question about : Elderly Mum and Fray Bentos pie tins....

Hi all,

My Mum loves Fray Bentos Steak and Kidney pies but has difficulty opening the tins. Sometimes I'm there to help but we're looking for a solution to help her when I'm not around.

Does anyone mind sharing info on what kind of can openers the elderly folk you know use?

We've tried a Magican one that slices the tops off tins (doesn't work)and the normal just cheapo metal one but that is tough to use and tends to miss out bits as well as mangling part of the lid.

I'm just worried she'll cut herself badly one day or give up enjoying the pies.

All advice gratefully received.

Cheers,
Padz

Best answers:

• What about an electric one? I had one after a wrist op meant I couldn't use a manual can spanner and it was ok.
• Or could you open a couple when you're there (or someone else who's capable), and your Mum could wrap them up (clingfilm?) and pop them in the freezer until she wants one?
• They've both pinched my ideas ...
  There are various sorts of electric ones, I believe. Some have a magnet which 'grabs' the top as you take it off, that would be worth it, I think.
  But the freezer option would work well too, leave them in the tin with the lid off, then experiment a bit with how long to put in the oven from frozen. I'd start with an extra 10 minutes on whatever the tin says, but the Old Style people will probably know for sure ...
• Thanks for the ideas folks I'll share them with her later.
• I think the FB tins are just darned hard to open, I am fully fit and capable, but I find the "normal" tin openers, like Magican, just do not work with FB pie tins, no idea why, reckon it is poor design of the tins
  I think it will be trial & error on different design of opener, I have had to resort to the old stab it in type we all used years ago, does not help the pastry though
• There is an electric one called 'one touch' you put it on the tin, press the button and it does it all itself.
  abut Ј14 but well worth it in the long run.
  You can also get chicken pies and mince and onion one,
  They are sold at the Cheapie shops for 99p/ Ј1, pound shops, wilco, home bargains.
  Personally dont like them but each to their own.
• If she doesn't want to cook from frozen, defrost in the fridge overnight
• Totally agree that they have become far too hard to open (a design change from the original)? - but they have become all the rage lately - especially the "just steak" one.
  We and our friends and neighbours are all struggling to open them cleanly - no matter which opener is used. Perhaps we should send a petition to the company?
• Thanks for the replies folks.
  I have also emailed Premier Foods (they make the FB stuff) to highlight the problem and ask what they suggest. I'll post on here when/if I get a reply.
• Our old magican wouldn't open them but a new culinaire magican auto was a breeze last night.
• I live down the road from premier foods who make them. I'll go knock on the door and have a go lol. I have a onetouch tin opener and I dont find it much good to be honest.
• I HAD a one touch tin opener but it ate batteries so it was consigned to the "useless gadget" category.
• I had a Magican opener ... then I dropped it
  Now my can-opener is DH, a neighbour or on one desperate day a kindly delivery driver...
• My dh loves the FB pies and I've always used a Kenwood electric tin opener, I place the pie on the palm of my left hand and then bring the opener down onto it and it spins the pie round on my palm and cuts it cleanly, I think I paid Ј10 for the opener.
• Just an amusing aside:-
  A few years back, my wife began to have trouble opening cans and bottles, and I would frequently be called in to do the task for her.
  She joked that, if I spent a few days away from home, I might return one day to find her dead from starvation on the kitchen floor, surrounded by scattered food cans and jars that she had been unable to open!
• ..she died from pie starvation..
• For all FB pie lovers, Lidl have them at 99p for the next week, so although we may not be able to get into the tin we can at least stock up