Hate Being in the Kitchen? Here’s 8 Tips to Create a Better Cooking Environment
In a world where fast-food and food delivery services have become a go-to on the daily, a home-cooked meal is virtually nonexistent in everyday life. Not only is eating out incredibly unhealthy, but it also comes at a hefty price. By cooking and preparing meals at home in your own kitchen, you or your family will be able to cut your spending down significantly! Although cooking is not always a fun thing to do, here are some ways to make cooking at home more enjoyable for all parties:
Plan Ahead
One of the biggest issues with preparing meals at home is that there are always ingredients missing at home. One of the easiest ways to solve this is to make a meal plan for the week. Decide what meals you are making and what days you will be eating them, and then prepare your grocery list accordingly. This will not only help you be more efficient at home, but it will also help eliminate the aimless wandering and unnecessary purchases at the grocery store!
Be (kind-of) Lazy
Almost everyone has at least one thing that they hate doing in the kitchen. Whether it is peeling potatoes, cutting peppers, or dicing onions, find some way to get that done beforehand. You could get it done when you’re in a good mood or have some free time on the weekend. In addition to this, you can find ways to cut corners and make cooking easier while at the grocery store. Pre-cut vegetables and pre-made sauces are an easy substitution for anything homemade. You can even buy organics to reap the same benefits as anything homemade!
Listen to Podcasts, Music, or Audiobooks
Is there one podcast that you love or are you hooked on a certain audiobook? Start listening to something that you love when you are cooking and eventually your mind will associate the two together. This is a great way to keep your mind occupied while still managing to be productive!
Invest in High-Quality Cookware
Let’s be honest, everyone hates having to do the dishes after cooking, especially when that “non-stick” pan is coated in burnt-on food. To eliminate the hassle after cooking, try investing in some higher quality cookware, like this stainless steel frying pan. You’ll be thankful that it gets clean in one wash compared to three or four!
Meal Prep
One of the biggest reasons that cooking seems like such a hassle is because it takes up a lot of time after already having an exhausting workday. One way to solve this issue is to meal prep. If you simply just don’t have time to cook after work, then set aside a couple of hours on the weekend to prepare meals for the week. You could even divide everything into portions, making it much easier to penny-pinch and avoid overindulging!
Utilize Grocery Delivery/Pick-up Services
As technology grows and develops, there have become more and more ways to make cooking and grocery shopping a lot easier. Consumers are now able to place an entire grocery order right from an app on their phone and have it delivered or picked up for free or a small fee! This eliminates much of the hassle when preparing to cook and gives you the ability to start cooking right away!
Make it a Family Affair
A great way to lighten the hassle of cooking is to get your family involved (and make them do everything that you don’t want to do)! You could split up the work and have your partner do half of the meal, or you could make your kids all have a task. This is not only a great bonding experience all around, but it will give everyone a sense of accomplishment when you all sit down to have a great meal!
Make Fun Meals
Google, and apps like Pinterest, are perfect for finding creative and unique meals to try. Pinterest specifically is great for crockpot meals, one-pot dishes, and easy but scrumptious foods to try! Find something that is appealing and make it! If you like it, print out the recipe and start keeping a binder, that way you will always have recipe staples on hand.
