Cooking More? Make Tasty Meals in Less Time
Have you been spending more time in the kitchen since the pandemic hit? You aren’t alone. In a recent study by Hunter, a food and beverage communication company, 54% of respondents reported cooking more during this time. It looks like the trend will continue with 51% of those respondents saying they’ll keep cooking more at home when the crisis is over.
Tips for Paring Down Your Kitchen Time
While 73% of those surveyed who are cooking more said they were also enjoying it more, that doesn’t necessarily translate into wanting to spend too much additional time in the kitchen. Let’s think about creating meals that are interesting and tasty but prepared in simple, stress-free, and fun ways. Here are some tips:
- Explore updated cooking methods or revisit old ones. Instant Pots are all the rage right now with online recipes galore, but you might have a pressure cooker on the shelf that will do just as well. Ditto for slow cookers and crockpots. Baking sheets and skillets are being rediscovered as great tools for pulling together one-pan meals in no time with minimal cleanup.
- Explore new recipes that stretch your skills and your tastebuds. By now, many of us are getting tired of eating our old stand-by meals so why not give something completely different a whirl? What’s the worst that can happen? There’s always peanut butter and jelly when a meal doesn’t hit the spot.
- Stock your pantry, refrigerator and freezer for versatility. At-home cooks I talked with during the pandemic said they enjoyed the creativity of using what they had on hand to pull together a delicious meal instead of running to the store. Lesson learned. If we think about what we keep in the pantry, we can create endless combinations of food flavors. Instead of going to the grocery store for a missing ingredient, enjoy the challenge of finding an acceptable substitute. See how long a trip to the grocery store can be avoided.
- Plan for the week ahead. I have a love/hate relationship with meal planning, how about you? I do know that when I think ahead, I enjoy much more interesting meals throughout the week and I’m not facing the dreaded question each day, “What do I make for dinner tonight?” For inspiration, type in a few ingredients that are on hand and try an online search for recipes that contain them.
- Give yourself a “Power Hour” to get ready for the week. Set aside up to an hour to chop, dice, slice, and otherwise prepare ingredients for the meals ahead. Chances are, several of your meals will need minced garlic or chopped onions or shredded carrots. Why not do them all at once? Some of my friends say they are lazy cooks and don’t want to do all that chopping. I have found the secret to making my Power Hour something I actually enjoy — I binge watch my favorite series of the moment, guilt-free. So, find your pleasure — sing along to your favorite albums, listen to podcasts or audiobooks, or practice present moment meditation. Indulge in your favorite activity and the week’s prep will be finished in no time!
With the uncertainty that lies ahead, it’s hard to say when dining out will become as commonplace as it once was but why not have fun making restaurant-quality meals at home in less time? If you’d like to learn more about “Creating Great Dinners in 30 minutes or Less” stop by GetSetup to book a group class or a personal session.
